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Huneker, James, 1860-1921

"Chopin : the Man and His Music"

This cantilene begins on a weak
beat, and produces numerous suspensions, which, in view of the
time of their entrance, appear as so many retardations and
delayals of melodic tones.
All these things combine to give the composition a wholly
peculiar coloring, to render its flow somewhat restless and to
stamp the etude as a little characteristic piece, a capriccio,
which might well be named "Inquietude."
As regards technics, two things are to be studied: the
staccato of the chords and the execution of the cantilena. The
chords must be formed more by pressure than by striking. The
fingers must support themselves very lightly upon the chord
keys and then rise again with the back of the hand in the most
elastic manner. The upward movement of the hand must be very
slight. Everything must be done with the greatest precision,
and not merely in a superficial manner. Where the cantilena
appears, every melodic tone must stand apart from the tones of
the accompaniment as if in "relief." Hence the fingers for the
melodic tones must press down the keys allotted to them with
special force, in doing which the back of the hand may be
permitted to turn lightly to the right (sideward stroke),
especially when there is a rest in the accompaniment.


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