Product Description
Frederic Chopin died a famous man with his place in the musical pantheon secure. Yet the works that were once most popular tended to be his lightest and least challenging, leading many listeners and critics to view him as a miniaturist and composer for the salon. The bold pieces now revered as his masterpieces-the epic and tragic structures of the ballades, scherzos, polonaises, and sonatas, and the compact but daring preludes and mazurkas-were rarely played and poorly understood. In fact, a larger proportion of Chopin's pieces are now in the active repertory than that of any composer. Chopin - A Listener's Guide to the Master of the Piano takes a detailed tour through the life and oeuvre of the sovereign master of the keyboard. The composer's metabolic adaptation of the melodic structures of Italian opera and the folk music of his native Poland for the resources of the piano are examined in detail, as are the originality and boldness he displayed throughout his tragically short, astonishing career. The book is accompanied by a CD containing 15 complete compositions (and one full movement from his Piano Sonata No. 2) performed by pianist Idil Biret, from her complete survey of the composer's music on the Naxos label. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

Nice touch
I bought this for my goddaughter who is an enthusiastic piano student.She happens to love Chopin and the romantic era.This was a nice accompaniment to her lessons.

A most accessible way of understanding Chopin's music.
Pair a full-length classical cd from the classical music publisher Naxos with a book surveying Chopin's biography and influences and you have the perfect introduction to Chopin - and a pick recommended not just for public library holdings, but for schools seeking to introduce students to Chopin. Descriptions of his works, styles, and diversity come from a New York-based critical music writer whose addition to the 'Unlocking the Masters' series provides newcomers with a most accessible way of understanding Chopin's music.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

A marvelous series from Amadeus Press
Amadeus Press has filled a underserved niche in the classical music literature with these marvelous little guides to the great composers and their greatest compositions.They fill the gap between the highly detailed, scholarly volumes of the lives of the great composers ... and the too-superficial tiny guides that offer too little program notes on the music or the composer.It gives you a compelling "play-by-play" description of each composition without venturing into musicology that would lose a beginner.The entire series is extremely well written and make a great guides to new discoveries.It should appeal to beginners as well as classical veterans alike.This Chopin volume is proving to be a valuable guide as I explore in depth Chopin's music and the great performances on disc.

Every major category is covered in satisfying depth to give you solid understanding of what is behind each work - and what in particular is historically and musically significant in them.ALl major works are covered: the lilting Waltzes .. the pensive and sometimes turbulent Nocturnes ... the weighty Sonatas, Scherzos and Ballades ... the delicate miniatures ... the amazing early piano concertos ... the showpieces, Etudes, Preludes and even the few chamber pieces of Chopin are explored to reveal many curious historic details.

This volume on Chopin makes for compelling reading and is one of the only modern volumes of program notes on the piano music of Chopin I could find.The number of works covered is large and satisfying with enough detail to give you a deep appreciation of the significance, musical structures and impact of each work.In a way, it reads much like program notes in a CD, but covering the entire range of Chopin's life and works.Other reviews below outline the range covered.The volume, supplemented by classic volume like Schonberg's "Lives of the Great Composers" should give a high quality education to the music of Chopin.This book includes a Naxos CD containing performances by Idl Bieret which gives a quality intro to Chopin, but some listeners will surely want to explore the great Chopin performances of pianists like Rubinstein, Horowitz, Kissin, Perahia, Argerich and many others.Bottom line: these "Unlocking the Masters Series" are a great investment to deepening one's appreciation that will not go out of style any time soon.5 stars.

A Small but Exquisite Book with CD of the Music Discussed
These small books from Amadeus concentrate on one composer, one of the masters. In these books a brief biography (25 or so pages) set the tone for a discussion of the man's music. In the case of Chopin, this can be summed up as a case of being considered a musical genius at a very early age, followed by increasing fame as a composer even as he was spending years dying from tuberculosis.

