ABSTRACT

Chopin’s E♭-minor prelude provides a fine example of how rhythmic and tonal structures are inextricably linked in his compositions. Analysis of Prelude No. 14 will include discussion of linear intervallic patterns, hidden repetition, displacement, grouping, rhythmic ambiguity, dynamics and form. This analysis will conclude with a brief discussion of performance issues, and will refer to Schenker’s own comments on the performance of this piece. Example 8.1 provides a voice-leading graph containing levels A and B.