{"id":13070,"date":"2023-04-14T12:10:00","date_gmt":"2023-04-14T19:10:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/?p=13070"},"modified":"2024-09-17T08:58:24","modified_gmt":"2024-09-17T15:58:24","slug":"3-easy-chopin-pieces","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/3-easy-chopin-pieces\/","title":{"rendered":"3 Easy Chopin Pieces (With Sheet Music)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Is there such a thing as an easy Chopin piece? Yes! In this lesson, we\u2019ll introduce you to three fantastic classics. We\u2019ve arranged an easy version of each piece so beginner players can get the joy out of playing Chopin right away! You can use the arrangements as a stepping-stone to playing the originals, which we&#8217;ll also link to in this post.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"#about-chopin\">About Chopin<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"#nocturne\">Nocturne in E-Flat Major<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"#prelude\">Prelude in E Minor<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"#waltz\">Waltz in A Minor<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:10px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<span class=\"blue-text-block\"><center><h2 style=\"font-size:22px\"><b>\ud83c\udfb9 Your Go-To Place for All Things Piano<\/b><\/h2><p>Subscribe to <i>The Note<\/i> for exclusive interviews, fascinating articles, and inspiring lessons delivered straight to your inbox. Unsubscribe at any time.<\/p><iframe class=\"email-form-include\" src=\"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/weeklyemail\" frameborder=\"none\"><\/iframe><\/center><\/span>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:10px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"about-chopin\" style=\"font-size:32px\"><strong>About Fr\u00e9d\u00e9ric Chopin<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns are-vertically-aligned-center is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-9d6595d7 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-vertically-aligned-center is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>Fr\u00e9d\u00e9ric Chopin is one of the most famous and beloved composers of all time. His sound has become so tied with the piano, that when we think of what piano music sounds like, many of us automatically think of Chopin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Chopin was born in 1810 with a Polish mother and a French father. He performed and taught in Paris, where he was a local celebrity and a much sought-after teacher. Famous friends included Eugene Delacroix and Franz Liszt. Chopin\u2019s most famous relationship was with the novelist George Sand (Aurore Dudevant) and he was his most productive during his relationship with her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Interestingly, Chopin only performed <a href=\"https:\/\/www.npr.org\/2011\/07\/18\/123967818\/the-life-and-music-of-frederic-chopin\">30 times over 30 years<\/a>. He was also unique in that he focused almost solely on the piano. While other composers wrote operas and symphonies, Chopin wrote waltzes, preludes, etudes, mazurkas, polonaises, and nocturnes.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-vertically-aligned-center is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/3\/33\/Chopin%2C_by_Wodzinska.JPG\/1024px-Chopin%2C_by_Wodzinska.JPG\" alt=\"Easy Chopin pieces. Painted portrait of Frederic Chopin in suit and bowtie.\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" style=\"font-size:28px\">What makes Chopin&#8217;s music so Chopin?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns are-vertically-aligned-center is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-9d6595d7 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-vertically-aligned-center is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>So what\u2019s behind that magical Chopin sound? There are certain things that are unmistakably Chopin:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Chromatic runs: <\/strong>Chopin wasn\u2019t afraid of a little crunchiness and frequently slides up and down the piano with chromatic runs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Ornaments:<\/strong> Chopin liked to decorate his melodies with trills, turns, and mordents.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-vertically-aligned-center is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"How to Sound Like Chopin\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/u_hhE9Bjbfw?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Romantic melodies:<\/strong> Chopin\u2019s melodies can be described as wistful, yearning, lyrical, and no doubt emotional. He was a Romantic composer after all! If you want to play Chopin well, try to think of your piano as singing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Waltz rhythm:<\/strong> Chopin was fond of waltz rhythms and triple meters. These aren\u2019t exclusive to his waltzes\u2014the Nocturne in E-Flat Major we\u2019ll play does this too!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Moody harmonies: <\/strong>Chopin added drama to his pieces with interesting harmonic choices like using predominant and diminished chords.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"nocturne\" style=\"font-size:32px\"><strong>Nocturne in E-Flat Major<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>&gt; <a href=\"https:\/\/d1923uyy6spedc.cloudfront.net\/qt-nocturne-in-eb-easy-version-1680716851.