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Trois nouvelles études

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One of only two known photographs of Chopin, by Bisson, ca. 1849.

Frédéric Chopin wrote his Trois nouvelles études for piano in 1839, as a contribution to "Méthode des méthodes de piano", a piano instruction book by Ignaz Moscheles and François-Joseph Fétis. In general, these études display little of the technical brilliance of most of the composer's Op. 10 and 25, though they do retain Chopin's original formula for harmonic and structural balance.

The Études

The first of the Trois nouvelles étudies is an intimate piece in F minor. It develops students' facility with 3-on-4 polyrhythms.

The melody of the second étude in A-flat major sits atop a series of chords in the right hand with a simple bass in the left hand. It was also the last piece Franz Liszt was heard playing before he died[citation needed]. It develops students' facility with 2-on-3 polyrhythms.

The third and last étude, in D-flat major, is probably the most technically challenging in this collection, while still being far more manageable than most of the composer's Op. 10 and 25 studies. It develops independence of voices and articulation in the right hand, with the upper melodic line quite legato over a staccato alto accompaniment. Some of the reaches required between the alto and soprano lines might be difficult for pianists with smaller hands.