In the sections on the music, an expert author describes what the best consensus of our time is saying about the works. In the case of Chopin these are broken down into the types of works: Etudes and Preludes, Music for Piano and orchestra, The Waltzes, The Nocturnes, The Sonatas, Patriotism and Tragedy: The Polonaises, Individual works, The Impromptus and Scherzos, The Mazurkas, and The Ballades.

A CD included with the book contains fifteen complete compositions of Chopin's works. Having the CD with the book means that the author can refer to the music in his writing knowing that you will have exactly the music he is discussing. This is a great concept that adds imeasurably to the book.

great for students
This is a GREAT book for students studying Chopin!As a recent student myself, I wish I would have had this book for general information on Chopin, his life, and his works.The book is laid out in a simple format, making easy for anyone to use.It goes into the styles of his songs and what made them unique.It also includes a CD which the book tells you what and how to listen for things that are specifically Chopin.This book is a must-have for any student studying or performing the works of this master of the piano. ... Read more

Product Description
Songs include: Nocturne Op 15 No 1; Nocturne Op 15 No 2; Nocturne Op 15 No 3; Nocturne Op 27 No 1; Nocturne Op 27 No 2; Nocturne Op 32 No 1; Nocturne Op 32 No 2; Nocturne Op 37 No 1; Nocturne Op 37 No 2; Nocturne Op 48 No 1; Nocturne Op 48 No 2; Nocturne Op 55 No 1; Nocturne Op 55 No 2; Nocturne Op 62 No 1; Nocturne Op 62 No 2; Nocturne Op 72 No 1; Nocturne Op 9 No 1; Nocturne Op 9 No 2; Nocturne Op 9 No 3. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Couldn't have been more perfect
If you've used other Schirmers print music, there is no difference here. Their books are great quality, accurately published, and clearly printed.The book itself arrived in perfect condition, as I had hoped.

Piano Music
A great purchase and well worth the spent money.Reliable and on time delivery.Thank you. ... Read more

Product Description
The authoritative Breitkopf & Härtel full-score edition in one volume of Piano Concertos No. l in E Minor and No.2 in F Minor.
... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Good size and quality
It is just what I was looking for. The full score of Chopin's piano concerts in a good quality book.

The Chopin Concertos
Whether you have heard these works many times or are new to them, reading and following the score of a masterwork is a way to get yet closer to the piece.

Chopin wrote both concertos when he was 18-20 years of age.His masterly writing for the piano is astounding, and while it's been written and said that he wasn't much of an orchestrator, after reading the score I found this not to be the case.Sure, the piano is the star, spotlight and all, but the orchestra has much to contribute.

There's no finer scores for the money than these by Dover. Recommended!

Indestructible--Frederic Chopin would have approved.
The I. Paderewski edition of Chopin's Piano Concerto's No. 1 and 2 is the best edition I've looked at.The orchestral part is intricately transcribed for the second piano.Like all Dover products, this book andits binding are virtually indestructible...a major plus for the monumentaltask of mastering the greatest concertos of them all (Concerto No.2 in Fminor). A good buy! ... Read more

Product Description
This volume includes 18 famous piano solos by Chopin, as edited and performed by noted concert pianist, Joseph Banowetz. Included are Nocturnes, Preludes, Mazurkas, a Polonaise and several other works. Banowetz provides a lengthy preface introducing students and performers to all aspects of these works. A full performance CD recording is also included.

Joseph Banowetz graduated with a First Prize from the Vienna Akademie für Musik und darstellende Kunst. Banowetz has been a piano recitalist and orchestral soloist on five continents. He was awarded the Liszt Medal by the Hungarian Liszt Society in recognition of his outstanding performances of Liszt and the Romantic literature. ... Read more

Product Description
The lasting popularity of Chopin's music has reached "from salon to slum." He captured and expressed the spirit of the age of Romanticism, its ardour and idealism, its longing and restlessness, its love of spontaneity, with an authority his contemporaries immediately recognized and which successive generations have admired and loved. Much of the Chopin literature in English is biographical, but this book is a critical study of the music itself and of the creative process which is central to the life of any composer. Samson provides a detailed analysis of the style and structure of the music in the light of recent Chopin scholarship on the one hand and recent analytical methods on the other. The early chapters deal mainly with the sources and the characteristic profile of Chopin's musical style, relating his music to a wider context in social and stylistic history. Later chapters look rather at the structure of his music and how it functions, with many examples highlighting the discussion. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

About this Book...
This review is for the newer edition, the 1994 trade paperback from Oxford.

