I finally found the answer to what’s the hardest etude: it’s whatever etude you’re currently practicing! 🙃 Because whenever I’m practicing an etude I feel like it’s the hardest
@@paweszklarczyk2330 They're both hard, but Godowsky kicks it up to 11 most of the time. I learned his left-hand study on Op. 10 No. 3, and that was a real challenge. It was easier than it could have been because I have big hands and I'm a southpaw, but it was still VERY hard!
The difficulty of no.9 is in how various dynamics are balanced throughout the piece as a whole, and not just in each phrase. It is like a mystery story, building twist after twist, and each twist has to be greater than the last so that the audience really feels the final one... which, of course, is that almost bell-like ending. I've heard so many students perform this, and like Annique mentioned, there's this "fast and furious" disregard for it because it's so deceptively "easy" at a mechanical level. Similar issue as happens with the "Revolutionary." But Chopin was not hammering nails.
My daughter found No. 2 to be insanely difficult because it was hard to play it consistently. Some days she would breeze through it, other days her arm and hand would just cramp up halfway through. I remember watching Kate Liu play it at the Chopin competition in 2015 and her no. 2 etude was the one piece she made significant audible mistakes in both of her performances of it. Her teacher also said that you'll seldom find people performing it publicly because it's so easy to crash-and-burn.
Yep, I’ve been attending regular piano recitals for decades now, heard hundreds of pianists and all the big names like Wang, Kissin, Argerich, Volodos, Hough, Trifonov, Uchida etc. and I’ve still yet to hear a single live person performance of Chopin Op 10 no 2. I almost heard one pianist perform it, but he changed it to a different Etude at the last minute lol. Op 10 no 2 and Feux Follets are probably the scariest pieces in the standard repertoire to perform live, especially in a competition setting.
@@MiloMcCarthyMusic You again? The self claimed ‘teacher’ who says Ocean and Winter Wind are the easiest etudes without telling us you didn’t count the actual easy ones
Now this Etude is especially hard if you have small hands. In this case you can’t just fix the technique with good fingerings. You would really have to stretch your hands very far to an uncomfortable level. My hands for example, are in comparison to other pianists hands, pretty small (I can barely reach C-E). I guess the easiest out of the Etudes op. 10 that i personally played where no. 12 and no. 6. Also no. 1 was easier for me, because it’s more of a rotation movement that you can more easily achieve with practice. It’s still hard af.
I think there are different types of players, those racehorses with fast fingers, or those lyrical singers, or those analytical superbrains etc.. For each of them the difficulty ranking will be different, also depending on hand size or even the circumference of your fingers (I knew a professional pianist who couldn't put his fingers on the white key between two black keys, that's why he needed to play them turned laterally or outside of the black keys). During my studies, my professor told me that Chopin etudes always go to the limits for everyone. However, after 20 years of living with them, I have now a completely different opinion: There is always one specific simple technical cell out of which every etude is made, and which is then exercised in all variances. This one cell is very physiologic, and they all help make your hand more relaxed, more balanced, and more flexible. Once you understood how to master this one cell, you'll know how to play the rest of the same etude. If you encounter bars where you think that the cell needs to be changed, it might direct you to the actual way how to play the whole etude. It is from the easy bars that you learn how to play the difficult ones, but also vice versa. For example, in Op 10no1, the bars between e-flat minor and A major seem to be tricky for every pianist, but once you know how to do them (with the original and not the alternative fingerings!), the whole etude suddenly makes more sense. For me, these 24 etudes are the holy book of hand physiology!
While I generally agree, I wouldn't trivializes many the smaller difficulties found throughout the etudes. For example Op. 10 No. 1 the general theme is wide arpeggios and smooth phrasing of those arpeggios, but sometimes the pinky and the ring finger need to stretch only step, sometimes a third, sometimes a 4th! (I hate bar 11 so much even though I can stretch an 11th because that pinky stretch is just agony), and there's many moments when Chopin abandons the wide chord voicing for a little tiny run that helps to set up the hand positions for the next chord.
@@king_leo3269 I have not worked this one, only sight-read. However, I guess, the virtuoso chromatic part with the double chords in both hands uses such a cell. There are different ways to play them but when trying, it seemed to me that they were best done by using a heavy-light alternation, with the first chord under the slur heavy and the second chord light (_ v _ v _ v etc.). However, the "heavy" chord is not played with a wrist-down movement, but with a wrist-up movement into a stable bridge of the knuckles, as if showing the ring on the 4th finger to the roof. The second chord is then played like discharging the weight and completely relaxing the fingers (almost no finger activity) while letting the wrist go down to be prepared for the next "heavy" chord. Once you have felt this basic movement, you can use it in many other pieces, for example, op 25 no 3 or op 25 no 11 (the basic movement of the right hand without the rotation).
@@randomchannel-px6ho I didn't want to say it is trivial ;-). What I mean is that the same basic movement is always the key. What you describe of the changing and larger span for the 4-5 fingers is part of the variation of the basic element, however, the movement is always the same. I have large hands, I can span a C-f, but for example, in op10 no 1, the main difficulty for me was not to get stuck on the thumb, which then cramps inwards and creates tension in the whole hand. One needs to swiftly come off the thumb and get the hand moved into the air in order to play the other 3 notes. Now I play the thumb lifting the basal carpo-metacarpal up while relaxing it, in order to then concentrate on the last of the 4 16th notes as an upbeat to the accented first in the 5the finger. That upbeat 16th note is in the 3rd or 4th finger and needs to sink down into the 5th finger (actually one plays not 1-2-3-4 but rather 4-5-1-2 or _ | _ v v _ | _ v v etc. (_ = down and v = up). So you play a bow-like movement from the thumb to the 5th finger which goes clockwise when ascending and anticlockwise then descending. Honestly, this took me many trials over the years, it was always difficult before I found it. The videos of Garrick Ohlsson, Seong-Jin Cho and Ashkenazy helped me to analyze that movement. Now, after having internalized it, I can play it relaxed and with verve!
