Frédéric Chopin
Poet of the piano, transformed piano music
Most quoted
"One needs only to study a certain positioning of the hand in relation to the keys to obtain with ease the most beautiful sounds, to know how to play long notes and short notes and to [attain] certain unlimited dexterity... A well formed technique, it seems to me, [is one] that can control and vary a beautiful sound quality."
— from Prose writings
"Paris is whatever you want it to be. You can amuse yourself, be bored, laugh, cry, do whatever you like, and no one will so much as look at you, because thousands of others are doing exactly the same thing, each in his own way."
— from Letter, 1831
"When one does a thing, it appears good, otherwise one would not write it. Only later comes reflection, and one discards or accepts the thing. Time is the best censor, and patience a most excellent teacher."
— from Attributed remark
All quotes by Frédéric Chopin (369)
The most difficult thing is to play simply.
I am a solitary man, and my music reflects that.
The piano is a voice, and I am its interpreter.
I have no desire for fame. I only wish to be understood.
The most important thing is to feel the music.
I am a romantic, but I am also a classicist.
The piano is a canvas, and I am its painter.
I am a poet of the piano.
The most beautiful music is that which is played with passion.
I am a man of sorrow, and my music is my solace.
The piano is a friend who never betrays me.
I am a composer of the heart.
The most important thing is to be true to oneself.
I am a man of silence, and my music is my voice.
The piano is a mirror of the world.
I am a man of dreams, and my music is my reality.
The most beautiful music is that which is played with love.
I am a man of solitude, and my music is my companion.
The piano is a friend who understands me.
I am a composer of the soul.
Contemporaries of Frédéric Chopin
Other Musics born within 50 years of Frédéric Chopin (1810–1849).