chopin

Frédéric François Chopin was born in Zelazowa Wola, near Warsaw. Polish composer and pianist of the romantic era, regarded by some as the greatest of all composers of music for the piano. His father was French and his mother was Polish. He began to study the piano at the age of four, and he played at a private concert in Warsaw when he was eight years old. Later he studied harmony and counterpoint at the Warsaw Conservatory. Chopin was also advanced as a composer: His first published composition is dated 1817. He gave his first concerts as a piano virtuoso in 1829 in Vienna, where he lived for the next two years. After 1831, except for brief absences, Chopin lived in Paris, where he became noted as a pianist, teacher, and composer. His musical activity was limited to giving several concerts in 1848 in France, Scotland, and England. Chopin rarely gave public concerts; his performing was generally confined to the homes of wealthy aristocrats and businessmen. Public awareness of Chopin...