Your description of the difficulty in op10 no 1 rings true, having practiced it for over 10 years your physiological description is accurate. I have taken many different approaches to narrow down what works (i believe doing first what does not work is a necessary evolution in learning this piece), before reading your comment i have been grouping 2-4-5-1 but you suggest 4-5-1-2. I've been through all possible groupings of 4 notes before so i've been through the one you prescribe already, but i know 2-4-5-1 is an improvement to what i used to do but not the full answer yet, so i'll try 4-5-1-2 again. Going down is easier than going up the keyboard. I am doing ok all the way to the reprise where the initial Cmajor theme comes back and that is where my hand cramps up. If i let it rest only 10-15 seconds i can get to the end.
No. 3 is my favorite. So beautiful. Thanks for this series. I'm really enjoying it. I'm just an adult learner on piano and will probably never be able to play these, but I love learning about them and trying to understand the musical ideas inherent in them.
I like your video a lot ,i love Chopin, specially the preludes ,etudes, and i have to mention the nocturnes because they are so beautiful dreamy pieces , you played all 24 etudes, you are such a good pianist . I like your análisis !
Love a video on this subject! I wrote a whole article on the topic 10 years ago when I had just learned No. 1 & 12. For me, since I am not very good at sight reading and music theory, No. 1 is by far the easiest to memorize, and I have no problem playing it endlessly today but I never seem to get through without 1+ mistakes
Much depends on speed. No. 3 and 6 become easy if you play them in the usual slow tempo, but with Chopin's metronome markings they become much harder. Especially op. 10:6 becomes extremely difficult if you try to play it at Chopin's speed, which is at least three times faster than the tempo of most recordings. For Op. 10:3, Chopin's speed is about the double.
Op 10 n 2 is famous for its difficulty but after learning it i am not convinced it brings much reward compared to other studies. It helped me to learn to relax the thumb while fingers 3,4,5 are busy doing contortions. It puts you in control of how much torture you want to do. It's not particularly beautiful, only other pianists will recognize the accomplishment of being able to play it. It's almost more of an exercise than a musical etude.
@@ericastier1646ree. There is pieces wich sounds way more impressive than Op.10 nr.2, but is not even half as difficult to play. The normal average audience does not have a clue on how difficult Op.10 nr.2 is in comparison to other pieces. Op.10 nr.2 is about the only piece I actually regret learning as it takes many months to master, and after all that effort your rewarded with a piece which is about one and a half minute in lenght, and doesn’t sound THAT impressive. …..and a hurting rigth arm as a bonus.
Ich übe im moment die no 1.. und ich glaube ich kann sehr gut bestätigen, dass sie nicht grade die einfachste ist.. dennoch glaube ich, dass egal welche Etüde man nun spielt, sie die schwerste für einen in diesem moment ist. Wirklich sehr gutes video und sehr interessante Meinungen zu den stücken :) (deine Übungsmethoden bei der Wasserfall Etüde sind echt gold wert thx dafür)
I think you're severely underestimating op. 10 no. 10; there's a reason why so many competitors choose it in the international Chopin competition. It's widely considered to be one of the most difficult Chopin etudes due to how intricate the articulation is. Von Bulow even claimed that this etude represents the top of the mountain for a professional pianist to climb
@@miguelcardenas6468 no. 9 should also be lower; it's one of the etudes that students regularly played it in my music high school. It's also not available as an etude at Chopin competition, along with the other easy and/or short etudes
11:59 I think the word you are looking for is a polymeter. Specifically at measure 9, you switch polymeters to fit 6 groups of 2 in the right hand AND 4 groups of 3 in the left hand; into one measure, but each hand playing an eighth note in every beat of the 12/8 time.
Fantastic video. Thank you! I played the "Aeolian" and the "Revolutionary" in high school. My professor made all of us play Nos. 1 & 2 of Op.10 in college but I resisted a lot and never really put enough effort into them. I played the "Black Key" for my Junior recital. Now, I am returning to op. 10 nos. 1,2, & 4 VERY slowly, to hopefully help me with my upcoming Rachmaninoff 2 performance. I am played these three with a metronome and only notch up 1 tempo number per day. SOOOOO slow....
No.1 is my first practising song of the etude op10. When I started to practice no.1, I thought it was the easiest one of op10 etude. However, it was very hard for me. After watching this video, I would like to try to practice other sheets of etude op10.😂
Absolutely wonderful insight into the required techniques and training to produce the desired keyboard performance! Always remember the feeling together with the brilliance is so difficult to master and only when your mind is in the zone can you will your hands to bring to life the performance required! A new name for another channel.... Annie's Keys 🎹🎼🎹🎼🎹
You should try either performing or ranking Liszt's Transcendental Etudes in this format (if so it's probably going to be S.139 but seeing S.137 get some attention would be delightful)
I don't know if you can do some series (like "1 min 10 min 1 hour challenge" or analyzes and performances) with Chopin's Preludes or maybe with Liszt's Transcendental Études, what do you think? I could also give several other examples, such as Rachmaninoff's Six Moment Musicaux; Scriabin Études; Rachmaninoff Études Tableaux; if you go further, even some videos of Beethoven's sonatas; Schubert's Impromptus; Chopin's Nocturnes; Liszt's Paganini Études (S. 141 or S. 140); Debussy's Images; Chopin's Ballades; Chopin's Scherzos... Anyway, there are many possibilities for content and suggestions...
