Chopin's Berceuse

[ahmedito]

I have just come back from an important audition, I did well and was accepted by the teacher I auditioned for. All the examiners, when asked about the biggest defects in my preformance (beethovens op.90 sonata, Chopins Fantasie- Polonaise  and Debussy's octave etude) told me the same thing, heavy touch, heavy arms, heavy thumb, clumsy fingers. So, after coming back with my current teacher I started working on a new repertoire. I start lasses over there in about 4 or 5 months, so Ive decided to try to work on my most severe technique problems.

My teacher and I, overjoyed at having been accepted, have started working on 4 scarlatti sonatas, Rachmaninoff's etude op.33 4 and 5 and Chopins Berceuse.
I never realized my severe technical handicap was so severe until I started working on Chopin... anyone have any suggestions on pulling off this piece in a smooth, light flowing manner??? please?

[Pianist03]

Hello!  This shall be my first post on this forum...hopefully, I can be of assistance.
  After just completing my freshman year at college, I played the Chopin Berceuse for my jury at the end of the semester.
  The most advice I can give to you is that basically, it's a right hand piece.  The left hand astinato just repeats itself with a few minor changes.  Pedealing is very important, as you should try not to blur anything together.
 In trying to understand it's nature, this is my interpretation of it:  Its simple melody begins, and it gets more elaborate as the piece progresses..(i think after the right hand quarternote trill).  You can tell where the melody is, and voicing is extremely important.  The hardest part for me was the two measures of the chromatic thirds...and my teacher/artist in residence stressed topping the thirds..and also when the thirds come down as well.

 Hopefully this helps somewhat.  It's translation is "cradle-song" so think of a baby trying to drift off to sleep.  Yet I was guilty of 'stretching' as I would take rubatos at each new phrase   ..nevertheless, try to be as legato as possible and it should work out...

[ahmedito]

I hope this is not a pretentious thing to say, thanx for the advice, but my biggest problems are in the technical part, not interpretative.... I just cant play fast, piano and light and legato all at the same time, I tense up my fingers. Im looking for some sort of excercise to help with this problem. All that you say is true and it WILL help me.... my biggest problem is with the chromatic downward thirds repetitions, the finger changing is all clumsy....

[eViLben]

i keep play it for one year now, and there were three tricky parts for me at the begining : the ascending chromatic scale,  the part with the chords of 3 notes, and the last "virtuositic" passage, just before the sostenuto indication.
i found a solution to play it always leggiero & piano/pianissimo/ssissimo. : practice it VERY loudly and very slowly. Using a metronome must be usefull too : start with a black at 40, and go up progressivly ONLY IF YOUR PLAYING IS PERFECT at the precedent tempo. don't care of the rubato at first. as soon as your fingers "got it", you will play it naturally leggiero & piano.
You also can try to master it at black=110 or 120, then you'll be at ease at a slower tempo.

hope this helps

Ben

[rainmaker]

hi, i played it at my audition at curtis two years ago, but it was definitely a wrong choice! anyway, i don't know if you have practiced in ff all the way down. if not try that, really slow, many times. if it doesn't work it means that the piece doesn't fit at your hands yet. now, if you are old enough,........!
 probably you have started to study it in a wrong way, its normal though, it a really hard piece by any mean. i had a hard time too working on berceuse!
i think you should get full concentration everytime you study it and i don't think there is a possibility of not making it!what the hell, it's just a meditation.
 wish you the best!