Chopin, Frédéric François << SHOH pan or shaw PAN, FREHD uh rihk frahn SWAH >> (1810-1849), a Polish-born composer, was one of the masters of piano composition. He wrote chamber music (music for small groups of instruments), songs, and pieces for piano and orchestra. But his fame rests almost entirely on his more than 200 compositions for solo piano.
His life.
Chopin was born in Zelazowa-Wola, near Warsaw, probably on March 1, 1810. A child prodigy, Chopin played the piano in public when he was only 8 years old. He began to compose soon afterward. Chopin studied at the Warsaw Conservatory from 1826 to 1829 before leaving Poland in 1830. He settled in Paris in 1831, and, except for some travel, lived there the rest of his life.
In 1837, Chopin began a famous love affair with George Sand, a French woman novelist. The affair ended with a quarrel in 1847. He was then seriously ill with tuberculosis. He died on Oct. 17, 1849.
Loading the player...Minute Waltz
His works.
Chopin was a master of small musical forms. His works for solo piano include 3 sonatas, 4 ballades, 4 large-scale scherzos, 58 mazurkas in a Polish 3/4 dance rhythm, 26 preludes, and 16 polonaises in a stately Polish dance rhythm. His other solo pieces include 27 etudes, 24 waltzes (including the famous “Minute Waltz”), 21 nocturnes, 4 impromptus, 4 rondos, a barcarole, a berceuse, a bolero, a fantasia, and a tarantella. The fantasia is perhaps Chopin’s greatest single work. His etudes are valuable for their music and for use in teaching piano. Chopin also composed two piano concertos.
Chopin is unique among composers because his music has always been as highly esteemed by musicians as by the public. Chopin was a creator of melody, and some of his pieces now seem as familiar as folk music.
Loading the player...Mazurka in F major
Chopin did much to influence piano composition. He had a keen appreciation for the capability of the piano to produce beautiful music. He designed his compositions to display the resources of the instrument to full effect. His best works were written in patterns that he worked out or perfected himself. Chopin also influenced the whole future of music by including Slavic folk harmonies and rhythms in his work.
Loading the player...Scherzo No. 2
Chopin’s music expresses Polish patriotism in the Polish harmonies and rhythms of his mazurkas and polonaises. However, the rest of his music is essentially international in style.
Loading the player...Ballade No. 1