@@ValkyRiver lord... godowsky, she could probably manage to tackle some of them but to be honest godowsky's arrangements are beyond difficult difficult...
just a bit of formatting feedback, usually it's pretty good content to also briefly review the completed ranking. see all the ranks together in the same place, compare them, review them, maybe make a final couple tweaks after you've given everything a once over. it also serves as a great outro, this video feels like it lacks a smooth exit. that said, i love your channel and hate how much time ive binged it in the last two weeks xD
Revolutionary etude feels like moment musicaux no 4 in some senses, of course rach's piece is much harder but it gets easier and your fingers just slide into the right place, personally that's how I feel ❤🎉
@@GoldenBiba I think, with you having not played 7, it is a bit ambitious to say it’s not hard. Having played the whole set, 4 is definitely easier than 10 and 7
Totally agree! Since the right hand is quite easy, after some time you can basically forget the right hand, and after a lot of practise the left hand becomes muscle memory
Op. 10 no. 12 was the first Chopin's etude I've ever played (I was like 16 y old). And I think it's one of the easiest and most comfortable of them to play (well as U mentioned, no Chopin's etude is really easy). There are some hard fragments, I struggled the most with the right hand in bars 50-56. But other from this... I mean the left hand movement is mostly very convenient. Well, all Chopin's etudes are awesome.
Totally agree with no 2. First time I tried to sight read it a little bit I thought it would be one of the easiest etudes to learn. Boy was I wrong.... It one of the hardest if not the hardest out there..
I like the idea of the 2nd channel , and yes if you want my opinion Piano Talk sounds interesting. It sounds like "Chopin Talk" in the Chopin competition.
Of the ones I've played (3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 11, 12) I think 5 and 12 aren't that difficult, I definitely had a bit of trouble but not to the point of being frustrated; 3 was the first I've learnt and it was fairly easy overall, even the hard part in the middle wasn't that much of a problem; 6 was ok, it's definitely hard to balance the sounds well but it doesn't have technical difficulties; 7 gave me a lot of trouble and still can't play it well, had to take a slower tempo because my right hand always sounds too forte, wasn't expecting it to be so difficult; 4 was definitely the hardest, when the left hand has the faster parts I had trouble hitting the chord with the right hand at the right moment, and the middle section was brutal to learn, the "coda" was fairly simple though; currently learning 11 and it's kind of a nightmare too but so far it's not frustrating as 7 or 4, having fairly small hands (I barely reach a 10th) definitely doesn't help, there's some arpeggios that are a real pain in the... hands I guess, I still play it at a slow tempo though so my judgement might change when I'll try to speed it up.
I can't believe N.4 it's not on the second spot ahaha, I agree that N.2 is the hardest, but N.4 is not lower than N.1 and for sure N.9 is the easiest of them all, I think. N.3 too, it's too high in my opinion, or N.12 low etc..
In the black-key etude you do actually play black keys only (at least regarding to the right hand only). I found very useful the ranking according to difficulty level. Thanks ! : )
currently studying op.5, man... I hate repetitive motion so much, my arms are easily gets tired for doing that kind of rotation repeatly, I'm just so confused, i feel like anything that is constantly repeating in one way always makes my life difficult.... I actually like those "musically hard" pieces, because i just feel using my brain and try to work on the color is much easier.....
I agree with all of these other than No. 1 and No. 12. For people whos right hand has more control than the left hand (a lot of people have this) the no. 12 is very hard to pull off. And the no. 1 is all just about not getting tension in your hands, the rest isnt that hard. So i would put No. 1 in between A and B, and then No. 12 in S
Interesting video. Thanks for doing that. May I ask you what device you use to record these videos? Your piano sounds clear and nice. Do you use microphones together with a certain device? Thank you.
Funny how you put n9 (the one I came here for) in the S tier. Henle ranked it 6 out of 9, making it the easiest etude with respect to their standards, the reason why I felt bold enough to start studying it (but I'll admit my big hands are a big+ for this one)
It is very interesting when I see you are going to put new video, I always think 🤔 1, 10, 1 hr challenge or you are going to put tips or any other I love that way. Do not divide you channel. Of course I will follow you if decide to do it 😉 Saludos
Love the video! Can you also rank op.25? And also, where would you rank Fantasie Impromptu on that tier list compared to the op.10 etudes? (That one also goes to whoever is reading this comment) 👍😁
I haven’t played any of these pieces aside from the impromptu and 10/4 but I think for most people if you understand polyrythm it would be a B/C on this list? It’s definitely easier than the difficult etudes of this set, I think it’s probably more difficult than 10/3 and 10/6, maybe 10/9 as well? But again if you really struggle with polyrythm but can play fast as f ck then fantaisie impromptu can be much harder for you than for example 10/1. It just depends on what your personal strengths and weaknesses are.
the first etude i practiced from op.10 was no. 12, i'd say the left hand gets used to it but i still have problem with the speed hahah. currently i'm learning no. 4 and oh my god the sight reading of this peace is very difficult!!!
lol years ago i tried no.5 and it took me a long long time to get the notes (not even get it musically, just being able to play the notes) and my arms would hurt after playing it through once. And that's by far the easiest one apparently :(
No. 9 same rank as no. 1 is ridiculous, I'd put no. 1 top tier with no. 2 easily. I'd also stick no. 4 in S tier, but there's no way you can say his etudes are that difficult compared to the most advanced repertoire, what you say at the start of the video about their difficulty is simply not true, for example take feux follets as an etude, that is harder than any Chopin etude, you have hamelin etudes, godowsky etudes on chopin are more difficult, ligeti etudes, rachmaninoff etudes, ans then you have alkan and czerny wrote some far more difficult etudes too. That's just etudes alone, too many other far more advanced works to name here. Chopin etudes are difficult, but pale in comparison when comparing them with the rest of the piano repertoire.
