Chopin, Nocturne in B Major, Op. 9 No. 3 Last week we featured a nocturne by John Field, who is credited as the inventor or originator of the genre. Field had considered other potential labels for his emotional and highly expressive style of writing, but … Read more

Field, Nocturne No. 5 in B-flat Major The nocturne is a type of character piece developed primarily by Irish composer John Field (1782-1837). Field’s works had a significant influence on Chopin, the composer perhaps most closely associated with the nocturne. The name denotes night, and … Read more

Chopin, Barcarolle Barcarolles or boat songs were folk songs traditionally sung by Venetian gondoliers. They became particularly popular in the early 19th century and influenced the character of opera arias. Some composers even turned them into purely instrumental character pieces for the piano or other … Read more

Schumann, Kinderszenen, Op. 15 Schumann’s Kinderszenen (Scenes from Childhood) consists of 13 short character pieces. Because they are not especially demanding technically, you might assume they were written for children to play or for young audiences. And actually, they attracted me at a young age … Read more

Chopin, Mazurka in B Minor, Op. 33, No. 4 The mazurka is a Polish folk dance derived from two older dance forms, the Kujawiak and Oberek. In the Kujawiak, dancers walked to a slow tempo making graceful turns. In contrast, the Oberek is much faster, … Read more