Chopin Nocturne in C-Sharp Minor (No20)

Chopin’s Nocturne in C-Sharp Minor was composed in 1830 yet only

published 26 years after Chopin’s death in 1870. It was dedicated to his
sister Ludwika as “an exercise before beginning the study of my second
concerto.” Naturally there are certain parts of the piece that are based on
parts of his second piano concerto, the introduction of the new theme in
bars 21-22 and the main theme of the third movement are an especially
good example.

Interestingly, many of Chopin’s performances were held at a Salon, with

his relatively few public appearances occurring mainly in Paris. This lack
of a public persona is almost mirrored in his music. Which is shown by
the fact that lots of his music is often extremely quiet, introspective and
subtle.

The nocturne or “night song” as a genre was initially popularised by an

Irish composer, John Field. Whilst Chopin knew these works relatively
well, he improved them by taking inspiration from Vincenzo Bellini, who
was a close friend of his. Throughout Chopin’s work we can see
reference to this Bel Canto style, as lots of his melodies closely imitate a
singing voice. Whilst Chopin’s nocturnes have a few common features,
such as a contrasting middle section, when the melody is repeated it is
usually embellished and

Furthermore Chopin was the one of the first composers to understand the
importance of proper pedal markings. Most of the time we see the pedal
being used to connect the bass line. Chopin, however, does the opposite.
In his work it is often the melody that connects the music.