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 Piano solo, solo piano. He has maintained worldwide renown ...

's compositions for

piano A piano is a keyboard instrument that produces sound when its keys are depressed, activating an Action (music), action mechanism where hammers strike String (music), strings. Modern pianos have a row of 88 black and white keys, tuned to a c ...

and

orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * String instruments, such as the violin, viola, cello, ...

originated from the late 1820s to the early 1830s, and comprise three

concert piece A concert piece (; , also ) is a musical composition, in most cases in one movement, intended for performance in a concert. Usually it is written for one or more virtuoso instrumental soloists and orchestral or piano accompaniment.Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

, two

piano concerto A piano concerto, a type of concerto, is a solo composition in the classical music genre which is composed for piano accompanied by an orchestra or other large ensemble. Piano concertos are typically virtuosic showpieces which require an advance ...

s, completed and premièred between finishing his studies (mid 1829) and leaving Poland (late 1830), and later drafts, resulting in two more published works.Chopin; music analysis
/ref> Among these, and the other works in the brilliant style which Chopin composed in this period, the concertos are the most accomplished ones.

Context

Together with a number of

rondo The rondo or rondeau is a musical form that contains a principal theme (music), theme (sometimes called the "refrain") which alternates with one or more contrasting themes (generally called "episodes", but also referred to as "digressions" or "c ...

s ( Opp. 1, 5, 16 and 73), the ''Polonaise brillante'' (Op. 3) and the Variations on "Der Schweizerbub", Chopin's compositions for piano and orchestra belong to a group of compositions in brilliant style, no longer confined by the tenets of the Classical period, which were written for the concert stage in the late 1820s to early 1830s. Other compositions of the same period, such as the Sonata (Op. 4) and the Trio (Op. 8), kept closer to a classical approach, or had a more limited scope, for example the Nocturnes (Op. 9), and were rather intended for private performance. The circumstances in which Chopin composed and premièred his works for piano and orchestra before leaving Poland in late 1830 are to a large extent documented in his letters to Tytus Woyciechowski.

Student years and first visit to Vienna

In September 1828, while a student of

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

at Warsaw's Central School of Music, Chopin visited

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

. Chopin graduated in July 1829.Warsaw – youth
at

Fryderyk Chopin Institute The Fryderyk Chopin Institute () is a Polish organization dedicated to researching and promoting the life and works of Polish composer Frédéric Chopin. It was created in 2001 as the result of legislation in the Polish Parliament and is under d ...

website. The next month, he visited

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

, where he successfully presented the Variations on "Là ci darem la mano" and the '' Rondo à la Krakowiak'' in concert.

Piano concertos

Chopin premièred his

F minor F minor is a minor scale based on F, consisting of the pitches F, G, A, B, C, D, and E. Its key signature consists of four flats. Its relative major is A-flat major and its parallel major is F major. Its enharmonic equivalent, E-sharp ...

and

E minor E minor is a minor scale based on E, consisting of the pitches E, F, G, A, B, C, and D. Its key signature has one sharp, on the F. Its relative major is G major and its parallel major is E major. The E natural minor scale is: Change ...

piano concertos in Warsaw in 1830.

Leaving Poland

Chopin left Poland on 2 November 1830, travelling to Vienna.

Compositions

Chronologically: * Variations on "Là ci darem la mano" in B major (1827), Op. 2. * '' Fantasy on Polish Airs'', in A major (1828), Op. 13. * '' Rondo à la Krakowiak'', in F major (1828), Op. 14. * Piano Concerto No. 2 in F minor (1829–1830), Op. 21. * Piano Concerto No. 1 in E minor (1830), Op. 11. * ''Grande polonaise brillante'' (1830–1831), in 1834 expanded with an introductory ''Andante spianato'' for solo piano, and a fanfare-like transition to the earlier composition, together published as Op. 22. * Drafts for more concertos, ultimately resulting in the '' Allegro de Concert'' for solo piano (1832–41), Op. 46.

Reception

Contemporary press reported on Chopin's concert performances, in

and

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

, of his works for piano and orchestra.

References

Sources

*
Volume I

Volume II
*

External links

at Klassika website. * Compositions for piano and orchestra {{Classical-composition-stub