Ballades (Chopin)

Piano pieces by Chopin

Frédéric Chopin's Fourth Ballade, Op. 52. Autograph manuscript, 1842, Bodleian Library.

Frédéric Chopin's Four Ballades are single-movement pieces for solo piano, composed between 1831 and 1842. They are considered to be some of the most important and challenging pieces in the standard piano repertoire.[1][2][3]

## Form

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Chopin used the term ballade in the sense of a balletic interlude or dance piece, equivalent to the old Italian ballata. However, the term may also have connotations of the medieval heroic ballad, a narrative minstrel song, often of a fantastical character. There are dramatic and dance-like elements in Chopin's use of the genre, and he is a pioneer of the ballade as an abstract musical form. The four ballades are said to have been inspired by a friend of Chopin's, poet Adam Mickiewicz.[1][4] The exact inspiration for each ballade, however, needs to be clarified and disputed.

Though the ballades do not conform precisely to sonata form, the "ballade form" created by Chopin for his four ballades is a variant of sonata form with specific discrepancies, such as the mirror reprise (presenting the two expositional themes in reverse order during the recapitulation).[citation needed] The ballades have directly influenced composers such as Franz Liszt and Johannes Brahms, who, after Chopin, wrote ballades of their own.[2]

Besides sharing the title, the four ballades are entities distinct from each other. According to composer and music critic Louis Ehlert, "Each [ballade] differs entirely from the others, and they have but one thing in common – their romantic working out and the nobility of their motifs."[2] Modern theorists have shown, however, that the ballades do have much in common, such as the "ballade meter" (6
4 or 6
8)[5] and certain formal practices like the mirror reprise and delaying the structural dominant.

## Ballade No. 1

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Main article: Ballade No. 1 (Chopin)

The Ballade No. 1 in G minor, Op. 23, was completed in 1835 in Paris.[6]

## Ballade No. 2

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Main article: Ballade No. 2 (Chopin)

The Ballade No. 2 in F major, Op. 38, was composed from 1836 to 1839 in Nohant, France, and on the Spanish island of Mallorca.

## Ballade No. 3

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Main article: Ballade No. 3 (Chopin)

The Ballade No. 3 in A♭ major, Op. 47, was composed in 1841 in Nohant.[7]

## Ballade No. 4

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Main article: Ballade No. 4 (Chopin)

The Ballade No. 4 in F minor, Op. 52, was composed in 1842 in Paris and Nohant and revised in 1843.[7]

## Recordings

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The four ballades have been recorded by many pianists, including Arthur Rubinstein, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Dinu Lipatti, Sviatoslav Richter, Martha Argerich, Emanuel Ax, Andrei Gavrilov, Yundi Li, Seong-Jin Cho, Murray Perahia and Krystian Zimerman.[8] The Guardian has described Krystian Zimerman's recording with Deutsche Grammophon as a "key recording".[8]

## References

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1. ^ a b "Chopin: Complete Music Analysis - Ballades". ourchopin.com. Retrieved 17 December 2020.
2. ^ a b c Huneker, James (1921). Chopin: the Man and his Music. Plain Label Books. p. 414\. ISBN 1-60303-588-5. Retrieved 5 January 2010. `{{cite book}}`: ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)
3. ^ Samson, Jim (1992). Chopin: the Four Ballades. Cambridge University Press. doi:10.1017/CBO9780511611650. ISBN 9780511611650.
4. ^ Zakrzewska, Dorota (1999). "Adam Mickiewicz's "Ballady" and Chopin's Ballades". Polish Music Journal. 2 (1–2). ISSN 1521-6039. Retrieved 12 April 2020.1–2&rft.date=1999&rft.issn=1521-6039&rft.aulast=Zakrzewska&rft.aufirst=Dorota&rft_id=https://polishmusic.usc.edu/research/publications/polish-music-journal/vol2/mickiewicz-and-chopin/&rfr_id=info:sid/en.wikipedia.org:Ballades+(Chopin)" class="Z3988">
5. ^ Samson, Jim (1985). The music of Chopin. Routledge & Kegan Paul. ISBN 0-7100-9688-7.
6. ^ Smaliek, William; Trochimczyk, Maja (2015). Fréderic Chopin: A Research and Information Guide (2nd ed.). New York and London: Routledge. pp. xxviii. ISBN 978-0-415-99884-0.
7. ^ a b Bielecki, Artur. "Ballades". Narodowy Instytut Fryderyka Chopina. Retrieved 25 June 2022.
8. ^ a b "Building a classical library - Chopin: Four Ballades". The Guardian. 11 August 2000. Retrieved 17 December 2020.

