There is a quality of fragility to this prelude…a delicate balance between tonality and chromaticism. The often disjunct melody in the right hand is juxtaposed with the linear, usually descending, scales in the left. The overall effect is one of unease…as if looking into a funhouse mirror and seeing the distorted image staring back at you, even after you’ve left the park. While it is set in a major key, the serpentine nature of the left hand keeps the music questioning its destination until the very end.

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