Étude Op. 10, No. 5
Étude Piano solo
In brief

This étude has a bright, mischievous character, driven by bouncing figures primarily on the black keys that require lightness and precise attack. You will face concrete technical challenges in Passages rapides (2.5/5): here you must execute very fast finger alternations evenly and without tension, and in Contrôle du toucher (2.5/5) you need to control the attack to keep the notes clear with a light staccato — both demand a relaxed wrist and clear phalangeal articulation. The piece is part of Chopin's Op.10 études and serves within that set as a study focused on technical facility and virtuosic contrast. I will not name a reference recording here because I prefer not to cite a specific performance unless I am completely certain of it.

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  • Play — 12 Etudes, Op. 10: Frédéric CHOPIN : Etude op.10 n° 3 « Tristesse » · Frédéric Chopin, Tamás Vásáry (the player loads on click)

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MusicCoach difficulty
90/100
Master repertoire
Likely range : 78–100/100
Confidence : 45% · to confirm
BeginnerIntermediateAdvancedVirtuoso
Exam grade
Beyond grade 8

The grade scale stops at 8; this work belongs to concert or diploma repertoire.

Difficulty estimate by MusicCoach on a scale of 1 to 100.

Where this work sits
050100

Most works cluster between 45 and 65: a small score gap often marks a real step. The highlighted bar shows this work among those for the same instrument.

The MusicCoach difficulty measures a work's overall demands (technique, reading, stamina) on a shared 0-100 scale, consolidated from editorial and pedagogical reference points (Henle, exam syllabuses, curation) and our own analyses. It measures neither musical value nor the practice time YOU will need: two musicians of the same level can experience the same work very differently depending on their strengths (hands used to octaves, quick sight-reading…). The confidence reflects how many reference points sit behind the score and how well they agree — a lightly documented score is flagged “to validate”. For a truly personal bearing, the diagnostic and your space compare each work to YOUR estimated level, which the score alone cannot do.

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Relative difficulty
100%
Among Frédéric Chopin
100%
Era
98%
Genre
Estimated skills
Tone
Touch control
1
Technique
Hand independence
1
Technique
Octaves
1
Technique
Fast passages
1
Technique
General technique
1
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