Rondo à la mazur
Encyclopedia
The Rondo à la mazur in F major, Op. 5, was written by Frédéric Chopin
in 1826, when he was 16, and published in 1828. It was the second of his four rondo
s, and is dedicated to the Countess Alexandrine de Moriolles, the daughter of the Comte de Moriolles, who was the tutor to the adopted son of the Grand Duke Constantine, Governor of Warsaw. It is the only one of the four rondos not written in 2/4 time.
Chopin wrote the piece while studying at the Warsaw Conservatory. It is a bravura
piece, and technically more assured than his Opus 1, the Rondo in C minor. His teacher Józef Elsner
had also written two rondos marked à la mazur, and they may have inspired the title, but Chopin's rondo displays none of Elsner's influence. Instead, there is much of Chopin's own originality.
The opening theme, in F major, is in the rhythm of a mazurka
. A second theme, in B-flat, marked Tranquillamente e cantabile, appears, before the main theme returns. The piece is notable for Chopin's very early use of the sharpened 4th degree characteristic of the Lydian mode
.
Robert Schumann
first heard the Rondo à la mazur in 1836, and he called it "lovely, enthusiastic and full of grace. He who does not yet know Chopin had best begin the acquaintance with this piece".
Frédéric Chopin
Frédéric François Chopin was a Polish composer and virtuoso pianist. He is considered one of the great masters of Romantic music and has been called "the poet of the piano"....
in 1826, when he was 16, and published in 1828. It was the second of his four rondo
Rondo
Rondo, and its French equivalent rondeau, is a word that has been used in music in a number of ways, most often in reference to a musical form, but also to a character-type that is distinct from the form...
s, and is dedicated to the Countess Alexandrine de Moriolles, the daughter of the Comte de Moriolles, who was the tutor to the adopted son of the Grand Duke Constantine, Governor of Warsaw. It is the only one of the four rondos not written in 2/4 time.
Chopin wrote the piece while studying at the Warsaw Conservatory. It is a bravura
Bravura
In classical music, a bravura is a virtuosic passage intended to show off the skill of a performer, generally as a solo, and often in a cadenza. It can also be used as an adjective , or to refer to a performance of extraordinary virtuosity. The term comes from the Italian language for great skill....
piece, and technically more assured than his Opus 1, the Rondo in C minor. His teacher Józef Elsner
Józef Elsner
Józef Antoni Franciszek was a composer, music teacher and music theoretician, active mainly in Warsaw...
had also written two rondos marked à la mazur, and they may have inspired the title, but Chopin's rondo displays none of Elsner's influence. Instead, there is much of Chopin's own originality.
The opening theme, in F major, is in the rhythm of a mazurka
Mazurka
The mazurka is a Polish folk dance in triple meter, usually at a lively tempo, and with accent on the third or second beat.-History:The folk origins of the mazurek are two other Polish musical forms—the slow machine...
. A second theme, in B-flat, marked Tranquillamente e cantabile, appears, before the main theme returns. The piece is notable for Chopin's very early use of the sharpened 4th degree characteristic of the Lydian mode
Lydian mode
The Lydian musical scale is a rising pattern of pitches comprising three whole tones, a semitone, two more whole tones, and a final semitone. This sequence of pitches roughly describes the fifth of the eight Gregorian modes, known as Mode V or the authentic mode on F, theoretically using B but in...
.
Robert Schumann
Robert Schumann
Robert Schumann, sometimes known as Robert Alexander Schumann, was a German composer, aesthete and influential music critic. He is regarded as one of the greatest and most representative composers of the Romantic era....
first heard the Rondo à la mazur in 1836, and he called it "lovely, enthusiastic and full of grace. He who does not yet know Chopin had best begin the acquaintance with this piece".