Ballade No. 4 (Chopin)
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The Ballade No. 4 in F minor, Op. 52 is the fourth of Polish composer Frédéric Chopin's ballades for solo piano. It was composed in 1842 in Paris, France and Nohant, France and revised in 1843. This work was dedicated to the wife of Baron Nathaniel de Rothschild, who had invited Chopin to play in her Parisian estate and introduced him to the aristocracy and nobility.[1]
The Fourth Ballade is considered by many to be the most musically intense and technically demanding of the four Ballades.
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[edit] Form
This ballade, like the other three ballades, is set in compound duple time.
[edit] Structure
A phrase, marked piano, in the dominant key opens the seven introductory measures, and leads into the first subject of Sonata-form exposition, a melody with Slavonic coloration. The first subject undergoes four cumulative transformations, inclusive of decorations, intense countermelodies (which lead into the second subject, a lilting chordal passage), counterpoint and a nocturne-like fioritura.[2]
The development of the second subject in between and after the appearances of the first subject and its transformations heighten the complexity of the musical structure and builds tension, which lead into a turbulent stretto section. After a momentary calm of 5 pianissimo chords, the music leads into a bravura Coda, which is characterised by intensive polyphony (which makes the music seem as if two to three voices are playing simultaneously) and technical severity.
Chopin has demonstrated that, in the simultaneous development of these two subjects, he has effectively synthesized a new genre which combines the use of sonata form and theme and variations.[3] It is said that this interwoven development of subjects in the Ballade represents the synthesis of stylistic characters and is a refinement on contemporary improvisation in Chopin's time.[4]
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Ballade No. 4 Performed by Donald Betts. Courtesy of Musopen Ballade no. 4 Performed by Ralph Hokenson - Problems playing the files? See media help.
[edit] Scale
As a result of the large scale of this work and its complexity of form, coupled with the fact there are large developmental passages, there is a tendency for this work to be played with an episodic quality, lacking sense of structure and direction, as compared to the other ballades.[5][6]
The Fourth Ballade is also widely considered to be the longest of the four ballades, the first coming in second in length. A typical performance can last anywhere between 9 minutes and 30 seconds (e.g. Alfred Cortot) to 12 minutes (e.g. Ivan Moravec).
[edit] Comparison to Other Ballades
The Ballades are all unified in their use of compound duple time, with the only exception being the First ballade, which begins and ends in 4/4 timing. The ballades may have been inspired by a reading of Adam Mickiewicz's poems. Rather than a musical paraphrase of selections of text from these poems, Chopin's ballades reflect the common spirit of patriotism towards Poland which he and Mickiewicz shared and cherished.[7]
The distinguishing features of the Fourth Ballade are that the Fourth is more subtle and contrapuntal in nature. The Fourth has fewer outbursts than the other three ballades, and most of its volume occurs in the last part of the piece, as the coda nears. The contrapuntal qualities found so abundantly in the Fourth appear rarely in the first three. [8]
[edit] Trivia
- John Ogdon once said of the Fourth Ballade: "[It] is the most exalted, intense and sublimely powerful of all Chopin's compositions... It is unbelievable that it lasts only twelve minutes, for it contains the experience of a lifetime." [9]
- According to Robert Schumann, the writing of the Fourth Ballade was inspired by a reading of Adam Mickiewicz' poem "The Three Budrys."
- This piece can be heard quietly playing in The Bourne Supremacy while Matt Damon's character investigates the hotel of the murdered Russian man.
[edit] The Three Budrys
The Three Budrys is a poem by Adam Mickiewicz which tells a story of three brothers being sent away by their father to far and distant lands in search of priceless treasures. Autumn passes, then winter. The father thinks that his sons have perished at war.
Amidst whirling snow-storms, however, each one manages to return; and all bring back but a single trophy from their odyssey - a Polish bride.[10]
[edit] Recordings
- Free Recording, Piano Society
- Video Recording: Part 1 Part 2, Youtube.
[edit] External links
- Ballade No. 4 in F minor was available at the International Music Score Library Project.
[edit] Notes
- ^ Chopin: Complete Music Analysis
- ^ Chopin: Profile of his Music: Extended Forms: Ballades, Scherzos and Fantasies
- ^ How to Play Chopin: Chopin's Ballades, Prof. Regina Smendzianka
- ^ Chopin: Profile of his Music: Extended Forms: Ballades, Scherzos and Fantasies
- ^ Michael Young, Richard Markham, The Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music
- ^ Ivan Moravec/Chopin Synopses
- ^ Foreword, The Ballads of Chopin, Salabert Editions
- ^ Ballade No. 4, The Ballads of Chopin, Salabert Editions
- ^ Chopin Music: Ballades
- ^ Foreword, The Ballads of Chopin, Salabert Editions. An version of the poem can be found here
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