Dan Nistico - Prelude 15, op. 28: The Story of a Raindrop
Prelude 15, op. 28: The Story of a Raindrop
Chopin is considered to be one of the great composers of western classical music. He was a pianist and wrote almost exclusively for the instrument, but many of his works were arranged for guitar during (and not long after) his lifetime (1810-1849).
Tarrega was one guitarist who transcribed Chopin's works. Many of these transcriptions are available as public domain, but they're not all easy to find.
Prelude 15, op. 28 is one such example, which I happened to find while searching the National Library of Spain's digitized collection.
This prelude is subtitled 'Raindrop', because of the repeating note (E in this transcription) that's heard throughout. It's also the longest of Chopin's preludes, which are usually brief.
Creating a story from your piece is a powerful way to enhance your interpretation.
The general outline for this piece is that it begins with gentle rain (the A section), which itself morphs through different stages; sometimes peaceful and sometimes gloomy. This then leads to a storm (B section) and then returns to the gentle rain
A Section
B Section
The B section is much stormier, as suggested by the 'poco piu animato' (with a little more animation) marking found at the beginning of the section. The E is even more persisting than earlier!
What kind of stories have you used to help your interpretations?
If you're never created a story before, then I suggest you try it. It's a much more powerful way of bringing a piece to life than merely thinking of playing loud and soft.
Write your story into the score - don't just let it sit in the back of your thoughts!
Here is the video
About Daniel Nistico - Guitarist, Author and Educator
Hi, I'm Daniel Nistico
Thousands of people read my material, which helps them scrap the menial aspects of guitar playing and get straight to the heart of music making.
This is done through simple and practical applications like:understanding music, conquering your practice, finding new pieces you love to play, interpreting music stylistically, and learning exercises that increase your musical vocabulary.
I've performed around the world, completed a Doctor of Music degree and teach an online studio of students from over ten countries. I want to help you discover new realms of the guitar and play like you've always dreamed.