Chopin's most beautiful piece?

[ganymed]

the ballade opus 23 is among the best pieces by chopin for me

[jepoy]

I'm currently addicted to the following:

Fantasy in Fm
Nocturne in C#m (not the posthumous one... forgot the no.)
Etude in Op10 No3

[chong777]

Chopin's nocturnes are my first loves. Nocturne op 27 No. 2 is so dreamy. So out of the world feeling...

[a1]

let me ask you this - which piece can you listen to more than a 100 times and not hate it?


     
         Debussy Clair de Lune !!!
         i listen more than 1000 times but still beautiful (play by professional pianist of course )

[mikebechstein]

I think that, being true music lovers, we often mixing up pure beauty with musical satisfaction. I agree with some of the choices above and the final movement of the 3rd sonata is one of my favorite pieces - but I would never call it beautiful. However, if you follow the name of this thread in a literal sense and only consider beauty (of sound) then it has to be, for me, Berceuse Op. 57.

[dan101]

This is an intriguing and, of course, near-impossible question to answer. In my opinion, the preludes and nocturnes offer some of Chopin's most beautiful moments; in particular, the first Bb minor nocturne and the wild and crazy prelude in the same key.

[damien]

4th ballade and most of nocturnes

[pmz310]

C Minor Op. 48 No. 1

[pianorin]

nocturne op.9-1. (immediately fell in love with this nocturne when I 1st heard it!!)
waltz in C# minor op.64-2
waltz in E minor.
Piano Concerto No.1 2nd movement

last but not least.... Fantasie Impromptu..

[vuvais]

Valse Op.64 N.2
Valse Op.34 N.2
Nocturne Op.9 N.1
Fantasie Impromptu Op.66
Nocturne Op.20
Scherzo Op.31 N.2
Prelude Op.25 N.15
Etude Op.25 N.11

And many more!

[bapdoo]

Definitely the harp etude, Op. 25 no. 1
I love how the melody is so flowing and there's background harmony that really sounds like a harp.

[bsharp77]

I love the waltzes, especially op 69 no 1 and 2   

[prestoconfuocco]

There's no way I can pick between the second ballade in F major op. 38 and that Fantasy in F minor op. 49. Both amazingly beautiful.

[gvans]

Chopin himself weighed in on this question: He stated that the A-section melody in Opus 10 No. 3 was his most beautiful, and doubted he could ever surpass it.

[gapoc459]

What's the big deal regarding the second movement of the Fm concerto? Sure, it's beautiful, but IMO it's the least interesting movement of both the concertos. I don't think it can hold a candle to the middle movement of the Em (which is just sublime). The rest of the Fm is pretty awesome, possibly even better than much of the Em...

I think when asking a question like this it's very important to recognize the immense differences between early Chopin and late Chopin. I'd say, starting from Op. 52, every subsequent piece is remarkably profound on so many levels. When I first listened to the Op. 58-3, I thought it was remarkably tedious, but after a few listens I discovered just how profound it is. Early Chopin rarely finds such depth (I'd say his first real masterpiece was the 1st ballade), but the beauty exists in an entirely different form. Among his earlier works, though, I especially love Opp. 10, 11, 13, 14, 15, 16 (VASTLY underrated), 19, 21.

[camille101]

Nocturne in g major op 37 no.2.  Not popular, no idea why.  The whole thing is amazing

[prestoconfuocco]

Nocturne in g major op 37 no.2.  Not popular, no idea why.  The whole thing is amazing

WOW, YES.
The second theme is amazing. The nocturne is even better once played right after the G minor one before it.