Description
Introduction
When composing the final mazurka, Frédéric Chopin (1810-1849) most likely put his last notes on paper. At the age of 16, 33 years earlier, he had composed the first one. Even prior to this, he already showed an interest in Polish folk music, hearing it directly from the farmers. We can read this in the Szafarnia Courier, a newspaper that the young Chopin and his little sister Emilia edited when on vacation in the countryside. Sketches for the mazurka opus 7.4 date from this period.
Chopin’s lifelong fascination with the mazurka is equally confirmed by the sheer number of them: he wrote no less than 57! And this is even without the many variants that exist on a certain number of these mazurkas.
The mazurka
The mazurka is a Polish folk dance originating from the Mazovian plains around Warsaw. The inhabitants are called Mazurs, and their dances mazurkas. We generally distinguish three types: the mazur, the obertas or oberek, and the kujawiak from the bordering district of Kuyavia.
The mazur is a lively dance with strong, irregular accents, often on the second or third beat. Generally speaking, the obertas is a bit faster than the mazur, and its character is usually cheerful. Unlike the mazur, the obertas does have regular accents. Finally, the kujawiak is a calmer dance, often melancholic in character and in terms of tempo the slowest of the three dances.
Customarily, the mazurka dance is performed by four, eight, or 12 couples, however, the number of couples can be infinite. While dancing, the strong musical accents are indicated by stamping on the ground.
The earliest mazurkas can be found in the 16th century and were accompanied by the duda, Polish bagpipes, which could produce a singular (the tonic) or double tone (the tonic and the dominant). In the 17th century, the dance spread throughout Poland and steadily gained ground abroad as well: first in Europe, and later the dance even made its way to the United States via London. In Russia, the dance touched both the elite and peasant classes.
During the Romantic era, the mazurka prospered mostly in Paris, not in the least as a result of Chopin’s contribution. Although he used to write mazurkas for his friends to dance on during his youth, he later transformed them into a sensitive art form of the highest order. In the Parisian salons, those who were present could not get enough. With the later opus numbers, we can observe technics, like intense chromatics, that do not fit the “original mazurka.” Additionally, Chopin’s mazurkas sometimes develop into an entirely different form. For example, there are various mazurkas that as a result of their narrating character almost develop into ballades.
The life of Chopin
Given the fact that Chopin wrote mazurkas during his entire career, it is interesting to provide a global biographical overview of him. His love for Poland, his affinity with the aristocracy, his passion for teaching, and his deteriorating health are all aspects that have influenced and shaped his music, including his mazurkas.
Poland and the Parisian salons
Although Chopin, at a certain point in his life, was practically regarded as the national composer of the Poles, it is remarkable to note that his roots can be traced to France, especially given the fact that he accidentally returned to this country and lived there until his death.
Chopin’s father Nicolas was a Frenchman. Born in the Vosges region, he left for Poland in 1787 at the age of 16. The reason for his departure is unknown, however, his motivation for not returning can be found in the one surviving letter that he wrote to his family (1790). Nicolas had joined Jan Adam Weydlich, the Polish estate manager of count Michal Pac in Marainville, on his travels to Poland and did not return to France to avoid conscription in the revolutionary army.
Once in Poland, Nicholas broke with his French past and let himself be adopted by his new fatherland. Not only did he learn the Polish language, but he also developed strong patriotic feelings that he consequently passed on to his children. Although Chopin used the French version of his name “Frédéric,” he too kept feeling strongly connected to Poland.
After several short careers as a clerk and a captain in the Polish military, Nicolas found his true calling to be teaching. As a private teacher, he was employed by several aristocratic families, like the Skarbeks, where he would meet his future wife Tekla-Justyna Krzyzanowska. Together they had four children: Ludwika, Fryderyk, Isabella, and Emilia.
In 1810, the family moved to a large mansion in Warsaw, where Nicolas had gotten a job as a French teacher at the new secondary school. In their home, they provided shelter to several boarders, including Julian Fontana who would become a friend for life and to whom we own the fact that mazurkas opus 67 and opus 68 have been published.
In every way, Chopin enjoyed an excellent upbringing, something that would benefit him constantly during his entire life. At a young age, it was clear that he possessed exceptional musical talent. Although he was tutored by composer, violinist, and pianist Adalbert Ziwny, as a pianist Chopin was mostly autodidact. He loved to improvise and was rapidly noticed in the aristocratic salons, where he became a welcome guest. From a young age onward, he, thus, acquainted himself with the manners and etiquette that characterized the upper classes.
