Of the three pieces in Opus 9, this is the one most heavily indebted to John Field, both in terms of its direct phrase structure and its generally rather simple atmosphere. In spite of the many tasteless renditions to which it has been subjected over the years (a great many of them on disc, and by performers of some stature), it remains a work of great charm. 2, is very possibly the most famous work ever penned by the composer. The final repose on the tonic major implies a deep sadness far beyond the expressive power of a more glaring minor mode ending. Chopin expands the coda, once merely a kind of musical appendage, into a full-fledged partner in the musical drama. The restrained melancholy of the opening passes through to a longer, melodically sultry middle section, only to return once again, inevitably, to the point of departure.

Chopin adapts Field's ternary (ABA) design to suit his more strophic organization, and it is thus also possible to hear the B flat minor Nocturne as a musical utterance in four, rather than three, distinct groups. Nevertheless, it is with this elegiac, somewhat neglected B flat minor piece that Europe got its first real glimpse into Chopin's wondrous, rapidly-maturing musical mind. 1, was composed in 1827, some three full years earlier. 1, is actually not Chopin's earliest work in the form: the E minor Nocturne published posthumously as Op. Camille Pleyel, with whom several noted musicians of the day, including Berlioz and Liszt, fell in love), although even at this early stage in his development Chopin's melancholy-tinged chromaticism and sinewy melodies stand in stark contrast to the Irish composer's far simpler pieces. Chopin inherited the form from Irish composer John Field Field's influence is indeed palpable throughout Chopin's earliest published entries in the genre, the Three Nocturnes, Op. The 21 nocturnes of Frédéric Chopin (of which only 20 were designated as such by the composer, the well-known Nocturne in C sharp minor of 1830 being in fact a pastiche of pre-existing music that only received the title nocturne upon publication in 1875) span virtually his entire creative career.

Nocturne op. 9 no. 1 in b flat minor