All-Chopin repertoire

[alice_park]

I am an amateur pianist and has a wide playlist of Chopin's works. I want to study more of his works and wanted to come up with an all-chopin repertoire. If I can rate my skill level, I know I can manage Up to level 8 piece (if it meant 8/10).
For now, I only have Waltz Op. 64, No 2 and Ballade No. 1 in G minor. What else could I put here? I want pieces like those I have mentioned. I also want moving, some popular, or maybe fast and relaxing pieces.

[adodd81802]

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[alice_park]

I plan on making a repertoire containing one of each genre. I am just asking for opinions from fellow pianists

[jimroof]

Try adding either the 2nd or 3rd Scherzo.  The 2nd is easier than the 3rd Scherzo and both are less difficult than the Gm Ballade.  BTW, if your rendition of the First Ballade was 'standard' tempo and played cleanly then you will have no trouble with either of the 2 Scherzos I mentioned. 

Pick up a couple of nocturnes and see which you like.  I would not bother with just one Prelude.  If you go there you should probably learn at least 3. 

For a very beautiful shorter piece, Opus 10, 3 is simply gorgeous as a stand alone piece (not just an etude, per se).

If you want to add another Ballade, the Fm is likely out of reach for now, so the F major or Ab major are both very fine works that are both, based upon your ability to master the first, well within grasp.

[chopinlover01]

In addition, I'd do an entire opus of Chopin mazurkas (typically 3-5 mazurkas in an opus). They're the pinnacle of Chopin's style, and have low technical demands, allowing you to focus purely on music making.

[symphonicdance]

Does OL actually mean to structure and play an all Chopin programme?

Ballade No. 1 Op. 23 (OP already familiar)
Waltz Op. 64 No. 2 (OP already familiar)
Etude (Op. 25 Nos. 1 & 2 (easier), Op. 10 Nos. 3 & 12 (popular))
Impromptu (choice of Nos. 1-3 & Fantaisie-Impromptu; no.1 is easier)
Nocturne (Op 9. No. 2 is the easiest and the most popular)
Scherzo (I view that No. 3 is easier than No. 2)
Polonaise (choice of Nos. 1-6 plus Andante spianato et Grande Polonaise & Polonaise-Fantaisie; No. 3 is the easiest and amongst one of the most popular)
Mazurka (a large pool to choose from)
Others (choice(s) of Fantasy / Barcarolle / Berceuse / Tarantella / Bolero / Variation, Rondo, etc. depending on the choices of other works and OP's skill level)

Good luck!

[alice_park]

Thanks for your suggestions!
I plan on starting on the Military Polonaise very soon as it has what I want in a piece.

Looking through the preludes, I might go for D flat major, I don't know what else to mix it with

[visitor]

I also want moving, some popular,...relaxing pieces.

this ticks 3 boxes. Lovely work. Listening to it in full now myself

[visitor]

makes for a super cool 'encore' if you throw all freddy up on stage....[i tend to also sprinkle in music that is very close/similar due to inspiration by his style, but plays on other popular themes.] This is a pretty little diddy I read through on occassion, i have it on my music stand under a stack of other things that just happened to strike my fancy more at the time but i plan to dig this out again no later than mid 2016. It's not very difficult to read through but getting that right "Chopin" sound is tough, you gotta have a pretty good feel for how to play w/ tempo, ie good rubato but also where to let some of the biting dissonances poke out a bit more and when to let them blend into overall texture....

[alice_park]

this ticks 3 boxes. Lovely work. Listening to it in full now myself

Just listened to this one a while ago, and indeed, this really fits the criteria of what I am looking for

I also plan to mix on my repertoire certain fast paced pieces and those kinds of relaxing ones to balance the whole performance

[trollbuster]

what a total crock of sh!t

c'mon are you guys buying this?  really? seriously?   

gimmie a break.

[adodd81802]

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[mjames]

Lol I partially agree with this, and I feel I had very subtly called it out in my 1st response to the OP.

It would seem strange that somebody could put in the time and effort to learn the ballad with no comprehension of other works by Chopin.

And to have only 1 waltz and then BOOM - Ballad. Hmm.

