Customer Reviews

Chopin: A New Biography

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In this revisionist biogrphy, Zamoyski links Chopin with Bach and Mozart rather than his contemporary Romantics. " Liszt had no close acquaintace with Bach's work, Berlioz disliked it cordially, yet Chopin thought it the essence of music. Liszt and Berlioz, like most Romantics, had no time for Mozart or Haydn, Chopin's favorite composers ..." Chopin preferred Hummel over Beethoven. "He did not really like any of the more modern composers; he was lukewarm toward Weber, never seems to have digested Schubert at all, thought little of Mendelssohn's music, and less still of Schumann's." Zamoyski sees Chopin as an insecure 18th. century man lost in the Romantic Age. It's an interesting concept . . . one worth reading.

I haven't finished the book yet. Sometmes it seems like the author is a bit bored with his subject. Who would have thought that Chopin was so indecisive or had such a weak personality! The book, however, is well written and I would recommend it to any Chopin lover. I think I will now listen differently to his music. Very educational.

My review title says it all. This book contains an actual photograph of Chopin. Haunting, and lovely- like his music.