Chopin: Barcarolle in

F-sharp Major, Op. 60

ANNOTATED SCORE
Your Instructor: Garrick Ohlsson

tonebase Piano
Introduction WATCH LESSON

If it's possible for a single work of Chopin to sit supreme among his countless masterpieces, his

Barcarolle in F♯ major, Op. 60 might be it. Chopin's one and only contribution to this Romantic

genre is beloved by concert pianists and audiences alike, and is the favorite piece of Garrick

Ohlsson – gold medalist of the 1970 Chopin Competition and one of a small handful of pianists in

history to record Chopin's complete works. Ohlsson is your gondolier in this extended, in-depth

lesson on the Barcarolle, steering you through its intricate polyphonic waters and basking in its

resplendent colors. Approaching the piece from a pianist's point of view, Ohlsson demonstrates

the refined tonal control you must achieve to realize the fullness of the work's inner drama, and

shows a path towards technical mastery required to pull off Chopin's most inspired, enchanting

piece – one of the great works of the Romantic era.

Since his triumph as winner of the 1970 Chopin International Piano Competition,

pianist Garrick Ohlsson has established himself worldwide as a musician of

magisterial interpretive and technical prowess. Although long regarded as one

of the world’s leading exponents of the music of Frédéric Chopin, Mr. Ohlsson

commands an enormous repertoire, which ranges over the entire piano

literature. His musical development has been influenced in completely different

ways by a succession of distinguished teachers, most notably Claudio Arrau,

Olga Barabini, Tom Lishman, Sascha Gorodnitzki, Rosina Lhévinne and Irma

Wolpe. He is a Steinway Artist and makes his home in San Francisco.

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If you have any corrections, comments, or critiques relating to this

annotated score, please send them to ethan@tonebase.co. We strive

to deliver the highest quality enrichment experience. Thank you!

 Annotations from Garrick
Ohlsson’s tonebase lesson

implied V9 chord the top line isn’t a true melody,

only play slightly louder than other voices

“the whole intro is a ‘once upon a time’”

unresolved...

repeated emphasis
on beat 2
on modern piano you can use more pedal than Chopin marks;
use gradations between dry and wet

crucial to follow Chopin’s markings “the listener shouldn’t be conscious of [the pedal], it should be part of the magic”
precisely; very thoughtfully devised
operatic duet; two women’s voices

“opens like a flower”

counterintuitive phrasing; the to following downbeat

melody starts at its loudest point
 begin this trill on the written note

don’t play too many notes in the

“don’t let the ornament obscure the line” start this trill on D♯ trill, we don’t have much time!

use a bit of rubato (either at start

at its core, just an or end of the beat) to make low
appoggiatura to the tonic G♯ more comfortable
 when grace note appears before
trill, begin trill on upper note

m. 20 & 21 start trill on upper note

again, Ohlsson prefers to start on upper note

(or 2323) 54
2121 12
1 5
 again, emphasis on beat 2

you can take lots of time here! the

audience will not divert their attention

beautiful use of all the notes in

the F-sharp major scale
 suggestive of F♯ minor,
naked line contrasts with
authentic cadential ending, impressionistic bar 32
but goes on to new key

similar to lines Debussy and Ravel later used to

evoke Middle-Eastern/exotic sounds

“he waves his magic wand

and the scene changes”

emphasis on A as root, not

yet major or minor

circular, somewhat adirectional

4 1 5
2 4 1 2
1
circular motif becomes triumphant
 (1 2 4)
bring out inner resolutions 5
5 1
3 5 1
5 2
1

Ravel-like color (listen to Ravel’s use of it at this link);

strong dissonance for the period

third theme; dream-like

evaporates, doesn’t come to a conclusion

 “Chopin was never finished composing a piece. He didn’t build cathedrals in stone, he plucked perfume from the air.”

left hand is hesitant, wandering, as if depicting two potential lovers (such as Hero and Leander)

we can’t bulldoze through this exquisite harmony!

“...but don’t stop and sniff every flower!”

settles on C♯
 optional “fake trill”:

stop trill before each thumb

hidden vocal duet: note to create illusion of legato
soprano
24

alto

as with everything,
practice slowly and softly!
re-introduction of opera duet

5 4 3
not too excited!
(if possible)

try the octaves with two hands,

then try to recreate that connected

sound with one hand

must build up to bar 92: don’t let the bass line grow too intense
allow the tempo to increase slightly, otherwise
this ascent accumulates too much tension

avoid a bangy left hand

“once you strike the key, you can’t do anything else Rosina Lhévinne instructed a young Ohlsson to
with it. play a note and move onto the next one.” play the left hand on its own as if it were a solo
part: “I didn’t say practice, I said play it!”
cadence begins the coda
earlier motif developed

relentless pedal point

 feel the pain of these harmonies

Chopin generally likes to reinforce his

final cadences; with an fz in this case

ending? no! something even more poignant

than the climax, though we’re coming down return of a figure that hasn’t
been heard for 6-7 minutes
ending? no! gentle left-hand chorale
with gliterring flourish on top

ends like a theatre piece

with the closing of curtains:
as if to say “that’s all, folks!”

don’t underline it — no need

for grandiose rubato