No. 9

The key to performing this etude is to approach everything with a thoroughly Romantic playing style. This means making ample use of rubato and performing improvisationally, allowing the music to flow horizontally without a strong sense of the beat. The most helpful reference recording is No. 9 from the 3rd edition. The 3rd edition merely features a more complex development of the piece's core ideas, but the fundamental concept remains unchanged.

Therefore, there is no need to precisely count the timing of every small note. Furthermore, the consistently written sixteenth notes should not be played like a Czerny etude but rather treated improvisationally. The melody line can certainly be considered a song; please perform it by imitating a singer's vocal technique.

Now, let's list points of attention and suggestions for each section:

• ◉ In bar 4, on the first beat, the melody on the downbeat contains a non-harmonic tone, G. This bar is composed of the tonic chord As C Es. If you change the pedal immediately upon entering this bar, the non-harmonic G will be sustained by the pedal for too long, causing muddiness. To avoid this, change the pedal on the subsequent As after the G. At this point, hold down the bass note with your left pinky finger. By changing the pedal while the bass As is sustained, both the bass and other constituent notes (excluding G) can be prolonged, thus avoiding muddiness. This technique should be applied to similar passages thereafter.
• ◉ In bar 14, the final note of the melody line, Es, leaps two octaves higher in the following bar 15. Do not rush into this two-octave higher Es. Take ample time to reach it. This is characteristic of singers, who take sufficient time during large leaps. Similar passages, such as bars 26 and 49, should be treated in the same manner.
• ◉ Between bars 18 and 19, the writing may at first glance resemble a Czerny etude, but this section should be treated as a cadenza. Therefore, it is a passage where you should intentionally disrupt the rhythm. Play it improvisationally.
• ◉ In the succession of chords from bar 29 onwards, ensure that only the notes of the melody line are clearly audible, while other notes are played as softly as possible (pp). In other words, make sure the 4th and 5th fingers of the right hand are clearly heard.
• ◉ The speed of the trill in bar 41 should gradually decrease, aligning with the speed of the quintuplet in bar 42. Entering bar 42 in this way will ensure a smooth transition.