Basic Work Information

Composition Year: 1835 Publication Year: 1838 (Paris, Leipzig, London)

Dedication: A Mademoiselle J. de Thun-Hohenstein

Score Information

Paderewski Edition: No. 2 / Ekier Edition: No. 2 / Cortot Edition: No. 2 / Henle Edition: No. 2 /

Peters Edition (Urtext): No. 2 (with Appendix 3 [based on the autograph manuscript dated September 15, 1835])

An autograph manuscript, written on September 15, 1835, is preserved in an album belonging to Count Franz Anton von Thun-Hohenstein's two daughters, Anna and Josefina.

Chopin reunited with his parents, whom he had been separated from since Warsaw, in Bohemia during the summer of 1835. After a three-week stay in Karlovy Vary, he was invited to the Thun-Hohenstein family's residence in Děčín, Bohemia, while accompanying his parents on their departure. The Waltz in A-flat major was composed during his stay with the Thun-Hohenstein family and presented to Mademoiselle Josefina. This gifted autograph manuscript differs significantly from the definitive version used for publication and is therefore included in Appendix 3 of the new Peters Edition. Compared to the published version, it is more improvisatory and features a chain-like structure with repetitions indicated by 'dal segno.' Furthermore, while the instruction Tempo di Valse (at waltz tempo) is present in the manuscript, the tempo marking was changed to 'Vivace' when it was published as Trois Valses.

The definitive version, used for the French first edition, shows evidence of Chopin's formal refinement. Following a 16-bar introduction, the ternary form—comprising a main section with a typical dance waltz rhythm, a middle section (in D-flat major), a recapitulation, and a coda—is identical in structure to Op. 18. The middle section is clearly delineated by a key signature change, which is absent in the autograph manuscript.