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Easiest Chopin Pieces (not to be mistaken with "easy versions"):
Some day I'd like to be able to play some Chopin pieces [well]. But many of his pieces are difficult for many reasons: technical difficulty, dynamics, articulation, ornaments, etc. Lots of people long to be able to play Chopin as early as possible. I thought it would be nice to build a list of some of Chopin's easier pieces to help Chopin fans decide which pieces to start with.
The keys are easy to hit on the piece I will add. The real challenge is to play it with a good touch. The piece is very soothing all the way through.
I will start the list and hopefully others can add to it over time. It would be nice if you could provide a reasonably decent video in your post:
Prelude in E-Minor Op. 28 No. 4
Stormbringer
Last edited by Stormbringer; 05/09/2105:27 PM.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Working on Alfred's Adult AIO Book 2 1970's: Took piano lessons. 2021: This old man is giving it a 2nd go. <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<Feel The Power>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It all depends where you put the bar. When you say easy pieces, it is all relative. The prelude you mention is already an RCM 7 level. And basically nearly all his easy pieces would be above that, level 8, 9 and more.
I found the waltz in Amin op post also relatively accessible, here is my version played six months after I started studying piano on my own. Of course, as you say in your post, one thing is learning to hit the right notes (which to me took a few months of hard work), and an entire different thing is to play it well (which will take me a lifetime!). Notice that my tempo is rather off and there are a few hiccups.
Here is a much better version, played by someone who knows what he is doing...
Also very accessible is the "Sostenuto" waltz in E flat, also published posthumously. I am learning it right now and it is very doable, albeit certainly not easy for someone at my level. Finally, I think the prelude in Amaj is technically not too complex, although I found that hitting the big chords at the end is a challenge to me right now.
Total_Beginner - You did a very fine job on the Chopin piece for only doing self study for 6 months, wow. You have a very nice touch. Thanx for adding 3 songs to our list and for the 3 vids.
Sam S - I checked out that Chopin: At The Piano - 17 Well-Known Original Pieces on Amazon and saw the list of pieces by clicking the Read More in the description. That would be a great book to have. Thanx.
Ebonyk - Yes, Wiosna looks and sounds like the easiest piece so far. Thanx.
Qazsedcft - Thanx for posting the Wiosna video with sheet music.
Well, the list of Easiest Chopin Pieces is quite decent so far. If anyone else can add to it, please consider doing so.
Here's what we have so far:
Wiosna Waltz in A minor, KK IVb, No. 11 Waltz in Eb Major “Sostenuto” B.133 Prelude in A major, Op. 28 No. 7 Waltz in B minor, Op. Post. 69, No. 2 Waltz in C-sharp minor, Op. 64, No. 2 Prelude in C minor, Op. 28, No. 20 Prelude in B minor, Op. 28, No. 6 Prelude in E minor, Op. 28, No. 4 Prelude in E Major, Op. 28, No. 9 Prelude in D-flat Major, Op. 28, No. 15 Raindrop Mazurka in A minor, Op. Post. 68, No. 2 Mazurka in B-flat Major, Op. 7, No. 1 Mazurka in G minor, Op. 24, No. 1 Mazurka in G minor, Op. Post. 67, No. 2 Nocturne in G minor, Op. 15, No. 3 Nocturne in C-sharp minor, KK Iva, No. 16 Nocturne in E-flat Major, Op. 9, No. 2 Funeral March from Sonata No. 2 in B-flat minor, Op. 35 Polonaise in C-sharp minor, Op. 26, No. 1
Thanx,
Stormbringer
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Working on Alfred's Adult AIO Book 2 1970's: Took piano lessons. 2021: This old man is giving it a 2nd go. <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<Feel The Power>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Well, the list of Easiest Chopin Pieces is quite decent so far. If anyone else can add to it, please consider doing so.
