Frederic Chopin - Musical Genius

A world-renowned composer, great pianist, and a romantic marked by the
stigma of disease ? this is Chopin as we know him. Here the author, an
eminent critic and theorist of music, Bogusław Kaczyński, presents
Chopin in a different light. The unique characteristics of his style
spin a warm and colourful tale of Chopin's family life, his creative
path and the authority figures that played an important role in the life
of the composer. It shows both Chopin in the company of his closest
friends and that of other great artists of the era; in the comfort of
his home and in the salons of the European cultural elite. He sketches
the portrait of a sensitive man with alternating moods, experiencing
stormy passions, and yet completely devoted to his creative work and
teaching. The author's relaxed tale, enriched with extensive excerpts
from Chopin's correspondences and profiles of contemporary artists,
allow us to see the world through his eyes, get closer to the times in
which he lived, and to understand the dilemmas of an immigrant torn
between a love for their homeland and their own artistic vocation.

The book contains over 400 illustrations, reproductions of musical works
and paintings, reprints of letters and press clippings. Particular
attention should be given to the unique copies of documents in the book.
Caricatures and drawings by Chopin demonstrating artistic talent as
well as a tendency for satire.
Witty and often ironic letters, showing a distant and critical
perception of reality.
Manuscripts of works bearing notes, crossing out and several
revisions, showing the intricacies of the creative work.
Historical documents which shed new light on controversial facts and
biographies of the composer.
Tickets from travels, posters, and postcards bring us closer to
cultural atmosphere of the era.

• author: Bogusław Kaczyński