Chopin wrote during what is now called the Romantic Period in music, in which the general trend was to explore human passions in freer structures as opposed to the more rational, extroverted structures of the Classical Period. read more
After the revolutionary activities around 1830, when the Polish tried to assert their independence, the Russian Empire crushed rebellion and many Polish nationalists fled, often to Paris, where Chopin could speak his mother tongue and lament the sad fate of his nation. read more
Frédéric Chopin (1810 - 1849) is not always included in the same breath with titans like Bach, Mozart, or Beethoven, largely because Chopin composed primarily smaller-scale pieces for a single instrument, his native piano. read more
Chopin's works from his first years in Paris include the Nocturnes of Opp. 9 and 15 (1830-32), the 12 Etudes, Op. 25 (1835-37), dedicated to Liszt's mistress, the Comtesse Marie d'Agoult, the Scherzo in B-flat minor, Op. 31 (1837), the Sonata in B-flat minor, Op. 35 (1837), and the G minor Ballade, Op. 23. read more