[00:00.99]Poet of Piano—Chopin
[00:03.83]Frederic Francois Chopin, Polish-born composer and renowned pianist,
[00:11.16]was the creator of 55 mazurkas, 13 polonaises, 24 preludes,
[00:17.29] 27 etudes, 19 nocturnes, 4 ballads, and 4 scherzos.
[00:23.95]Frederic Chopin was born in Zelazowa Wola, Poland,
[00:28.55]on February 22, 1810, to a French father and Polish mother.
[00:33.58] His father, Nicholas Chopin,
[00:36.31]was a French tutor to many aristocratic Polish families,
[00:39.92] later accepting a position as a French teacher at the Warsaw Lyceum.
[00:44.85]French by heritage,
[00:46.21]and desirous of finding musical acceptance
[00:49.06]from a less traditional audience than that of Vienna,
[00:51.79]Chopin ventured to Paris. Interestingly,
[00:55.39]other young musicians had assembled in the city of fashion
[00:58.57] with the very same hope.
[01:00.32]Although Chopin did play in the large concert halls on occasion,
[01:04.36] he felt most at home in private settings,
[01:07.10]enjoying the social milieu that accompanied concerts for the wealthy.
[01:11.25] He also enjoyed teaching,
[01:13.00] as this caused him less stress than performing.
[01:15.84] Chopin did not feel that his delicate technique and intricate melodies
[01:20.44] were as suited to the grandiose hall
[01:22.85]as they were to smaller environments and audiences.
[01:26.02]News of the war in Poland
[01:27.98]inspired Chopin to write many sad musical pieces
[01:31.81] expressing his grief for "his" Poland.
[01:35.31]Among these was the famous "Revolutionary Etude.
[01:38.71]" Plagued by poor health as well as his homesickness,
[01:42.42] Chopin found solace in summer visits to the country.
[01:46.03]Here, his most complex yet harmonic creations found their way
[01:51.17]to the brilliant composer's hand.
[01:53.47]The "Fantasia in F Minor", the "Barcarolle",
[01:57.40]the "Polonaise Fantasia", "Ballade in A Flat Major,"
[02:01.78]"Ballade in F Minor", and "Sonata in B Minor"
[02:06.59]were all products of the relaxed time Chopin enjoyed in the country.
[02:11.29]As the war continued in Warsaw and then reached Paris,
[02:15.01] Chopin retired to Scotland with friends.
[02:17.97]Although he was far beyond the reach of the revolution,
[02:21.13] his melancholy attitude did not improve
[02:23.98] and he sank deeper into a depression.
[02:26.72]Likewise, his health did not rejuvenate either.
[02:30.08]Chopin returned to Paris
[02:32.48]as his health deteriorated further.
[02:34.45]Surrounded by those that he loved,
[02:36.75]Frederic Francois Chopin died at the age of 39.
[02:40.90] He was buried in Paris.
[02:42.98]Chopin's last request was that the Polish soil
[02:46.70] in the silver goblet be sprinkled over his grave. |