Life and Works: Frédéric Chopin

by Jeremy Siepmann, Anton Lesser

Frédéric Chopin is the pianist-composer par excellence. Regarded as one of the most mesmerising performers of his day, he lives on in his music – his waltzes, mazurkas, études, preludes, nocturnes, three piano sonatas, two piano concertos and much more. Here, his life, from his birth in Poland, his famous affair with the French writer George Sand, to his death at the age of thirty-nine in Paris, is told with his music featuring prominently. We think of Chopin as a ‘frail, sheltered genius’ but this forthright portrait demonstrates he was far more boisterous than that. Cheerful as a youth, it was only later that the glare of publicity, the change from local to national celebrity, made Chopin guard his privacy more carefully. This is clearly presented in Jeremy Siepmann’s sympathetic account of the life of one of the key figures in Romantic music, and emphasised in the very personal portrayal by the English classical actor Anton Lesser. The accompanying booklet is packed with extra information about Chopin’s life and background.

Genres: Music, Nonfiction, Biography, Audiobook, History, Biography Memoir

4 pages, Audio CD

First published May 1, 2001

About the author

Jeremy Siepmann (16 January 1942 – 6 April 2016), born in America and living in Britain for most of his career, was a broadcaster and writer on music.

Reviews

[Paul Weiss · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yet another success in a superb series

Jeremy Siepmann and Naxos Records have created a truly winning recipe with their LIFE AND WORKS series. The combination of an audio book with music is an extraordinarily powerful and compelling way of bringing the biography of a classical musician to life and, at the same time, making the music accessible to a wide audience who may never have had the privilege of listening to some of the greatest music ever written.

Frederic Chopin, like so many of the classical composers that we have come to love, was a child prodigy. Born in Poland to a French father, he was a composer and a leader in the development of Romantic music (a genre he truly didn't even care for himself). Despite being one of the greatest pianists in Europe, his innovative compositions relied more on depth, nuance, expression and musical story-telling than a blatant exhibition of pianistic virtuosity. His prolific output included stylings such as sonatas, mazurkas, waltzes, nocturnes, polonaises, ballades, impromptus, études and préludes (some of which had yet to be written for piano until Chopin set pen to paper).

In a listening experience that spans a scant two hours, it's difficult to be scholarly and cover great expanses of music. But, be assured, it's all here at least in brief - his deeply flawed love life, the rumours of his homosexual tendencies, his virtuosic piano skills, his music, his nomadic living style coupled with a fierce patriotic love of Poland, his birth place, his frail disposition and his ill health which, of course, fueled a predisposition to paranoid levels of hypochondria, and much, much more.

Truly an uplifting, entertaining and educational listening experience. Highly recommended.

Paul Weiss

[Chrissie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was good. It is for those readers/listeners who want a summary of the most important events in a musician’s life. This author has written books on many musicians - Bach, Beethoven, Mozart, Haydn and Tchaikovsky to name but a few. Look at them all: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show.... What is delightful about these audiobooks is that you hear the music along with the events of the musicians’ lives.

OK, I chose Chopin (1810-1849) because I love his music, he was born outside Warsaw, spent much of his life in France, and of course his relationship with George Sand is intriguing. Chopin's entire life is covered. Not much is said about his youth, other than that he composed his first piece at the early age of seven! The music is played as it fits into the text. You get sonatas and mazurkas and polonaises. There are lots of quotes; in this way you get others' views on the musician. Chopin was not glorified; you get both the good and the bad. The author narrates the text but several other narrators speak the quotes. They are all talented. You should hear George Sand speak. You follow their ten year involvement, from the intense love relationship at the beginning, through the motherly stage (where Sand took to calling him “my son”) to the bitter end when they separate. The months in Majorca at Valdemosa, life at Nohant (outside Paris), life in Paris and London and Scotland - it is all here! The quotes are marvelous, and you hear through the narrator's voice and words how the relationship sours. Then follows his death from consumption, but even those years when he was sick Chopin continued to compose, give concerts and teach. You get history too. Historical events are not explained, but you see how these events affected Chopin’s life and those around him.

The audiobook is well produced, a good blend of fact and music and quotes. I learned what I need to know and got Chopin's music imprinted along with his life-story.

The story is short and concise, so perhaps these are not for those well-informed about classical music. For that you need a long book.

[Charlie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Chopin is up there w Tchaikovsky for me fr. Listen to Nocturne No. 20 in C Sharp Minor or Nocturne No. 2 in E Flat and thank me later

[Sydney Young · Rating 5 out of 5]

LOVED! I grew up to Chopin and classical music. This audio book was like no biography I've ever read/heard before, with his music interspersed between the details. So glad to know more about the man whose music feeds my soul's need for the passion of the revolutionary romantics.

[Lena · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kocham tę serię.

[Lindsay · Rating 5 out of 5]

So not *technically* a book, but it's classified as such on Hoopla. THIS WAS SO FANTASTIC. Every audiobook on music should be structured like this--with the music interspersed with the speaker. (I get why they're not...aside from copyright issues, the audio itself would be impossibly long.) I loved getting a concise biography of Chopin. I loved hearing his works, some of which I had not heard before. I am beside myself that there is a whole Life and Works series from Naxos. Rest assured I will be devouring it this year.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quick read and listen for this audio book about Frederic Chopin. It mixes narrative about his life with actual performances of some of his major works that gave me a little musical break throughout the book. The narrative about his life runs parallel to that as told in movies I’ve seen (A Song to Remember and Impromptu among others)about Chopin and, for the most part they agree on events in his life from his youth and early compositions and performances. This book includes musical performances of his best known works matched with narrative explaining background that likely influenced his music. Great read/listen for anyone interested in one of the best composers of his time.

