<P> Étude Op. 25, No. 11 in A minor, often referred to as the Winter Wind in English and literarily Seasoned Plants in some other languages, is a solo piano technical study composed by Frédéric Chopin in 1836 . It was first published together with all études of Opus 25 in 1837, in France, Germany, and England . The first French edition indicates a common time time signature, but the manuscript and the first German edition both feature cut time . The first four bars that characterize the melody were added just before publication at the advice of Charles A. Hoffmann, a friend . </P> <P> Étude Op. 25, No. 11 is a study for developing stamina, dexterity, and technique--essential skills for any concert pianist . It begins with a piano introduction of the main melody . The first theme follows, consisting of tumultuous cascades of semiquaver - tuplets (sixteenth - note - tuplets) and a leaping figure for the left hand in the relative major, C major, which shortly segues into a repetition of the first theme . It finishes with a short development into a fortissimo coda, and ends with one final statement of the theme . </P> <P> Étude Op. 25, No. 11 is a study of right hand dexterity and left hand flexibility . Both hands play an important role throughout the piece; the melody is sung through the heavy left hand, and the right hand contributes the étude's namesake with rapid scales and arpeggios . This study must be navigated with polyphonic mindset, treating both hands as separate melodies that work together, in a duet for one performer . </P>

Étude in a minor op. 25 no. 11 'winter wind'