Chopin: Fantasy in F Minor, Op.49 (Tacchino, Rubinova, Avdeeva)

[@AshishXiangyiKumar]

INTRODUCTION 00:00 - Intro Theme 1 (March 1), Fm. The sudden landing on a B near the end anticipates the tonality of the slow middle section. 01:33 - Intro Theme 2 (March 2), C 03:14 - A “prelude-type” improvisation (Tr), whose harmonic movement in thirds foreshadows the tonal scheme of the exposition’s 5 themes: Fm, Ab, Cm, Eb, and then Ebm, Gb, Bbm, Db. (The way in this passage uses enclosures to elaborate a basic chord anticipates the opening of the Polonaise-Fantasy.) A SECTION (Exposition; Cycle 1) 04:17 - Theme 1, Fm. Dark, anxiously syncopated. 04:32 - Theme 2, Ab. A delicate double-note etude in the RH. At 4:46, a dramatic improvisatory transition to 04:59 - Theme 3, Cm. Agonised at first, before moving into joyous Eb. 05:23 - Theme 4, Eb. It’s possible to see this as a particularly dramatic coda to T3, with lots of minor-mode colour. Deceptively lands on a G7 chord, commencing a tense, intensely rhetorical transition to 05:49 - Theme 5, Eb (March 3). 06:16 - Tr is developed into a set of virtuoso runs (Tr*), landing hard on the V of Db. B SECTION (Development; Interrupted Cycle 2) 06:34 - Theme 1, Cm. We appear to be rotating through the same set of themes again, but: 06:54 - Theme 2, Gb. T2 is now in Gb - we have wandered very far off the original tonal scheme. (In fact this move to Gb was prepared very early, in the 3rd bar of T1, but so smoothly that it might just slip by unnoticed.) 07:24 - Instead of Theme 3, Tr now enters in a more harmonically static form, gently nudging the music away from Eb back to Gb. It is also now interrupted by small chorale-like cells that recall the rhythm of March 1. 08:10 - Lento sostenuto, B. As with the Polonaise-Fantasy, the heart of the work is a slow central section. Except that this hymn is completely unlinked to the rest of the work - it’s this alienness, this sudden movement from outer to inner feeling, that makes it so moving. There is some beautiful voice-leading in this section, especially in the consequent phrase (8:46). 10:02 - Tr* shocks the music out of its reverie, using the viio7 of an implied Bbm. A SECTION (Recapitulation; Cycle 3) 10:17 - Theme 1, Bbm. 10:31 - Theme 2, Db. 10:57 - Theme 3, Fm. 11:21 - Theme 4, Ab. 11:46 - Theme 5 (March 3), Ab. Now in triumphant forte. 12:10 - Tr* sweeps in again, now leading into a bitter downward run that pauses on a Fo7. The F descends a semitone to form a passing (very accented) Fb7 chord, which leads into CODA 12:28 - Ab. A recollection of the lento sostenuto, in fortissimo and over the dominant, before a short improvisation enters that uses the contour of Tr. All spun out of what is basically a cadential 6/4. 13:27 - A final rise up the keyboard, using a modified Tr. The closing minor plagal cadence recalls Theme 4’s use of minor-mode colour.

[@lousalome1]

Thanks so much for your thematic harmonic analysis. This has been very helpful to me.

[@cadenzalien4554]

My god, the way Rubinova holds the pedal at 26:36 is just so beautiful

[@SiliPiano]

I always really appreciate your detailed analyses in the descriptions. It's nice to see a less literal discussion of the work that details structure and intent, and mostly love your comments on the performances. I've never listened to this piece and you were right; the B major section sounds directly like it was ripped from the pages of an Andante in Liszt's sonata!

[@Schubertd960]

5:49 never thought a mere tempo change could be that funny.

[@tuberobotto]

For me, it's hands down to Rubinova. She has the most interesting approach among the 3. Her version can take away the tediousness of listening to a lengthy piece like this Fantasy (one of my most favorite ''unorthodox'' pieces by Chopin) as she masterfully applies so much color and texture to several passages in the piece. It's as if I'm listening to a newly discovered piece, that's how her interpretation makes me feel. Wonderful pianist.

[@steveneardley7541]

Tacchino's interpretation was masterful, original, and very beautiful.

