The Etude in A flat major, the tenth in the set, brings a distinctly different aura, more ludic and more scherzotic than the dramatic character that imbues the preceding Etude. We have before us an endless continuum of sixths sonorities undulating over the anchor of a bass ostinato. The arabesque of a melody drawn from the topmost notes, wilfully shifted by one rhythmic value, produces a constant instability.This is another Etude to reach a climax in its middle section that is filled with pianistic refulgence and a force that finds issue at the end in wondrously subtle sonorities.Author: Mieczysław TomaszewskiA series of programmes entitled ‘Fryderyk Chopin's Complete Works’Polish Radio 2