ertain phrasing of this valse Moriz Rosenthal wrote to the
London "Musical Standard":

In Music there is Liberty and Fraternity, but seldom Equality,
and in music Social Democracy has no voice. Notes have a right
to the Aftertone (Nachton), and this right depends upon their
role in the key. The Vorhalt (accented passing note) will
always have an accent. On this point Riemann must without
question be considered right. Likewise the feeling player will
mark those notes that introduce the transition to another key.
We will consider now our example and set down my accents:

[Musical score excerpt]

In the first bar we have the tonic chord of its major key as
bass, and are thus not forced to any accent. In the second bar
we have the dominant harmony in the bass, and in the treble,
C, which falls upon the down beat as Vorhalt to the next tone
(B flat), so it must be accented. Also in the fourth bar the B
flat is Vorhalt to the B flat, and likewise requires an
accent. In bars 6, 7 and 8 the notes, A flat, B flat and C,
are without doubt the characteristic ones of the passage, and
the E flat has in each case only a secondary significance.

That a genius like Chopin did not indicate everything
accurately is quite explainable. He flew where we merely limp
after. Moreover, these accents must be felt rather than
executed, with softest touch, and as tenderly as possible.

The D flat Valse--"le valse du petit chien"--is of George Sand's own
prompting. One evening at her home in the Square d'Orleans, she was
amused by her little pet dog, chasing its tail. She begged Chopin, her
little pet pianist, to set the tail to music. He did so, and behold the
world is richer for this piece. I do not dispute the story. It seems
well grounded, but then it is so ineffably silly! The three valses of
this op. 64 were published September, 1847, and are respectively
dedicated to the Comtesse Delphine Potocka, the Baronne Nathaniel de
Rothschild and the Baronne Bronicka.

I shall not presume to speak of the execution of the D flat Valse; like
the rich, it is always with us. It is usually taken at a meaningless,
rapid gait. I have heard it played by a genuine Chopin pupil, M.
Georges Mathias, and he did not take it prestissimo. He ran up the D
flat scale, ending with a sforzato at the top, and gave a variety of
nuance to the composition. The cantabile is nearly always delivered
with sloppiness of sentime