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Discover the biography of Frédéric Chopin, a man with a contradictory personality who combined two great virtues: he was an excellent composer and, at the same time, a sublime interpreter. It was mainly this last characteristic that led him to be considered a piano poet.
There were basically two issues that captured his sensibility: his love for his homeland and the imprint women left on his life. The first aspect so marked his work and his thinking that, on his death, an autopsy was performed to remove his heart and bury him in Poland.
“And here I am, condemned to inaction! Sometimes I can’t even sigh and, overcome by pain, I unload my despair on the piano”.
-Frédéric Chopin-
As far as women are concerned, Chopin has been unlucky for most of his life. Perhaps this was due to his way of being, as he was extremely prudish with moral standards and also very shy in love, despite loving social life.
Although he lived a novel romance with the writer George Sand, throughout his life he felt more the weight of lack of love than the happiness of reciprocated love.
Without a doubt, Chopin embodies the values of Romanticism, that movement that exalts self-consciousness, national values and the homeland. A movement that took place in all the arts, from literature to music. All of them were imbued with the values of freedom, subjectivism and originality.
The first years of Frédéric Chopin’s biography
Frédéric Chopin’s biography began with his birth in a small town called Żelazowa Wola in 1810, in present-day Poland, although at the time he belonged to the Duchy of Greater Warsaw. It is not clear what date he was born, but two possibilities are February 22nd and March 1st.
His father, Mikolaj Chopin, was a literature professor of French descent. His mother, Tekla Justyna Krzyżanowska, had relations with the nobility but did not have many resources.
Frederic was the second of four children and the only man. The family moved in a strong cultural environment : literary and cultural events were among their main hobbies. In the midst of such an artistic environment, it is not surprising that Chopin quickly became interested in music.
It is said that, during one of these events, little Frédéric could not contain his tears when he heard a performance on the piano. As a result, his parents identified his incredible musical sensitivity.
He started taking piano lessons from an early age; at the age of ten, Frédéric Chopin had already written two works, a Polish one and a military march. One of his teachers was Elsner, the director of the Warsaw Conservatory, who spoke of him as a genius. Under his guidance, he began to show the great talent that inhabited him.
The expansion of your talent
Frédéric Chopin was very passionate about popular music in his country. This was the substrate from which he started to write some of his most beautiful compositions. Perhaps for this reason, since the beginning of his work, we have observed a clear nationalist focus, something that is not strange in the authors of Romanticism.
At the age of fifteen, he made his first public appearances at two benefit concerts that were attended by the czar of Russia. From that moment on, his admiration for court life, social gatherings and good conversations began.
At 18, he traveled to Berlin, and at 19 he performed at the Imperial Theater in Vienna. This city was the “Mecca” of music at that time. At first, Chopin did not arouse the enthusiasm of the Austrians, who were used to more visceral and forceful composers. However, these trips allowed him to start friendships that were fundamental to his career.
During the following years, he created several of his most famous works. His big dream was to travel to Paris, and he realized it at the age of 21. There, he found the lifestyle he had always wanted. However, he did not know that he would never return to his beloved homeland.
A special sensitivity
From the letters he kept with close friends, we know that Frédéric Chopin was unhappy in love. First, he fell in love with a woman to whom he didn’t have the courage to confess his feelings; later, by another with whom he started a love relationship.
However, her family separated them because Chopin contracted tuberculosis. Interestingly, this woman married another man with whom she had a child, but both her husband and child died of tuberculosis.
Chopin’s greatest love was the writer George Sand, whose real name was Aurora Dupin. She was older than he was, divorced and had two children. She lived a life of uncharacteristic freedom, and despite his moral scruples, Chopin fell madly in love with her. The relationship lasted ten years and was very stormy, but also inspiring for the musician.
After separation from George Sand, Chopin plunged into a deep depression. His health, which had always been very fragile, began to deteriorate rapidly. He died when he was just 39 years old, on October 17, 1849. Frédéric Chopin is considered the greatest exponent of musical Romanticism. An author whose legacy touches our soul, embraces culture and nationalism and caresses our feelings.
