Week 1 Goal “Pick Your Piece!”

🎹 Week 1: Pick Your Piece!
(Starting September 15th!)

This week is all about choosing your Chopin repertoire. Whether you’re stepping into Chopin’s world for the very first time or you’ve played his music before, the goal is to select a piece that inspires you—and challenges you just enough.

We’ve curated a list to help guide your choice:


🎹 Beginner-Friendly Selections (Level 1–3)

Perfect for players new to Chopin. These works focus on melody, expression, and clarity of touch.

  • Prelude in E minor, Op. 28 No. 4

  • Waltz in A minor, B. 150 (Posthumous)

  • Prelude in B minor, Op. 28 No. 6


🎼 Intermediate Selections (Level 4–6)

For players ready to explore deeper expression, voicing, and rubato.

  • Nocturne in C♯ minor, Op. Posth.

  • Mazurka in A minor, Op. 67 No. 4

  • Waltz in C♯ minor, Op. 64 No. 2

  • Prelude in D-flat major, Op. 28 No. 15 “Raindrop”


🎶 Advanced Selections (Level 7–8+)

For seasoned players seeking to embrace Chopin’s full virtuosity and emotional range.

  • Ballade No. 1 in G minor, Op. 23

  • Scherzo No. 2 in B-flat minor, Op. 31

  • Polonaise in A-flat major, Op. 53 “Heroic”

  • Nocturne in D-flat major, Op. 27 No. 2


✅ Your Week 1 Task:

  • Pick your piece

  • Comment below with what you’ve chosen (and why, if you’d like!)

  • If you’re unsure, ask for recommendations—we’re here to help!

This week is all about inspiration and intention—no pressure to start practicing yet. Next week, we’ll dive into analysis and interpretation with Eloise Kim.

Let the journey into Chopin’s world begin!

116 replies

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    • Amateur piano enthusiast
    • Marc_M
    • 3 days ago
    • Reported - view

    If we're permitted to pick a piece that's not on the initial list, I'd like to do Op. 10 No. 4. I can play through it, but it needs a lot more speed and accuracy. I want to use it to help practice maintaining a good hand position, particularly for my left hand.

      • Amateur piano enthusiast
      • Marc_M
      • 3 days ago
      • Reported - view

       Yes, I look forward to working on it with you! :D

    • Andrew_Smith
    • 3 days ago
    • Reported - view

    I'm going to revisit Op. 10 no. 3 in E major -- haven't played it in about 20 years but I learned it while young, so there's some deep muscle memory there. This month should be about the right amount of time to get it back up to speed.

    • peacock123
    • 3 days ago
    • Reported - view

    I'm going with Prelude in d minor Op. 28, no. 24. I haven't been at the piano for quite a long time and it had me at the parallel 3rds. 🙂

    • Cynthia_Crawford
    • 2 days ago
    • Reported - view

    Since we are   working on this in the study group, I'll give Prelude in E minor, Op. 28 No. 4 a try. My first  Chopin...hoping to advance to many more. 

    • Andres_David_Ruiz_Labra.1
    • 2 days ago
    • Reported - view

    Hello! I'm going to pick the Mazurka in A minor, Op. 67 No. 4.

    • Rodney
    • 2 days ago
    • Reported - view

    Rodney Anderson

    Would like to try Etude C# minor, op 23, No.7

      • Pediatrician
      • a_weymann
      • 16 hrs ago
      • Reported - view

       I didn’t know - until listening to the pertinent episode of Ben Laude’s Chopin Podcast - that there is an actual cello version of this piece! 

    • Amanda_Clark
    • Yesterday
    • Reported - view

    My challenge piece will be Raindrop, but I'm also going to look at a couple of shorter & simpler ones ie no 4 in Em & no 6 in Bm. I think a month of just focusing on Chopin will be lovely!

    • Andre_david
    • Yesterday
    • Reported - view

    My choice is already mentioned. I am practicing Nocturne opus 62/1 in B major and Etude 25/7 in c sharp minor- I chose both for the beauty of their singing lines and their polyphonic approach (nocturne more in the right hand, etude 25/7 in the left hand)

    • TT2022
    • Yesterday
    • Reported - view

    I’ll use this as an opportunity to beef up the Chopin Ballade No. 3 and/or Etude 10/1. I’ve learned the notes of both but want to play them far better than I do now, so this is a great opportunity to pick them back up again and dig into both more deeply! 

    • English Teacher in a Language State School
    • Begona
    • 21 hrs ago
    • Reported - view

    Hi everybody, I am working on rubato and improving pedalling on Chopin Mazurka in A minor op 17 n 4

    • Lyn_Hoeft
    • 8 hrs ago
    • Reported - view

    I will be playing Chopin Valse Op 64 #2 c# minor.  My teacher selected it for me and it's been fun and a beautiful piece to learn. It was one of my mom's favorites too.  I am hoping to get a deeper understanding of the piece, as expressed by Ben Laude: the "dark" A theme in c#minor vs the "light" C theme in Db major and a reoccurring B ritornello theme. 

    • Paul_Miller
    • 7 hrs ago
    • Reported - view

    I would like to learn at least one pair of Opus 28 Preludes, major with its relative minor. I’ll start with E major and C# minor, then try to add Db major and Bb minor  

    • Wenona_McCormick
    • 6 hrs ago
    • Reported - view

    I have chosen Etude Op 10,No 3

    This is my first step in learning all the etudes. 

    • Jaakko_Uljas
    • 4 hrs ago
    • Reported - view

    Hei

    Olen aikoinaan nuorena soittanut valssia op 64 nro 2. Olen nyt eläkeiässä herätellyt soittoharrastusta uudelleen ja haluaisin kokeilla opinko soittamaan tämän vielä hyvin ja kauniisti.

    • Vanessa_Ellermann
    • 1 hr ago
    • Reported - view

    I am having a hard time choosing. I will either play Nocturne Op. 15 No. 3 or one of the preludes. I’d like to learn No.  18 or No. 21.

Content aside

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