mUltimate Chopin

Op. 28 No. 17, Prelude in A♭ major

Text Compare Notes Sources Description

Issues : FE revisions

b. 19-21

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

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In A (→FC→GE) the topmost notes of the L.H. part (d1 and higher) are written on the top stave, while in b. 19 the R.H. g notes are placed on the bottom stave:

 (the accidentals and the order of the overlapping quavers in the right and left hands are presented according to A; in FC the  before E was omitted, and GE supple­mented accidentals and introduced some changes in the horizontal arrangement of chords). In FE (→EE) this seemingly illegible notation was simplified by placing the part of each of the hands on a separate stave, which we also adopted to the main text. According to us, the complexity of the original notation resulted in the double Terzverschreibung mistake in b. 21 in GE.

category imprint: Editorial revisions; Source & stylistic information

issues: FE revisions

b. 21

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

Accent above a1 in A

No mark in FC (→GE) & EE

Accent under b in FE
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The missing accent in FC (→GE) and EE are oversights of Fontana and of the engraver of EE. The mark having been moved to the side of noteheads in FE, i.e. in this case under the stave, is a frequent, routine revision; thus, the notation was left without a suggestion – certainly intended by Chopin – to accent the a1 note.

category imprint: Differences between sources

issues: Placement of markings , Errors in EE , FE revisions , Errors of FC

b. 24-25

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

2  in A

2   in FC (→GE) & FE (→EE)
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The version of A – without  asterisks in the second halves of the bars – seems to be intended by Chopin, who crossed out the  under the 6th quaver in b. 24. However, one cannot rule out the composer's mistake – the crossing-out means that the  placed analogously to the one in the 1st half of the bar is wrong, since the entire 2nd half is based on one chord (D major). Chopin could have planned to add it somewhere else, probably later, which he, however, did not do due to distraction. Due to the above reason, in the main text we give the pedal markings as supplemented by Fontana both in FC (→GE) and FE (→EE).

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

issues: Deletions in A , FE revisions , Fontana's revisions

b. 26

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

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On the last quaver in A (→FC→GE1) there are no accidentals before the middle notes of the chords in both hands – a  before b1 and a  before d2. The patent inaccuracies were corrected in FE (only the ) and EE (both). In turn, in GE2 (→GE3) naturals were wrongly added before both notes.
(NB: both correct accidentals are present in FCI.) 

category imprint: Interpretations within context; Differences between sources

issues: EE revisions , Accidentals in different octaves , GE revisions , Omission of current key accidentals , FE revisions , Inaccuracies in A , Errors repeated in GE , Errors repeated in FE

b. 37-42

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

No markings in A (→FE1,FC→GE)

Pedalling in FE2 (→EE)
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The pedal markings added to FE2, probably by Fontana, are a repetition of the authentic pedal markings in analogous b. 5-10 (omission of b. 36 is most probably an oversight). Chopin would often omit pedal markings in repeating fragments in which he had already indicated them the first time, e.g. in b. 11-17, hence we do not include them in the main text.

category imprint: Differences between sources

issues: FE revisions