HELP! On Ballade in G minor Op.23 No.1

[road2pianist]

- How many times do I trill on the left-handed?
- How to play 5 against 6 ?

I have attached the picture on which bar I'm taking about.

[chopinlover01]

Another G minor ballade player! You and I are in the same boat 
Essentially, you play it somewhat freely if I understand correctly.
I'll add more later, have to go now.
Good luck with your studies!

[mjames]

Something tells me that someone's not ready....!  

[cbreemer]

I would not obsess with these details to start with.
As for the trills, try playing 32ths and see how that feels/sounds.
As for the 5-against-6, I think it's ok to play the first two rh chords as 2-against-three and the last 3 RH chords in syc with the LH. I think this is what many pianists do anyway. You can always refine that later.

[jlskiles]

you really have to experiment with it to find something that you like, but also something that professionals would appreciate.

[chopinlover01]

For the trill, you should already know how to trill and how many notes you need if you're attempting this piece. You shouldn't have to exactly measure it; it's just long enough to express the musical idea, but no shorter or longer.

[monelle]

Kudos to those who offered words of help and encouragement, and shame on those who made self-aggrandizing comments like "you're not ready" or "you should already know."  What kind of response is that to someone who makes themselves vulnerable by reaching out for help?  Barring an education in Indian classical music, I'm with jlskiles ... practice it until it sounds good!

[jlskiles]

when in doubt just rubato the crap out of it and you'll start to get some idea

[michael_sayers]

- How many times do I trill on the left-handed?
- How to play 5 against 6 ?

I have attached the picture on which bar I'm taking about.

Hi road2pianist,

That l.h. trill is a free trill without a set quantity of repetitions.

For the 5 vs. 6, first work on 5 vs. 3 . . .

Best of luck with it!


Mvh,
Michael

[sashaco]

The trill is free but it's hard to practice that at slow speeds for learning.  Pick a set number of notes per that will be MORE than you will do when you do it free, so that when you do it at full speed with a free trill it feels easy and relaxed.

Write out the 6 v 5.  Thirty equal marks on a paper with a big color tick every 5 for the six notes and every six for the five in another color.  Practice it like that slowly.  One day, nobody can tell you when,  you'll be able to hear the five and the six individually and accurately.  There's no rush because it will be months or years before you can play the whole piece anyway.  If you add rubato later it will sound more convincing if there is a genuine 6 v 5 underlying it.

The mistake in both the trill and the polyrhythm is trying to do it up to speed too soon.  Again, you have tons of other stuff to learn, so let them emerge naturally.
 
Ciao, Sasha

[mjames]

Kudos to those who offered words of help and encouragement, and shame on those who made self-aggrandizing comments like "you're not ready" or "you should already know."  What kind of response is that to someone who makes themselves vulnerable by reaching out for help?  Barring an education in Indian classical music, I'm with jlskiles ... practice it until it sounds good!

Should've responded to this earlier, but eh what the heck. I've been playing for almost 3 years and I easily knew what to with the score OP provided. I'd expect a player at the level of tackling this ballade (something I'm years and year away from achieving) to know something as simple as this. No offense, but there was some merit to my comment. If this is your first time encountering something like this, then maybe you shouldn't start with the ballade as an example? Just a thought.

[themeandvariation]

Hi road2pianist.
With re to the 5 against 6, the right hand is just lilting/slightly lagging   behind the left hand.. The intention, i believe,  is more 'poetic' than mathematical..  kind of how one might 'rubato' the rh while the left stays steady…With this approach, most students tend to get it quite quickly… (I would have to respectfully disagree with with cbreemer's idea that the last 2 notes of each hand can/(should) be played together, as this obfuscates the effect that I believe Chopin was intending…This idea of 'lingering'.. Give it a try!

[chopinlover01]

Self aggrandizing? We're not trying to explain how much better we are by saying that (I actually attempted this ballade, thought it was easy, and was quickly humbled by the piece, instead opting for the A flat major ballade, at the advice of my teacher).
Yes, as mjames said, if you've been playing long enough to have the technical skills to play this piece well, you should know what to do with these passages basically right off the bat. The 5 against 6 is something you might have to think about for a little bit, but it shouldn't be that much trouble honestly.

[maxy]

- How many times do I trill on the left-handed?

I don't know about you but I play a total of 12 notes including the notes already written out (basically 4 against one).

- How to play 5 against 6 ?

Is that even necessary? Suppose you play the grace notes of next beat before the beat, suddenly it's 6 against 6... To make it less "straight", you could just delay slightly the last one.

If you want the grace notes on the beat, you could convert de 5 group in a 3+2...

There are other options, it's up to you! Find what you like and enjoy!

[gustaaavo]

Around 52:40 Ohlsson talks about a similar polirythm (7 vs. 6 in this case).

[dogperson]

Around 52:40 Ohlsson talks about a similar polirythm (7 vs. 6 in this case).

Thanks so much for posting this interview.. The entire interview is very instructive !!