243 pp, illustrations (music) throughout, 13 pp of narrative and bibliographic End Notes, a 4 p Bibliography, an index. ... Read more

Product Description
THIS 40 PAGE ARTICLE WAS EXTRACTED FROM THE BOOK: Little Journeys to the Homes of the Great: Musicians, by Elbert Hubbard. To purchase the entire book, please order ISBN 076610429X. ... Read more

Product Description
Frédéric Chopin - Polish Romantic Composer is the biography of Frederic Chopin, a Polish virtuoso pianist and composer of the Romantic period. Chopin is widely regarded as the greatest Polish composer, and one of the most influential composers for piano in the 19th century. Chopin was born in the village of Zelazowa Wola, in the Duchy of Warsaw, to a Polish mother and French-expatriate father and came to be regarded as a child-prodigy pianist. In November 1830, at the age of twenty, Chopin went abroad. After the subsequent outbreak, and in 1831 the suppression, of the Polish November 1830 Uprising, he never returned to Poland, instead becoming one of the many members of the Polish Great Emigration. In Paris he made a comfortable living as composer and piano teacher, while giving very few public performances, used the French version of his given name, Frédéric, and became a French citizen like his father. Always in frail health, at thirty-nine in Paris he succumbed to pulmonary tuberculosis. Chopin's extant compositions all include the piano, predominantly as solo instrument. Though his music is technically demanding, its style emphasizes nuance and expressive depth rather than technical virtuosity. Chopin invented new musical forms such as the ballade, and introduced major innovations into existing forms such as the piano sonata, waltz, nocturne, étude, impromptu and prelude. Chopin's works are mainstays of Romanticism in 19th-century classical music. His mazurkas and polonaises remain the cornerstone of Polish national classical music. Frédéric Chopin - Polish Romantic Composer is highly recommended for those interested in learning more about this talented pianist and composer. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Poor and simple!
This publication is not much more than a flier with a few simple and basic notes about Frederic Chopin. (Way more information can be found on line at the click of a mouse.) And in large font too, seemingly to take up more space and make this simple flier seem more book like, I was not impressed. I sent this 'book' back for a refund. ... Read more

Product Description
This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishing's Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone! ... Read more

Product Description
Frederic Chopin's scores present special challenges to bibliographers, since most of his works appeared nearly simultaneously in France, Germany or Austria, and England. To establish the sequence of publication and study variations among first and later editions, scholars need to consult and compare as many copies as possible.

This catalogue presents detailed descriptions of the more than 288 items in the University of Chicago Library's collection of early Chopin. Entries include transcriptions of title pages (thirty-one are reproduced in facsimile); notes on pagination and method of printing; main elements of contents; and information on dates and printing or publishing history. ... Read more