I disagree, i think that after you read the notes and learn Rach and Alkan they stay in your fingers for longer where Chopin needs to be constantly maintained so to say...atleast that was my experience.
Why even mention feux follets lmao? Just talk about the original versions of Liszt Etudes. No mention of Scriabin, Busoni or Prokofiev. Then there is Sorabji, Rautavaara, Kapustin and the composers you mentioned. I agree, that was a ridiculous thing to say. The Chopin etudes are great pieces and often very difficult but they are one of the milestones all serious pianists face and pass. They are far from the end all and be all of difficulty in the piano repertoire.
I saw other professional pianists ratings. All agree on number 1 and 2 to be the most difficult. But it is fun to watch you rating based on your experience. Please, go ahead having fun...)
I feel I should mention that no 6 is meant to be played a lot faster than most people play it, and doing so makes it a lot harder technically. Although I do think it sounds better at the slower tempo.
Great list! Though I haven't played all of them, personally I would put no 6 a little lower and no 5 a lot higher on the list (I can't seem to get the rhythm down)
I absolutely love this video, however, as fascinating as Chopin’s Etudes are, you should definitely rank musical pieces in general and I’m sure that would generate a larger audience too!
![Lp. Сердце Вселенной #60 РОЖДЕНИЕ ЛОЛОЛОШКИ [Финал] • Майнкрафт](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/YoR0pAV9FVQ/mqdefault.jpg)
I finally found the answer to what’s the hardest etude: it’s whatever etude you’re currently practicing! 🙃
Because whenever I’m practicing an etude I feel like it’s the hardest
Have you played Godowsky?
ua-cam.com/video/d9VtzVRaz6Q/v-deo.html
@@ValkyRiver Godowsky's studies based on the etudes are awesome. Because Chopin's ones were too easy xdd
@@paweszklarczyk2330 They're both hard, but Godowsky kicks it up to 11 most of the time. I learned his left-hand study on Op. 10 No. 3, and that was a real challenge. It was easier than it could have been because I have big hands and I'm a southpaw, but it was still VERY hard!
How do you cosplay a chopn etude.
Agreed with everyone you said except nr 9. That one’s the easiest in Op 10 imo
waterfall >>
Hi musicalBasics
not everything is about technique
The difficulty of no.9 is in how various dynamics are balanced throughout the piece as a whole, and not just in each phrase. It is like a mystery story, building twist after twist, and each twist has to be greater than the last so that the audience really feels the final one... which, of course, is that almost bell-like ending. I've heard so many students perform this, and like Annique mentioned, there's this "fast and furious" disregard for it because it's so deceptively "easy" at a mechanical level. Similar issue as happens with the "Revolutionary." But Chopin was not hammering nails.
no it is not hard as she said
My daughter found No. 2 to be insanely difficult because it was hard to play it consistently. Some days she would breeze through it, other days her arm and hand would just cramp up halfway through. I remember watching Kate Liu play it at the Chopin competition in 2015 and her no. 2 etude was the one piece she made significant audible mistakes in both of her performances of it. Her teacher also said that you'll seldom find people performing it publicly because it's so easy to crash-and-burn.
Technically, Op10 no2 is super difficult. But Musically, it’s easy 😂
flashbacks to that one woman at the chopin competition
Yeah and the non-classical audience is like how can u mess up a simple chromatic scale
Yep, I’ve been attending regular piano recitals for decades now, heard hundreds of pianists and all the big names like Wang, Kissin, Argerich, Volodos, Hough, Trifonov, Uchida etc. and I’ve still yet to hear a single live person performance of Chopin Op 10 no 2. I almost heard one pianist perform it, but he changed it to a different Etude at the last minute lol.
Op 10 no 2 and Feux Follets are probably the scariest pieces in the standard repertoire to perform live, especially in a competition setting.
I'm so excited ! I think that if I had to do this, I would put every etude in the top tier, each of them is so unique and incredible !
Except black keys
@@MiloMcCarthyMusic I think black keys is also pretty good…but no worries everyone has their opinions.
@@dsouzageorgejoy685 Have you played Godowsky?
ua-cam.com/video/d9VtzVRaz6Q/v-deo.html
@@MiloMcCarthyMusic You again? The self claimed ‘teacher’ who says Ocean and Winter Wind are the easiest etudes without telling us you didn’t count the actual easy ones
@@arandompianist7371 sorry what
I love this video. Please do one for Op. 25!
Do you know of a simpler version of this one? I've searched, but one was really choppy and ruined the flowing nature. Is this Aeolian Harp?
@@marjoriesell8079 Aeolian Harp is Op.25 n°1, but there are 12 Etudes in this Opus, too. Op.25 n°2 and 25 n°1 are the easiest pieces of Opus 25.
Update: she did
Actually op 10 no 9 is the first I learned, and the easiest in my opinion, its surprising you see it comparable to op 10 no 1.
Funny, I was going to say the same exact thing. No 9 is the only one I could come close to playing correctly.
I Think that it depends on the size of your hand, i can see why ppl with small hand size finds this etude hard...
Now this Etude is especially hard if you have small hands. In this case you can’t just fix the technique with good fingerings. You would really have to stretch your hands very far to an uncomfortable level. My hands for example, are in comparison to other pianists hands, pretty small (I can barely reach C-E). I guess the easiest out of the Etudes op. 10 that i personally played where no. 12 and no. 6. Also no. 1 was easier for me, because it’s more of a rotation movement that you can more easily achieve with practice. It’s still hard af.
@@_.chopiniscool._9595 I can also barely reach a 10th but I doesn't cost me a lot to play that :v
Juan Ferre, i agree with your opinion.
I found your remarks, their honesty and candor particularly, actually extremely valuable guidance to a novice painist like me. Many thanks!
