The slur of A, clearly reaching beyond the group of the three dotted semiquavers, may be interpreted in a number of ways:
-
, -
, -
, -
, -
, -
.
For each of the above versions, its degree of compliance with Chopin's intentions may be estimated on the basis of comparison with authentic slurring of similar motifs – bars 11-12, 15-16, 39-40 and 55-56 (obviously, the procedure does not guarantee that the interpretation of the sources is fully correct):
- versions 3 and 6 should be considered the least probable ones - a new bar begins with a new slur in all the compared fragments;
- versions 1-3 are much less probable than versions 4-6, as in three out of four compared fragments Chopin marked the beginning of the ascending lower voice with a new slur (bars 11-12, 15-16 and 39-40);
- version 4 seems more probable than version 5, as it does not require the adding of any new elements of notation (the slur ending in bar 36), and moreover the version 4 slur, embracing all the dotted notes, cleverly combines the motivic and the articulation function, which corresponds to the notation of bars 15-16, 39-40 and 55-56, and to the marking of the semiquaver triplet earlier in this bar.
Taking all that into consideration, we consider the slur of version 4 to be the most probable reading of the slur of A.
category imprint: Graphic ambiguousness; Differences between sources
issues: Inaccurate slurs in A
notation: Slurs
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