After Chopin’s studies at the Warsaw conservatory, his father Nicolas applied for a scholarship for his son to travel. In spite of a cold rejection, Chopin still traveled to Vienna, where he was enthusiastically received as a pianist and composer. Journeys to Germany and Italy followed. Just like in Poland, people were impressed by the way Chopin integrated Polish music into his compositions.
In 1830, Chopin left for Vienna a second time, however, the successes he had experienced two years earlier stayed off. Nevertheless, he remained in Vienna until July 1831. He gained new experiences in the city and composed, among other things, mazurkas opus 6 and opus 7.
As a result of political turmoil in Italy, he aborted his travel plans to the country. Instead, he would travel to London via Paris. On the way to Paris, in Stuttgart, he was shocked to find out that Warsaw had just been occupied by Russian forces. A week later, in September 1831, he arrived in the French capital. He would not go to London anymore: he would stay in Paris.
Upon arrival in vibrant Paris, which was completely under the spell of Romanticism, Chopin initially felt uneasy. However, he quickly noticed that he could easily get around as a result of his sophisticated manners. He swiftly made some new friends and much to their amusement was capable of presenting highly accurate caricatures as a result of his outspoken mimicry.
It did not take the Parisians long to notice that Chopin was a musical innovator. This was not only appreciated in Paris but equally catapulted Chopin immediately to the highest regions of the musical world. He befriended composers who admired him and those were not the least: Berlioz, Liszt, Bellini, and Meyerbeer. When the Rothschilds presented themselves as Chopin’s benefactors, this changed his life forever. He was admitted to the highest social circles and was able to live off teaching the aristocracy. He kept life as a concert pianist, which, according to him, did not make him happy, to a minimum. Teaching was in his blood and just like his father had taught the aristocratic children in Poland, Chopin was teaching piano among the highest Parisian circles.
As a pianist, his star was rising as well. The poet Heinrich Heine wrote that congratulations were in order given that Chopin rose above the struggling virtuosos, who bored and annoyed the public with their antics.
George Sand
Chopin’s early Parisian works were still characterized by the virtuousness that the Parisians were accustomed to. However, his less virtuous works, like the nocturnes or his mazurkas, were later equally enthusiastically received. It did not take long before important musicians put them on their programs.
In the following years, Chopin’s deteriorating health became an increasing point of interest. In 1836, he was so ill that Warsaw newspapers mistakenly printed his obituary.
In 1837, Chopin visited England after a failed relationship with the Polish Maria Wodzinski. Upon his return to Paris, he would, however, enter the longest romantic relationship of his life with the female author George Sand. Although Chopin’s first impression of her was rather negative, they became lovers from 1838 onward. Their famous stay in Mallorca was a disaster as Chopin became ill with tuberculosis. Pressured by the local population, he and Sand found refuge in the Valldemosa monastery. The Preludes, opus 28, which he completed there, will always be connected to the island.
When Chopin had recovered slightly, he departed for the Spanish mainland and later returned to Nohant where Sand resided. Together they would spend practically every summer here, until 1846.
Chopin composed increasingly less. In his beautiful Parisian apartment, he was unable to force himself to write and thus he mostly wrote during the summers in Nohant. Besides, he detested the process of copying the scores for the various publishers he worked with. After his good friend and copier Julian Fontana had left for the United States in 1841, the number of published works decreased even further. Given Chopin’s lessons to his aristocratic pupils and the accompanying high salary, the need to publish many compositions had equally disappeared.
Chopin’s relationship with George Sand did not stand and after their breakup, Chopin’s health declined further rapidly. He gave his final performance in Paris on February 16, 1848, a week before the breakout of the February Revolution. Teaching became impossible and Chopin accepted the offer of an upper-class Scottish student of his, Jane Stirling, to come to England. Once again, he was received with open arms by the higher classes. He gave several salon concerts in the presence of, amongst others, British Queen Victoria.
Chopin remained very ill and became increasingly exhausted. To earn some much-needed money, he still performed in Manchester, Glasgow, and Edinburgh, however, his level was unrecognizable when compared to his earlier career.
In November, he returned to Paris, where he died in 1849, surrounded by his sister Ludwika and several Polish friends. Although his rare concerts were always given for smaller, selected audiences, his funeral was attended by 3000 people.