S tier: op10, op25
A tier: ---
B tier: ---
C tier: ---
D tier: ---
E tier: ---
F tier: this category doesn't even exist here what are you doing!
S+ Tier: Transcendental Etudes
@@hanchisun6164 S++ tier: 12 études for octopus being - some modern composer probably
@@unbornify1185 S+++ 12 etudes alkan
I think there are different types of players, those racehorses with fast fingers, or those lyrical singers, or those analytical superbrains etc.. For each of them the difficulty ranking will be different, also depending on hand size or even the circumference of your fingers (I knew a professional pianist who couldn't put his fingers on the white key between two black keys, that's why he needed to play them turned laterally or outside of the black keys).
During my studies, my professor told me that Chopin etudes always go to the limits for everyone. However, after 20 years of living with them, I have now a completely different opinion: There is always one specific simple technical cell out of which every etude is made, and which is then exercised in all variances. This one cell is very physiologic, and they all help make your hand more relaxed, more balanced, and more flexible. Once you understood how to master this one cell, you'll know how to play the rest of the same etude. If you encounter bars where you think that the cell needs to be changed, it might direct you to the actual way how to play the whole etude. It is from the easy bars that you learn how to play the difficult ones, but also vice versa. For example, in Op 10no1, the bars between e-flat minor and A major seem to be tricky for every pianist, but once you know how to do them (with the original and not the alternative fingerings!), the whole etude suddenly makes more sense. For me, these 24 etudes are the holy book of hand physiology!
Could you explain how applies to Op.10 No.3?
While I generally agree, I wouldn't trivializes many the smaller difficulties found throughout the etudes. For example Op. 10 No. 1 the general theme is wide arpeggios and smooth phrasing of those arpeggios, but sometimes the pinky and the ring finger need to stretch only step, sometimes a third, sometimes a 4th! (I hate bar 11 so much even though I can stretch an 11th because that pinky stretch is just agony), and there's many moments when Chopin abandons the wide chord voicing for a little tiny run that helps to set up the hand positions for the next chord.
@@king_leo3269 I have not worked this one, only sight-read. However, I guess, the virtuoso chromatic part with the double chords in both hands uses such a cell. There are different ways to play them but when trying, it seemed to me that they were best done by using a heavy-light alternation, with the first chord under the slur heavy and the second chord light (_ v _ v _ v etc.). However, the "heavy" chord is not played with a wrist-down movement, but with a wrist-up movement into a stable bridge of the knuckles, as if showing the ring on the 4th finger to the roof. The second chord is then played like discharging the weight and completely relaxing the fingers (almost no finger activity) while letting the wrist go down to be prepared for the next "heavy" chord. Once you have felt this basic movement, you can use it in many other pieces, for example, op 25 no 3 or op 25 no 11 (the basic movement of the right hand without the rotation).
@@randomchannel-px6ho I didn't want to say it is trivial ;-). What I mean is that the same basic movement is always the key. What you describe of the changing and larger span for the 4-5 fingers is part of the variation of the basic element, however, the movement is always the same. I have large hands, I can span a C-f, but for example, in op10 no 1, the main difficulty for me was not to get stuck on the thumb, which then cramps inwards and creates tension in the whole hand. One needs to swiftly come off the thumb and get the hand moved into the air in order to play the other 3 notes. Now I play the thumb lifting the basal carpo-metacarpal up while relaxing it, in order to then concentrate on the last of the 4 16th notes as an upbeat to the accented first in the 5the finger. That upbeat 16th note is in the 3rd or 4th finger and needs to sink down into the 5th finger (actually one plays not 1-2-3-4 but rather 4-5-1-2 or _ | _ v v _ | _ v v etc. (_ = down and v = up). So you play a bow-like movement from the thumb to the 5th finger which goes clockwise when ascending and anticlockwise then descending. Honestly, this took me many trials over the years, it was always difficult before I found it. The videos of Garrick Ohlsson, Seong-Jin Cho and Ashkenazy helped me to analyze that movement. Now, after having internalized it, I can play it relaxed and with verve!
Your description of the difficulty in op10 no 1 rings true, having practiced it for over 10 years your physiological description is accurate. I have taken many different approaches to narrow down what works (i believe doing first what does not work is a necessary evolution in learning this piece), before reading your comment i have been grouping 2-4-5-1 but you suggest 4-5-1-2. I've been through all possible groupings of 4 notes before so i've been through the one you prescribe already, but i know 2-4-5-1 is an improvement to what i used to do but not the full answer yet, so i'll try 4-5-1-2 again. Going down is easier than going up the keyboard. I am doing ok all the way to the reprise where the initial Cmajor theme comes back and that is where my hand cramps up. If i let it rest only 10-15 seconds i can get to the end.
I think its better to keep everything in one channel. Multiple channels will just divide the viewership and slow the growth.
Disorganized content on a single channel can also slow growth. Consistency tends to be rewarded on UA-cam.
No. 3 is my favorite. So beautiful. Thanks for this series. I'm really enjoying it. I'm just an adult learner on piano and will probably never be able to play these, but I love learning about them and trying to understand the musical ideas inherent in them.
No surprise about the No. 2, might be the hardest Chopin etude with Op. 25, No. 6
Op 25 no 11?
@@nickmgls6523 not really that hard comparatively
@@nickmgls6523 winter wind is hard but nowhere near as hard as chromatic or double thirds
@@mooshiros7053 double thirds etude is just terrifying
I really like your style to play Chopin! I am working on my first Chopin, Valse in e minor. A hard piece…
The choice to give your piano a voice of its own is a funny addition and adds to your channel's uniqueness
Don’t let Bach catch you saying that. Those are rookie numbers in this racket, you’ve got to pump those numbers up.
