Chopin and the Character Piece: Nocturnes, Preludes, and Ballades
“Chopin and the Character Piece: Nocturnes, Preludes, and Ballades.”
The transition into the Romantic era of music saw the development of many new characteristics. For the most part, the music evolved from established forms, genres, and musical ideas, but there was more emphasis on expression. Harmonic language established by Mozart and Haydn was coloured with dissonances, and bolder chord changes. Emphasis shifted from the ideals of Mozart’s consonance and order, to the expression and increased ambiguity of Beethoven. As the focus changed to composing music for the sake of expression, new genres appeared, one of which is know as the Character Piece. Translated from the German, Charakterstück, the name is usually used to describe a piece of music for piano that sets out to evoke emotion, based on a single idea. The character piece is very specific in that it is based only on one idea and is often titled as such. Chopin, wrote many of character pieces. He was a master of the character piece and showcased his skill with a few different genres. The three main styles he wrote were Nocturnes, Preludes, and Ballades
The Nocturne, which comes from the French nocturnal, pertaining to or evocative of the night, is a musical genre that expresses that influence. Although Chopin was the most prominent composer of Nocturnes, he was not the originator of this genre. “Hitherto Field’s role as the inventor of the genre has been largely unquestioned, and it has been assumed that Chopin simply inherited a well-established formula; but the early history of the nocturne is more complex than it might first appear.” By the end of the eighteenth century, the keyboard style that is normally associated with the genre had already been established. So when Field published his 1st Nocturne in 1812, it was nothing new. He then followed this nocturne up with a few other similar works, which ultimately led to the nocturnes of Chopin. Although Chopin’s nocturnes were influenced by Field’s,
The transition into the Romantic era of music saw the development of many new characteristics. For the most part, the music evolved from established forms, genres, and musical ideas, but there was more emphasis on expression. Harmonic language established by Mozart and Haydn was coloured with dissonances, and bolder chord changes. Emphasis shifted from the ideals of Mozart’s consonance and order, to the expression and increased ambiguity of Beethoven. As the focus changed to composing music for the sake of expression, new genres appeared, one of which is know as the Character Piece. Translated from the German, Charakterstück, the name is usually used to describe a piece of music for piano that sets out to evoke emotion, based on a single idea. The character piece is very specific in that it is based only on one idea and is often titled as such. Chopin, wrote many of character pieces. He was a master of the character piece and showcased his skill with a few different genres. The three main styles he wrote were Nocturnes, Preludes, and Ballades
The Nocturne, which comes from the French nocturnal, pertaining to or evocative of the night, is a musical genre that expresses that influence. Although Chopin was the most prominent composer of Nocturnes, he was not the originator of this genre. “Hitherto Field’s role as the inventor of the genre has been largely unquestioned, and it has been assumed that Chopin simply inherited a well-established formula; but the early history of the nocturne is more complex than it might first appear.” By the end of the eighteenth century, the keyboard style that is normally associated with the genre had already been established. So when Field published his 1st Nocturne in 1812, it was nothing new. He then followed this nocturne up with a few other similar works, which ultimately led to the nocturnes of Chopin. Although Chopin’s nocturnes were influenced by Field’s,
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