Chopin Op. 25 No. 7: Study in C♯ minor: tempo and how to practice it

Chopin Op. 25 No. 7: Study in C♯ minor is part of “12 Études, Op. 25” by Frédéric Chopin (1810–1849). Main focus: a cello-like left-hand melody. Suggested tempos: start at ♩ = 40 to learn it, practice at ♩ = 52 and work up to the target of ♩ = 66. Difficulty 9/10 (concert).

What it trains

• A cello-like left-hand melody.
• A dialogue between voices with a singing tone.

How to practice it

1. Work on the technical problem out of context (for example, thirds as a scale) and then go back to the piece.
2. Rest your hand often; quality matters more than the number of repetitions.
3. Listen to the color: pedaling and voice balance are part of the technique.

Tempo ladder: ♩ = 40 → ♩ = 46 → ♩ = 52 → ♩ = 59 → ♩ = 66. Only move up a step once the take comes out clean; in the app, the progressive metronome does it for you.