## External links

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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ballades by Frédéric Chopin.

* Ballades (Chopin): Scores at the International Music Score Library Project

* v
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Frédéric Chopin

Concertante works|

* Variations on "Là ci darem la mano", Op. 2
* Piano Concerto No. 1 Op. 11
* Fantasy on Polish Airs, Op. 13
* Rondo à la Krakowiak, Op. 14
* Piano Concerto No. 2, Op. 21
* Andante spianato et grande polonaise brillante, Op. 22
* Allegro de concert, Op. 46

Chamber music
and songs|

* Introduction and Polonaise brillante, Op. 3
* Piano Trio in G minor, Op. 8
* Cello Sonata in G minor, Op. 65
* Grand Duo concertant

* 19 Polish Songs

Ballades|

* No. 1 in G minor, Op. 23
* No. 2 in F major, Op. 38
* No. 3 in A♭ major, Op. 47
* No. 4 in F minor, Op. 52

Études|

| Opus 10|

* No. 1
* No. 2
* No. 3
* No. 4
* No. 5
* No. 6
* No. 7
* No. 8
* No. 9
* No. 10
* No. 11
* No. 12

|

Opus 25|

* No. 1
* No. 2
* No. 3
* No. 4
* No. 5
* No. 6
* No. 7
* No. 8
* No. 9
* No. 10
* No. 11
* No. 12

Trois nouvelles études|

* Trois nouvelles études

Impromptus|

* No. 1 in A♭ major, Op. 29
* No. 2 in F♯ major, Op. 36
* No. 3 in G♭ major, Op. 51
* Fantaisie-Impromptu in C♯ minor, Op. posth. 66

Mazurkas|

* 4 Mazurkas, Op. 6
* 5 Mazurkas, Op. 7
* 4 Mazurkas, Op. 17
* 4 Mazurkas, Op. 24
* 4 Mazurkas, Op. 30
* 4 Mazurkas, Op. 33
* 4 Mazurkas, Op. 41
* 3 Mazurkas, Op. 50
* 3 Mazurkas, Op. 56
* 3 Mazurkas, Op. 59
* 3 Mazurkas, Op. 63
* 4 Mazurkas, Op. 67
* 4 Mazurkas, Op. 68
* Posthumous mazurkas without opus numbers

Nocturnes|

* 3 Nocturnes, Op. 9
* 3 Nocturnes, Op. 15
* 2 Nocturnes, Op. 27
* 2 Nocturnes, Op. 32
* 2 Nocturnes, Op. 37
* 2 Nocturnes, Op. 48
* 2 Nocturnes, Op. 55
* 2 Nocturnes, Op. 62
* Nocturne in E minor, Op. posth. 72
* Nocturne in C♯ minor, Op. posth.
* Nocturne in C minor, Op. posth.

Piano sonatas|

* No. 1 in C minor, Op. 4
* No. 2 in B♭ minor, Op. 35 (Funeral March)
* No. 3 in B minor, Op. 58

Polonaises|

* Introduction and Polonaise brillante, Op. 3
* Andante spianato et grande polonaise brillante, Op. 22
* 2 Polonaises, Op. 26
* 2 Polonaises, Op. 40 (Military)
* Polonaise, Op. 44 (Tragic)
* Polonaise, Op. 53 (Heroic)
* Polonaise-Fantaisie, Op. 61
* 3 Polonaises, Op. posth. 71
* Posthumous polonaises without opus numbers

Preludes|

| Opus 28|

* No. 1 in C major
* No. 2 in A minor
* No. 3 in G major
* No. 4 in E minor
* No. 5 in D major
* No. 6 in B minor
* No. 7 in A major
* No. 8 in F♯ minor
* No. 9 in E major
* No. 10 in C♯ minor
* No. 11 in B major
* No. 12 in G♯ minor
* No. 13 in F♯ major
* No. 14 in E♭ minor
* No. 15 in D♭ major
* No. 16 in B♭ minor
* No. 17 in A♭ major
* No. 18 in F minor
* No. 19 in E♭ major
* No. 20 in C minor
* No. 21 in B♭ major
* No. 22 in G minor
* No. 23 in F major
* No. 24 in D minor

|

Others|

* Prelude in C♯ minor, Op. 45
* Prelude in A♭ major (ded. Pierre Wolff)
* Devil's Trill Prelude

