This recording was made at the Performing Arts Center, Purchase College, State University of New York, in 1998.
Historical Context
The mazurka dance form is named after the Mazovia region around Warsaw and became a national, stylized dance in the late 18th/early 19th century.
Composition History
The eight mazurkas of Opp 67 and 68 were published posthumously by Julian Fontana, despite Chopin instructing that they be destroyed.
Critical Reception
Robert Schumann, a German composer and influential music critic, praised Chopin for elevating the mazurka to a 'small art form,' noting the unique poetic trait in almost every one.
Composer Biography
Chopin composed approximately 57 mazurkas, with 41 published during his lifetime in groups of three, four, or five.
Compositional Technique
Chopin's mazurkas differ from other 19th-century folk-inspired works by developing and shaping popular folk traditions with the composer's own invention and original thematic material.
Compositional Technique
All mazurkas share common features: triple time, a strongly accented second or third beat (often with a heel tap), and a dotted rhythm.
