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Epic: Chopin's Prelude in D Minor

And finally we come to the end. Chopin's Prelude Opus 28, Number 24, in D minor. This one is full of theatrics, with a roaring bass that is incessant throughout the piece, long runs across the keyboard, and a final threesome bang of the low D on the piano that is a fitting conclusion to the opus. It is like a long story that keeps going on and on, with plots and acts, and so I call it Epic. The piece is dramatic and is a pleasure to play, even though it is one of the more difficult pieces to play. When I was a child I was in awe of those who could play a piece like this. But I have found that it is actually easier to play than the preludes in E-flat, B-flat minor, or F-sharp minor. Outside of the bass, the runs, and the sparkling thirds at the climax, there is just the one-note melody. The bass is a bit of a stretch, and playing those twelfths over and over again can get your left hand tired quickly. The runs need some practice but I was surprised that I could do one of them rather well right now. The thirds are the part that would get me. I have always had a problem playing thirds.

This piece has an interesting chordal progression which allows it to be expanded into a really impressive epic. It starts in the key of D minor, then goes to F, then C7, and then F. It then transitions through an E7-flatted 9 to A minor, and then the entire piece starts all over again, down a fifth in A minor. It goes through the same types of transitions, from E minor to G major and then to the relative major, in this case C. Through the same type of chord progression it goes into E minor. At this point it takes an abrupt turn into C minor. But up to now we have a chord progression that goes one notch sharpward from D minor to A minor to E minor. My idea is to continue this right on, through B minor, F-sharp minor, C-sharp minor and so forth around the circle of fifths until I get back to D minor again. I tried this once (I since have lost it) in Cakewalk and it does sound impressive - you have to keep adjusting between fifths and fourths to avoid having it descend into the lowest notes of the piano. Getting back to the original piece, the transition from D-flat major to D-flat augmented to D minor is interesting and perverse - the usual sequence goes through D diminished instead. The descending thirds is rather unexpected in the climatic buildup and reminds me of leaves falling from a tree. And of course there is the final descent and the three low D tolls at the end, signaling the end of the piece and of Opus 28. And so that ends this sequence of reviews as well.

Not with my "Just add one" philosophy. There are more. I have decided to add two more Preludes, because of their interest to me. One is a posthumous prelude in G-sharp Major. All right, it is in A flat. I was trying to avoid duplicating a key, which is impossible now since all keys have been covered. The other is the one I mentioned earlier in connection with Number 15, "Mercury", also in A-flat, an intriguing piece with triple time in the treble and duple time. Also, tonight, I noticed that there is a number 25 and a 26 in Opus 28, and I would like to find out more about them. They seem like afterthoughts. So this series is to be continued...