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Frederick Chopin (1810-1849) was a Romantic composer of Polish nationality. Chopin started out studying piano at an early age, showing signs of great promise from his earliest performances. Chopin deeply loved his homeland, but found himself relocating to Paris due to the Russian suppression of the November 1830 Polish uprising. Chopin would spend the rest of his life in France. While in Paris, Chopin would engage in various relationships with respective women–most notably his affair with Aurore Dupin, better known by her pseudonym George Sand. Despite his passion for life and his native Poland, Chopin was frail and ill allround much of his adult life. His death in 1849 was due to complicatednesses with tuberculosis. As a composer, Chopin wrote closely exclusively for the solo piano. His writings demand total mastery of the instrument technically while exploring aroused depths through the respective sounds of the piano. Composers living at the height of the Romantic era (1820-1900) were attempting to express themselves in ways that had not been heard before, and Chopin was no exception. To commence understanding the works of this giant of Romantic music, let us consider three basic characteristics: Chopin’s Polish pride, his short compositions, and his legendary technical abilities at the keyboard. Many composers of the 19th century were nationalistic. Their pride in their native land was indicated in their music by using folk melodies and dance tunes of the people. Chopin’s nationalism may be seen in his Polonaises and Mazurkas. The Polonaise was a slow dance of the Polish people in 3/4 time. Because of it is characteristic sharp rhythms, the dance is militaristic in sound. In contrast, the Mazurka is a fast Polish dance, likewise in 3/4 time. The divergence here is that an accent (playing a note louder than the others around) is placed on either beat 2 or 3. This is strange because we suppose the accent to appear on beat 1. By basing his compositions on the dances of Poland, Chopin was introducing all of Europe to the charm of his beloved Poland. As you listen to the dances, you cannot help but feel a sense of pride emanating from the piano. Personally, I adore both of these dance forms, but have a special place in my heart for the Polonaises. For an introduction, listen to the Polonaise in C minor (Op. 40, No. 2) or the awful Polonaise in Ab major (Op. 53). (Opus numbers–abbreviated Op.–are given to pieces to aid catalogue a composer’s works. Often the numbers are assigned in the order the compositions were in the first place published. Don’t worry if you don’t do not forget all of them or altogether comprehend how they work; galore professional musicians have trouble remembering them as well.) Most of Chopin’s compositions were written for piano solo and are in miniature forms. This is great news for the neophyte to classical music. These pieces are often shorter than 5 minutes in duration and are very satisfying without the complexity of a long sonata movement. As we have already seen, Chopin composes multiple works within a single musical genre (like the polonaises above). Another dance that is usual with Chopin-lovers is the waltz–also in 3/4 time. To get a sentiment for the light, lilting quality of the waltzes, listen to the Minute Waltz (Op. 64, No. 1). As another example of Chopin’s miniatures, the Nocturnes are pretty short pieces that invoke images of nighttime; you’ll want to make sure you listen to the most widely known and esteemed Nocturne in Eb major (Op. 9, No.2). Continue by exploring others in this genre as most of them are effortlessly approachable without any prior noesis of the music. Chopin was a virtuoso of the piano and valued by his peers. A virtuoso is a performer who has unbelievable technical attainments at the instrument. You might think of a virtuoso as “the best of the best!” This level of skill is not something with which a person is innately born; years of preparation and devoted exercise are required. Chopin composed a series of etudes, or technical studies, to proceed to fabricate his own pianistic attainments as well as those of his students. While we ordinarily do not get excessively affected emotionally with regards to listening to piano exercises, the etudes are much more than mere finger exercises and something not to be missed. I commend listening to at least two of the Chopin etudes: the majestic Revolutionary Etude (Op. 10, No. 12) and the Black Key Etude (Op. 10, No. 5). Most of Chopin’s music for piano is effortlessly accessible by any audience and is readily available in most record stores. Enjoy the adventure and begin the exploration! Most helpful customer reviews 17 of 18 people found the following review helpful. 14 of 15 people found the following review helpful. 9 of 10 people found the following review helpful. |
Chopin Nocturnes and Polonaises, Dover edition
Decent, but not the Paderewski
not quite complete