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Topic: Feasibility of Chopin concerto No. 2 (Read 1784 times)

pianabeth

PS Silver Member
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Posts: 4

Feasibility of Chopin concerto No. 2

on: December 13, 2023, 12:06:48 AM

Hey there,

I’m an undergrad student in conservatory, just finishing up fall of my sophomore year. I have to perform a concerto at the end of next year (spring 2025) and I’m just wondering what the feasibility of me tackling Chopin’s second concerto is. I really love it, and I know it’s pretty difficult (Henle grade 8 I think) but I’ve learned pieces that might be above my level before when I’ve been super motivated (I learned Chopin etude op 10 no 1 a couple years ago before I was probably ready but ended up getting it to performance level because I enjoyed it so much) Anyways, what’s the likelihood that I could learn and perform the second piano concerto by the end of spring 2025 if I start now?

tl;dr: I want to do Chopins 2nd piano concerto, can I learn it in the next year?

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lelle

PS Gold Member
Sr. Member
Posts: 2528

Re: Feasibility of Chopin concerto No. 2

Reply #1 on: December 13, 2023, 07:37:24 PM

We can't answer that without knowing more about your skill level unfortunately.

It's certainly very doable if you have the technique for it.

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roboute guilliman cfa

PS Silver Member
Newbie
Posts: 20

Re: Feasibility of Chopin concerto No. 2

Reply #2 on: December 18, 2023, 05:50:27 PM

On a 'pound per pound' or rather 'bar by bar' basis most of the Chopin etudes are harder. There's some difficult things like chromatic double notes but they're played at a slower tempo.

There's so much parallel left/right hand arpeggio writing which I think is an easier area of technique in general so if that's under your hands a huge chunk of the concerto will fall into place. The legato octave, double notes, chords, can take work to get to a refined smooth level but they're approachable.

I'd start with the 3rd movement. I think it's good to have a background of triplet pieces as that could be the most time consuming part - at least 2 or 3 from pieces like Chopin black key etude / Chopin op 25 no 2/ Scriabin op 11 no 3 / Moszkowski op 72 no 6 / Liszt Waldesrauschen / Rachmaninoff Lilacs / Ravel Prelude from le tombeau de Couperin.

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pianabeth

PS Silver Member
Newbie
Posts: 4

Re: Feasibility of Chopin concerto No. 2

Reply #3 on: December 21, 2023, 11:42:10 PM

Thank you for the advice! This is very helpful to have a sense of what I’d be dealing with. I will definitely take a look at the pieces you suggested (I love Lilac and Black Keys!) and if I do end up learning this it sounds like a good idea to start with mvmt 3

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New Piano Piece by Chopin Discovered – Free Piano Score

A previously unknown manuscript by Frédéric Chopin has been discovered at New York’s Morgan Library and Museum. The handwritten score is titled “Valse” and consists of 24 bars of music in the key of A minor and is considered a major discovery in the wold of classical piano music. Read more

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Topic: Feasibility of Chopin concerto No. 2 (Read 1784 times)

Piano Street Magazine:New Piano Piece by Chopin Discovered – Free Piano Score

Piano Street Magazine:
New Piano Piece by Chopin Discovered – Free Piano Score