In which I listen to Chopin's Mazurkas and struggle with Lilypond. We begin on Op. 30, No. 1.

Quatre Mazurkas

For à la Princesse de Würtemberg.

Op. 30, No. 1 in C minor

Once again a mazurka starts with a V → i progression. Truly one of my favorite things in the world.

The A section ends with a "V of the V" progression and uses a Picardy third at the end to lead back nicely to C minor. I talked about the "V of the V" thing and its prevalence previously in part 3.

It ends with an interesting semi-deceptive cadence by hitting you with a iv before plagally closing to the i.

Op. 30, No. 2 in B minor

I like the very beginning of this piece. It starts off with a i → V progression in the first two measures, and then repeats the same melody but employs an A♮ instead of an A♯ to achieve a i → v progression.

Since last time I did this I'm always on the lookout for 7♭5 chords, and we've found another in the B section. The B section is mostly a lesson in how the circle of fifths works, but Chopin sneaks in a descending chromatic motif in the left hand to go from C♯ → F♯m → B7♭5 → E.

I really like these kinds of things because it really emphasizes the importance of spelling and enharmonics. Tonally it's the same notes with the same frequency, but in this case the E♯ is very different harmonically from the F♮. Another reason why I'm not a huge fan of guitar tablature, because you lose this meaning when you only see, for example, 4 3 on the D string twice and it's not immediately obvious that the harmony is different since there is no indication of whether it's an E♯ or an F♮.

In the C section Chopin repeats the idea of the main theme but with different harmonies. The right hand does the same thing four times in a row while the left hand slightly changes the harmony.

This mazurka is unusual in that it ends without gratuitous repeats. It follows an A → B → C → B progression without ever returning to the A section.

Op. 30, No. 3 in D♭ major

Op. 30, No. 4 in C♯ minor