Night piece
Notturno for piano.
What it means
A Nachtstück (night piece) is a character piece depicting a nocturnal mood; the Italian equivalent is notturno, the French nocturne. Typical are a song-like melody over an evenly broken accompaniment, a calm tempo, and muted dynamics. The layout is usually in three parts, with a more agitated or darker middle section. The title notturno also designates, alongside this, an older genre of eighteenth-century entertainment music for several instruments — a quite different matter.
Musical use
As a piano piece, the Nachtstück belongs to the Romantic era and stands alongside the impromptu, intermezzo, and Phantasiestück. Its effect rests on the relation between a resting accompaniment and a freely breathing melody: the left hand holds an even pattern that merges with the pedal into a carpet of sound, while the right hand leads a line modelled on a singing voice, with ornaments and flexible timing. The middle section often brings unrest or intensification before the opening returns, usually more richly ornamented.
The Nachtstück, also nocturne, is a lyrical character piece that depicts a nocturnal, dreamy mood. John Field created the genre for piano, Chopin made it famous. Schumann wrote Nachtstücke, op. 23.
Performance practice
Practise the accompanying figure first alone, until it runs without accents and completely evenly; any unevenness there destroys the calm of the piece. Lead the melody in a song-like manner and plan breathing places like a singer. Use the pedal as a tonal means, but change it by ear at harmony changes, so that nothing blurs. Apply rubato in the right hand while the left hand keeps the pulse. Shape the middle section distinctly differently and prepare the return.
Bear in mind that the ornamented return of the opening part in such pieces is not meant as mere decoration: it continues the melody and demands the same song-like bearing as the first time, only richer. Practise it, therefore, like a line of its own.
Check whether the title notturno designates a character piece or a multi-movement eighteenth-century work, because both are called that.