Frédéric Chopin Frédéric François Chopin (born Fryderyk Franciszek Chopin; 1 March 181017 October 1849) was a Polish composer and virtuoso pianist of the Romantic period, who wrote primarily for solo piano. He has maintained worldwide renown as a leadin ...

's ''Rondo à la

Krakowiak The Krakowiak or Cracovienne is a fast, syncopated Polish folk dance in duple time from the region of Kraków and Lesser Poland. The folk outfit worn for the dance has become the national costume of Poland, most notably, the rogatywka peaked hat ...

'' in F major, Op. 14 is a composition for

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

and orchestra. It was written in 1828 and dedicated to Princess

Anna Zofia Sapieha Princess Anna Zofia Sapieha (17 October 1799 – 24 November 1864) was a Polish noblewoman Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy (class), aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below Royal fa ...

, whose mother,

Izabela Czartoryska Elżbieta "Izabela" Dorota Czartoryska (''née'' Flemming; 3 March 1746 – 15 July 1835) was a Polish princess, writer, art collector, and prominent figure in the Polish Enlightenment. She was the wife of Adam Kazimierz Czartoryski and a m ...

, was influential in shaping the burgeoning Romantic aesthetic in Poland, particularly through the Temple of olishMemory in

Puławy Puławy (, also written Pulawy) is a city in eastern Poland, in Lesser Poland's Lublin Voivodeship, at the confluence of the Vistula and Kurówka Rivers. Puławy is the capital of Puławy County. The city's 2019 population was estimated at 47,417 ...

. The ''Rondo à la Krakowiak'' was written in Warsaw in 1828 under the guidance of

Józef Elsner Józef Antoni Franciszek Elsner (sometimes ''Józef Ksawery Elsner''; baptismal name, ''Joseph Anton Franz Elsner''; 1 June 176918 April 1854) was a composer, music teacher, and music theoretician, active mainly in Warsaw. He was one of the firs ...

. It has received a number of recordings but still remains less known than most of Chopin's other works.

Structure

The piece begins with a soft, pentatonic section in 3/4 time, which introduces the lively syncopated krakowiak in its typical 2/4 meter. Chopin quotes

Niccolò Paganini Niccolò (or Nicolò) Paganini (; 27 October 178227 May 1840) was an Italian violinist and composer. He was the most celebrated violin virtuoso of his time, and left his mark as one of the pillars of modern violin technique. His 24 Caprices f ...

's Caprice No. 24 during this work, and includes a variation on the quotation.

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rondo a la Krakowiak (Chopin) Concertante works by Frédéric Chopin 1828 compositions Compositions in F major Music with dedications