"Simplicity is the highest goal, achievable when you have overcome all difficulties." – Frederic Chopin

Today is Chopin’s 215th birthday. To celebrate his birthday, we can play and listen to his beautiful piano music, study his scores, read his words, and learn from his wisdom. One of his quotes is enlightening: “Simplicity is the highest goal, achievable when you have overcome all difficulties.”

Chopin’s music is not simple. His chromatic harmony was advanced for the early 19th century, and the rhythm is complex. It is technically challenging for pianists. The etudes are virtuosic. It is hard to imagine “simplicity” just by looking at the scores. So, what is the logic of achieving simplicity from complexity?

From a composer’s standpoint, a composition's highest achievement is expressing the innermost feeling, which is genuine and simple. To do so requires years of practice and struggle. Notes and rhythm are tangible tools to present musical ideas on a manuscript for the performers to read and interpret. Without the tools, the music cannot be performed. The process of composing involves the skillful manipulation of musical elements and the exploration of new possibilities to bring out the soul of the music. ?On the other hand, performing requires many hours of practice to achieve accuracy, fluency, and a soulful interpretation of the composer’s musical language and ideas. A great performer would make the music sound natural and simple despite all the difficulties involved during preparation.

Even for “easier” Chopin repertoire such as some Preludes and Mazurkas that students are technically able to play, bringing out the “simplicity” musically is still challenging. For example, Prelude Op. 28 No. 15, the famous “Raindrop,” features the repeated dominant pedal Ab/G# throughout the piece. The idea is simple, but a repeated note alone cannot form a composition. The piece is in ABA form with contrasting moods and characters: the outer sections are in Db Major, bright and calm, and the middle section is in C# minor, dark and “stormy.” The change of mode and texture changes the character of the “raindrops.” Because the repeated notes are always used as background, a fine balance between the melody and accompaniment must be achieved within each section. In the first section, the lyrical melody in the higher register is supported by harmony below with the repeated note in the middle register. In the middle section, the repeated note, in the same register, is above a two-part harmonic progression that features an echo of a two-note motive in contrary motion in lower register, then the repeated note rises to high register in octaves. Such dramatic changes of dynamics and textures in the middle section must be addressed. After the storm, the opening lyrical section returns and satisfies the pianist and audience. Much work is needed to interpret this piece musically.

Mazurka in F minor Op. 68 Op. 4 is believed to be Chopin's last work. The score looks straightforward. The rhythmic pattern is stable. There are no rubato and fast running notes. The challenging part is harmony. The piece's first half is in F minor with a chain of descending chromatic harmony in “mutation,” with gradual change of chord tones at different times instead of simultaneously, and a brief enharmonic modulation to A Major. The second half involves Ab Major, C minor, and a series of chromatic sequences leading back to F minor. Understanding voice leading and the sequential patterns related to the overall tonality would be essential to interpret this work musically.

Musical simplicity is the essence, the innermost spirit that can only be reached and shared when the music is interpreted right. It is not easy to achieve. It requires dedication and sensibility beyond playing the right notes and rhythm. Let me end this essay with another of Chopin’s quotes:

“Simplicity is the final achievement. After one has played a vast quantity of notes and more notes, it is simplicity that emerges as the crowning reward of art.”