Chopin wrote it when he received word that the Russians were invading Poland, his home country. Then he decided not to go back to pol until the invasion had ended and he went to Paris.he got terribly sick, and the doctor said to go somewhere sunny. He went somewhere sunny, known for it's sunniest weather. Unfortunately it had the wettest weather ever since hundred yrs! He died on the way back to Paris. Sooooo sad.
@sosomsQQ You ought to get your facts straight. Chopin made it back to Paris and left again in 1848 due to the 1848 Revolution of Paris. He made his way to London. He returned to Paris in November of that year, and died in October of the following. And it's not that he simply decided not to go back to Poland--the Russians wouldn't allow it.
Before death, Chopin requested his heart be returned to Poland, and his sister smuggled it in using an urn.
@amyleeluvr As you've studied this maybe you could say at what tempo it should be played? It's marked Assai Lento, Lento being 40-60bpm, Assai suggesting it should be closer to 40 than 60?
I ask because most versions here take 2' 30, some nearly 3 minutes with the melody almost stalling. There's 26 bars in 3/4 = 78 beats? Rubenstein plays it in 1' 40, around 48bpm, but it sounds really quick! I've just posted my attempt, which I think is slightly fast. Jh8812 has it about right I reckon.
Chopin had some rough times in his life when he wrote this song. He was close to being on his deathbed and he was pretty bitter about it. I am learning this piece on the piano for school and one of the things I notice is that it sounds A LOT like my Gothic Death Metal pieces (the slower ones). It is a fun piece to play and if anyone of you need tips on playing it, feel free to message me here and ask. I have been playing piano for almost 11 1/2 years and I am happy to help others learn.
@amyleeluvr wow...for him to write this piece at those moments of his life!
PS: i love amy lee too!! =) she's one of the reasons i started learnin piano. And I just picked this piece up....any tips on how to accentuate the melody on the left hand?...without losing concentration on the right ..lol.....
Well, the first thing you need to do is to create one sound. This means that you should bring out the melody line with your left hand by picking a sound that is louder than the right hand, and that keeps true to the dynamic markings. Then, look through the entire piece and notice the patterns that happen in the right hand. Once you get that, you will be able to begin playing. Once you begin playing, write in fingerings as you find spots that are troublesome.
Once you do that, you will be able to focus on the right hand more. And for the left hand, something that I learned with it is to practice your finger motions starting with no space and gradually moving up to the next note and the next. For example, with the first left hand arpeggio, play B-D-F#-B-C, and then play B-D-F#-B-D when you feel comfortable with the movements.
Another thing I learned was at the measure with the grace note, for the top notes in the right hand, use your arm from the elbow on every of the notes. The bottom notes really don't matter as much, as the top notes are the melody. Also, in that same measure, for the left hand, use a 4-2-1-2-4-3-5 fingering in order to send your hand down to the D after that measure. And always practice those movements a few times in order for them to feel comfortable.
One last thing, don't worry about how loud you play your left hand, just worry about your right hand being quieter than your left hand. So basically, focus on the melody line (the left hand) and you will have an easy time focusing on the right hand. I am not saying that you shouldn't focus on the right hand, because you should, but keep in mind that you should focus more on your left hand than anything else and the rest will fall into place.
Not bad, but you need more emotion in it. Rubato is a very important thing, but you hardly had any. At many parts your right hand overpowered your melody in the left hand.
hey, you sound pretty knowledgable on the subject. i was wondering if you could give me some tips on how to make the left hand in the piece stand out more. i'm currently learning it and i have the notes down. it's just that i can't seem to make the notes sing like they should. if you could give me some advice, that would be awesome...:)
A lot of practice, especially concentrate on technique. Practice all scales, chords, dominant/diminished chords, chromatic scales, etc. and you'll naturally gain dexterity in your hands. After enough practice you'll be amazed at how much control you'll have over your fingers.
this is one of my favorites, i play it the best when i'm sick, and i'm sick often, it's really weird lol thanks for posting this, i've always wanted to see someone else play it . well done =]
Jh8812, i dont know if you ever read these comments, but this is probably my favorite piano song. it means so much to me and your video is the only one i listen to. my piano teacher gave me this song to memorize for a recital right before he died. Thank you.
Nice work on the right hand accents. Arrau does that really well. In bars 15,16,17,19,20,21 try using over lapping legato in the left hand melody instead of the pedal. It gives a much cleaner sound.
Very good! Among your virtues are the short hesitations, the artful dynamics, the not-quite synchronous pairs of notes. At the end, the pianissimo and the absence of much rubato, produced an understated conclusion. I would be proud of this extraordinary performance.
Chopin wrote it when he received word that the Russians were invading Poland, his home country. Then he decided not to go back to pol until the invasion had ended and he went to Paris.he got terribly sick, and the doctor said to go somewhere sunny. He went somewhere sunny, known for it's sunniest weather. Unfortunately it had the wettest weather ever since hundred yrs! He died on the way back to Paris. Sooooo sad.
sosomsQQ 3 months ago
@sosomsQQ You ought to get your facts straight. Chopin made it back to Paris and left again in 1848 due to the 1848 Revolution of Paris. He made his way to London. He returned to Paris in November of that year, and died in October of the following. And it's not that he simply decided not to go back to Poland--the Russians wouldn't allow it.