Here's what we have so far:
Wiosna Waltz in A minor, KK IVb, No. 11 Waltz in Eb Major “Sostenuto” B.133 Prelude in A major, Op. 28 No. 7 Waltz in B minor, Op. Post. 69, No. 2 Waltz in C-sharp minor, Op. 64, No. 2 Prelude in C minor, Op. 28, No. 20 Prelude in B minor, Op. 28, No. 6 Prelude in E minor, Op. 28, No. 4 Prelude in E Major, Op. 28, No. 9 Prelude in D-flat Major, Op. 28, No. 15 Raindrop Mazurka in A minor, Op. Post. 68, No. 2 Mazurka in B-flat Major, Op. 7, No. 1 Mazurka in G minor, Op. 24, No. 1 Mazurka in G minor, Op. Post. 67, No. 2 Nocturne in G minor, Op. 15, No. 3 Nocturne in C-sharp minor, KK Iva, No. 16 Nocturne in E-flat Major, Op. 9, No. 2 Funeral March from Sonata No. 2 in B-flat minor, Op. 35 Polonaise in C-sharp minor, Op. 26, No. 1
IMO several of those pieces don't belong on any list of the easiest Chopin pieces at least in the sense that someone with two or three years experience would usually be ready for them. I'm thinking of the Waltz in C# minor, Raindrop Prelude, Nocturnes in E flat major and C# minor, Polonaise in C# minor, and Funeral March.
I've recorded three from that list, but as time goes by the less I like my own recordings. Hopefully that means my ears are getting more discriminating with time. But who knows. Perhaps it is reflection of I shouldn't have attempted Chopin yet or at least kept it to Wiosna
Waltz in A Minor I have trouble with trills and it shows, my arpeggios are too slow as well.
Well, the list of Easiest Chopin Pieces is quite decent so far. If anyone else can add to it, please consider doing so.
Here's what we have so far:
Wiosna Waltz in A minor, KK IVb, No. 11 Waltz in Eb Major “Sostenuto” B.133 Prelude in A major, Op. 28 No. 7 Waltz in B minor, Op. Post. 69, No. 2 Waltz in C-sharp minor, Op. 64, No. 2 Prelude in C minor, Op. 28, No. 20 Prelude in B minor, Op. 28, No. 6 Prelude in E minor, Op. 28, No. 4 Prelude in E Major, Op. 28, No. 9 Prelude in D-flat Major, Op. 28, No. 15 Raindrop Mazurka in A minor, Op. Post. 68, No. 2 Mazurka in B-flat Major, Op. 7, No. 1 Mazurka in G minor, Op. 24, No. 1 Mazurka in G minor, Op. Post. 67, No. 2 Nocturne in G minor, Op. 15, No. 3 Nocturne in C-sharp minor, KK Iva, No. 16 Nocturne in E-flat Major, Op. 9, No. 2 Funeral March from Sonata No. 2 in B-flat minor, Op. 35 Polonaise in C-sharp minor, Op. 26, No. 1
IMO several of those pieces don't belong on any list of the easiest Chopin pieces at least in the sense that someone with two or three years experience would usually be ready for them. I'm thinking of the Waltz in C# minor, Raindrop Prelude, Nocturnes in E flat major and C# minor, Polonaise in C# minor, and Funeral March.
PianoLoverUS - Thanx for pointing that out. I wasn't sure if they all belonged on the list. I was copy/pasting some of the list from a book that someone suggested further up in the thread. But out of fairness to him, he didn't specifically say that each one was among the very easiest, just they were progressively harder. I can remove them from the list if you think it would be better that way. What do you think of the order otherwise?
Stormbringer
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Working on Alfred's Adult AIO Book 2 1970's: Took piano lessons. 2021: This old man is giving it a 2nd go. <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<Feel The Power>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Well, the list of Easiest Chopin Pieces is quite decent so far. If anyone else can add to it, please consider doing so.
Here's what we have so far:
Wiosna Waltz in A minor, KK IVb, No. 11 Waltz in Eb Major “Sostenuto” B.133 Prelude in A major, Op. 28 No. 7 Waltz in B minor, Op. Post. 69, No. 2 Waltz in C-sharp minor, Op. 64, No. 2 Prelude in C minor, Op. 28, No. 20 Prelude in B minor, Op. 28, No. 6 Prelude in E minor, Op. 28, No. 4 Prelude in E Major, Op. 28, No. 9 Prelude in D-flat Major, Op. 28, No. 15 Raindrop Mazurka in A minor, Op. Post. 68, No. 2 Mazurka in B-flat Major, Op. 7, No. 1 Mazurka in G minor, Op. 24, No. 1 Mazurka in G minor, Op. Post. 67, No. 2 Nocturne in G minor, Op. 15, No. 3 Nocturne in C-sharp minor, KK Iva, No. 16 Nocturne in E-flat Major, Op. 9, No. 2 Funeral March from Sonata No. 2 in B-flat minor, Op. 35 Polonaise in C-sharp minor, Op. 26, No. 1
IMO several of those pieces don't belong on any list of the easiest Chopin pieces at least in the sense that someone with two or three years experience would usually be ready for them. I'm thinking of the Waltz in C# minor, Raindrop Prelude, Nocturnes in E flat major and C# minor, Polonaise in C# minor, and Funeral March.
