Music 4th Grade.txt

A prelude in music is a short piece that introduces a longer piece - eg a fugue or church piece. From about the time of Fryderyk Chopin on - composers started composing preludes as pieces that stood on their own or in sets of preludes. Chopin did this and this Prelude comes from a set.

Born 1st of March - 1810 in Poland. His father was French. He was a child prodigy and was composing even at the age of 7 years. With wars etc he ended up living much of his life in France, in Paris, Chopin made a comfortable living as a composer and piano teacher, while giving few public performances. He wrote primarily for the piano as solo instrument. Though they are technically demanding his pieces emphasise nuance and expressive depth. He died in 1849 (only 39 years old) from tuberculosis.

Opus. An Opus is a musical composition. They were often numbered in the order they were composed.

• Faster than andante.
• Andante means "at a walking pace"
• Andantino means faster than a walking pace

sweetly

piano

• 3/4 - simple triple time
• 3 crotchet beats in a bar

• Prelude is in A major -
• F# C# and G#
• We also know this because it ends on A (A chord)

The Romantic period.

It is structured in 2 sections of 8 bars each. The second section starts off the same as the first then changes in bar 11 - this change is particularly emphasised by the arpeggiated F sharp 7 chord at bar 12 - where the change of direction really starts.

A note or group of notes that comes before the first DOWNBEAT of the piece. There is usually a shortened bar at the end of the piece to balance the anacrusis. (the beats in the last bar and the anacrusis add together to give one full bar)

It means "under" - much softer

• poco - a little
• ritenuto - hold
• Poco ritenuto - hold a little (ie slow up a bit)

pianissimo - very soft

A waltz - which is a type of dance.