I like your video a lot ,i love Chopin, specially the preludes ,etudes, and i have to mention the nocturnes because they are so beautiful dreamy pieces , you played all 24 etudes, you are such a good pianist . I like your análisis !
Love a video on this subject! I wrote a whole article on the topic 10 years ago when I had just learned No. 1 & 12. For me, since I am not very good at sight reading and music theory, No. 1 is by far the easiest to memorize, and I have no problem playing it endlessly today but I never seem to get through without 1+ mistakes
Would love to see your ranking of the op 25 etudes next
You should name the second channel "Spill the Key" because you share true knowledge :)
I learnt 24-12 as my first etude. Next I learnt 10-3. Now I'm learning 10-4 and it's a dream come true! Love the piano
24-12??
@@BreadBoi-0i'm guessing they mean 25-12, "Ocean"
7:37 I was in front of my family and you did this, thanks for that awkward sound 😅
Much depends on speed. No. 3 and 6 become easy if you play them in the usual slow tempo, but with Chopin's metronome markings they become much harder. Especially op. 10:6 becomes extremely difficult if you try to play it at Chopin's speed, which is at least three times faster than the tempo of most recordings. For Op. 10:3, Chopin's speed is about the double.
This is amazing! It would be great if you could share your practice in Op10n2. Thank you!❤
check out Paul Barton aswell. He shared some insights on it
Op 10 n 2 is famous for its difficulty but after learning it i am not convinced it brings much reward compared to other studies. It helped me to learn to relax the thumb while fingers 3,4,5 are busy doing contortions. It puts you in control of how much torture you want to do. It's not particularly beautiful, only other pianists will recognize the accomplishment of being able to play it. It's almost more of an exercise than a musical etude.
@@ericastier1646ree. There is pieces wich sounds way more impressive than Op.10 nr.2, but is not even half as difficult to play. The normal average audience does not have a clue on how difficult Op.10 nr.2 is in comparison to other pieces. Op.10 nr.2 is about the only piece I actually regret learning as it takes many months to master, and after all that effort your rewarded with a piece which is about one and a half minute in lenght, and doesn’t sound THAT impressive. …..and a hurting rigth arm as a bonus.
Great video ! Waiting for the op.25 ranking !
Ich übe im moment die no 1.. und ich glaube ich kann sehr gut bestätigen, dass sie nicht grade die einfachste ist.. dennoch glaube ich, dass egal welche Etüde man nun spielt, sie die schwerste für einen in diesem moment ist. Wirklich sehr gutes video und sehr interessante Meinungen zu den stücken :) (deine Übungsmethoden bei der Wasserfall Etüde sind echt gold wert thx dafür)
It would be nice to see one dedicated video for the Op. 10 No. 04 you know... For those who consider it S++ 😅😅🤚
I love your videos Anni!!✨❤️
I was struck by her speed on it, she cracked it good. It is one of those studies that are efficiently written for maximum effect.
I would say S tier?
I think you're severely underestimating op. 10 no. 10; there's a reason why so many competitors choose it in the international Chopin competition. It's widely considered to be one of the most difficult Chopin etudes due to how intricate the articulation is. Von Bulow even claimed that this etude represents the top of the mountain for a professional pianist to climb
I kind of agree here, plus, imagine no. 6 is the "same" degree as the torrent etude lol but the rest, pretty much I think okay.
@@miguelcardenas6468 no. 9 should also be lower; it's one of the etudes that students regularly played it in my music high school. It's also not available as an etude at Chopin competition, along with the other easy and/or short etudes
Have you heard anyone pay attention to Chopin's accents in #10?
@@Pablo-gl9dj Chiu does, he pushes it a bit to the extreme, but it's a very interesting interpretation
'KeyTalk'? :3 so excited for this other channel
11:59 I think the word you are looking for is a polymeter. Specifically at measure 9, you switch polymeters to fit 6 groups of 2 in the right hand AND 4 groups of 3 in the left hand; into one measure, but each hand playing an eighth note in every beat of the 12/8 time.
Fantastic video. Thank you! I played the "Aeolian" and the "Revolutionary" in high school. My professor made all of us play Nos. 1 & 2 of Op.10 in college but I resisted a lot and never really put enough effort into them. I played the "Black Key" for my Junior recital. Now, I am returning to op. 10 nos. 1,2, & 4 VERY slowly, to hopefully help me with my upcoming Rachmaninoff 2 performance. I am played these three with a metronome and only notch up 1 tempo number per day. SOOOOO slow....
You should name it Soul of the keys !
No.1 is my first practising song of the etude op10.
When I started to practice no.1, I thought it was the easiest one of op10 etude. However, it was very hard for me.
After watching this video, I would like to try to practice other sheets of etude op10.😂
Absolutely wonderful insight into the required techniques and training to produce the desired keyboard performance! Always remember the feeling together with the brilliance is so difficult to master and only when your mind is in the zone can you will your hands to bring to life the performance required!
A new name for another channel....
Annie's Keys 🎹🎼🎹🎼🎹
You should try either performing or ranking Liszt's Transcendental Etudes in this format (if so it's probably going to be S.139 but seeing S.137 get some attention would be delightful)
lmao s137 is semi-impossible
the begining of No.3 is definitely harder than it sounds. Also why does nobody talk about the ending scale too no.8 it Is AMAZING!
The harder the better. I have a successful bar and jazz pianist carrier behind me, thanks to these etudes.
I don't know if you can do some series (like "1 min 10 min 1 hour challenge" or analyzes and performances) with Chopin's Preludes or maybe with Liszt's Transcendental Études, what do you think?
I could also give several other examples, such as Rachmaninoff's Six Moment Musicaux; Scriabin Études; Rachmaninoff Études Tableaux; if you go further, even some videos of Beethoven's sonatas; Schubert's Impromptus; Chopin's Nocturnes; Liszt's Paganini Études (S. 141 or S. 140); Debussy's Images; Chopin's Ballades; Chopin's Scherzos...