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Download Free Sheet Music (Easy)<\/a><\/strong><br><strong>&gt; <a href=\"https:\/\/imslp.org\/wiki\/Nocturnes_(Chopin%2C_Fr%C3%A9d%C3%A9ric)\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Download Free Sheet Music (Original) via IMSLP<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The secret to mastering this piece is nailing the left hand first. Our key signature is E-flat major, which gives us three flats (B\u266d, E\u266d, and A\u266d). Watch the accidentals too! Especially those pesky C-flats. (C-flat is the same pitch as B natural).&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The \u201cfanciest\u201d section is measures 21-24. Things look complicated here, so take it slow and one note at a time. Essentially, we\u2019re \u201cdancing around\u201d a C chord. Don\u2019t be afraid to write down fingering if you need to! And use whatever fingering works best for you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"271\" src=\"https:\/\/www.musora.com\/musora-cdn\/image\/quality=85\/https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/12105155\/nocturne-in-e-flat-markup-1024x271.png\" alt=\"Sheet music for measures 21-24 of Nocturne in E-flat major with fingering.\" class=\"wp-image-13078\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/12105155\/nocturne-in-e-flat-markup-1024x271.png 1024w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/12105155\/nocturne-in-e-flat-markup-300x79.png 300w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/12105155\/nocturne-in-e-flat-markup-768x203.png 768w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/12105155\/nocturne-in-e-flat-markup-1536x406.png 1536w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/12105155\/nocturne-in-e-flat-markup-2048x541.png 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Once you get all your notes down, it\u2019s time for the fun part: expression! The secret to playing incredible Romantic music is to imagine as if you\u2019re singing the melody. Take a breath (literally) before phrases, and connect notes together that would be \u201csung\u201d in one phrase. Shape your melody by using dynamics and let your personality shine through!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:10px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<span class=\"blue-text-block\">\ud83c\udf0c <b><i>What&#8217;s a nocturne?<\/i><\/b> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/musical-terms\/nocturne-definition\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Nocturnes<\/a> are meant to evoke a nighttime atmosphere and are perfect for nighttime listening! While Chopin\u2019s nocturnes are the most famous around, did you know that the form was actually invented by Irish composer John Field? Other composers who wrote nocturnes include Mendelssohn, Debussy, and Rachmaninoff.<\/span>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:10px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"prelude\" style=\"font-size:32px\"><strong>Prelude in E Minor<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>&gt; <a href=\"https:\/\/d1923uyy6spedc.cloudfront.net\/qt-prelude-in-e-minor-easy-version-1681234804.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Download Free Sheet Music (Easy)<\/a><br>&gt; <a href=\"https:\/\/imslp.org\/wiki\/Preludes,_Op.28_(Chopin,_Fr%C3%A9d%C3%A9ric)\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Download Free Sheet Music (Original) via IMSLP<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This moody prelude famously showed up in the Academy Award-winning film <em>The Pianist<\/em>. It\u2019s so dark and broody and beautiful! We\u2019re in E minor, which means there is only one sharp (F#) to remember.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Again, it helps to get the left hand locked in first. We have some crunchy 7ths in this piece, and while the many accidentals can look intimidating, you\u2019ll discover that our left hand is a pattern of descending, chromatic half-steps.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.musora.com\/musora-cdn\/image\/quality=85\/https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/12123013\/prelude-in-e-minor-1024x281.png\" alt=\"Sheet music for the first line of Prelude in E Minor with &quot;shape the melody&quot; at the top and &quot;crunchy descent&quot; and arrow at the bottom.\" class=\"wp-image-13085\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/12123013\/prelude-in-e-minor-1024x281.png 1024w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/12123013\/prelude-in-e-minor-300x82.png 300w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/12123013\/prelude-in-e-minor-768x211.png 768w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/12123013\/prelude-in-e-minor-1536x422.png 1536w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/12123013\/prelude-in-e-minor-2048x563.png 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>On your right hand, watch your thumb-tucks, and again, think of yourself as singing the melody.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It\u2019s important to connect with this piece emotionally. Think tentative, nervous feelings. This is also a great piece to practice rubato with. <strong>Rubato<\/strong> (\u201crobbed time\u201d) is when you push and pull at the tempo to be more expressive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:10px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<span class=\"blue-text-block\">\ud83c\udfb9 <b><i>What&#8217;s a prelude?<\/i><\/b> As its name suggests, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/articles\/discovering-music-prelude\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">preludes<\/a> are short pieces that introduce a larger piece. However, many preludes can stand alone. The most famous preludes you\u2019ve probably heard are the <i>Well-Tempered Clavier<\/i> preludes and fugues by J.S. Bach, including the heavenly <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/moonlight-sonata-easy\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Prelude in C Major<\/a>. Chopin, on the other hand, wrote 24 stand-alone preludes.