Uncertainty
Chopin’s life is characterized by mysteries and uncertainties from the very first day: when was he born? The traditional date was set on March 1, 1809, however, Chopin himself stated that this date was incorrect: he was supposedly born on March 1, 1810. Finding his baptism records 50 years later did not make things any clearer. These indicated that he was born on February 22, 1810, with a baptism on April 23. It is now assumed that a mistake must have been made in the records of exactly one week. This would, consequently, make March 1, 1810, the correct date of birth after all.
In the process of logically marking and numbering the mazurkas, confusion arises once again. This is most likely to blame on the fact that Chopin worked with multiple editors. Most of his mazurkas were published in three countries, namely France, England, and Germany. In the various editions, we can find multiple differences, not only in terms of notes and interpunction but also when it comes to numbering the mazurkas. Whether this is caused by the editor or the copier (music sheets had to be copied by hand at the time) is hard to say.
It is remarkable to notice that contemporary editors have numbered the mazurkas without opus numbers differently, however, editors during Chopin’s life have also published the mazurkas with opus numbers in different ways. The trouble begins with opus 6 and opus 7. Both opus numbers initially contained four mazurkas, the mazurka in C was added later. In the French edition, it was added to opus 6, while the German editor published it in opus 7. This last choice is adhered to today, however, we can only guess what Chopin’s original intentions were.
There are also opus numbers where the internal order of the mazurkas was reversed. For example, there is some disagreement concerning the order of opus 24. Following the first German edition, the opus number, in various publications, starts with the mazurka in C-sharp, followed by the mazurkas in E, B, and A-flat. In this case, we have chosen to adhere to the original order (E, B, A-flat, and C-sharp), which can be traced back to Chopin’s correspondence.
We also noticed differences regarding the spelling of names and titles. For example, the mazurka À son ami Émile Gaillard is also known as Emil Gaillard or A Emile Guillard and in the Urtext edition of Jan Ekier, the mazurka even gets an opus number, namely 42A. The same edition calls La France Musicale / Notre Temps opus 42B, while both mazurkas do not have opus numbers in other editions.
Lastly, there are various systems of cataloging the mazurkas without opus numbers. We find the abbreviations WN (Jan Ekier), Dbop (Jan Ekier), B (Maurice J.E. Brown), and KK (Krystyna Kobylanska) in various editions. We have decided to limit ourselves to presenting the keys of the mazurkas.
Deciding upon a right and at the same time, clear order of the mazurkas is, as a result of all these differences and uncertainties, a sheer impossible task. First of all, this album contains all the works with an official opus number, subsequently followed by the two mazurkas that were published in magazines during Chopin’s lifetime. As far as we could find, these mazurkas never got an opus number. Finally, it presents all the other mazurkas without an opus number. The album does not contain any alternative versions of various mazurkas that may be traceable in the different editions.
Maurice Lammerts van Bueren
Translation by Jelle Lammerts van Bueren
An overview of the 57 mazurkas: some facts and curiosities
MAZURKAS WITH OPUS NUMBER
Mazurkas, opus 6
Written in 1830 in Vienna, publication in 1832. Some editions give the first two mazurkas tempo markings, which are not by Chopin. Dedicated to countess Pauline Plater.
Opus 6.1 in F-sharp minor
No tempo marking
Opus 6.2 in C-sharp minor
No tempo marking
Chopin writes sotto voce at the top of the score.
Opus 6.3 in E major
Vivace
Bourdon with clear accents.
Opus 6.4 in E-flat minor
Presto ma non troppo
Probably the most fugitive mazurka in the entire collection.
Mazurkas, opus 7
Written between 1830 and 1831 in Vienna, publication in 1832. Dedicated to Johns de la Nouvelle Orléans.
Opus 7.1 in B-flat major
Vivace
Opus 7.2 in A minor
Vivo ma non troppo
Opus 7.3 in F minor
No tempo marking
Opus 7.4 in A-flat major
Presto ma non troppo
Opus 7.5 in C major
No tempo marking
Mazurkas, opus 17
Written in 1832 and 1833, publication by Pleyel in 1833. Dedicated to Chopin’s friend Lina Freppa, singing teacher.