Product Description
Fleeing the Russian oppression of his native Warsaw in 1831, Fr_d_ric Chopin stopped in Paris on his way to London, became entranced with the city, and remained there until his death eighteen years later. This engaging book recreates the Paris that Chopin knew, providing vivid details about its people, places, politics, and arts, and their influence in the musician during this fruitful period in his career.Amazon.com Review
This book may be of greater interest to the historian--political, social, and cultural--than to the musician. As its title indicates, it is about France, particularly Paris, more than about Chopin, and presupposes considerable knowledge of French history. Chopin wanders through its pages as a peripatetic presence; there are quotes from his letters commenting on whom he meets, where he plays, what he sees and hears, with references to his friends, pupils, and publishers. The author, a New York dermatologist who has written two previous books about Chopin (including Fryderyk Chopin: Pianist from Warsaw), has prodigiously researched every aspect of French life between the revolutions of 1830 and 1848. He quotes copiously from contemporary writers as diverse as Balzac, Heine, Berlioz, Mrs. Trollop, and Thackeray. A meticulously detailed guided tour through Paris is followed by an account of several generations of the royal family describing their politics, personalities, fortunes, and misfortunes, as well as their habits, love affairs, interrelationships, hangers-on, and adversaries, resulting in a bewildering profusion of names.

Among the most interesting chapters are those on the Polish refugee community--where Chopin had many friends--and those on the artists, writers, musicians, philosophers, and theologians (including numerous crackpots) who created the city's rich cultural life in its concerts, theaters, operas, journals, and famous private salons. The writing is lively, witty, and informative, marred only by occasional infelicities like "his inseparable sister," and the book abounds with excellent illustrations. Unfortunately, it also abounds with anti-Semitic slurs; Atwood misses no chance to point out, in an insulting manner, the Jewish origin of anyone he does not like, from the Rothschilds to Heine, Meyerbeer, and Offenbach. --Edith Eisler ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

A Wealth of Fascinating Information
I found this book at our local library here in Albuquerque, and just had to own a copy.For anyone with an interest in Chopin, this book is an incredible gold mine of facts and details you won't find anywhere else, but Chopin is really only a small part of the wide-ranging subjects covered.Everyone who was anyone in Paris in the 1830s and '40s figures in this book, and people and events are also connected to the wider world of Europe and even America.The major composers, writers, artists, social reformers, politicians, and even doctors are covered.Nearly everything you might want to know about daily life in the first half of the 19th century is also described (will definitely cure you of any longing for the "good old days"....).

William Atwood is a dermatologist, and his descriptions of the medical thinking and practice of the time were especially interesting to me.As a holistic practitioner, I appreciated his discussion of the popularity of homeopathy in the 19th century.Chopin, of course, used homeopathy instead of the brutal methods of the allopathic doctors of his time, and seems to have been far better off than he would have been otherwise.

This book was a great help to me in clarifying Chopin's place in his time and adopted country.I expect to refer to it often.

A Wealth of Fascinating Information
I found this book at our local library here in Albuquerque, and just had to own a copy.For anyone with an interest in Chopin, this book is an incredible gold mine of facts and details you won't find anywhere else, but Chopin is really only a small part of the wide-ranging subjects covered.Everyone who was anyone in Paris in the 1830s and '40s figures in this book, and people and events are also connected to the wider world of Europe and even America.The major composers, writers, artists, social reformers, politicians, and even doctors are covered.Nearly everything you might want to know about daily life in the first half of the 19th century is also described (will definitely cure you of any longing for the "good old days"....).

William Atwood is a dermatologist, and his descriptions of the medical thinking and practice of the time were especially interesting to me.As a holistic practitioner, I appreciated his discussion of the popularity of homeopathy in the 19th century.Chopin, of course, used homeopathy instead of the brutal methods of the allopathic doctors of his time, and seems to have been far better off than he would have been otherwise.

This book was a great help to me in clarifying Chopin's place in his time and adopted country.I expect to refer to it often.

A Wealth of Fascinating Information
I found this book at our local library here in Albuquerque, and just had to own a copy.For anyone with an interest in Chopin, this book is an incredible gold mine of facts and details you won't find anywhere else, but Chopin is really only a small part of the wide-ranging subjects covered.Everyone who was anyone in Paris in the 1830s and '40s figures in this book, and people and events are also connected to the wider world of Europe and even America.The major composers, writers, artists, social reformers, politicians, and even doctors are covered.Nearly everything you might want to know about daily life in the first half of the 19th century is also described (will definitely cure you of any longing for the "good old days"....).

