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Topic: How to play the tuplets (septuplets etc) in 4th Ballad Chopin  (Read 5437 times)

Offline confuter

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Hi, I was wondering if anyone knows how I could practice playing the tuplets in the fourth ballade of Chopin starting from measure 152 (page 10 on the sheets from this website). Triplets are not the problem, but the septuplets, octuplets ? and those tuplets that consist of ten (honestly don't know the word for that) are. Is there a good way of learning to play those?

And is a sextuplet simply two triplets or should it be played differently?

And from the 158th measure the triplets suddenly don't have a '3' written below them anymore, are they still triplets? It appers so, but the 161th measure made me uncertain because there they have 1 triplet written with the '3' again, or is that just because the notes before those aren't a triplet?
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Offline mussels_with_nutella

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Re: How to play the tuplets (septuplets etc) in 4th Ballad Chopin
Reply #1 on: December 24, 2010, 03:53:07 PM
Confuter, I am right now beginning to play the first Debussy's arabesque, and I must say tuplets are a really challenge when the melody notes doesn't fit at all with the accompanigment. Yet it took me long hours to play the first two bars with tuplets, I realized that the trick is learning first to play the accompanigment very well and the tuplets (that's important) and then add the melody line, an usually easier step. I hope it can helps you as it helped me to boost your learning in that chopin's piece! don't get stuck, be water my friend!
Learning:
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Offline confuter

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Re: How to play the tuplets (septuplets etc) in 4th Ballad Chopin
Reply #2 on: December 25, 2010, 12:14:59 AM
Thank you for your reply. I have played Debussy's Arabesques as well! My teacher used to say to me with that piece: Don't think, just play! And maybe the same goes for Chopin? I will try what you said, but do you also know a technique that will learn me to ignore my left hand and just stubbornly play my right hand on top of it? Because that is mostly the issue here, my right hand converts to the 'logic' left hand.

Offline stevebob

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Re: How to play the tuplets (septuplets etc) in 4th Ballad Chopin
Reply #3 on: December 26, 2010, 02:28:07 AM
confuter, there has been frequent discussion of how to prepare and execute such figure.  I recommend you search on "polyrhythm" and read some of those past threads.  Chopin's Fantaisie-Impromptu is the usual suspect, but the information is broadly applicable.
What passes you ain't for you.

Offline confuter

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Re: How to play the tuplets (septuplets etc) in 4th Ballad Chopin
Reply #4 on: December 27, 2010, 11:43:24 AM
Oke thank you, I've been searching for the wrong keywords I guess ;)
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