Frederic Chopin

Frédéric François Chopin (French: Frédéric François Chopin, pronunciation: [fʁedeʁik fʁɑəswa ʃɔpɛə], formerly known as Fryderyk Franciszek Chopin, Polish: Fryderyk Franciszek Chopin, pronunciation: [frɨˈdɛrɨk fraɲˈt͡ɕiʂɛk ˈʂɔpɛn]; March 1, 1810 - October 17, 1849), a Polish composer and master of piano technique during the Romantic period, who wrote mainly for solo piano throughout his life. He has always been recognized as one of the most outstanding composers of that era. "His poetic talent is based on professional skills that are unparalleled by his peers." He is often called the "piano poet" in the Chinese circle. Chopin was born in Zelazowa Wola and grew up in Warsaw; after 1815, Warsaw became part of the Congressional Kingdom of Poland. Considered a child prodigy, he completed his musical education and composed his early works in Warsaw. At the age of 20, he left Poland less than a month before the November Uprising; at the age of 21, he settled in Paris. Since then, he has only held 30 public performances, preferring the intimate atmosphere of the salon. He made a living by selling his works and giving lessons, and his piano lessons were always in demand. Chopin formed a friendship with Liszt Ferenczi and was highly regarded by contemporaries such as Robert Schumann. His marriage to Maria Wodzinska from 1836 to 1837 ended in failure; he subsequently maintained an often checkered relationship with the French writer Aurore Dupin (pen name George Sand). From 1838 to 1839, he and Sand's brief and unhappy stay in Mallorca turned out to be one of the most fruitful periods in his creative career. In the last years of his life, he was financially supported by Jane Stirling, who admired him. Chopin was frail and sick throughout his life and died in Paris in 1849 at the age of 39. Chopin's works are all written around the piano. Most of them were piano solos, but before leaving Warsaw, he also composed two piano concertos, followed by chamber music and nineteen art songs with Polish lyrics. His piano works are technically demanding and stretch the boundaries of the instrument itself; while his own playing is renowned for its delicacy and sensitivity. Chopin's important piano works include mazurkas, waltzes, nocturnes, polonaises, instrumental ballads, etudes, impromptu, scherzos, preludes, sonatas - the forms he pioneered.