William Atwood is a dermatologist, and his descriptions of the medical thinking and practice of the time were especially interesting to me.As a holistic practitioner, I appreciated his discussion of the popularity of homeopathy in the 19th century.Chopin, of course, used homeopathy instead of the brutal methods of the allopathic doctors of his time, and seems to have been far better off than he would have been otherwise.

This book was a great help to me in clarifying Chopin's place in his time and adopted country.I expect to refer to it often.

An Excellent Book!
What pleasure it is to be able to sit down and write a review of a truly enjoyable book such as this one. As I sit here typing I am listening to some music from one of the greatest composers of the 19th Century, FredericChopin. Fitting no less, as this book provides the reader with a guidethrough the City of Paris as seen and experienced by Chopin during his timethere.

The author, William Atwood, has written two previous books onChopin and in this third book he shows that he has a deep understanding forChopin and his time. Covering the period from 1831 to 1849 Atwood coversall manner of subjects in his discussion of Paris, that beautiful city thatseemed to produce some of the greatest artists in Europe. The authorprovides you with an insight into the social and artistic scene as well assome of the more interesting people, places and activities of Paris.

The book covers not only music and musicians but poets, writers, painters,the opera and theatre, medicine, bohemians, people of the street and howthey all lived and survived during this turbulent period. The story justflows along smoothly and some of the stories are just amazing.

Forinstance when Paris decided to solve the sewage problem that tended to blotthe city streets they changed the roadways contours from concave to convexallowing the swill and sewage to run off the roads into the new drainagesystem. The only problem with this was that not all the drains wereproperly covered and children often fell through the drains into theunderground sewer system!

Another interesting little story in thechapter on medicine informs the reader that during the craze for bleedingas a form of combating illness that swept Paris during the early 1830's itwas estimated that by 1833 Paris was importing 41.5 million leeches ayear!

One of my favourite stories was the tragic tale of AlphonsinePlessis, the lady of the camellias, which can be found in the chapterregarding bohemians and demimondes (I don't want to spoil the story foranyone so you will have to buy the book and read it for yourself).According the Atwood the people of Paris still leave offerings of flowerson her tomb at the cemetery at Montmarte.

For anyone who loves goodhistory, the arts or just a well-written book I am sure they will enjoythis story. In the pages you will find some of the greatest names in theworld of the arts, Frederic Chopin, Eugene Delacroix, George Sand, Honorede Balzac, Hector Berlioz, Alexandre Dumas, Victor Hugo, Franz Liszt, andmany many more. The book also provides numerous black and whiteillustrations showing Paris, its people and its buildings, during thistime. This is a great story, an enjoyable read and an interesting piece ofhistory. ... Read more

Product Description
This is a reproduction of a book published before 1923.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process.We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide.We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

Product Description
This sheet music was newly engraved from early and authoritative editions. ... Read more

Product Description
For piano. ... Read more

Product Description
Chopin's four ballades are widely regarded as being among the most significant extended works for solo piano of the nineteenth century. In an illuminating discussion, Jim Samson combines history and analysis to provide a comprehensive picture of these popular piano works, investigating the social and musical background to Chopin's music, evaluating the many printed editions of the ballads before considering their critical reception and the differing interpretations of well-known nineteenth- and twentieth-century pianists. ... Read more

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This Companion is designed to provide the enquiring music lover with helpful insights into a musical style that recognizes no contradictions between the accessible and the sophisticated, between the popular and the significant. ... Read more

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444pp, 8vo. Biography written by Polish exile Wierzynski, with foreword by pianist Rubinstein. ... Read more

Product Description
Frederic Chopin left his Polish homeland when he was 20 and lived most of his life in Paris, France. His genius as a pianist and composer flowered there with the encouragement and support of female novelist George Sand. He wrote more than 200 works for piano during his life, which was tragically cut short by tuberculosis at age 39. His heart was taken from his body and returned to Poland, where he remains a national hero. ... Read more