Mastering Chopin's Nocturnes

Chopin is one of my favorite composers. In my opinion, He represents the peak of the Romantic Era and I find myself listening to his pieces for hours on end. I have played many different pieces of his, but the pieces I find most captivating are his Nocturnes. He has 21 nocturnes and they are all amazing. I learned how to play two of them: Nocturne in E Minor and Nocturne in C minor. Chopin uses the minor keys to convey a dark and heavy mood. While the pieces may start off slow, they can be incredibly difficult technically in many places. However, I feel that the most important part about Chopin pieces is the emotion that they need to be played with. If played correctly, his Nocturnes can silence audiences and awe them.

One of the ways this is accomplished is through a concept called rubato. It is something unique to the Romantic period. Rubato is short for Tempo Rubato which means stolen time in Italian. The term entails rhythmic freedom and expression. So, in contrast to Mozart and Bach with very strict rhythm, Chopin used rubato to be make his pieces more expressive and sensitive. Usually, it is used to speed up the first part of a measure and then slow down in the second half. This makes the piece more dramatic. While the Nocturnes are technically very tough, the mastery of rubato can take even longer and it is important that it be used sparingly.

Chopin's Nocturne Op. 48, No. 1 in C minor is truly one of his most underrated ballads of all times - it shows everything about Chopin's developing ideas for his Nocturnes, with a well-thought out storyline and a beautiful melody and atmosphere for the song - a perfect masterpiece. Here's a video of me practicing this ballad: