Chopin: Good For The Soul

I have a confession to make.

I adore classical piano. If you had told me I would love it so much, (or even remotely like it, for that matter) a few years ago, I would've laughed in your face and then sent you off to the insane asylum for such outrageous slander.

I've always been a music nut. I've played piano since I was a wee one, I've been in countless choirs, and I love listening to all sorts of music. But I've never really enjoyed classical pieces. Over my thirteen plus years of taking piano lessons, my last two teachers have really stressed the importance of classical piano. Needless to say, I wasn't very happy about it. But I did it anyways. I would much rather have been playing Jon Schmidt or other such music....because classical music was boring, dang it! To me, it all sounded the same and it had no expression. Just in this last couple years, however, my opinion has changed drastically, because of a few simple reasons.

1. I got older. And therefore wiser.
2. I had two fantastic teachers, both were local legends: Zhenya DeVol and Dave Dahlquist (Mr. D) who forced me to play classical music. Here's the secret though...
3. ...they made me play classical music that was extremely challenging; that was harder than the level I was on. Therefore, I had to figure out what the techniques and the intentions of a composer that lived and died hundreds of years ago, so I could play their piece without them turning in their grave.

I began to comprehend just what kind of genius's...(genii? genuis'? whatev.)...these people were. I can barely play these songs...I can't even imagine creating the music and then writing it down. The technicality and the complexity of these pieces is absolutely stunning.

Out of all the classical music and wonderful composers out there, my very favorite is Frederic Chopin. His music gets to me more than any other. Whether I'm playing it or just listening, it speaks straight to my soul...I don't even know how to fully explain it. It's like the music and my spirit are on the same wavelength...they just connect. I listen to it when I'm happy, it makes me feel better when I'm sad, and it calms me down when I'm nervous. Every single one of his pieces are works of art. Some of my very favorites (some I can play, some I'm working on) include:

• Fantasie Impromptu [C-sharp minor, Op. 66]
• Nocturne in E-flat
• Prelude 24 in D minor
  
• Revolutionary Etude in C minor, Op. 10 No. 12

I love pieces from other composers as well, don't get me wrong. There's so many brilliant works out there. Some of my other favorite classical pieces are:

• Liebestraum by Lizst
  
• Moonlight Sonata 3rd movement by Beethoven
• Appassionata by Beethoven
• Prelude #5 in G Minor by Rachmaninoff
• Reverie by Debussy
• Claire De Lune by Debussy

*Fun fact: I have a cool piano teacher "lineage" with Debussy. He taught some dude piano, who taught this lady, who taught Dave Dahlquist, who taught me!

*Edited fun fact (Thanks to Jordan): Apparently my lineage gets even cooler! I quote from Sir Jordan..."Big D was taught by Grace Allsop, who was taught by Richard Dickson, who was taught by Claude Debussy, who was taught by his mother, who claimed to have been taught by Frederic Chopin." Yessss!

And just for you, dear readers, I have decided to include links to videos of a couple of the songs, in case you wanted to hear this beauty.

Prelude #5 in G Minor by Rachmaninoff

Fantaisie Impromptu by Chopin

Moonlight Sonata 3rd Movement by Beethoven