I checked my score, just in case, but my gut told me it is never the same. I was right. The first time, in bar 100, the right hand plays a Db-Ab-Db chord, and the Ab remains in the next two bars. In the second instance, bar 233, a Gb is added, putting more emphasis on the b7 in the chord and changing its character, and the third instance the theme is extended going into the coda. If this isn't what you have, you should consider purchasing the Paderewski edition. Harmonically, the forward motion into the following section gains more strength with each repetition of the idea.@McDiddy: There are no tempo changes in this score anywhere, regardless of what may be performance practice. Make sure that the dotted half remains the same length throughout the piece. It would be best to go with thinkgreen's answer. It makes the most sense, considering that Jung (or was it Freud?) chose the same word to represent the feminine spirit inside men. Also, to animate is "to bring to life." Therefore, if we consider etymology, it's best to consider anima as spirit or soul rather than faster.
well i guess its better that this section is slightly different each time its repeats, but if the left hand changes its gonna be hell, does it?
mcdiddy: I'm sorry that I don't have an answer to your question, but I can get one eventually. I'm at home on break and don't have access to my teacher. I merely forward the advice of a pianist who studied under Adele Marcus, Herbert Stessin, Nelita True, and Thomas Schumacher, and who completed her B.M., M.M., and D.M.A. at Juilliard. I also happen to agree with her musical tastes and very much enjoy her playing. There is no right or wrong answer. However, I firmly state that con anima is not a tempo marking.gn622: The left hand notes remain the same. Also, there is no slow section. There are simply less notes in it. I believe Artur Rubinstein's recording demonstrates this.
That's a shame because I like to play from the most historical correct editions rather than editors who tend to take liberties in notating the music which is French contradictory to the composer's intent. If con anima is not a tempo marking, what is it? How do you play in a spirited manner without changing the tempo at all. I very much doubt Chopin,s intention was to create a scherzo which is supposes to be menacing and full of emotion to be played with a specific rigid tempo. Of course it is an expressive mark and deciding to be change the tempo or not is an intperative decision. However historically and stylistically I think the music favors slight modicifications in tempo.
I'm confused as to why this is such an issue for you. Do you know something about the Paderewski edition that I don't? I apologize that I respect the advice of my professor, but she has proven to me that she knows what she's doing. And would you please post a recording where someone plays faster at the con anima section? There is a poco ritenuto marking two bars before it, but most recordings I know carry over the same tempo from the beginning to the con anima section. And if con anima were a tempo marking, why not write piu mosso? Or accelerando? Chopin's already indicated the piece should be played presto, and he's made it "faster" by putting more attacks per measure. Why would this section need to be even faster? I would argue that "spirit" could have as much to do with dymanics and articulation as it does with tempo, and as a good pianist shouldn't one have more than an increase in tempo at his/her disposal to provoke more excitement and passion in a passage?
gn622: The left hand notes remain the same. Also, there is no slow section. There are simply less notes in it. I believe Artur Rubinstein's recording demonstrates this.
thank you so much, this will really help me a lot btw, is the middle section harder or easier than the first?
Harder. My advice is not to bother with the rolled chords at 553. Well, I only roll the left hand chord in 554 throughout, the others I play together. It's enough to create the illusion that they're rolled at the proper tempo. It's a bear of a passage, and if you try and roll them you will probably lose tempo, especially since you're doing this on the side and I assume you have a less-developed technique (my apologies if I'm wrong!). There's really very little that's challenging technically in the scherzo, but the trio has some tricky parts in it. The coda is quite difficult too. Have fun with it. I first worked on this my freshman year, and I could not get it up to tempo, but three years later I'm a senior and it's audition-worthy, so don't get discouraged.