[Inger-Johanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent idea, and I love the format here, an audiobook with recordings of the music of the composer, since it serves to beautifully illustrate the text. I learned a lot about Chopin and his music and the time in which he lived. The text was interesting and brought life to the subject. The book made me curious to listen to more of Chopin's music, to learn more about George Sand, and the cholera epidemic of the early 19th century. My only reservation is that some of the recordings had a very shrill sound. Not sure if the piano wasn't tuned properly, if the recording was not well sound-mixed, or what was the problem. Mostly, however, the pieces were wonderfully performed.

[Niranjana Sundararajan · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a strange thing to know that the most brilliant and of human beings ,whose life is unmistakably meant for a purpose greater than they could’ve imagined, must also face the agony of the day to day existence, the banality of living, the uncertainties the feelings of pathlessness - just as much as the rest of us. Why do we think greatly gifted people just innately are passionate about their craft and can forget the world around them?



Loved this short little read/listen about chopins life , his experiences and his music. I knew most of it but loved listening to his music interwoven into the story. Truly a wonderful experience

[Aaro · Rating 4 out of 5]

I count Chopin as one of my favorite composers but have to admit that I knew almost nothing about his life other than his Polish origins. This audiobook changed that, and gave some insight into Chopin's biography based on his correspondence with family and friends. The interspersed pieces were a fantastic part of the listening experience, though I found myself occasionally wishing for more pieces or other examples (e.g. more info on the Nocturnes or at least a mention of the G minor Ballade).

[Jessica Lozoya · Rating 4 out of 5]

Exactly what I was looking for; an audiobook giving a brief overview of Chopin’s life interwoven with excerpts of the notable works throughout. Chopin was really such a pianistic composer! It’ll be nice to bring some of this context into any pieces of his I learn. Looking forward to checking out more of these from this author. I think I’ll do Schubert next in prep for the piece for my next piano recital 🤓

[Jaak Ennuste · Rating 5 out of 5]

This audio-book is suitable for people, not having deep knowledge about Chopin. Well "illustrated" by his best known piano works, background of the composition progress and context explained. Excellent use of multimedia!

[Sky · Rating 4 out of 5]

Picked this one up for a road trip and it blew my mind! This is the ultimate way to learn about musicians, with their music being played to punctuate the narrative... it was a beautiful walk through a strange life... and I only wish there was even more for us to know about Chopin.

[Robert Swanson · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good summary of Chopin's life and work.
I enjoyed it being an audiobook, with examples of his music interspersed at the point where he wrote them. Not an in-depth discussion of Chopin or his drivers, but close enough.

[Mai Mislang · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m thoroughly enjoying this series by Jeremy Siepmann on the greatest artists (yup artists, not just musicians) that has given me all the more reason to hang tight, do the work, and let the future take its course.

[Mimi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! What an engaging audiobook that was!
I loved the mix of storytelling and music. You get Chopin’s life and personality, then hear the pieces that match the moment.
I read/listen to this book for 5 hours straight. So good.

[David Szatkowski · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jeremy Siepmann has done a couple of biographies of composers that mix audio book and works of the composer. These are a wonderful way to learn about the composer, his music, and the period.

[Linden · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another wonderfully-narrated audio book combining music and biographical information drawn from primary sources like letters.

[clara ♡ · Rating 5 out of 5]

SO cool how there is music involved in the audio. what a fascinating pianist. everyone should listen!

[Rachelzana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Audiobook

[Roxann · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an audio book - it is not available in print. It is a biography of Chopin interspersed with exerpts from his music. I loved it. I learned so much! Who knew that Chopin and George Sand were an item? Probably everyone but me. Includes extant letters from Chopin to various friends and family which are wonderfully descriptive texts of his emotions, surroundings, relationships and lifestyle. He also writes descriptively of the creative process as he composed. All of this is narrated beautifully by several different actors including Jeremy Siepmann. Wonderful!

[Richard · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would never class myself as a massive fan of Chopin, but I've always appreciated his music and wished I could play more than just 3 of his piano pieces. This audio book is like a glorified version of 'Composer of the Week' on Radio 3, but it does give a very insightful look into Chopin's life, his poor health, his battle with mental illness, and of course the music written which accompanies this tortured soul's all to short journey.

[Maureen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an audio book. I loved hearing about the composer and then to listen to a piece he had written at that time. To know at what point the composer wrote the piece of music and why, is very interesting.
I wish they had all the composers on audio.
This is a great book but it has to be listened to.

[Muphyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

The music is absolutely wonderful but for some reason I didn't enjoy this one as much as "The Life of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart".

[Harley · Rating 5 out of 5]

A little gem of an audio book. A short biography of Chopin that includes several of his musical works. I have not spent much time listening to or studying classical music so this audio book provided a good introduction to one of the greats.

[Vincent Russo · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice overview of Chopin's very difficult life. Gave appreciation for my quest of piano playing and also showcased much of his music along with back stories about the piece.

[benebean · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was alright.

[Kathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Learned a lot and enjoyed the little snippets of music.

[Lori · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this audio book. Since I knew practically nothing about the composer, the facts interspersed with music was interesting and well done.