[@ludimagister-2005]

My favourite channel on KZbin. I really hope that KZbin will not be closed in our country

[@yusifabbasov713]

channel братан

[@AshishXiangyiKumar]

Why not get a VPN? (Come to think of it, there are far, far, far more important reasons to get a VPN than this channel!)

[@timward276]

Those spirals of triplets rising from the depths after the opening march are among my favorite moments in Chopin's music (others would be the triumphant second appearance of the 2nd theme in the G minor Ballade; the cascades in the trio of the c# minor Scherzo, and the drumroll-and-rifle shot section in the op. 44 Polonaise)

[@elrichardo1337]

good to know I’m not the only one who absolutely loves that passage :)

[@geuros]

Understandable. What do you think of middle part of 1st movement of the B flat minor sonata where the introduction theme in the left hand and the main exposition theme in the right hand are superposed - I love Pogorelich in this, he makes the introductory theme really thundering and it's really powerful.

[@timward276]

@@geuros That is an awesome passage also. It's why Rubenstein's recording of the B-flat is disappointing; he doesn't thunder out the intro theme against the soaring RH, and it loses some intensity. Pogo's recording is terrific.

[@geuros]

@@timward276 to defend Rubinstein, when he played that live in Moscow it was very powerful as a whole and I think even this exact moment was very well done.

[@rodrigosantana5721]

"the Nocturnes render Field unlistenable…" hahaha

[@ignacioclerici5341]

LMFAO

[@RockinTheDub]

Chopin was also quite the comedian

[@hoomaaneslami7607]

I dont understand what this means

[@mina-ry2st]

This piece repeats the same passages, but those expressions are so changeable, because Chopin didn't like to play each passage in the same way. That's really “Fantasy” to me.

[@fink7968]

Some of the most difficult Chopin pieces are the ones with tons of repeats. The B minor scherzo is pretty easy to play notes wise (5-7 years of experience required) but to actually play it well without making the repeats boring is extremely hard both technique wise and especially artistically.

[@tigerphantom354]

My favorite interpretation for this piece. Just amazing ending! What Rubinova did at the end was just too superb!

[@largezo7567]

I think that because Chopin is very much mainstream nowadays, people fail to notice how subversive and unconventional his compositions really are. Dark and cynical twists intertwine with virtuosity in a way that makes every piece sound fresh and original. To contemporaries, most of Chopin works would have caused a secere bout of musical indigestion. The moral of the story is that some experimentation is needed for the composing effort to be successful.

[@JaxEntersEvasion]

Avdeeva는 그녀의 해석에서 그것을 잘 보여줍니다.

[@micaelabonetti949]

From first sound Tacchino robbed my soul. How profoundly magnificent !

[@chopinfanclub6672]

My favorite piece . CFC APPROVED

[@jonnypyy9360]

this channel is truly a gift

[@sgwinenoob2115]

As usual Ashish you never cease to amaze with your writing and analysis! Thought i might not say that the hymn theme has totally no relation to the rest of the work. The melodic shape closely mirrors Theme 1 in Fm. downwards interval upwards interval followed by descending notes

[@AshishXiangyiKumar]

Excellent observation! Completely agreed with you there.

[@sgwinenoob2115]

@@AshishXiangyiKumar it also follows the rhythm and note durations of march 3 quite loosely as well, especially in the later section of the hymn

[@jonobester5817]

"I was going to say I saw a fishy and a ducky, but I changed my mind," said Charlie Brown while looking up at the clouds with Linus.

[@Schubertd960]

Opening sounds like that of the 3rd movement of his op 58. Also, much less noticeable but 8:15 reminds me of that gorgeous 4th theme of op 61

[@joseph-fernando-piano]

I've been working on this piece for close to a year now, and it is, without a doubt, the most difficult one to interpret out of the hundreds of piece I've played and performed in my life... trying to weave a cohesive narrative structure through essentially a chain of 20+ different sections and themes has to be one of the greatest musical challenges in the solo piano repertoire...

[@HS-sn8dp]

I have one question. Why are tonal structures so important? Themes sound almost the same in all different keys (unless you have absolute pitch), yet most classical music tends to return to the original key in the end, and you often emphasize tonal structure in your analysis. Some composers even use prolonged transitional passages in order to return to the home key, but why should you return to the home key in the first place? I mean, modulations between keys may sound very beautiful, but why should the keys have tonal structures as a whole?

