Study Group #1: Chopin's Prelude in E minor
Welcome to our very first Study Group — a space for collaborative, peer-led learning!
We’re starting with one of the most moving works in the piano repertoire: Chopin’s Prelude in E minor, Op. 28 No. 4.
Why this piece? Because we’re leading up to the International Chopin Competition, and what better way to prepare than by immersing ourselves in Chopin’s language together. This isn’t a formal class — it’s a chance to learn side by side, share ideas, and discover new layers of the music. I’ll be working on the piece right along with you, and I can’t wait to see what insights we uncover as a group.
🗓️ What to expect:
Starting September 8th, we’ll explore:
Melody and balance — bringing out the singing line above the chords
Left-hand harmony — keeping the pulse steady and clear
Rubato and expression — shaping time without losing flow
Tone and pedaling — finding colors that bring the Prelude to life
Your own questions, discoveries, and perspectives!
We’ll also meet for two live Zoom sessions to share progress, exchange ideas, and celebrate our work on this piece. (Times and clickable links below!)
Livestream Presentation: September 11th at 11am PT
Zoom session #1: September 11th at 11:20am PT
Note: This zoom session will start with approximately a 15-20 minute short lecture and deep dive on the piece with Dominic, before we dive into all of your questions and conversations!
Zoom session #2: September 19th at 11am PT
✅ How to participate:
Sign up Here!
Download or open the score for the Prelude in E minor
Introduce yourself below!
Join the prompts and discussions
Share your thoughts, questions, or even a short recording if you’d like
71 replies
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I have made it my business to return to the piano in a serious way a couple of years ago now after many, many decades of wandering in the desert (not by choice). It feels intimidating to be here and I have been largely reluctant to join in groups but this is the starting point (cliff_ _ ` jump). While not being able to fully play piano for most of my life (due to lack of time) I could only make it through by listening to or thinking about music as I patiently waited for my opportunity to return to hands on a keyboard, in reality.
My long-term goals include learning most, if not all, of the Preludes of Chopin, among other impossible challenges ;-). As is clear to most humble souls, this Prelude is deceptively easy. Most people can sight read this one along with the B minor, A major, D-flat major, or C minor as the typical starting Preludes. The difficulty though is precisely due to the simplicity and lack of many notes. You simply cannot hide behind complexity or multiple things going on to wow any listeners into submission. Here you feel almost naked and any weakness is on full display immediately. It is near impossible to play this without being entirely relaxed from head to toe as any stiffness is heard immediately.
I'm not sure if I can ask questions now but I have many questions that I'm dying to know in order to help me in my personal journey with it. I'll limit them to two or three now of the biggest questions I have.
My first two questions regard tempo and pedalling and I believe these are the two biggest interpretive questions to address.
What does Largo mean in the 1835 sense (in tempo and in interpretation)? Is the 20th and 21st century Largo the same? Every player knows that this piece gets infinitely harder and harder to play the slower you go. (ie. not very fast). Is it any wonder why a faster pace is promoted today? Also, does the time signature affect the tempo (ie. cut time vs. 4/4) as I've heard many people say? I am well aware that questioning the typical tempo of today is an uphill battle that many will not get behind because it seems like a settled issue given the countless number of recordings, competition norms and audience expectations. Still, this remains the most important question in approaching this Prelude for me.
Next in importance is the question of pedalling. Again, the less pedal used the harder the piece becomes. I will only point out that Chopin suggests pedal down only for a total duration of six eight notes (in bars 16 and 17). Was Chopin specific and particular about this or was he just lazy or in a hurry that day he wrote this out? Check out the C major prelude where all 34 bars have the same pedalling indications? In the B minor and C minor there three and one pedal points, respectively. Looking through all 24 Preludes I get the feeling that Chopin was very specific about pedalling. I would love to know what others think about this and whether you can pull this E minor Prelude off sans pedal except where noted?
Lastly, I'd like to know how to play stretto ? Is it just suddenly faster and equally fast for these two and a half bars. Or does it gradually speed up and suddenly stop? How to best end it? And is it just slightly faster or dramatically faster? Again, this is surely bound by good taste of course, but I'd love to find out the general approach or guidelines to use for playing stretto.
I look forward to learning many new things throughout this time with you all and the opportunity of being part of this. Thank you.
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Hello,
I’m Dawn and I look forward to working & learning together.
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Hi! Starting a little late, but raring to go! Jeremy Owens from Western Iowa in the US.
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I started learning this piece today. I found that circling the note or notes that change in the bass line makes it much easier to learn. Most places are only a change of one note, or sometimes 2. Then there are the bigger changes in the stretto section. I am focusing on those hardest parts first, hoping the rest will fall into place. Interpretation, however, is another matter! I find this short session interesting, but don't expect to be able to come close to a credible performing version in the short time we have. I will enjoy learning this, though-my first Chopin attempt.
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I’m confused about the Zoom today & the live event today on the piece. They’re at the same time. Is this 2 separate events to choose between or 1 event?
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Wanted to share another great resource (from two guys TB veterans might know: Ben Laude and Garrick Ohlsson) called The Chopin Podcast. Each episode is a deep dive (some 2+ hours) into Chopin's works. Just so happens Season 1, Episode 1 is about the Preludes. Unfortunately, they don't discuss the e minor, but it's still worthwhile.
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Great session but am wondering where to find the "marked up" version of the score. Can you give the link?
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I'd like to see the score too. Also not sure how to get back in to the great lesson that Dominic gave.
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The livestreams are always archived. Just go back to the first post in this thread and click on the link - it should start playing.
I don't think Dominic shared his marked up score, but if you follow along with your score while watching the video you can add the markings.
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he said he will send us the e mail and that the will share the annotated score as well. But impatient as I am, I usually take screenshots. It’s not ideal, and the bottom of the page is missing, but until Dom shares the score perhaps this can help. If you enlarge the photo the comments should be readable.
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your answer to is brilliant, in the future I will try this!
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do try, it’s really handy, especially if you plan to practice immediately after.
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Hi,
I was not able to attend live.
Is there a recording of the zoom group meeting part?
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I would like that too. I got my schedule confused and turned on the lecture part late, watched that (realizing I might be lost if I hadn't) THEN the zoom portion was over. Sad.
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Loved our intense Zoom call and looking forward to the next one. As far as progress, I can say progress is being made, but nothing is ready to share yet. My teacher and I agreed that I shouldn't drive myself too crazy with trying to bring out the changing "voices" in the LH, but rather to aim for expressing the piece as a whole. This is guidance for someone at my skill level. I'm sure those with better technique can achieve the intricate voicing.
My other guidance is the description I believe Roger shared (correct me if I have the wrong guy) - that the LH chords represent Chopin's heartbeat and the "sighs" in the RH represent his struggled breathing. A normal heartbeat goes about 72 BPM and this tempo feels good to me.
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Ok I’ll bravely share this far-from-perfect try to play this piece. Main challenge for me is voicing in the LH while balancing RH. The advice on how to play LH chords helped me tremendously, thanks Dominique.
I’m still not fully secure in the text, so I cannot fully express my feeling of the atmosphere as I’m tense to hit the right notes and emphasize the underlying LH “melody” changes (more-less-than-more successfully 😂). Anyway, this is the point to continue on progressing. Looking forward to the feedback 🙂.
