Etude is basically derived from a French word, étude, which means "study". It is a small musical composition. It is designed especiial for the purpose of practice in a meticulous technological skill for the presentation of a solo instrument.
An example would be, Frédéric Chopin's etude Op. 25 No. 6 trains pianists to play fast equivalent chromatic thirds, Op. 25 No. 7 emphasizes the making of playing tone in a polyphonic piece of music, and Op. 25 No. 10 covers parallel octaves.
An example would be, Frédéric Chopin's etude Op. 25 No. 6 trains pianists to play fast equivalent chromatic thirds, Op. 25 No. 7 emphasizes the making of playing tone in a polyphonic piece of music, and Op. 25 No. 10 covers parallel octaves.