mUltimate Chopin

Op. 28 No. 17, Prelude in A♭ major

Text Compare Notes Sources Description

Issues : Accompaniment changes

b. 49

composition: Op. 28 No. 17, Prelude in A♭ major

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In the chord on the 4th quaver in the bar, FCI includes an additional note (c2). The fact that it was crossed out in A proves that Chopin abandoned it only at the final stage of work on the Prelude.

category imprint: Differences between sources; Corrections & alterations; Source & stylistic information

issues: Corrections in A , Deletions in A , Accompaniment changes

b. 50-51

composition: Op. 28 No. 17, Prelude in A♭ major

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In FCI the structure of all the accompanying quavers in b. 50 (from the 2nd to the 6th) is similar – 3 notes each in the part of each of the hands, hence c2 is present in all R.H. chords, while the chromatic step of the bass from the 4th quaver in b. 50 to the 1st quaver in b. 51 is not doubled in the bottom octave.

category imprint: Differences between sources; Corrections & alterations; Source & stylistic information

issues: Accompaniment changes , Bass register changes

b. 51

composition: Op. 28 No. 17, Prelude in A♭ major

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In FCI the b1 notes on the 2nd and 3rd quavers in the bar are assigned to the L.H. The crossings-out visible in A reveal that Chopin moved them to the R.H. only when writing A.

category imprint: Differences between sources; Corrections & alterations

issues: Accompaniment changes

b. 54-56

composition: Op. 28 No. 17, Prelude in A♭ major

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In these bars the version of FCI clearly deviates from the final one – different harmonic rhythm in b. 54 and different shape of the melody in b. 55-56. We can also observe small changes to the arrangement of chords and enharmonic notation.

category imprint: Differences between sources; Corrections & alterations; Source & stylistic information

issues: Accompaniment changes , Enharmonic corrections , Main-line changes

b. 65-66

composition: Op. 28 No. 17, Prelude in A♭ major

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In FCI the L.H. part in b. 65 clearly differs from the final version; however, it is important to mention that the interpretation of the 2nd and 3rd quavers is uncertain due to the poor quality of the photograph available to the mUltimate Chopin editors. The uncertainty concerns the pitch of the top notes, which we interpret as c1, since they are placed on a ledger line. However, we cannot rule out a possibility of them having been corrected, perhaps to b. The interpretation of the spots under the beam is also uncertain (one could see A noteheads in them). Such a placement of noteheads with respect to the beam is not used in a regular notation; however, it could have been created as a result of those notes having been added. On the other hand, they can also be smudges of the ink at the intersection of the stems and the beam.
In the 2nd half of the bar, there are 3 e-b-e1 chords in FCI. Small differences are also to be found in the R.H. – d1 is already on the 4th quaver in b. 65, while the bottom voice at the beginning of b. 66 is devoid of the c1 quaver.

category imprint: Graphic ambiguousness; Differences between sources; Corrections & alterations

issues: Accompaniment changes