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Romantic · etude

Étude in C-sharp minor, Op. 25 No. 7

Frédéric Chopin · Level 8, estimated · With Maestro

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The short answer

A study in the set dedicated to Marie d'Agoult. Étude in C-sharp minor, Op. 25 No. 7 is an etude by Frédéric Chopin from the Romantic era. PlayPiano puts it at Level 8, an estimate.

On this page
  • etude
  • Romantic
  • gentle
  • melancholic
  • voicing

Also known as Frédéric Chopin: Étude in C-sharp minor Op. 25 No. 7 Cello.

History

The Paris Chopin Society places the twelve-study Op. 25 collection between 1832 to 1836 and records its first publication in 1837. A later Richault print, catalogued around 1860, names Marie de Flavigny d'Agoult as the set's dedicatee. The collection range does not give each study an independent completion year.

Sources

What to listen for

  1. Let the lower voice speak first

    The lower staff opens alone while the upper staff rests. Shape the changing note lengths as one line rather than treating each short note as a separate gesture.

  2. Listen for two singing lines

    The lower line sustains and decorates its melody while the upper texture begins to move. In the next bar, an upper melody appears above repeated inner notes. Keep both melodic lines audible without making the inner motion equally prominent.

  3. Separate held notes from moving notes

    The lower part holds a tied note before a short moving figure, while the upper melody continues over repeated inner notes. Do not reattack the tie continuation, and keep the accompaniment steady beneath the changing melody.

  4. Keep the pulse through the tuplet

    The upper melody moves in longer notes while the lower line introduces a tuplet figure. Maintain the underlying pulse rather than letting the smaller notes pull the whole texture faster.

How to practise it

Hear the lower opening as a line, then balance the entering upper texture.

  1. Follow the low opening line.
  2. Keep sustained notes distinct from small gestures.
  3. Balance the upper melody against repeated inner pairs.

How hard is it

Level 8, estimated

The advanced proposal values independent singing layers, phrase continuity and differentiated sound in a complete performance. A slower character does not remove demands on coordination and balance.

About this piece

Interpretive sketch of Frédéric Chopin, an illustration and not a verified likeness
An illustration, not a portrait
Collection
The study studio
Licence
CC0
Source
musescore.com

More by Frédéric Chopin

  1. Prelude in A major, Op. 28 No. 7Level 5, estimatedWith Maestro
  2. Nocturne in E-flat major, Op. 9 No. 2Level 7, estimatedWith Maestro
  3. Ballade No. 4 in F minor, Op. 52Level 10, estimatedWith Maestro

With Maestro

Play it, slow it down, hear where you land

Hear the lower opening as a line, then balance the entering upper texture.

Practise it in PlayPiano