“L’Adieu”

Today as usual I listened to Chopin like I do every single day. And it never gets boring. Never. In that, what, 8 minutes of listening, I feel so entranced by the expressive notes and sometimes it makes me so sad listening to it, as if it was truly there. And if I listen to Chopin on the walk to the station in the morning I feel so joyous and light (I'd be listening to something like his Etudes) and the world just seems better.

So what about the story behind the music? For instance, in Chopin's composition Waltz in A-flat, Op. 69, No. 1 “L’Adieu", it is about Chopin's love, Marie. In short, he loved her much but he was never really in good health. Marie and Chopin contacted each other through letters and the few times they meet during his travels to give concerts and lessons. During a holiday trip, Chopin proposed to her and she accepted but Marie's family wanted Chopin to prove himself able to take care of Marie before their marriage would be approved.

However, due to Chopin's frail health through the winter, Marie's family rejected Chopin, and asked Marie to write a letter of rejection to him. When Chopin returned to Paris, he received this letter and wrapped up the bundle of paperwork and labelled it "My Sorrow".

(paraphrased from: chopinproject.com)

This is the song he created and it's called 'L'Adieu' which means farewell. You can hear it by opening this link below, scrolling a bit until you see a music player. Just click on the play button.

http://chopinproject.com/2008/03/19/waltz-in-a-flat-op-69-no-1-ladieu/


Try to really get into the feel of the music. It's a sad song... I was almost into tears. So beautiful.


And now this is another song I recently found. It is actually the last Nocturne piece by Chopin before he died. Let me quote this from chopinproject.com:

Chopin Project Artistic Director Arthur
Greene calls Chopin’s last nocturne a curious, but moving, work:

“It is rarely played. Its absolute simplicity of texture may lead
performers to experiment with ornamentation, but I believe that it is an
expression of Chopin’s new direction, in the difficult few years at the end of
his life, towards a directness and purity of expression. The
Polonaise-Fantasy has somewhat the same mood, although it is much more
elaborate. The little nocturne is a tragic whisper.”

To listen, click this link http://chopinproject.com/2008/08/27/nocturne-in-c-minor-kk-1233-5-1847-chopins-last-nocturne/

Might be hard for some people to like listening to classical music. But yeah for me it's just ... whew. Every song's a experience.

Labels: chopin, classical music, l'adieu, Nocturne, waltz