PianoLoverUS - Thanx for pointing that out. I wasn't sure if they all belonged on the list. I was copy/pasting some of the list from a book that someone suggested further up in the thread. But out of fairness to him, he didn't specifically say that each one was among the very easiest, just they were progressively harder. I can remove them from the list if you think it would be better that way. What do you think of the order otherwise?
Stormbringer
I was just expressing my opinion. There's no way everyone would agree what should be on the easiest Chopin list even if the inclusion criteria was much more specific. 'There's certainly no need to change things unless you're so inclined.
It all depends where you put the bar. When you say easy pieces, it is all relative. The prelude you mention is already an RCM 7 level. And basically nearly all his easy pieces would be above that, level 8, 9 and more.
I love Prelude in E-Minor Op. 28 No. 4 - I would never think it's a grade 7 when I look at the score. I believe you though. However, when I look at it I'm like I could totally play that Then you say grade 7 and I run as fast as I can and never look back.
PianoLoverUS - Okay, I'll start by removing the ones you've suggested: Waltz in C# minor, Raindrop Prelude, Nocturnes in E flat major and C# minor, Polonaise in C# minor, and Funeral March.
New Shortened List:
Wiosna Waltz in A minor, KK IVb, No. 11 Waltz in Eb Major “Sostenuto” B. 133 Prelude in A major, Op. 28 No. 7 Waltz in B minor, Op. Post. 69, No. 2 Prelude in C minor, Op. 28, No. 20 Prelude in B minor, Op. 28, No. 6 Prelude in E minor, Op. 28, No. 4 Prelude in E Major, Op. 28, No. 9 Mazurka in A minor, Op. Post. 68, No. 2 Mazurka in B-flat Major, Op. 7, No. 1 Mazurka in G minor, Op. 24, No. 1 Mazurka in G minor, Op. Post. 67, No. 2 Nocturne in G minor, Op. 15, No. 3
Okay, they're gone. If you can think of any others that don't belong on the list, just let me know and I'll remove them. If you think I should re-order the list so that it might better represent the pieces from easiest to hardest or if you think other pieces should be on the list, let me know.
Sorry I can't be much more specific about the inclusion criteria. The only thing I can say is that the pieces on the list should be more accessible or relatively more easy to play than Chopin's other music. Something like, "When you're ready to start playing Chopin, these are the first pieces you should consider trying and in that order".
Stormbringer
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Working on Alfred's Adult AIO Book 2 1970's: Took piano lessons. 2021: This old man is giving it a 2nd go. <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<Feel The Power>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Total_Beginner - You did a very fine job on the Chopin piece for only doing self study for 6 months, wow. You have a very nice touch. Thanx for adding 3 songs to our list and for the 3 vids.
Sam S - I checked out that Chopin: At The Piano - 17 Well-Known Original Pieces on Amazon and saw the list of pieces by clicking the Read More in the description. That would be a great book to have. Thanx.
Ebonyk - Yes, Wiosna looks and sounds like the easiest piece so far. Thanx.
Qazsedcft - Thanx for posting the Wiosna video with sheet music.
Well, the list of Easiest Chopin Pieces is quite decent so far. If anyone else can add to it, please consider doing so.
Here's what we have so far:
Wiosna Waltz in A minor, KK IVb, No. 11 Waltz in Eb Major “Sostenuto” B.133 Prelude in A major, Op. 28 No. 7 Waltz in B minor, Op. Post. 69, No. 2 Waltz in C-sharp minor, Op. 64, No. 2 Prelude in C minor, Op. 28, No. 20 Prelude in B minor, Op. 28, No. 6 Prelude in E minor, Op. 28, No. 4 Prelude in E Major, Op. 28, No. 9 Prelude in D-flat Major, Op. 28, No. 15 Raindrop Mazurka in A minor, Op. Post. 68, No. 2 Mazurka in B-flat Major, Op. 7, No. 1 Mazurka in G minor, Op. 24, No. 1 Mazurka in G minor, Op. Post. 67, No. 2 Nocturne in G minor, Op. 15, No. 3 Nocturne in C-sharp minor, KK Iva, No. 16 Nocturne in E-flat Major, Op. 9, No. 2 Funeral March from Sonata No. 2 in B-flat minor, Op. 35 Polonaise in C-sharp minor, Op. 26, No. 1
Thanx,
Stormbringer
That's a list of pieces in progressive order of difficulty (easier to difficult), not a list of easy Chopin pieces.
