I am talking here about the rhythmic drone effect, commonly employed by 19th-century violinists and bassists to accompany the melodic part. A characteristic element of the Berry region's music tradition, which Chopin also got to know well, are bands including two bagpipes and two hurdy-gurdies, all fitted with double the normal number of drone pipes or strings.Ĭhopin could have also been familiar with a different kind of the drone effect, resulting not from the instrument's construction but the way it was played.
They are bagpipes with their drone pipe(s) and hurdy-gurdies with their drone string(s). In Poland, folk musicians have been using polyphonic instruments which can produce a characteristic drone – or sustained – tone. The composer took an interest in drone polyphony, which was present in medieval music ( ars antiqua) and survived to our times in folk music. A good example here is the drone effect on fifths and octaves, occurring on its own in the opening of the piece or continuing throughout. Some of Chopin's pieces display certain features of folk music's tonality, melody, metre, rhythm, and performing practice. Certainly, the fact that he listened to rural musicians playing in their natural circumstances (country wedding receptions, harvest festivals), or even joined them (usually playing the basses), contributed to his better understanding of folk instruments and the manner they were played. He could have also had contact with folk music during his travels and even the city, when travelling musicians came round. A chance to get to know folklore presented itself during his stays in the country – mostly when he was a school boy in Poland (Mazovia, Kuyavia, Dobrzyń Land, Chełmno Land, Greater Poland or Chełm Land) and later when he emigrated to France (Berry in central France).
There are direct accounts of Chopin’s interest in folk music and instruments (mainly in his letters) but this inclination is also seen in his piano pieces.
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