Yeah I kind of had to go through several waltzes and mazurkas just to get to the op. 64...

Well you know it's not impossible, some people might not get interested in chopin until they get to a really high level!

[bachopiev]

Personally, I think it is entirely feasible to learn a Ballade with only a waltz under your belt. Personally, I learned Chopin's ballade no 1 having only learned the Waltz No. 1,3,7; Nocturne in C# posthumous, and three opuses of mazurkas. This being said, I do not understand why one can not tackle a Ballade after having learned only a waltz.

@OP: In response to your question for a good all-Chopin program (60-min recital, perhaps) I'd suggest the following.

Ballade No. 2 (this is considered by some to be the second hardest ballade, after Ballade no 4. Obviously Ballade no 3 is easiest, but it seems that there is considerable debate regarding if Ballade No 1 or Ballade No 2 is harder.) This seems to be the perfect Ballade for you - in my opinion it is infinitesimally easier than Ballade No 1, but Ballade No 2 presents extremely different technical and musical challenges than Ballade No 1. This was my second ballade after Ballade No. 1.

Scherzo No 1 I've just started working on this one. It is certainly harder than the Scherzo
No 2 (and perhaps No 3, but I am unsure) and is very similar in difficulty level to the Ballade No 1. If you haven't played a scherzo this one is perfect.

Barcarolle This is a true gem, but despite how easy it sounds, it's surpirsingly hard to play. The effort is worthwhile however, as this is one of Chopin's most gorgeous pieces.

Polonaise-Fantasie (or polonaise in f# minor)

This program so far would take roughly 40 minutes. For the remaining twenty minutes, I'd say doing a few waltzes, or a few opuses of mazurkas, would both be great. Nocturnes wouldn't be bad either. At this level, you should probably stay away from the sonatas ....

[alice_park]

I might try and go for the Barcarolle now as I am very familiar with it. But I'm still unsure of the scherzi since I love all of them, but the Scherzo 2, I think, is on the lead

[trollbuster]

Personally, I think it is entirely feasible to learn a Ballade with only a waltz under your belt. Personally, I learned Chopin's ballade no 1 having only learned the Waltz No. 1,3,7; Nocturne in C# posthumous, and three opuses of mazurkas. This being said, I do not understand why one can not tackle a Ballade after having learned only a waltz.

@OP: In response to your question for a good all-Chopin program (60-min recital, perhaps) I'd suggest the following.

Ballade No. 2 (this is considered by some to be the second hardest ballade, after Ballade no 4. Obviously Ballade no 3 is easiest, but it seems that there is considerable debate regarding if Ballade No 1 or Ballade No 2 is harder.) This seems to be the perfect Ballade for you - in my opinion it is infinitesimally easier than Ballade No 1, but Ballade No 2 presents extremely different technical and musical challenges than Ballade No 1. This was my second ballade after Ballade No. 1.

Scherzo No 1 I've just started working on this one. It is certainly harder than the Scherzo
No 2 (and perhaps No 3, but I am unsure) and is very similar in difficulty level to the Ballade No 1. If you haven't played a scherzo this one is perfect.

Barcarolle This is a true gem, but despite how easy it sounds, it's surpirsingly hard to play. The effort is worthwhile however, as this is one of Chopin's most gorgeous pieces.

Polonaise-Fantasie (or polonaise in f# minor)

This program so far would take roughly 40 minutes. For the remaining twenty minutes, I'd say doing a few waltzes, or a few opuses of mazurkas, would both be great. Nocturnes wouldn't be bad either. At this level, you should probably stay away from the sonatas ....

personally I think you are both full of sh!t.   were you created just to back up msblack by whoevr she is? of all the posts in all the forums you just stumbled onto this one to say how you can learn the ballade in g with only the waltz in c# min under the belt.   Sure if you have been playing 20 years and you never liked Chopin and op64 no2 was all you ever learned. otherwise bullsh!t. 

[alice_park]

personally I think you are both full of sh!t.   were you created just to back up msblack by whoevr she is? of all the posts in all the forums you just stumbled onto this one to say how you can learn the ballade in g with only the waltz in c# min under the belt.   Sure if you have been playing 20 years and you never liked Chopin and op64 no2 was all you ever learned. otherwise bullsh!t. 

