Two versions of the chord's bass note in the sources give rise to a number of doubts. Assuming that there were no errors on the side of the people reading Chopin's autographs, we have the earlier version with e
, written in [AI] (→JC) and EF, as well as the later one with f, drawn from [A] (→PE). However, a mistake in reading of one of the autographs cannot be excluded. The correctness of the version with e is suggested by its independent reading by two people, Ludwika and Fontana. Yet there are more arguments for f to be found in PE:
- it is easier to imagine an inaccurate, misleading notation in draft [AI] than in finished [A], which was probably offered as an album leaf and developed with an apparent care for details;
- Chopin's manner of writing the interval of second – both notes in one line – favoured reading it as a third (cf. e.g. the remark concerning bar 23); an inverse error never occurred;
- the harmonic progression with the f version is more natural.
The sustained e in EF is another issue. Lack of a relevant slur in JC suggests that it is Fontana's addition. The supposition is confirmed by the arpeggio on the 2nd beat of the bar, which is unjustified with the sustained e before the entire chord. In the repetition of the main part of the Polonaise written in notes (in JC and PE marked as Da Capo), the slur is included in FEF, but not in GEF.
We add a cautionary 
to the f adopted in the main text.
category imprint: Differences between sources; Editorial revisions
notation: Pitch
Back to note