Chopin - Nocturne in F minor, Op.55 No.1 - (Kawai RX-2 Piano)

Описание: This piece is the first of a set of two late nocturnes, published in 1844, only 5 years before Chopin’s death. I think this is a perfect example of the nocturne genre, being a somewhat sad, dark, melancholic piece, but with utmost beauty and lyricism.

The structure is ABA’, but the ending A’ feels like a coda, with fast passages and a modulation to F major. The A section starts with a simple slow melody, that is repeated with some variations, and then it progresses to a contrasting B section that I perceive as an agitato (even though that is not written in the score). The main melody comes back once again, but then it changes into an accelerating cadenza that finishes off with a modulation in F Major. To me, that ending is a coda and it is really fun to play, but it was rather confusing and challenging to learn.

I’ve been playing this piece since the beginning of the year, never feeling quite confident to do a recording. It is surprisingly difficult to play the slow A section well, with the proper phrasing of the melody and maintaining that slow, dolce, and sad character. I struggled with that a lot. Also, the left hand was challenging, to connect the pairs of bass and chords requires special phrasing in that hand as well. The middle section is just weird to play, with a very stretchy left hand and unusual harmonies. Then, the coda, the first part of it, doesn’t have a clear pattern and it was hard to memorize, but once it was in my muscle memory it wasn’t so hard to play on tempo. The final accelerating F major arpeggios are difficult because of the dynamics, having a crescendo followed by a diminuendo to pianissimo during a stretto.

I worked on this piece for a long time and only now I have started to feel that I could give a somewhat convincing performance. I waited to make this recording right after my piano was tuned and voiced, so apart from my limitations as an amateur pianist, the sound was as good as it can be. I was surprised that my first take was really good, but then I recorded another two that were also good. None of the three takes were perfect, but each one was good in its own way. I couldn’t decide which one to use, so I just combined the best parts of each one into this recording. This was not really to mask my mistakes, as I could share any one of the three takes. I just wanted to share my best recording, and in this way, I think I can accomplish that.

Anyway, this doesn't happen often, but I was pretty happy about this recording. I feel that this is really the best performance of this piece that I am able to do at this moment. I am also glad I can move on and start learning another piece. I might go for another nocturne.

As always, I am happy to hear your thoughts and impressions about my performance in the comments, and feel free to ask me any questions. Also, let me know what is your favorite nocturne (mine is Op.27 No.1).
Thank you!