

200 years after his birth, Chopin remains a key composer - edw519
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/10055/1038012-388.stm

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RiderOfGiraffes
There are a few composers that truly sing to me. J.S.Bach (with a few
exceptions) is one, some of Beethoven's work, especially his later string
quartets, and sometimes Mozart, because even though he sometimes seems a bit
fluffy, sometimes that's what I want.

But I can get lost in Chopin, again and again.

There are others that occasionally hit the mark. Some Janacek, some Bartok,
and a surprising amount of Joplin (which is surprisingly sophisticated).

But I always return to Bach and Chopin.

~~~
jon_dahl
I resonate with most of your list, especially Bach and late Beethoven
quartets. But I don't listen to much Chopin. Any recommendations?

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RiderOfGiraffes
No, I don't have any recommendations. I try to listen to it all, and I often
don't even remember the names. Listening to it all means that I learn from the
pieces that are too complex for me yet to understand, and I am soothed by
those I know well.

Find a CD and listen to one track per day. Some people can find more than that
a little overwhelming. I try to listen to the same track three or four times
in a day, and get to know the piece.

Some people call me odd, but I would guess that many on HN fall into the same
category, if not for the same reasons.

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mechanical_fish
_the elasticity that Chopin allowed, and the fact that he never played a piece
the same way twice (sometimes performing the polar opposite dynamics), have
led to a tradition of performance in which his entire works are interpreted
with Romantic freedom._

I find that this, plus the fact that many of his typical works are so short,
makes Chopin the quintessential YouTube composer.

~~~
balding_n_tired
"We have been, let us say, to see the latest Pole/Transmit the Etudes through
his hair and finger tips"

\--T.S. Eliot, "Portrait of a Lady"

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maurycy
Chopin is the best French composer.

~~~
proemeth
He was Polish, despite his parisian history, hence his famous mazurkas.

~~~
msluyter
It was a joke (I think); like saying "Mozart was the greatest Italian Opera
composer." (Also true, imho).

