1
: a fixed verse form consisting usually of three stanzas with recurrent rhymes, an envoi, and an identical refrain for each part
2
: a musical composition usually for piano suggesting the epic ballad
Examples of ballade in a Sentence
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Chopin's major piano works include mazurkas, waltzes, nocturnes, polonaises, the instrumental ballade (which Chopin created as an instrumental genre), études, impromptus, scherzi, preludes, and sonatas, some published only posthumously.
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New Atlas, 9 June 2025
Like that Chopin ballade, a good routine has light and shade, fast sections and longueurs.
—Helen Lewis, The Atlantic, 8 Apr. 2020
And not just the easy stuff, but the whirling ballades and the high-octane waltzes and scherzos that usually separate the young pianists from the veterans but — in the case of a prodigy like Christopher — don’t.
—Steve Rubenstein, SFChronicle.com, 9 June 2019
The four ballades are full of beautiful music, a point emphasized in Pierdomenico’s lyrical interpretations.
—Olin Chism, star-telegram.com, 5 June 2017
The second of two great septuagenarian pianists passing through New York this week brings with him an all-Chopin program, featuring two sets of nocturnes, a couple of ballades, a scherzo, a berceuse and the third of the composer’s sonatas.
—David Allen, New York Times, 18 May 2017
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New Atlas, 9 June 2025
Like that Chopin ballade, a good routine has light and shade, fast sections and longueurs.
—Helen Lewis, The Atlantic, 8 Apr. 2020
And not just the easy stuff, but the whirling ballades and the high-octane waltzes and scherzos that usually separate the young pianists from the veterans but — in the case of a prodigy like Christopher — don’t.
—Steve Rubenstein, SFChronicle.com, 9 June 2019
The four ballades are full of beautiful music, a point emphasized in Pierdomenico’s lyrical interpretations.
—Olin Chism, star-telegram.com, 5 June 2017
The second of two great septuagenarian pianists passing through New York this week brings with him an all-Chopin program, featuring two sets of nocturnes, a couple of ballades, a scherzo, a berceuse and the third of the composer’s sonatas.
—David Allen, New York Times, 18 May 2017
Cite this Entry
“Ballade.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ballade. Accessed 30 Oct. 2025.
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