mUltimate Chopin

Op. 38, Ballade in F major

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b. 33-34

composition: Op. 38, Ballade in F major

  in A

GC

FE

EE

GE
..

The sources differ in the range of the   hairpins, which in the majority of the cases does not however significantly influence their musical sense. In the main text we give the marks based on A, as nothing indicates that Chopin changed anything in the remaining sources. From the graphical point of view, it is the text of GE that is most distant from the version of A, in which there is an accumulation of effects of inaccuracies of the copyist and engraver. However, according to us, the major risk of distorting Chopin's idea stems from the notation of EE in which the dynamic climax seems to fall on the 3rd quaver of the bar.

category imprint: Differences between sources

issues: Inaccuracies in GE , Inaccuracies in GC

b. 36

composition: Op. 38, Ballade in F major

..

In GC the  raising b1 to b1 was overlooked (in GE the sign was added).

category imprint: Interpretations within context; Differences between sources

issues: GE revisions , Errors of GC

b. 36

composition: Op. 38, Ballade in F major

..

EE has an erroneous d instead of e as the bottom note of the crotchet in the 2nd half of the bar.

category imprint: Interpretations within context; Differences between sources

issues: Errors in EE

b. 38-41

composition: Op. 38, Ballade in F major

Slurs in A (→EE)

GC

FE

GE
..

Only EE recreated the notation of the slurs of A correctly. The version of FE, despite shortening the slurs, does not change the general idea of Chopin's phrasing. However, both the inaccurate slurs of GC and their arbitrary interpretation in GE distort the phrasing determined by Chopin.

category imprint: Differences between sources

issues: Inaccuracies in GE , Inaccuracies in FE , Inaccuracies in GC

b. 38-39

composition: Op. 38, Ballade in F major

 in A (→FE,GC→GE)

 in EE
..

It is unclear whether the fact of shortening the  mark in EE is a result of having misunderstood A or of the revision – cf. an analogous situation in bar 40.

category imprint: Differences between sources

issues: EE revisions