[@sgwinenoob2115]

its the same as notes. Single notes arent really memorable but when two notes are sounded against each other they create an intervallic relation. That intervallic relation is the foundation of all melody. The relation between keys is similar except of a higher (or different) order

[@HS-sn8dp]

@@sgwinenoob2115 Thanks for answering! I'm not entirely convinced, though. I can recognize and enjoy intervallic relations between keys, like I said modulations between keys may sound very beautiful, but I still don't get what meaning tonal progression in a piece has, as a whole. Unlike notes in a melody, they cannot be heard as a whole since they are so much apart. For example, if notes in a melody change as C-G-C, you can immediately 'hear' that the first and the third note are the same. However, if keys in a piece change as C-G-C, you have to keep track and calculate it to notice that you've returned to the tonic, like "We've got a modulation to the dominant and then a modulation to the subdominant, so we must be back at the tonic." And I at least don't usually keep track of keys while listening to the music. What meaning does it have, except that it is analytically neat?

[@colorsofsound4782]

To add to SgWine Noob's comment, a comparison in terms of other narrative art, the closest probably being theatre/drama, the story end and beginning is tied together to create a whole, though of course there are many experimental works which do not return to either the tone centre or theme at the end (recapitulation). To use a funny analogy I think it is not unlike how many cultures evolved the idea to put stuffing between two buns. Although, I say analogy and comparison, one could also argue the idea is even deeper, there is a reason why our dreams are composed of something we sought or lost during childhood, and during later years we also try to return to that thing or feeling or memory. You can see that in much of great art, not only music, Picasso, Mozart, Robert Frost, Greek mythos etc. Returning to music, there is also the sense of exploring a certain idea or theme throughout the work, sometimes, literally like in classical theme and variation, but it is doused all over music, even when we think of new wilder forms of modern jazz, they often just expand on a theme and go from there before coming back around. The word we are looking for is: resolution. In the most simple sense, by creating a narrative, we create tension, build-up and release. The great art are great stories. Great stories create great release, to create great release, we create release on many levels (C-G-C is note to note, then phrase to response, theme and counter-theme like in fugues, tonality to tonality as explained above, and even movement to movement within a large scale work, like a traditional concerto has 3-4 movements, being mov1, introductory and grand, mov2: slow and reflecting, mov3, light-hearted, mov4, resolutory and grand). Most people don't have perfect pitch or even really good relative ptich, and I do agree that I can't say if we return to home key after a piano concerto because I lose track, but the feeling of 'getting home' I certainly do feel with regards to those longer pieces and I also feel when it is not there, so that is something.

[@sgwinenoob2115]

@@HS-sn8dp I dont really have a response to that. Its limited to what one is capable of hearing. Some people cant hear two or three voice counterpoint. Some people cant hear long range tonal relationships. Musical training and experience helps of course

[@AshishXiangyiKumar]

This is an excellent question and one that deserves a full-length video essay, so I can't answer it here. But in short: I have a lot of sympathy for your view, and I do think that large-scale tonal patterning is overemphasised as an element in the appreciation and enjoyment of Western tonal classical music, and I do think that some approaches to music theory (Schenkerian analysis in particular) veer into genuinely insane, conspiracy-theory territory in their obsession with tonal relations.

[@ScarysquaresSaiBharadwaj88]

I am a pianist myself (grade 7 TCL) but I understand very little of Ashish's lengthy and detailed descriptions. I enjoy the music though, the deluge of notes from Beethoven or Chopin or Liszt makes me forget things for a while

[@GICM]

decided to check out Tacchino's and Rubinova's other recordings before listening to this, and was particularly taken aback when getting to a bit of Rubinova's Kreisleriana (incidentally it's packed in the same album as this recording)-it's really dry and direct. i think in the end that same style of playing served her pretty well in this piece though at least.

[@largezo7567]

Rubinova and Avdeeva played both measured, intelligent and mature interpretations. Rubinova was my favorite.

[@sandeegrey5977]

I love the part beginning at 1:33, so f'ing dope.

[@SoupyMold]

so good...