Opus 17.1 in B-flat major
Vivo e risoluto
Opus 17.2 in E minor
Lento ma non troppo
Opus 17.3 in A-flat major
Legato assai
Opus 17.4 in A minor
Lento ma non troppo
Mazurkas, opus 24
Written between 1834 and 1835. Publication in Leipzig, London, and Paris in 1836. Dedicated to the count of Perthuis.
Opus 24.1 in G minor
Lento
Opus 24.2 in C major
Allegro non troppo
Opus 24.3 in A-flat major
Moderato
Opus 24.2 in B-flat minor
Moderato
Mazurkas, opus 30
Written between 1836 and 1837. First publication in 1837 in London, then in Leipzig, and in 1838 in Paris. Dedicated to the princess of Würtemberg.
Opus 30.1 in C minor
Allegretto non tanto
Opus 30.2 in B minor
Vivace
Opus 30.3 in D-flat major
Allegro non troppo
Opus 30.4 in C-sharp minor
Allegretto
Mazurkas, opus 33
Written in 1837 and 1838, publication in 1838 and dedicated to countess Rose Mostowska.
Opus 33.1 in G-sharp minor
Mesto
Opus 33.2 in D major
Vivace
Opus 33.3 in C major
Semplice
Opus 33.4 in B minor
No tempo marking
Mazurkas, opus 41
Written in 1838 (opus 41.3) and 1839 at Mallorca (opus 41.1) and in Paris/Nohant. Dedicated to the Polish writer Etienne Witwicki, Chopin’s friend, who emigrated to France as well. Publication in Leipzig, London, and Paris in 1839.
Opus 41.1 in E minor
Andantino
Opus 41.2 in B major
Animato
Opus 41.3 in A-flat major
Allegretto
Opus 41.4 in C-sharp minor
Maestoso
Mazurkas, opus 50
Dedicated to Léon Szmitkowski, publication in 1842.
Opus 50.1 in G major
Vivace
Opus 50.2 in A-flat major
Allegretto
Opus 50.3 in C-sharp minor
Moderato
Mazurkas, opus 56
Dedicated to Chopin’s pupil Catherine Maberly, publication in 1844 in Paris.
Opus 56.1 in B major
Allegro non tanto
Opus 56.2 in C major
Vivace
Opus 56.3 in C minor
Moderato
Mazurkas, opus 59
Publication in 1845 in London and in 1846 in Paris at Schlesinger. No dedication.
Opus 59.1 in A minor
Moderato
Opus 59.2 in A-flat major
Allegretto
Opus 59.3 in F-sharp minor
Vivace
Mazurkas, opus 63
Written in 1846, publication in 1847. Dedicated to countess Laure Czosnowska.
Opus 63.1 in B major
Vivace
Opus 63.2 in F minor
Lento
Opus 63.3 in C-sharp minor
Allegretto
Mazurkas, opus posthumous 67 and opus posthumous 68
After Chopin’s dead Julian Fontana published eight mazurkas posthumously in 1855.
Opus posth. 67.1 in G major
(Vivace)
Written in 1835, dedicated to Mlle Mlokosiewicz.
Opus posth. 67.2 in G minor
(Cantabile)
Written in 1848 or 1849.
Opus posth. 67.3 in C major
(Allegretto)
Written in 1835, dedicated to Mme Hoffmann.
Opus posth. 67.4 in A minor
Allegretto
Written in 1846, Chopin wrote three different versions.
Opus posth. 68.1 in C major
(Vivace)
Written in 1829.
Opus posth. 68.2 in A minor
(Lento)
Written in 1827.
Opus posth. 68.3 in F major
(Allegro ma non troppo)
Written in 1830.
Opus posth. 68.4 in F minor – reconstructed by Jan Ekier
Probably written between May and July 1849, reconstruction by Jan Ekier published in 1965.
MAZURKAS WITHOUT OPUS NUMBER
‘À son ami Émile Gaillard’ in A minor
Published in 1841 in Paris at Chabal and in L’Album des Pianistes polonais by Schlesinger in the same year. Written around 1840, dedicated to his friend Émile Gaillard.
‘La France Musicale / Notre Temps’ in A minor
Written in the summer of 1840, published in July 1841 in La France musicale.
Mazurka in B-flat major
Written in 1826.
Mazurka in G major
Written in 1826.
Mazurka in B-flat major.
Written in 1832 and dedicated to Mlle Alexandrine Wolowska.
Mazurka in A-flat major
Written in 1834.
Mazurka in C major
Written in 1833.
Mazurka in D major
Written in 1832.