Anyway, there are many possibilities for content and suggestions...
Have you played Godowsky?
ua-cam.com/video/d9VtzVRaz6Q/v-deo.html
@@ValkyRiver No, I didn't play Godowsky (just heard about it)
@@ValkyRiver lord... godowsky, she could probably manage to tackle some of them but to be honest godowsky's arrangements are beyond difficult difficult...
nice, waitin for the Op.25 etudes
just a bit of formatting feedback, usually it's pretty good content to also briefly review the completed ranking. see all the ranks together in the same place, compare them, review them, maybe make a final couple tweaks after you've given everything a once over. it also serves as a great outro, this video feels like it lacks a smooth exit. that said, i love your channel and hate how much time ive binged it in the last two weeks xD
Best intro on youtube i swear i laughed so hard
Revolutionary etude feels like moment musicaux no 4 in some senses, of course rach's piece is much harder but it gets easier and your fingers just slide into the right place, personally that's how I feel ❤🎉
Can you do the same thing, but with the op25?
i would love to see a tier list of all beethoven sonatas, u really should try it. that would be amazingg:))
In my opinion: ( i played half of them)
1- No.2
2- No.1
3- No.4
4- No.7
5- No.10
6-No.11
7-No.8
8-No.12
9-No.5
10-No.3
11-No.9
12-No.6
Would move 4 below 7 but other than that I agree
@@joshyman221 i played 4 but i didnt played 7 but 7 does not have a hard left hand so , it is optional i think
@@GoldenBiba well no 2 and no 7 don’t have left hands either, doesn’t make them easier :D
@@joshyman221 yes but in 2, you always plays play dissonant 2nd and u should use your 4-5 fingers very accurate, in 7 it is not like that bro
@@GoldenBiba I think, with you having not played 7, it is a bit ambitious to say it’s not hard. Having played the whole set, 4 is definitely easier than 10 and 7
Op 10 no 12 is my first etude and i think its not difficult.
Thats my mind!
But i can unterstand why many peoble say its difficult. Nice Video👍
Totally agree! Since the right hand is quite easy, after some time you can basically forget the right hand, and after a lot of practise the left hand becomes muscle memory
For me the only difficult parts are the third page and when the first theme comes back, there is a big jump for both hands
nice video!!! Now, what did you say in the end lol. P.S. I loved the begginging
Great video! I liked a lot!!
Op. 10 no. 12 was the first Chopin's etude I've ever played (I was like 16 y old). And I think it's one of the easiest and most comfortable of them to play (well as U mentioned, no Chopin's etude is really easy). There are some hard fragments, I struggled the most with the right hand in bars 50-56. But other from this... I mean the left hand movement is mostly very convenient.
Well, all Chopin's etudes are awesome.
hi! how old did u start learning?
@@arrianah5080 I was 9 when I signed up to the [primary] music school.
Totally agree with no 2. First time I tried to sight read it a little bit I thought it would be one of the easiest etudes to learn. Boy was I wrong.... It one of the hardest if not the hardest out there..
I like the idea of the 2nd channel , and yes if you want my opinion Piano Talk sounds interesting. It sounds like "Chopin Talk" in the Chopin competition.
Of the ones I've played (3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 11, 12) I think 5 and 12 aren't that difficult, I definitely had a bit of trouble but not to the point of being frustrated; 3 was the first I've learnt and it was fairly easy overall, even the hard part in the middle wasn't that much of a problem; 6 was ok, it's definitely hard to balance the sounds well but it doesn't have technical difficulties; 7 gave me a lot of trouble and still can't play it well, had to take a slower tempo because my right hand always sounds too forte, wasn't expecting it to be so difficult; 4 was definitely the hardest, when the left hand has the faster parts I had trouble hitting the chord with the right hand at the right moment, and the middle section was brutal to learn, the "coda" was fairly simple though; currently learning 11 and it's kind of a nightmare too but so far it's not frustrating as 7 or 4, having fairly small hands (I barely reach a 10th) definitely doesn't help, there's some arpeggios that are a real pain in the... hands I guess, I still play it at a slow tempo though so my judgement might change when I'll try to speed it up.
yes to nocturne list !! Wish you could upload a full version of op 48 no 1 🤗🤗
Question - what chair is that? It looks super comfortable and I want one for my office space.
Marvelous!
I can't believe N.4 it's not on the second spot ahaha, I agree that N.2 is the hardest, but N.4 is not lower than N.1 and for sure N.9 is the easiest of them all, I think. N.3 too, it's too high in my opinion, or N.12 low etc..
couldnt agree more! but i think it depends on physiology of d finger, thats why she can put n.4 as easier than n. 1 haha
Very interesting, I did not not know many of this, thanks!!!
I am starting to learn op. 10, no. 8! I hope, it doesn't get ranked high😅
EDIT: It's in B Tier!
I already played no. 8. For me it felt more difficult than grade B. I wish you much success for learning and mastering :)
@@martinowl2264 Have you played Godowsky?
ua-cam.com/video/d9VtzVRaz6Q/v-deo.html
@@ValkyRiver Have you asked everyone if they've played Godowsky yet?
In the black-key etude you do actually play black keys only (at least regarding to the right hand only). I found very useful the ranking according to difficulty level. Thanks ! : )
I think there is one white key for the right hand though for a chord
@@ahhhsothisishowyouchangean162yes, in some editions, at bar 66
currently studying op.5, man... I hate repetitive motion so much, my arms are easily gets tired for doing that kind of rotation repeatly, I'm just so confused, i feel like anything that is constantly repeating in one way always makes my life difficult.... I actually like those "musically hard" pieces, because i just feel using my brain and try to work on the color is much easier.....