<\/span>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:10px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"waltz\" style=\"font-size:32px\"><strong>Waltz in A Minor<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>&gt; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/chopin-waltz-in-a-minor-sheet-music\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Full lesson on Waltz in A Minor, including sheet music downloads<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This one is <em>super<\/em> fun. It\u2019s pretty lively too! And the best part? The original version isn\u2019t that much harder, so use this easy version as a stepping-stone and you\u2019ll be playing <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/5-classical-piano-pieces\/#waltz\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">the original<\/a> in no time \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>At the risk of sounding like a broken record, again, master the left hand first. We\u2019re in A minor this time, which means no sharps or flats to worry about (yay!). Just watch for the occasional accidental.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"287\" src=\"https:\/\/www.musora.com\/musora-cdn\/image\/quality=85\/https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/12125624\/waltz-in-a-minor-markup-1024x287.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-13088\" srcset=\"https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/12125624\/waltz-in-a-minor-markup-1024x287.png 1024w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/12125624\/waltz-in-a-minor-markup-300x84.png 300w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/12125624\/waltz-in-a-minor-markup-768x215.png 768w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/12125624\/waltz-in-a-minor-markup-1536x431.png 1536w, https:\/\/pianote-blog.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/12125624\/waltz-in-a-minor-markup-2048x574.png 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>When it comes to the left hand waltz rhythm, feel it in a strong-weak-weak pattern. Meanwhile, your right hand will be dancing around. Again, watch your phrasing in this piece. Think of each phrase as a sentence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:10px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<span class=\"blue-text-block\">\ud83d\udc83 <b><i>What&#8217;s a waltz?<\/i><\/b> Waltzes are dances\u2026right? Chopin\u2019s waltzes, however, are notoriously difficult to dance to! Just imagine keeping up with the <a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/hKILwVH_MdM\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Minute Waltz<\/a>. Whether or not some of Chopin\u2019s \u201cdance music\u201d was meant for dancing confused people even in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.psu.edu\/news\/research\/story\/dancing-chopin\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Chopin\u2019s time<\/a>. What we can say is he was probably inspired by the physical movements of dance.<\/span>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>We hope you like these easy Chopin pieces! You&#8217;ll be playing Chopin originals in no time. Meanwhile, here are more easy classical tutorials:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/easy-classical-piano\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">3 Classical Songs That Are Perfect for Beginners<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/clair-de-lune-easy\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">&#8220;Clair de lune&#8221; Easy Sheet Music &amp; Piano Tutorial<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/fur-elise-piano-sheet-music-tutorial\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">The BEST \u201cF\u00fcr Elise\u201d Tutorial on the Internet! (Beethoven)<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:10px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<span class=\"blue-text-block\"><center><h2 style=\"font-size:22px\"><b>\ud83c\udfb9 Your Go-To Place for All Things Piano<\/b><\/h2><p>Subscribe to <i>The Note<\/i> for exclusive interviews, fascinating articles, and inspiring lessons delivered straight to your inbox. Unsubscribe at any time.<\/p><iframe class=\"email-form-include\" src=\"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/weeklyemail\" frameborder=\"none\"><\/iframe><\/center><\/span>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:10px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>1. Nocturne in E Flat Major 2. Prelude in E Minor 3. Waltz in A Minor.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":39,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[837,508],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13070","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-classical-songs","category-song-tutorials"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13070","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/39"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13070"}],"version-history":[{"count":21,"href":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13070\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17802,"href":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13070\/revisions\/17802"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13070"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13070"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pianote.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13070"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}