Case study: A full performance

We now invite you to focus on a specific piece, Frédéric Chopin's Ballade No. 2 in F major, Op. 38, from three points of view:

• Listener: your own point of view, e.g., what structures do you hear?
• Performer: what is the performer doing to guide your perceptions? how would you approach the expressive shaping of this piece?
• Composer: what are the inherent structures in the music that offer alternate ways to perceive it?

Listening

The following examples show how the artist uses musical prosody to indicate boundaries and section/phrase/subphrase/figural groupings in the music.

Listen carefully, but be aware that there are many layers of information in the music, so don't feel discouraged if you find it hard to identify a specific element right away. This part of the process takes time.

You can refer to the annotation instructions in the Making Annotations in CosmoNote Lesson and listen again or take a break if you need to.

Boundaries

Example of an annotated section of the Chopin Ballade in CosmoNote

Subphrase and phrase boundaries

Location: Before Presto con fuoco

• Method: shaping of tempo and dynamics to indicate phrases, pauses mark separation between phrases/subphrases, and timbral and dynamic contrasts delineate boundary between phrases.

https://youtu.be/oKEjq_w-UDQ

Location: Andantino (beginning)

• Method: pauses and prominence help delineate phrase groupings.

https://youtu.be/lL9A6DmQYuY