Chopin - Mazurka Op.68 no.4 with complete middle part

Recorded this morning....I recently learned that this mazurka, which is considered Chopin's last composition, has a whole middle section that I did not know about; it was not in the book that I used to make my first recording of this mazurka back in 2007.

Evidently, Chopin's original sketch was practically indecipherable but his friend, Franchomme, had deciphered it and then his other friend and copyist, Fontana, prepared it for publication. It is the version most often found in Chopin Mazurka books. However, there is more to the story - which is quite long. Basically, Franchomme and Fontana omitted an entire section.

Over the years, top Chopin scholars have viewed the original manuscript and tried their hand at figuring out the middle part (C section). Arthur Rubinstein recorded a version that was edited by Ekier, who corrected numerous mistakes found in the Franchomme/Fontana version and also included a 16-bar C section. Yet other editors claim the C section is really 32 bars in length. This version that I play here is the most recently published version (2012) and includes everything! There are some chord changes throughout the whole piece (different from my old/Fontana version) and probably a thousand accidentals that I hope got correct - this mazurka is deceivingly difficult because of those things.

Anyway, hope this one is okay. As an interesting note (to myself really), I play this mazurka today much faster than I had when I recorded it five years ago. Just the way I feel it now, I guess....

Chopin - Mazurka Op.68 No.4 in F minor

 

Thank you for listening, Scott, Riley, David, and Chris.

@Scott - interesting the part about Paris a half-century later.

@Riley - do you have the score? I had to purchase it from Amazon.com, so I'll be mad if now I learn that the score is online somewhere.

@David - you listened to a mazurka :shock: . I wish I could tell the rest of the story about how this piece changed over the years. I thought about scanning the notes that are in the score I just bought, but then thought I'd get into trouble.

@Chris - I admit to not being crazy about the middle section either. Oh well... And yes, there are different sounds to some of the chords in this version - supposedly corrected notation from the first published version (which is probably what you have). I kept thinking everything was wrong when I was playing through this version.

 

Oh, sorry, Riley. When I was reading your last post, I thought I saw bar numbers instead of timing numbers. But yes, the version you were looking at is most likely the same version I have in a book, which is the most common two-page version.

 

Very nice and clean, and also an interesting piece harmonically. I do however agree with Chris that more contrasting dynamics would improve it, and give more of a sense of motion within phrases. I would suggest you listen to Friedman's mazurkas out of interest; I very much like how he plays them, though whether his playing would be considered "acceptable" nowadays is another point altogether.

 

Thank you for listening, Matthew and Andrew.

I used to not like Friedman's playing at all, but gradually over the years I am coming to appreciate him much more. Regarding my dynamics - I dunno, I hear them. I use the soft-pedal liberally here, and when I'm playing I certainly hear the dynamics changing. Seems sometimes I get them okay and sometimes I don't. I'll keep working on it, though, it's good to be reminded, so thanks for telling me.

 

Congratulations, Monica, for this very nice and nostalgic mazurka... Your playing is very retained, which is always a good approach for Chopin, according to one of my teachers who didn't like too muche rubato...

 

Thank you for listening, Francois, Robert, and Dave.

@Dave - yes, you really should look at Chopin's mazurkas. There is plenty of variety among them, as each is very different from one another.

@Francois - Rubato seems to be something pianists will forever debate. How much to apply, how little to apply. I tend to think that Chopin of course used rubato, but not a whole lot. Seems he did not like things to be exaggerated. Then again, there is that story of how someone (can't remember his name right now) thought that upon hearing Chopin play one of his own mazurkas, the man said the piece was in 4/4, not 3/4, so I don't know.... Guess I will just have to ask Chopin when I go to Paris in a couple months.

 

Thank you, Pantelis. And it's good to see you again!