How about you, good sir, what could you recommend?

[adodd81802]

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[pencilart3]

Try a good scherzo like #1, 2, 3 or 4 and maybe the Barcarolle. Etude Op. 10/4, 5, 10, 11, 12 Op. 25/1, 2, 3, 5. Prelude #1, 3, 8, 12, 14, 16, 19, 24. Try the first movement of the B minor sonata.

[jimroof]

what a total crock of sh!t

c'mon are you guys buying this?  really? seriously?   

gimmie a break.

I played the Gm Ballade, well enough to have won piano competitions with it as the cornerstone of my competition repertoire.  Prior to that, what other Chopin had I played?  The Scherzo #3, a few Preludes, and two Polonaises that I had taught myself when in high school.

The Gm Ballade was only my second major Chopin work undertaken at the time.  I played the ever-loving daylights out of it too.  I played it at a John Perry master class in 1979 and after I got through, do you know what he said?  He said "I have nothing to tell you".  That is what he said.

So, I offer this not as bragging, but as proof that someone can play the Gm Ballade damn well without having spent much time in his other works.  I know that it is possible for a fact.  Go find my recording of it in the auditions section.  And while you are AT it, find my recording of the C# minor Scherzo.  That was my FIRST foray into a major Chopin work.

[alice_park]

I'm sorry that I'm not good in words. The Gm Ballade is on the top of all the piece that I can play. The c#m waltz is what I want that Ballade to go with and asking for pieces to complete a whole, repertoire. I've played several pieces, a few preludes and nocturnes, too.

But as an amateur pianist, I wanted a top piece on each genre to complete my repertoire and to explore more of Chopin

[bachopiev]

personally I think you are both full of sh!t.   were you created just to back up msblack by whoevr she is? of all the posts in all the forums you just stumbled onto this one to say how you can learn the ballade in g with only the waltz in c# min under the belt.   Sure if you have been playing 20 years and you never liked Chopin and op64 no2 was all you ever learned. otherwise bullsh!t. 

Lol, your post is so ludicrously wrong, and bizarre, that I don't know why I'm responding to it. (My reason is for pure enjoyment.) As a matter of fact, every single sentence of yours is wrong!

Here is my original quote:

"Personally, I think it is entirely feasible to learn a Ballade with only a waltz under your belt. Personally, I learned Chopin's ballade no 1 having only learned the Waltz No. 1,3,7; Nocturne in C# posthumous, and three opuses of mazurkas. This being said, I do not understand why one can not tackle a Ballade after having learned only a waltz."

Now what you said:

personally I think you are both full of sh!t.   were you created just to back up msblack by whoevr she is?

Lol, right, I was "created". Wrong, checkbox 1.

 of all the posts in all the forums you just stumbled onto this one to say how you can learn the ballade in g with only the waltz in c# min under the belt.

Haha, this just goes to show how little you paid attention to me. I had actually learned seven "pieces" of Chopin's (if you count opuses as pieces) -- namely, the Waltz No. 1, No. 3. No. 7, the Chopin nocturne posthumous, and three opuses of mazurkas. The Op. 64 No. 2 (Waltz No. 7) was just one of seven pieces I have learned. Also, yeah right I said how I could learn the "ballade in g with only the waltz in c# min under the belt". Nope ... as iterated, I learned seven pieces first.
b

  Sure if you have been playing 20 years and you never liked Chopin and op64 no2 was all you ever learned. otherwise bullsh!t.

Haha, I've always loved Chopin. I just didn't think I was advanced enough to tackle Chopin Ballade No 1 until two years ago. Your post is pure entertainment. As you see, all three of your sentences were wrong.

Have a good day, and cheers!

[alice_park]

I'm halfway through the Barcarolle now! I had to admit, for me, it really is challenging but is very beautiful

[chopinawesome]

I think you should work on an opus of mazurkas after the Barcarolle, like Op.17,30,33,56,or 59. Its better to work on something easier after a very hard piece. Oh, and did anyone mention the Rondos?

[chopinawesome]

I love the first rondo.