The Easiest Preludes, op. 28 Nr.4,6,9,15,7,20

Edited from the autograph and first editions by Bernhard Hansen. Fingerings by Jörg Demus piano fingering: Demus, Joerg editor: Hansen, Bernhard

Difficulty: easy to intermediate

Chopin's 24 Préludes were created successively between 1836 and 1839; it was only in the fair copy of 1839 that they were compiled as a cycle - virtually following the example of Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier. Unlike with Bach, however, Chopin's Préludes are not followed by fugues as they themselves have mutated into romantic character pieces which express a range of very different moods.

The technically easier ones of these miniatures are perfect as an introduction to playing Chopin, all the more so since they include the probably most famous piece of the cycle, the so-called 'Raindrop' Prélude. Intended to provide both students and music lovers with an inspiring access to the tonal world of Chopin, the present edition of selected pieces of the Wiener Urtext Edition has been designed accordingly.