[@svits.9138]

indeed:)

[@999a0s]

oh man, i just found this channel, and what a treasure. the descriptions are great reading but it'd be cool if your comments and analysis were in the video itself, although it's more work - but maybe even doing a "deep dive" / breakdown video, going into depth on a certain piece, could be cool.

[@MargaretGeorgila]

Прекрасная музыка!!

[@sebastiantorres2542]

I have to admit I liked Tacchino quite a lot, his march sections are particularly march-like, unlike many other modern recordings; Rubinova is interesting, especially the ending. Warm Greetings

[@tfpp1]

I think the writing at 3:13 was an influence in the middle section of the 3rd movement of the 3rd sonata.

[@MusicAbsum]

Tacchino is fantastic :)

[@GICM]

there are also the chopin concertos, which aren't really concertos, just sonatas with orchestral accompaniment

[@CameronGuarino]

i still can’t believe Chopin invented music

[@klop4228]

And a good thing too - Bach went on to elaborate on the idea of a 'prelude' and while he didn't _invent_ fugue, he elaborated it much further than Chopin's 2-voice one.

[@handledav]

cool

[@markito3311]

Have you heard Uchida's new Diabelli Variations recording? Opinions? Thx for the video.

[@aktasluna]

if you showed me the score at 12:20, i would clearly say that it was Liszt.

[@samaritan29]

reminds me of this section from rach 3 kzbin.info/www/bejne/l4S7pYuCdruaoac

[@nandovancreij]

@@samaritan29 practically the same transition (descending melody notes with a chromatic outline)

[@DynastieArtistique]

@@samaritan29 Holy shit I was literally thinking the EXACT same thing. The first time I heard that part I immediately though about that moment from Rach 3.

[@FelipeFerreira7]

What a beautiful piece!

[@andremeyer6596]

My go to for Chopin is always Zimerman, and once again I find a favourite in his recording with this work. What do you think of his recording?

[@FrostDirt]

He uploaded Zimerman's Fantasy already

[@mariana.makasjian]

very unique piece

[@victorhan5916]

wonderful piece!

[@user-hb9ag3mj7u]

3:03 - 3:24

[@henryng0725]

Is the Intro Theme 2 at 01:33 in F major rather than C major? It starts and ends on F major in both times, and although there is B natural, it's more a borrowed note. Thank you

[@klop4228]

I agree with you. There's not even a cadence into C Major.

[@henryng0725]

@@klop4228 It's like a bunch of I-V chords but ends on F major

[@klop4228]

@@henryng0725 You're right, I guess there are a lot of secondary dominants onto C, but those all sound like secondary dominants rather than actual modulations (which is what I meant by 'into C major')

[@henryng0725]

@@klop4228 Yes you are right, all are decorative without real modulating to new keys.

[@user-hb9ag3mj7u]

3:24

[@boriswala1305]

Which score is used for this video?

[@GICM]

scholtz edition

[@FrostDirt]

Are you going to do some classical era soon?

[@GICM]

i don't think it's likely. he doesn't seem to think much of the classical era, plus he's already done most of Beethoven's major piano works, and if there's any composer from that era that he cares about it would probably be Beethoven. though he did put Hadyn sonatas in the community post

[@FrostDirt]

@@GICM He did do some JC Bach and co., I was hoping something along that line

[@GICM]

@@FrostDirt to be fair that video was a long time ago, who knows what he thinks of the piece now. plus im pretty sure the only other classical era piece that he posted outside of Beethoven is the K331 Mozart sonata, which was also posted a long time ago. incidentally _are_ there any specific pieces that you would like to see?

[@FrostDirt]

@@GICM the K. 331 was a buried video lol, that doesn't count. But yes, he did get more modern over the years. Regarding specific videos, probably my most wanted: Mozart Fantasy and Sonata in C Minor K. 475/457.

[@GICM]

@@FrostDirt well that just emphasizes my point about him not posting a lot of classical era stuff further doesn't it lol? (also i think a lot of the 20th century stuff like Schoenberg, Medtner, Godowsky, Scriabin, Debussy, Ravel, etc. etc. that he posted are pretty old too) i think Mozart stuff are gonna take a while to get on this channel. in fact, if there's any chance of Mozart getting proper score videos you'll probably have to wait for ppl like me or Felipe Ferreira to upload them.

[@handledav]

ma

[@user-hb9ag3mj7u]

3:25

[@lylecohen1638]

5:49