Here is my undefinitive list compiled from two respected sources (corresponding to RCM levels), which no-one shouldn't take no notice of:
Level 6:
Op. 28 #20 Prelude in C Minor posth B 150 Waltz in A Minor Waltz (Sostenuto) in E flat
Level 7:
Op. 28, no. 4 Prelude in E Minor Op. posth., B 1 Polonaise in G Minor Op. posth., B 3 Polonaise in B flat Major Cantabile in B flat Mazurka in A flat Op. posth. Mazurka in A flat Op.24 No.3 Mazurka in A minor Op. 7 No.2 Mazurka in G minor Op. 67 No.2 Mazurka in B flat Op. 7 No.1 Mazurka in C Op.33 No.3
Level 8:
Op. 7, no. 2 Mazurka in A Minor Op. 67, no. 2 Mazurka in G Minor Op. 68, no. 2 Mazurka in A Minor Op. 15, no. 3 Nocturne in G Minor B 5 Polonaise in A flat Major Op. 28, no. 6 Prelude in B Minor Op. 28, no. 9 Prelude in E Major Op. 69, no. 1 Waltz in A flat Major Op. 69, no. 2 Waltz in B Minor Mazurka in F minor Op. 63 No.2 Prelude in D flat Op. 28 No.15
I love Prelude in E-Minor Op. 28 No. 4 - I would never think it's a grade 7 when I look at the score. I believe you though. However, when I look at it I'm like I could totally play that Then you say grade 7 and I run as fast as I can and never look back.
Looking only at grades is a bit misleading. There are two types of difficulty, especially in Chopin. There are technical difficulties like how hard it is to play the notes, and there are musical difficulties like proper phrasing and voicing of the melodic lines. This particular prelude is technically quite easy and most of it except the 3 measure climax can be sight read by someome of much lower standard. But because it's so simple it's hard to make it sound really beautiful. Musically it's difficult. So take these grades with a grain of salt. You might be able to have a go at it even if you can't make it sound great yet.
That's a list of pieces in progressive order of difficulty (easier to difficult), not a list of easy Chopin pieces. Sam
That was exactly my interpretation as well. You could have quibbled over the order of difficulty but it was obvious the easier pieces were at the top and harder ones at the bottom.
KevinM - Mine too. It is an attempt at progressive order.
PianoLoverUS - An additional parameter would be from easiest mechanically, progressively getting more difficult. Only problem is I'm not familiar with every piece on the list, so I don't know where to stop. RCM, ABRSM, etc wouldn't be used. When we're ready, we just want to be able to play the notes mechanically at first. We can work on Rubato, dynamics, articulation, ornamentation, and studying Chopin's general intention for those things afterward.
Qazsedcft - You described what I am thinking about all the pieces on the list very nicely. No grading. Thank you.
Stormbringer
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Working on Alfred's Adult AIO Book 2 1970's: Took piano lessons. 2021: This old man is giving it a 2nd go. <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<Feel The Power>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
That's a list of pieces in progressive order of difficulty (easier to difficult), not a list of easy Chopin pieces.Sam
That was exactly my interpretation as well. You could have quibbled over the order of difficulty but it was obvious the easier pieces were at the top and harder ones at the bottom.
Both the title of the thread and the heading for the list say "easiest Chopin pieces".
When we're ready, we just want to be able to play the notes mechanically at first. We can work on Rubato, dynamics, articulation, ornamentation, and studying Chopin's general intention for those things afterward.
I would rather listen to a well interpreted rendition of a piece from the Anna Magdalena Bach notebook or Schumann's Album for the Young than a mechanical rendering of Chopin's Em Prelude. The reason it is RCM 7 is the interpretive challenge. Ignoring that aspect of the piece is no different than omitting notes from a piece to make it easier to play.
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