Chopin the Singer
Chopin did not sing with his lungs and throat, but he did sing with his fingers. He taught his instrument, the piano, to sing, which, given the way it produces sound, is not an easy task at all.
Chopin's Farewell to Konstancja GładkowskaThe Fryderyk Chopin Institute
Falling in love
When Chopin fell in love for the first time, he fell in love with soprano Konstancja Gładkowska.
Enchanted by her singing, he compared her to an angel.
Although the infatuation did not last long, his admiration of opera singers lasted throughout his life.
Portrait of Henriette SontagThe Fryderyk Chopin Institute
True admiration
Chopin admired the art of singing. After listening to soprano Henriette Sontag, he wrote:
She seems to breathe into the stalls some sort of fragrance of the freshest flowers, and she caresses, delightfully, strokes the audience, but rarely does she move them to tears.
Interior of the Opera Box by John Henry RobinsonThe Fryderyk Chopin Institute
Sincere opera lover
Chopin was a frequent guest at opera houses. His letters are full of inspired descriptions and comparisons of the singers that he could listen to.
He never missed a chance to see the newest opera productions and listen to the virtuoso singers of the time. As a composer, he wanted to emulate the operatic voice in his piano compositions.
Chopin's Death (1888) by Félix-Joseph BarriasThe Fryderyk Chopin Institute
A true love lasts forever
When he was dying in 1849, his last wish was to listen to his favorite arias sung by his friend Delfina Potocka.
The engraving illustrates that event in a highly dramatic manner, depicting Chopin surrounded by people lost in despair.
Making piano sing
Unlike human voice, the piano cannot make the sustained sound gradually louder and softer. The sound has three parts: the beginning, the sustaining portion and the end. The pianist controls only the beginning when the hammer hits the string and the end when the damper stops the string’s vibration.
The singer controls the sound from its beginning to the end with no gap of control in between. This is why making piano sing is not an easy task.
Italian Opera House, Paris by Charles MottramThe Fryderyk Chopin Institute
Learning from the singers
Chopin regarded singers as the best teachers of musicality. He advised his piano students to listen to opera singers as often as they could.
Listening to singers, Chopin learned the art of declamation and breathing. For him, opera scenes were a model of musical drama.
Etiuda es-moll op. 10 nr 6The Fryderyk Chopin Institute
Excersises in melodiousness
Chopin regarded the execution of melody as one of the most important skills that the pianist should master. This is why he included in his two sets of etudes –or exercises– works that demanded from the performer the ability to sing with their fingers.
Nocturne in B flat minor Op. 9 No. 1 Nocturne in B flat minor Op. 9 No. 1The Fryderyk Chopin Institute
Songs of the night
Chopin is perhaps best known as the composer of Nocturnes – piano compositions evocative of the romantic images of the night, the moon, and all the shades of lyrical and dramatic expression associated with them.
Nokturn Es-dur op. 9 nr 2The Fryderyk Chopin Institute
Their characteristic tunefulness and rich and refined ornamentation point to the vocal character of the melodic line, bringing to mind the bel canto Italian operatic style.
Vincenzo Bellini by Émile DesmaisonsThe Fryderyk Chopin Institute
Tribute to Bellini
Italian composer Vincenzo Bellini wrote music that was specifically designed for the bel canto singing style.
Chopin eagerly participated in a common effort of several pianists-composers to commemorate Bellini after his premature death with a set of variations based on the theme from Bellini’s opera The Puritans.
The variation composed by Chopin on that occasion is a perfect example of the piano bel canto that became the most characteristic feature of his music.
Singing with fingers
Listen to the marvelous, long, weaving melody of the Etude in E major interpreted by Dimitry Shishkin. Chopin once remarked that it is the most beautiful melody that he had ever composed. This is a perfect example of what it means to sing with one’s fingers.
Paweł Siechowicz (Chopin Institute)
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