25 Easy and Progressive Etudes (Op. 100)


Introduction

Friedrich Burgmüller (1806 – 1874) was a German pianist and composer who moved to Paris at the age of 26 and settled there. In addition to light salon music, he wrote three sets of études for young pianists.

Burgmüller’s 25 Easy and Progressive Études, Op. 100 have been a mainstay of elementary étude repertoire for many generations - and deservedly so. Like all great études, the study of technique merges with attention to quality of sound and a musical purpose. The musical content of these pieces is on a level with the technical challenges they pose, so that the listener would not necessary realise they have any didactic focus whatsoever. Because each has its own descriptive title, the études inspire imagination and characterisation in the player, elevating the works to the status of real music (as opposed to the dry and boring studies that are so often the diet of pianists). I cannot imagine any young pianist or elementary player who would not immediately engage with this charming set of études, or benefit from learning them.

This series of articles provides annotations and their videos for our study editions featuring these works and is a complement to our video walk-throughs for the complete set of études.

Index

  1. La Candeur (Openness) in C Major
  2. L’Arabesque (Arabesque) in A Minor
  3. La Pastorale (Pastoral) in G Major
  4. La Petite Réunion (The Little Party) in C Major
  5. Innocence in F Major

Resources & links

Click here to view our series of video walkthroughs for the complete set of études.

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