Frédéric Chopin

Frédéric-François Chopin (March 1, 1810 – October 17, 1849) was a Polish composer and pianist of Polish and French parentage who wrote almost exclusively for the piano. He was born as Fryderyk Franciszek Chopin, adopting the French variant "Frédéric-François" when he left Poland for Paris at age 20, never to return. His surname is also sometimes spelled Szopen in Polish texts.

Works

Chopin's compositional output consists mainly of music for solo piano. His larger scale works such as the four ballades, the four scherzos, the barcarolle, and sonatas have cemented a solid place within the repertoire, as well as shorter works like his impromptus, mazurkas, nocturnes, waltzes and polonaises. Two important collections are the 24 Preludes Op. 28, based loosely on Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier, and the etudes, which are a staple of that genre for pianists.

Related Topics:
Piano - Ballade - Scherzo - Sonatas - Impromptu - Mazurka - Nocturne - Waltz - Polonaise - Preludes Op. 28 - Bach - Well-Tempered Clavier - Etude

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Chopin composed two of the romantic piano concerto repertoire's most often-performed examples, his opp. 11 and 21. In addition, he wrote several song settings of Polish texts, and chamber pieces including a piano trio and a sonata for cello and piano.

Related Topics:
Piano concerto - 11 - 21 - Song - Polish - Piano trio - Sonata - Cello - Piano

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For a complete list of Chopin's works by opus number, see List of compositions by Frédéric Chopin.

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