The Well-Tempered Ear

Is impromptuing the impromptu ok?

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By Jacob Stockinger

Recently, The Ear heard an unusual version of the very familiar Fantaisie-Impromptu for solo piano by Chopin.

It was played by the 35-year-old, prize-winning Russian pianist Pavel Kolesnikov (below). You can hear his performance in the YouTube video at the bottom.

What made it unusual is that the pianist took liberties and added passing notes or runs and a melodic overlay to part of it.

It seemed odd at first.

Why mess with Chopin, who was such a meticulous crafter of beauty?

But when you think about it, it makes a certain sense.

It is, after all, an impromptu. And an impromptu is based on and suggests improvisation.

So why not impromptu the impromptu? Why not add some extra spontaneity or variation, since many impromptus take the form of a theme with variations and elaborations.

These days performers are even expected to elaborate the Baroque repertoire, especially Bach and Handel. And it is becoming standard practice to do so with Mozart’s piano sonatas and concertos.

Now the Fantaisie-Impromptu is by far the most popular of Chopin’s four impromptus, no doubt in part because its lovely middle section melody inspired the classic Vaudeville pop song “I’m Always Chasing Rainbows.” 

But the Fantaisie-Impromptu, the last composed, is The Ear’s least favorite of the four impromptus that Chopin wrote. And Chopin apparently didn’t like it much either. He wanted it to remain unpublished and destroyed.

It made me want to know: What might the same pianist do with the other three great impromptus by Chopin?

Or the famous ones by Schubert and the less famous ones by Fauré?

Listen to the 5-minute performance and tell The Ear what you think of the ornamented version that Kolesnikov plays?

Which one of four is your favorite Chopin impromptu?

What impromptus by Schubert and Fauré do you especially like? Would changing the score work with them?

What other impromptus by other composers do you suggest listening to and playing — and perhaps even ornamenting?

The Ear wants to hear.