The Op. 68 set of mazurkas was published posthumously and grouped together from works spread over 20 years. This one and the third in the set, in F major (No. 48), were composed in 1830, while the second (No. 47), in A minor, was written in 1827. The last, the F minor, was composed in 1849 and was among Chopin's final works.

This C major mazurka is a vigorous piece, whose shifting colors and wide-ranging dynamics impart both variety and charm. Marked Vivace, the tempo seems—if not inconstant—stretched and contracted in a few places. The main theme is robust at the outset, but quickly settles into an elegance of expression. Soon, however, we hear some emphatic rhythmic chords which are less disruptive than boisterously playful within the character of the music. The middle section is subdued and nonchalant in its leanness, but turns humorous with some roughhouse antics before the main theme returns to close the piece in a joyous and playful mood. This is an attractive mazurka, though not among the better ones Chopin wrote. It lasts just under two minutes in a typical performance.

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No.2 in A-

The mazurka originated in the Polish province of Mazovia, near Warsaw. In the seventeenth century, the dance began to spread beyond the boundaries of Poland. Stylized mazurkas, such as Chopin's, combine aspects of this and several other dances, but some characteristics are consistently present: an accented third beat (occasionally the second) in a 3/4 measure; the use of both the natural and raised versions of some scale degrees, particularly the fourth; and a drone bass. During the 1830s and 1840s "art" music mazurkas were very popular in drawing rooms throughout Europe.

Some of the melodies of the mazurkas are unusual in comparison to the melodies of European "art" music. Many of these are related to folk mazurkas in their "modular" melodies consisting of tiny rhythmic and melodic units. Also, some use cross rhythms, chromatic scales, and modes typically not found in Western music. Often, we find remote keys used as colorful excursions from the tonic.

Most of Chopin's Mazurkas are in strict ternary form, some of them actually sporting a da capo to indicate the return to the first section. Chopin's later Mazurkas are stylized and often the testing ground for some of his most experimental ideas. Unlike other Romantic-era manifestations of "folk" music, Chopin's Mazurkas contain no actual folk tunes. He uses typical rhythms, melodies, and rhythmic and cadential formulas associated with Polish music and combines them in an original way. Chopin borrowed sounds he found outside European "art" music and used them to create music within that tradition. Some consider Chopin's mazurkas to be the most original of his works.

Like the Mazurkas, Op. 64, the Mazurkas, Op. 68 is a collection of works Chopin did not publish during his lifetime, but the period of time they cover is much wider—nearly the entirety of Chopin's career. The first and third, in C major and F major, respectively, are from 1829. The second, in A minor, dates from 1827 and the fourth, in F minor (Chopin's last work), was composed in 1849. The four were published as a set in 1855 in Berlin.

In A minor, the second of the Op. 68 set is the earliest example of Chopin using the Lydian mode in one of his mazurkas. Chopin does this not only by using F sharps and G sharps to create cadences on A minor, but by raising D naturals (the fourth scale degree in A minor) to D sharps, as he does on the third beat of the first full measure. Also, Chopin emphasizes the D sharp, which appears four times in the repetitions of the first theme, with a trill and an accent. Thus, Chopin works into his first, four-measure phrase two important characteristics of the mazurka—a modal melody and an accent on the third beat of the 3/4 measure. The Lydian flavor continues into the beginning of the contrasting theme, which is very like the main theme but on C major and includes an F sharp (again, the raised fourth scale degree, but in C major).

All these sharps anticipate the key of the trio, which is set in A major. This section, too, has its share of D sharps, but they are used quite differently. The formal characteristics of this mazurka are straightforward, which is not a surprise since it is the only the eighteenth of Chopin's nearly 170 works. The first theme follows the expected pattern of repetition and a four-measure contrasting phrase is "rounded" by a full return of the first theme. The trio consists of a repeated eight-measure idea followed by a similar four-measure idea, also repeated. The piece ends abruptly with no coda.