Before death, Chopin requested his heart be returned to Poland, and his sister smuggled it in using an urn.
P.S. That "sunny" place is Majorca.
PlankingtonBradley 2 months ago
@amyleeluvr As you've studied this maybe you could say at what tempo it should be played? It's marked Assai Lento, Lento being 40-60bpm, Assai suggesting it should be closer to 40 than 60?
I ask because most versions here take 2' 30, some nearly 3 minutes with the melody almost stalling. There's 26 bars in 3/4 = 78 beats? Rubenstein plays it in 1' 40, around 48bpm, but it sounds really quick! I've just posted my attempt, which I think is slightly fast. Jh8812 has it about right I reckon.
matsnotfat 1 year ago
fix the chords!
but good job
mvs13I2 1 year ago
Nice work. I really like your interpretation of this one.
rickfreslanta 2 years ago
Chopin had some rough times in his life when he wrote this song. He was close to being on his deathbed and he was pretty bitter about it. I am learning this piece on the piano for school and one of the things I notice is that it sounds A LOT like my Gothic Death Metal pieces (the slower ones). It is a fun piece to play and if anyone of you need tips on playing it, feel free to message me here and ask. I have been playing piano for almost 11 1/2 years and I am happy to help others learn.
amyleeluvr 2 years ago
@amyleeluvr wow...for him to write this piece at those moments of his life!
PS: i love amy lee too!! =) she's one of the reasons i started learnin piano. And I just picked this piece up....any tips on how to accentuate the melody on the left hand?...without losing concentration on the right ..lol.....
EuphoriaLacrymosa 2 years ago
Well, the first thing you need to do is to create one sound. This means that you should bring out the melody line with your left hand by picking a sound that is louder than the right hand, and that keeps true to the dynamic markings. Then, look through the entire piece and notice the patterns that happen in the right hand. Once you get that, you will be able to begin playing. Once you begin playing, write in fingerings as you find spots that are troublesome.
amyleeluvr 2 years ago
Once you do that, you will be able to focus on the right hand more. And for the left hand, something that I learned with it is to practice your finger motions starting with no space and gradually moving up to the next note and the next. For example, with the first left hand arpeggio, play B-D-F#-B-C, and then play B-D-F#-B-D when you feel comfortable with the movements.
amyleeluvr 2 years ago
Another thing I learned was at the measure with the grace note, for the top notes in the right hand, use your arm from the elbow on every of the notes. The bottom notes really don't matter as much, as the top notes are the melody. Also, in that same measure, for the left hand, use a 4-2-1-2-4-3-5 fingering in order to send your hand down to the D after that measure. And always practice those movements a few times in order for them to feel comfortable.
amyleeluvr 2 years ago
One last thing, don't worry about how loud you play your left hand, just worry about your right hand being quieter than your left hand. So basically, focus on the melody line (the left hand) and you will have an easy time focusing on the right hand. I am not saying that you shouldn't focus on the right hand, because you should, but keep in mind that you should focus more on your left hand than anything else and the rest will fall into place.
And p.s. Amy Lee is my idol. I LOVE HER A LOT!!
amyleeluvr 2 years ago
a key to chopin is play like your dreaming.... dont play like your awake try to visualize the beauty in each note .....well done.
DerekShawta1 2 years ago
Not bad, but you need more emotion in it. Rubato is a very important thing, but you hardly had any. At many parts your right hand overpowered your melody in the left hand.
cereberusv 2 years ago
hey, you sound pretty knowledgable on the subject. i was wondering if you could give me some tips on how to make the left hand in the piece stand out more. i'm currently learning it and i have the notes down. it's just that i can't seem to make the notes sing like they should. if you could give me some advice, that would be awesome...:)
MegNito967 2 years ago
A lot of practice, especially concentrate on technique. Practice all scales, chords, dominant/diminished chords, chromatic scales, etc. and you'll naturally gain dexterity in your hands. After enough practice you'll be amazed at how much control you'll have over your fingers.
cereberusv 2 years ago
very good! I play this too
musicantae 2 years ago
hey nice song.
do u think you could make a tutorial on it?
eiroight 3 years ago
This song would be pretty difficult to make a tutorial on.
Dreyman2 3 years ago
this is one of my favorites, i play it the best when i'm sick, and i'm sick often, it's really weird lol thanks for posting this, i've always wanted to see someone else play it . well done =]
chaya89 4 years ago
Hey there...I do read each and every comment that is made. Thanks for the comment and I'm glad to hear this song means a lot to you!
Jh8812 4 years ago
Jh8812, i dont know if you ever read these comments, but this is probably my favorite piano song. it means so much to me and your video is the only one i listen to. my piano teacher gave me this song to memorize for a recital right before he died. Thank you.
KERG111 4 years ago
Nice work on the right hand accents. Arrau does that really well. In bars 15,16,17,19,20,21 try using over lapping legato in the left hand melody instead of the pedal. It gives a much cleaner sound.
LVB1770 4 years ago
Very good! Among your virtues are the short hesitations, the artful dynamics, the not-quite synchronous pairs of notes. At the end, the pianissimo and the absence of much rubato, produced an understated conclusion. I would be proud of this extraordinary performance.
weestro7 4 years ago
Well done, sounds very nice. I play chopin too.
dancering77 4 years ago