Excerpt from Chopin Waltzes for the Piano
The years are marching toward the three-quarter of a century mark since the Polish composer, fr d ric-frangois Chopin, died at Paris in 1849. As immortality goes nowadays his is a considerable one for a pianoforte composer. Music is an evanescent art. The idol of yesterday is stale to day. Notwithstanding the enormous repertoire of the keyboard, more than half is become purely academic: music taught, played by students. The professional virtuoso is more limited in his selections for public performance than we like to believe: Bach to Liszt, with a Beethoven sonata as pi ce de r sistance; and Chopin - always Chopin, whether his poetry is apprehended by the pianist or not; Chopin is the inevitable name that figures at every successful recital. All-chopin programmes fill concert halls. Thanks to this the old Chopin is gone for most of us. It is not that he is played too often, but that he is badly, sadly played. Nevertheless, he holds his own, and not Debussy nor the young Russians have shaken his hold on the affections of concert-goers. The reason is not far to seek: He is the greatest of all composers for his instrument, and latterly he has had assigned to him even a more commanding position in the history of art. This thesis I have maintained for decades, and not so long ago I read the mature judgment of Dr. Friedrich Niecks, formerly Reid Professor at the Edinburgh University and author of the most complete biography of Chopin, that he believed Chopin to be one of the three most power ful factors in the development of nineteenth century music; the other two being, of course, Beethoven and Wagner. Thisis rather startling for those who see in the Pole only a graceful, withal, morbid talent; but it is a just estimate and a contention that may be upheld by cogent argument.
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