Piano songs · Advanced
Fantaisie-Impromptu on piano
The Fantaisie-Impromptu is Chopin at his most breathless: a right hand that never stops, four notes against the left hand's three. Here's the opening: the call, the left hand's waves, and the first runs.
this song
Fantaisie-Impromptu sheet music
The same notes as the player above, as a piano score: C♯ minor, 2/2. Press Play and the notes light up as they sound. Free to print or save as a PDF.
How to read the rhythms · how to read the notes
About the piece
Chopin wrote it in 1834 but never published it. His friend Julian Fontana published it in 1855, after Chopin's death, as Op. 66, and gave it the name Fantaisie-Impromptu. Its slow middle section, a singing melody in D♭ major, later became the popular song "I'm Always Chasing Rainbows".
The notes
The letters above are the tune, played by your right hand: G♯ A G♯ F𝄪 G♯ C♯ E D♯ C♯ D♯ C♯ B♯ C♯ E; G♯ G♯ A G♯ F𝄪 G♯ C♯ E D♯ C♯ D♯ C♯ B♯ C♯; E G♯ A C♯ D♯ F♯ A C♯ D♯ B A G♯ F♯ E; D♯ F♯ C♯ B♯ D♯ A G♯ F♯ A E D♯ F♯ C♯ B♯; D♯ A G♯ B A G♯ A G♯ F𝄪 G♯ C♯ E D♯ C♯; D♯ C♯ B♯ C♯ E G♯ G♯ A♯ G♯ F𝄪 G♯ C♯ E D♯; C♯ D♯ C♯ B♯ C♯ E G♯ D♯ E D♯ D D♯ B A♯; G♯ F𝄪 E D♯ C♯ B A♯ G♯ F𝄪 A♯ G♯ B D E; D♯ G♯ A♯ C♯ B D♯ F𝄪 A♯ G♯ F𝄪 G♯. Longer boxes are longer notes. Press Play and follow along, slow it down with the speed slider, or turn on Wait for me and play each note yourself.
How to learn it
- Four against three: the right hand plays sixteenth notes, four to a beat; the left hand triplets, three. Put them together very slowly, until each hand stops listening to the other.
- The left hand first: C♯, G♯, C♯, E, rising and falling in waves. Learn it alone until it's automatic.
- The run: G♯, A, G♯, F𝄪, G♯, then up to C♯ and E. F𝄪 (F double sharp) is played on the G key.
- Light, then fast: speed comes from lightness. Keep the fingers close to the keys and the arm relaxed.
Learning Fantaisie-Impromptu on a real piano? Ivory listens to you play and tells you what's off: a note that's missing, a hand that lands late, a rhythm that runs away. Then it shows you how it should go.
Questions people ask
Is the Fantaisie-Impromptu hard?
Yes: it's an advanced piece. The four-against-three rhythm and the speed take years of playing. The slow middle section is much more approachable.
What is the middle section of the Fantaisie-Impromptu?
A slow, singing melody in D♭ major, marked Largo and then Moderato cantabile, before the fast music returns. It's the tune of the song "I'm Always Chasing Rainbows".
More songs to play
Notes checked against the public-domain Mutopia Project edition (mutopiaproject.org). Piano sound: Salamander Grand Piano by Alexander Holm, CC BY 3.0.