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No.3 in F

The Op. 68 set of mazurkas have a high opus number and might therefore seem among Chopin's last compositions. However, as with several posthumously published works of his, the opus number was assigned by another party and does not reflect the proper chronology. The last in the set, No. 49 in F minor, was written in 1849 along with No. 43, in G minor, Op. 67, which does indeed place them among Chopin's last compositions. However, No. 47, in A minor, was written in 1827 and this F major mazurka and No. 46, in C major, were composed in 1829.

If there is a sweetly valedictory air to the last two mazurkas, the much earlier F major No. 48 here shows the vibrant youthful composer with great confidence and pride, able to shift emotional gears on the spot, contrasting opposite elements with great skill and finding a wide array of color. This piece, marked Allegro, ma non troppo, is one of Chopin's better known mazurkas. The main theme is aristocratic and elegant, proud and aloof. Yet, as it proceeds, it betrays a softening of spirit, turning gentle and frail. A brief alternate episode of lively, joyous character betrays a peasant flavor and seems to incarnate a short-lived dream or recollection from the past. The main theme returns and the piece ends in a quiet, wistful mood. This is an attractive mazurka, which to some may sound a bit naïve, but to most it will provide a pleasant, if not profound listening experience. A typical performance lasts about two minutes.

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No.4 in F-

The mazurka originated in the Polish province of Mazovia, near Warsaw. In the seventeenth century, the dance began to spread beyond the boundaries of Poland. Stylized mazurkas, such as Chopin's, combine aspects of this and several other dances, but some characteristics are consistently present: an accented third beat (occasionally the second) in a 3/4 measure; the use of both the natural and raised versions of some scale degrees, particularly the fourth; and a drone bass. During the 1830s and 1840s "art" music mazurkas were very popular in drawing rooms throughout Europe.



Some of the melodies of the mazurkas are unusual in comparison to the melodies of European "art" music. Many of these are related to folk mazurkas in their "modular" melodies consisting of tiny rhythmic and melodic units. Also, some use cross rhythms, chromatic scales, and modes typically not found in Western music. Often, we find remote keys used as colorful excursions from the tonic.

Most of Chopin's Mazurkas are in strict ternary form, some of them actually sporting a da capo to indicate the return to the first section. Chopin's later Mazurkas are stylized and often the testing ground for some of his most experimental ideas. Unlike other Romantic-era manifestations of "folk" music, Chopin's Mazurkas contain no actual folk tunes. He uses typical rhythms, melodies, and rhythmic and cadential formulas associated with Polish music and combines them in an original way. Chopin borrowed sounds he found outside European "art" music and used them to create music within that tradition. Some consider Chopin's mazurkas to be the most original of his works.

Like the Mazurkas, Op. 64, the Mazurkas, Op. 68 is a collection of works Chopin did not publish during his lifetime, but the period of time they cover is much wider—nearly the entirety of Chopin's career. The first and third, in C major and F major, respectively, are from 1829. The second, in A minor, dates from 1827 and the fourth, in F minor (Chopin's last work), was composed between May and July, 1849, and left as a sketch when Chopin died. The four were published as a set in 1855 in Berlin, with No. 4 in a shortened form. A fuller, more accurate version of No. 4 was completed by Jan Ekier in 1965.

Chopin's last Mazurka, that in F minor, Op. 68, No. 4, is an example of the composer's occasional, extreme chromatic adventures, this time from F minor into A major. This outrageous journey begins in the fourth measure, although the first eight-measure phrase closes firmly on F minor. The repeat of this phrase, however, is highly decorated and gives in to the urge to modulate as constant eighth notes in the right hand move quickly to A major then slowly back to F minor.

The chromatic slithering continues in the trio, with its alternately halting and flowing theme that at points moves in two voices. Chopin touches on D major in the trio before closing on F minor for the literal return of the first section. Chopin marked a return to the opening at the end of the trio and included in his instruction, "senza fine" (without end), suggesting the piece should go on indefinitely. Editors of the various printed editions, however, place a "Fine" marking at the very end of the first theme complex, on the second beat of the measure.

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