Great vid!
Annique: omg my english is so bad
Me a native speaker: same, everyday
Maybe u could make rank list of op 25?
It could be interesting to know your ranking in terms of favorite ones and not difficulty too ! Very instructive video by the way !
Great video as always! How about "Tips of the Keys" for the other channel?
Amazing
I agree with all of these other than No. 1 and No. 12. For people whos right hand has more control than the left hand (a lot of people have this) the no. 12 is very hard to pull off. And the no. 1 is all just about not getting tension in your hands, the rest isnt that hard. So i would put No. 1 in between A and B, and then No. 12 in S
Im so hyped for this😍
Hey please can you do one of these videos but for the Preludes?!
Interesting video. Thanks for doing that. May I ask you what device you use to record these videos? Your piano sounds clear and nice. Do you use microphones together with a certain device? Thank you.
If this is the heart of keys, the other channel should clearly be the sould of the keys!
I really enjoyed the sarcastic piano...I hope we see more of this recurring character ;)
Please do Op. 25 too!
Do one for op 25!!!
The first Etude is my favorite!!!!!
Piannique is a good name channel
Funny how you put n9 (the one I came here for) in the S tier. Henle ranked it 6 out of 9, making it the easiest etude with respect to their standards, the reason why I felt bold enough to start studying it (but I'll admit my big hands are a big+ for this one)
I would ave liked to have all of the etudes playing
New Channel Suggestion: Heart of Pianism (idk if that's a word, but it sounds professional)
Ich kann dir nur zustimmen dass das das Video super war
It is very interesting when I see you are going to put new video, I always think 🤔 1, 10, 1 hr challenge or you are going to put tips or any other I love that way. Do not divide you channel. Of course I will follow you if decide to do it 😉 Saludos
Love the video! Can you also rank op.25? And also, where would you rank Fantasie Impromptu on that tier list compared to the op.10 etudes? (That one also goes to whoever is reading this comment) 👍😁
I haven’t played any of these pieces aside from the impromptu and 10/4 but I think for most people if you understand polyrythm it would be a B/C on this list? It’s definitely easier than the difficult etudes of this set, I think it’s probably more difficult than 10/3 and 10/6, maybe 10/9 as well? But again if you really struggle with polyrythm but can play fast as f ck then fantaisie impromptu can be much harder for you than for example 10/1. It just depends on what your personal strengths and weaknesses are.
Probably the easiest out of these
Can you go into the op 10 left hand movement a little bit more? I did not quite understand and am struggling with it myself. Thanks!
the first etude i practiced from op.10 was no. 12, i'd say the left hand gets used to it but i still have problem with the speed hahah. currently i'm learning no. 4 and oh my god the sight reading of this peace is very difficult!!!
lol years ago i tried no.5 and it took me a long long time to get the notes (not even get it musically, just being able to play the notes) and my arms would hurt after playing it through once.
And that's by far the easiest one apparently :(
You are very beautiful. And Chopin is one of my favorite composers.
I like how she talks about her piano like it is a person😊
I know right it’s so nice
@veritas ante omnia I thought she is german?
@veritas ante omnia ohh
I thought this would be about which one you liked more :c
I love!
No. 9 same rank as no. 1 is ridiculous, I'd put no. 1 top tier with no. 2 easily. I'd also stick no. 4 in S tier, but there's no way you can say his etudes are that difficult compared to the most advanced repertoire, what you say at the start of the video about their difficulty is simply not true, for example take feux follets as an etude, that is harder than any Chopin etude, you have hamelin etudes, godowsky etudes on chopin are more difficult, ligeti etudes, rachmaninoff etudes, ans then you have alkan and czerny wrote some far more difficult etudes too. That's just etudes alone, too many other far more advanced works to name here. Chopin etudes are difficult, but pale in comparison when comparing them with the rest of the piano repertoire.
I disagree, i think that after you read the notes and learn Rach and Alkan they stay in your fingers for longer where Chopin needs to be constantly maintained so to say...atleast that was my experience.
Why even mention feux follets lmao? Just talk about the original versions of Liszt Etudes. No mention of Scriabin, Busoni or Prokofiev. Then there is Sorabji, Rautavaara, Kapustin and the composers you mentioned. I agree, that was a ridiculous thing to say. The Chopin etudes are great pieces and often very difficult but they are one of the milestones all serious pianists face and pass. They are far from the end all and be all of difficulty in the piano repertoire.
@@marijanrugani5360 yeah bro, concerto for piano really stays in the fingers....
@@sebastian-benedictflore i wasnt talking about concerto for piano...
@@marijanrugani5360 you were talking about alkan so I mentioned a piece by alkan.
I saw other professional pianists ratings. All agree on number 1 and 2 to be the most difficult. But it is fun to watch you rating based on your experience. Please, go ahead having fun...)
I think you should start that new channel and do podcasts with other classical musicians. That would really be nice to listen to
I feel I should mention that no 6 is meant to be played a lot faster than most people play it, and doing so makes it a lot harder technically. Although I do think it sounds better at the slower tempo.
That was so interesting, could you do it again with more chopin peaces? (not only etudes)
pieces*
Great list! Though I haven't played all of them, personally I would put no 6 a little lower and no 5 a lot higher on the list (I can't seem to get the rhythm down)
WHERE is THE PART 2
Name of the channel: Heart of Piano.
Excelente introducción, hiciste una buena actuación, podrías ser buena actriz
8:50 B and A...
was that intentional syncing?
Etude 10.2 is such a nightmare, I think I may need to clock in years on this alone 🥲
I absolutely love this video, however, as fascinating as Chopin’s Etudes are, you should definitely rank musical pieces in general and I’m sure that would generate a larger audience too!
How about „Colours of the Keys“?