Chopin Étude, Op. 10, No. 3

This work is also known as Tristesse, meaning "Sadness" in French. It is a slow cantabile (songlike) study, in which the right hand must maintain a singing tone in the melody while contributing to the accompaniment.

In his Introductory Notes, Schirmer Library of Musical Classics, Vol. 33, Arthur Friedheim wrote:

One sometimes hears the wondering inquiry, What is the use of pieces in slow, sustained tempo as Études? The answer is, They are Studies in Touch. This Étude belongs to that class; for the double-notes in the subordinate section can scarcely be considered a problem. The cantilena, with its dainty shading, should stand out plainly from the accompaniment; the gently pulsing accent on each quaver in the left hand throughout the first fifteen bars, and at the repetition of the principal theme, must be carefully observed.

And in his Introductory Remarks, Schirmer Library of Musical Classics Vol. 33, James Huneker wrote:

Frederick Niecks, Chopin's definitive biographer, thinks that this Study "may be counted among Chopin's lovliest compositions... it combines classical chasteness of contour with the fragrance of romanticism". Chopin told his faithful pupil, Gutmann, that "he [Chopin] had never in his life written another such melody," and once when hearing it played he [Chopin] raised his arms and cried out "O ma patrie!"