Rondos|

* Rondo in C minor, Op. 1
* Rondo à la mazur in F major, Op. 5
* Rondo in E♭ major, Op. 16
* Rondo in C major, Op. posth. 73 (versions for solo piano and two pianos)
* Rondo à la Krakowiak, Op. 14

Scherzos|

* No. 1 in B minor, Op. 20
* No. 2 in B♭ minor, Op. 31
* No. 3 in C♯ minor, Op. 39
* No. 4 in E major, Op. 54

Waltzes|

* Grande valse brillante in E♭ major, Op. 18
* 3 Waltzes, Op. 34
* Waltz in A♭ major, Op. 42
* Waltz in D♭ major, Op. 64, No. 1 (Minute)
* Waltz in C♯ minor, Op. 64, No. 2
* Waltz in A♭ major, Op. 64, No. 3
* Waltz in A♭ major, Op. 69, No. 1 (Farewell)
* Waltz in B minor, Op. 69, No. 2
* 3 Waltzes, Op. posth. 70
* Waltz in E minor, Op. posth.
* Waltz in E major, Op. posth.
* Waltz in A minor, Op. posth.
* Waltz in A minor (rediscovered 2024)

Miscellaneous|

With opus numbers
Variations brillantes in B♭ major on "Je vends des scapulaires" from Hérold's Ludovic, Op. 12
Boléro, Op. 19
Tarantelle in A♭ major, Op. 43
Allegro de concert, Op. 46
Fantaisie in F minor, Op. 49
Berceuse in D♭ major, Op. 57
Barcarolle in F♯ major, Op. 60
Marche funèbre in C minor, Op. posth. 72/2
Three Écossaises, Op. posth. 72/3
17 Polish songs, Op. posth. 74

Without opus numbers
Album Leaf (Moderato) in E major, B. 151
Andantino in G minor (arr. of the piano part of the song Wiosna), B. 117
2 Bourrées, B. 160b
Canon in F minor, B. 129a
Cantabile in B♭ major, B. 84
Contredanse in G♭ major (doubtful), B. 17
Fugue in A minor, B. 144
3 Fugues; arr. from Cherubini's Cours de contrepoint et de fugue, KK. VIIa/2
Galopp in A♭ (Galop Marquis), P. 2/13
Introduction, Theme and Variations in D on a Venetian air, for piano 4-hands, KK. IVa/6
Klavierstück in B♭ (1834), P. 2/6
Klavierstück in E♭ (1837), P. 2/5
Klavierstück in E♭ (1840), P. 2/10
Largo in E♭, B. 109
2 Polish songs, B. 51, 132
Variations in A major, Souvenir de Paganini, B. 37
Variation in E major for Hexameron, B. 113
Variations in E major for flute and piano on "Non più mesta" from Rossini's La Cenerentola, B.9, KK. Anh. Ia/5
Variations in E major on the air "Der Schweizerbub", a.k.a. Introduction et Variations sur un Lied allemand, B. 14

Ballets to Chopin|

* An Evening with the Royal Ballet
* The Concert
* Dances at a Gathering
* In the Night
* A Month in the Country
* Other Dances
* Les Sylphides (Chopiniana)

Cultural depictions|

* Nocturne of Love (1919 film)
* Youth of Chopin (1952 film)
* Chopin: Desire for Love (2002 film)
* Chopin (opera)
* Eternal Sonata (video game)
* Musical Moments from Chopin (cartoon)
* Chopin, Chopin! (2025 film)

Family|

* Nicolas Chopin
* Tekla Justyna Chopin
* Ludwika Jędrzejewicz

Other topics|

* Health
* Heart
* Biographies
* Memorials
* Chopin National Edition
* Fryderyk Chopin Institute
* International Chopin Piano Competition
* Fryderyk Chopin Museum
* Chopin Year

* {{Ballades}}
* {{Concertante}}
* {{Études}}
* {{Mazurkas}}
* {{Nocturnes}}
* {{Polonaises}}
* {{Preludes}}
* {{Scherzos}}
* {{Waltzes}}

* {{Frédéric Chopin}}
* List of compositions by genre
* List of compositions by opus number

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Portal:

* Classical music

Authority control databases

International|

* VIAF
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National|

* United States
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* BnF data

Other|

* IdRef

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