Naturszenen Op. 3, No. 14

The most Impressionistic of Opus 3, the cathedral in this instance is the forest rather than the sunken one from Debussy's prelude. The canopy of the trees is the vaulted ceiling and the trunks serve as the columns. As one walks down the colonnade, the spaces between the trees serve as windows onto the magnificence of nature. From a musical standpoint, the thick, rich chords of the right hand create a feeling of majesty and awe broken by the melismatic figures of the wind through the boughs. Once again, it is of great importance to balance the chords to bring forth the melody.