PROGRAMME NOTES

SUBMITTED FOR THE EXAMINATION OF

PROGRAMME ORDER
Title Duration
Chopin : Nocturne Op.62 No.2 5’22”
Beethoven : Sonata in C minor Op.13 “Pathetique” 23’20”
Debussy: Passepied 4’20’’
Total Duration 33’02”

TOTAL WORD COUNT : 1147 words

Frederic Chopin, a talented composer, has been recognized as one of the most significant
composers of the Romantic period. His abilities to go beyond the "poetic limits" of the piano
earned him the nickname: "poet of the piano". He could master difficult piano concertos at the age
of seven, and published his first piece at fifteen. In 1830, he left his home country Poland and
travelled around Europe as a touring performer. He finally settled in Paris in 1831, working as a
piano teacher and continued to compose many of his well-known late works. In 1849, he passed
away with a lung disease, leaving his countless renowned pieces, including two sonatas, four
ballades, four scherzos, 16 polonaises, 21 nocturnes, 27 Etudes, 26 preludes, and 60+ mazurkas.

Chopin always liked Italian and French opera; much of his music was "vocal in origin". He had a
tendency to "sweeten the melody" using operatic techniques. These features were already
prominent during Chopin's time, and Chopin was particularly influenced by the features
incorporated in John Field' music. Though it is said that Chopin was inspired by Franz Liszt,
Vincenzo Bellini, and Hector Berlioz, he composed the G Minor Ballade while he was waiting in
Vienna, before he had met them.
Nocturne, a term used first by Field, Faure, and Chopin during the eighteenth century, is a title for
quiet and meditative pieces, often used for describing the night-time. A nocturne usually has
several movements, mostly for the solo piano. Chopin did not invent the Nocturne; however, he is
the most famous, "building on the form developed by John Field". His first 18 nocturnes were
published during his life.
Opus 62, which consisted of two movements, was one of his last nocturnes out of his 21, published
in 1846 and dedicated to Mdlle. R. de Konneritz. The nocturne is written in ternary form, but
Chopin wished to "keep exact repetition to a minimum". In the first section, the left hand serves
as the accompaniment, and the right hand plays the melody. The cantabile melody was intended
to be sweet and sustained, given the dolce and sostenuto. The middle section incorporates
contrapuntal harmonies and melodies more commonly found in contemporary music. The middle
section is much more tense than the third, clearly distinguishing the two. The nocturne ends
peacefully with a gradual diminuendo.
Sonata in C minor ('Pathetique'), Op. 13 Beethoven (1770-1827)
Grave; Allegro di molto e con brio
Adagio cantabile
Rondo: Allegro

Ludwig van Beethoven was one of the most famous composers in the history of music. He first
received his musical education from his father, travelling to Vienna twice to study with Mozart
and Haydn during the years 1787 and 1792, never to leave Vienna again. Beethoven's music forms
a crucial peak in the history of music "as a whole". His earlier works tended to stick to the styles
of Classical music, but Beethoven started to develop his own style in his middle and later works.
He never quit composing, even after he lost his hearing in the last decades of his life. Aside from
his 32 piano sonatas, he also wrote symphonies, string quartets, and concertos etc. His music was
loved throughout history for his combination of powerful, passionate and dramatic emotional
styles as well as the strict classical composition structure.

Sonata in C minor was one of Beethoven's earlier works, and it is said that it may have been
inspired by Mozart's Sonata K. 457, as "Both compositions are in C minor and have three similar
movements." The Pathetique Sonata is one of Beethoven's more famous works, and its theme has
been incorporated in many modern soundtracks. Charles Rosen said, "Sonata in C minor has come
to symbolize his artistic character." As a composer, Beethoven often tended push the limits of the
forte piano, making a huge impact on the development of later pianos.

Sonata in C minor consisted of three movements, Grave, Adagio, and Rondo. Every movement in
the Sonata has its own unique motif theme. The song begins with an introductory segment. It
modulates from C minor to E-flat minor. The first movement’s left-hand fast octave notes are
played throughout most of the piece, while the right hand plays the main melody. A reoccurring
minor theme appears throughout, sometimes with modulations. The Adagio is a slow and tranquil
piece, and consists of both left and right hand accompaniments, with a main melody in the right
hand. The climax occurs from bar 42-43, and ends peacefully, with a slow final bar. The Rondo
piece is a dance, which consists of quick, brisk notes. It also has a main theme that reoccurs
throughout the piece. These themes appear four times during the movement. The piece ends the
piece with a fast and exited atmosphere.
Suite Bergamasque : Passepied Claude Debussy (1862-1918)

Debussy, a French composer, is one of the world`s most famous and revolutionary composers,
having developed his individual style, called "impressionism", and also created a language that
broke definitively with the procedures of classical tonality. He started taking piano lessons in 1870
with Jean Cerutti, and studied at the Paris Conservatory for 11 years. He was recognized as a strong
sight reader with good hearing. Debussy is known for his unique style of music, known as
"Debussyism", used "both as a compliment and as a term of abuse". In his music he developed a
new fluidity of form and explored unusual harmonic relationships and dissonances. By making use
of the whole-tone scale, instead of the traditional scale of Western music, he achieved new nuances
of mood and expression, as in his famous tone poem : Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun.

Debussy's piano works exploit to the utmost the subtle coloristic possibilities of the instrument.
Among them are Suite Bergamasque (pub. 1905), containing the popular Clair de Lune. The
Passepied is the fourth and final movement of Suite Bergamasque. It is believed that this suite was
inspired by a poem by Paul Verlaine, called Fetes Gallantes. It consists of four movements:
Prelude, Menuet, Clair de lune, Passepied. The Suite Bergamasque is Debussy's most famous
suite, mainly because of the success of Clair de Lune, written 1888, yet published in 1903.

Passepied, a French court dance meaning "Passing Feet", and it is a 17th to 18th century dance
that originated in Brittany and is usually faster than a minuet. Debussy`s Passepied is a happy, yet
strangely mediaeval piece which is surprisingly faster than its Baroque counterparts. In F-sharp
minor, this piece is played at Allegretto ma non Troppo. The left hand plays the accompaniment
with staccato arpeggios played mainly throughout the piece; the right hand varies in many ways.
While playing the main theme, the right plays staccato. However, there are times when the right
hand is required to play as smoothly as possible, when triplets are prominent. This piece is light,
bouncy, delicate, yet elegant and it ends playfully, quietly, and softly, serving as a wonderful
conclusion to Suite Bergamasque, which has been orchestrated by many composers, including
Andréa Caplet, Leopold Stokowski and Lucien Cailliet.