Due to the influence of the poetry of Mickiewicz,
Chopin s ballades are rich in their narrative of
story telling. Much previous research asserts that
harmonic structures and tonal process comprise the
ballades narrative. However, the style of Chopin s
narrative via story telling may be evoked through
the character of rhythm, which reflects the analogy
of narrative strategies in Chopin s music and
Mickiewicz s literary works. At the core of this
idea, derived from the approaches in Expressionism,
is that rhythm is an essential element in rendering
music as a logical and non-discursive language which
expresses feelings and emotions. This notion leads
the author to dig into the roots of the narrative
form of the ballade, a form with the added dimension
of literary relationships. This inquiry attempts to
demonstrate that the usage of particular rhythms
defines the narrative qualities in Chopin s
ballades. Finally, the author, from the perspective
of the narrative qualities within his ballades and
through the relationships to rhythmic features,
provides insights to pianists performance
practices.
Chopin s ballades are rich in their narrative of
story telling. Much previous research asserts that
harmonic structures and tonal process comprise the
ballades narrative. However, the style of Chopin s
narrative via story telling may be evoked through
the character of rhythm, which reflects the analogy
of narrative strategies in Chopin s music and
Mickiewicz s literary works. At the core of this
idea, derived from the approaches in Expressionism,
is that rhythm is an essential element in rendering
music as a logical and non-discursive language which
expresses feelings and emotions. This notion leads
the author to dig into the roots of the narrative
form of the ballade, a form with the added dimension
of literary relationships. This inquiry attempts to
demonstrate that the usage of particular rhythms
defines the narrative qualities in Chopin s
ballades. Finally, the author, from the perspective
of the narrative qualities within his ballades and
through the relationships to rhythmic features,
provides insights to pianists performance
practices.