Noctave
The piece
In the nineteenth century a ballade told a story, often a dark one. Burgmüller offers a pocket version in C minor, in 3/8, Allegro con brio: the right hand hammers detached chords while the theme growls low in the left hand in sixteenth notes. The middle section moves to C major and gives the tune to the right hand, then the story resumes and closes with both hands an octave apart.
Chords dominate the writing. In the right hand they must stay light, bouncing from the wrist, to let the left-hand theme through, played smoothly and clearly. The three-flat key signature comes with plenty of accidentals, nearly one note in five: B natural and A natural keep returning in the bass figure C-B-C-G-A-B. Mark them once and for all. In the major section, change colour: a legato tune and a soft off-beat accompaniment. At over a hundred bars, the right wrist tires quickly; check regularly that it stays loose instead of digging into the chords.