Chopin's Heart: The Quest to Identify the Mysterious Illness of the World's Most Beloved Composer

by Steven J. Lagerberg

Since Frédéric Chopin's untimely death at the age of thirty-nine, all of his numerous biographers have concluded he suffered from the ravages of tuberculosis. This ingrained belief has become so much a part of the enduring legend of his fascinating life that the bold new claim for cystic fibrosis being responsible for his demise is unsettling news for the millions deeply touched by his beautiful music. Dr. Lagerberg takes an in-depth look at the current controversy over whether to proceed with the scientific analysis of the Polish composer's preserved heart and investigates the many historical, scientific, and ethical issues involved. Chopin's works changed the course of music, yet how many know that a century after his death his heart had been stolen by a Nazi chaplain and used as a German propaganda tool to sway the course of human history? Could the investigation of this composer's heart now be used to advance our scientific knowledge of disease? Discover how one man's heart continues to astonish the diverse worlds of music, history, and science. Explore the impact his illness had on his compositional style and examine the many intimate details of his engrossing life while taking a musical trip through the unold story of "Chopin's Heart."

Genres: History, Biography

196 pages, Paperback

First published March 4, 2011

Reviews

[Lisa]

Quite possibly the worst book I've ever read in relation to music history, and that includes the college course book in the class I nearly failed. The author writes like my 3 year old talks. He mentions something, makes a left turn and 10 pages mentions the same thing again.
The book is horribly planned and points are never made or concluded.

If I didn't love the Chopin story so much, I would have never finished reading this.