Classical Music | Piano Music

Recorded on 09/22/2010, uploaded on 03/17/2011

Musician's or Publisher's Notes

Unlike his waltzes and mazurkas which proved to be effective miniature frameworks for Chopin to display his refined expressive powers, the polonaise, with its stately tempo and rhythms, was his choice for grand and sometimes heroic gestures. Only one of his polonaises, however, would combine the brilliancy of the piano with the majestic tones of the orchestra—the Andante spianato et grande polonaise brillante, op. 22. Indeed, it was his last concertino work for the piano even though he composed almost exclusively for his instrument until his death in 1849.

The Grande polonaise brilliante was composed during 1830-31, following shortly after Chopin’s second piano concerto. The composition of the work occupied his final months in Poland before he left his homeland for Vienna. There, in that great musical city, was where he completed it. The Andante spianato introduction, for solo piano, was added a few years later in 1834. Now residing in Paris, Chopin had received an invitation to perform in one of Habeneck’s Conservatoire Concerts and composed the Andante introduction for the occasion. The combined work was premiered on April 26^th, 1835 and published the following year. Later, in 1838, the orchestral polonaise was reduced into a solo piano arrangement in which form it is well-known today.

For piano alone, the Andante introduction in G major bears the unusual term “spianato.” Meaning “even” or “smooth,” it conveys the tranquil character of the introduction. Divided unevenly into two sections, the first and longest presents a lyrical melody, tinged with melancholy, over a gentle rolling accompaniment in compound meter. The following section, marked Semplice and changing to triple meter, is more austere in its homophonic setting. The descending runs with which the previous section had closed return to draw the introduction towards its conclusion. A final, lone restatement of the cadential figure found in the Semplice section closes the introduction in G major.

Pivoting upon the tone G, the polonaise begins with a majestic fanfare. Building from G major though C minor, the introductory measures come to a halt upon a half cadence in the key of E-flat major. Launching straightway into the polonaise’s first theme, the piano immediately becomes the focus of the remainder of the piece. Indeed, the orchestra does little else than provide mere snatches of an accompaniment from time to time and to delineate the major structural divisions of the work. For this reason, the piece was easily transcribed into a piano solo. The middle episode takes on a more dramatic air beginning in E-flat major but soon finding itself in the turbulent key of C minor. A prolonged coda, full of brilliant passagework, concludes the polonaise. In the final bars, the full orchestra is awaked and called into service to bring the dance to an exciting and grand close.    Joseph DuBose

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In the winter of 1830-1831, Chopin wrote the Grand Polonaise for piano and orchestra, affixing to it the opus number of 22. Later he composed the Andante spianato and grafted it onto the Grand Polonaise to serve as an introduction, thereby forging a new, expanded work, also designated Op. 22. In the process he fashioned versions of the work for both piano solo and for piano and orchestra.

The solo version begins with a lovely theme in the upper register, clearly of a Romantic bent. Like many of the composer's creations, there is something sad in its beauty. The unusual word "spianato" means "level" or "smoothed," and these concepts give an idea of the music's tone.  The Grand Polonaise begins with a fanfare and then launches into a light and delicate dance theme. Upon restatement, the theme is given more ornamentation and glitter. In its middle section the mood turns playful at the outset, but then becomes more intimate and subdued while retaining its dance-like character. The main theme returns and the piece concludes with a brilliant coda.

Courtesy of International Music Foundation.