Choosing btw Chopin Etudes

[cloches_de_geneve]

I have played 5 Chopin Etudes so far and learning them has taken an inordinate amount of time.
(op. 10/2, op. 10/8, op. 25/1, op. 25/8, op. 25/9). Thus, I decided to pick just 2 additional ones. But which ones? I thought maybe op 10/11 and op 25/12, but in making my final decision I would  like to draw on the experience of others. To ask a bit more specifically: If the criteria of selection were "fun to play" and "great for (general) technique" which 2 of the remaining 19 etudes would you pick?

[zheer]

I love the chopin Etudes, these are the ones which am working on and thinking of performing in a UNI recital  in the future.


 0p.10 no1 / op10 no6/ op10 no8/ op10 no9/ op10 no12/ op 25 no1/ op 25 no 2 / op25 no 3/ op 25 no4/ op25 no 9 / op 25 no 11 / op25 no 12.

   In my opinion these are the less difficult ones. So you might want to choose 2 from this list. I play these every morning.

[etudes]

: If the criteria of selection were "fun to play" and "great for (general) technique" which 2 of the remaining 19 etudes would you pick?

Op.10 no.1,Op.25 no.4

or op.25 no.6 8 10

[sharon_f]

Op. 10, No. 1 and Op. 25, No.6.

[zheer]

or op.25 no.6 8 10

      

[mike_lang]

.

[chopinfan_22]

I plan on learning all the Chopin Etudes eventually... probably as I go through college and work on my Music Degree. As far as the two that sound most fun... The ocean etude, which you are considering, is one of my favorites. I'm thinking about learning this for the study in arpeggios. Other than that one, there's always my favorite Op. 25 No. 11. Despite what people may think (not everyone's opinion, just what some have told me), I consider it both technically rewarding, as well as musically, and it's always an impressive piece to play.

[henrah]

Is the ocean etude the one with all the glissandos, or am I mistaken? Winter Wind is a wonderful piece, and I hope too to be able to play it some day. Maybe I'll take a peep at it later on this week and see what my mind thinks.
Henrah

[chopinfan_22]

The ocean etude is the last etude of Op. 25. It has arpeggios in both hands in contrasting chords. The arpeggios in changing chords along with the overall mood of the piece creates the image of ocean waves crashing against the shore. At least... that's what I think.

[xamy]

Is the ocean etude the one with all the glissandos, or am I mistaken? Winter Wind is a wonderful piece, and I hope too to be able to play it some day. Maybe I'll take a peep at it later on this week and see what my mind thinks.
Henrah

I am a week ahead of you! I had a peep at it and found it to be very difficult. It's a great piece, I would love to play it one day. I can only manage the first 4 bars.  The left hand is reasonably easy but to get the right hand up to speed would take me ages though it does seem to fit under the hand quite nicely.

Good luck though, hope you can play it! 

[richy321]

Opus 25/ no. 12 has no glissandos (none of the etudes have any such thing), but it and Opus 10/no. 1 are such pillars of the entire sets that it would be a shame if you did not take them on.  I highly recommend them above all others.

[kriskicksass]

I don't have any personal experience with 10/1 or 25/12, so all I'm doing here is repeating what my teacher said. He says that those are the last two etudes to learn because they are so heroic and grand that a student is tempted to just plow through them without really learning anything. (Just from having read through them I'm going to agree. It seems to me that with their decpetively simple-seeming passagework these etudes ask the student to fly through without really building any new technique. I don't know how knowing the other etudes is supposed to fix that though.)

That being said, I'm gonna put in another vote for 10/4. It gives a great workout to both hands and it's musically fun too.

[henrah]

Was listening to 10/9 last night and started looking at/practicing it this morning, and it's my favourite etude for the moment. Such a wonderful sound, but very hard to play cartwheeling. Was just talking with my dad about it (he listened in on me play, cheeky bugger ) and he was mentioning bouncing between the lower and higher notes in the left hand, effectively splitting it up into 2sections, rather than cartwheeling it. This will allow greater control over dynamics and such, so I will give it a go. Also it won't give my left forearm/wrist a sharp electric jolt
Henrah

[BoliverAllmon]

10/4 and winter wind.

[richy321]

I don't have any personal experience with 10/1 or 25/12, so all I'm doing here is repeating what my teacher said. He says that those are the last two etudes to learn because they are so heroic and grand that a student is tempted to just plow through them without really learning anything. (Just from having read through them I'm going to agree. It seems to me that with their decpetively simple-seeming passagework these etudes ask the student to fly through without really building any new technique.


Deceptively simple?  Anyone who finds these pieces technically simple from the get-go, is an entirely different kind of being, namely, a prodigy and you don't need to be concerned with building technique.   Not being physically gifted, I found them extremely difficult, nearly impossible to play in the beginning, especially the C Major.  However, by using my mental abilities and much hard work, I was able to play these pieces quite easily.  Granted that I still need to perfect my playing of these pieces, if that isn't developing technique, what is?  I just don't see how you can fake your way through these pieces, unless you are unable to hear accurately.  I maintain that it is possible to build amazing techique with these pieces if you go about it the right way.  That's the key.

Rich Y 

[phil13]

My advice is to add a slow etude to the ones you have.

Learn 25-2 (F minor, very fast, deceptively difficult to get the polyrhythms right)
and also 25-7 (C# minor, very slow, more a 'musical' etude than a technical one)

Having never played 25-2, only tinkered with 25-7, and only actually learning 25-1, my advice is probably moot. But I could be right.

Phil

[liszt1022]

Do the Godowsky studies on the Chopin etudes you've learned. It'd be awesome.

[Kassaa]

First two pages of 10/8 are fun . After that it gets more difficult though.

[pianowelsh]

op10/8 is in my view one of the most 'tight rope' etudes there is no where to hide and if you come off - you come off properly!

[gyzzzmo]

As already said, the chopin etudes are more focussed on particulary techniques. So you better take one of the Liszt etudes instead. If you have to choose one of the chopin ones, to my opion op 25/11 requires most.

25/12, the ocean etude, and 10/2 are the most fun to play.