Few Chopin’s nocturnes possess such emotional and dynamic fluctuations, and this piece is one of the few! Valentina perfectly controls the rhythms of the three sections. The C-Minor begins slowly, ponderously with a stream of pains spurting from inside out; perplexing why romantic love appears over. (Here is a key: some players interprets as a wounded soldier walking out from the battlefield, then it becomes more Beethoven, less Chopin) . Then the second theme intrudes in with a serious of the 11th-13th broken chords, representing the pains have been eased, and the fate has been realized and accepted. Halfway through, the C-Minor erupts a rage, then developed into a strong contradiction of two themes, one soft but gradually bright and strong, the other gloomy, depressed, but more and more hasting, symbolizing why it should be so. Towards end, there comes a resolution -- acceptance of love lost and depression, but finally a resurrection with redisplaying the initial theme however with brighter and faster major chords!

You might, very likely out of curiosity, ask a question why I choose Valentina Igoshina’s version. Here’s my answer. First, I like most the master Claudio Arrau’s interpretation, who has indisputably become the most recognized Chopin nocturne player, and Valentina’s performance is 99%, if not a hundred percent replica of Claudio. Secondly, the photography is dream-like and the player is beautiful.