Episodes
| Series | Episode | Title | First Broadcast | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 01 | Konstancja | 20180604 | Chopin's precocious talent and romantic temperament both manifested themselves early: Donald explores his early compositions and the first of many affairs of the heart,with Konstancja G?adkowska. Polonaise in A flat major, Op posth (1821) Anatol Ugorski, piano Variations in A major, Op posth, 'Souvenir de Paganini' (1829) Garrick Ohlsson, piano Introduction and Polonaise brillante in C major, Op 3 (1829) Mstislav Rostropovich, cello Martha Argerich, piano Piano Concerto No 2 in F minor, Op 21 (1830) Orchestre Symphonique de Montr退al Charles Dutoit, conductor Out of My Sight, Op 74 No 6 (1830) Olga Pasichnyk, soprano Natalya Pasichnyk, piano. Chopin's early years in Poland and his romance with Konstancja G\u0142adkowska. |
| 2018 | 02 | Maria | 20180605 | Chopin threw himself into Paris life when he moved there in 1831, where he was feted by the great and good - but he was pining for the daughter of a Polish count. Grande valse brillante in E flat major, Op 18 (1831) Daniil Trifonov, piano Variations in B flat major on 'La ci darem la mano' from Mozart's opera 'Don Giovanni', Op 2 (1827) Garrick Ohlsson, piano Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra Kazimierz Kord, conductor Etudes Op 10 (1829-32) Murray Perahia, piano The Ring, Op 74 No 14 (1836) Elzbieta Szmytka, soprano Malcolm Martineau, piano. Chopin's arrival on the Parisian scene and his infatuation with Maria Wodzinska. |
| 2018 | 03 | George | 20180606 | Toast of the town, Chopin was now producing some of his most iconic works. Donald explores music he wrote during the intense but unorthodox relationship with his mistress George Sand. Handsome Lad. Op 74 No 8 (1841) Ewa Podle?, contralto Garrick Ohlsson, piano 24 Preludes, Op 28 (1838-9) Martha Argerich, piano Three Mazurkas, Op 50 (1841-2) Vladimir Ashkenazy, piano Waltz in C sharp minor, Op 64 No 2 (1847) Khatia Buniatishvili, piano. Chopin's glittering conquest of Paris and his life with his mistress, George Sand. |
| 2018 | 04 | Jane | 20180607 | Chopin's physical decline, UK tour, and unusual relationship with Jane Stirling. Presented by Donald Macleod Chopin's ill health was becoming extremely serious, but one admirer managed to coax him on a tour of the UK. It would be his last voyage. Two Nocturnes, Op 55 (No 1 in F minor; No 2 in E flat major) (1842-4) Maria Jo o Pires, piano Cello Sonata in G minor, Op 65 (1846) Jacqueline du Pr退, cello Daniel Barenboim, piano Viardot: Aime-Moi (arr from Chopin Mazurka No 23 in D major, Op 33 No 2) Olga Pasichnyk, soprano Natalya Pasichnyk, piano Chopin: Ballade No 4 in F minor, Op 52 (1842) Georges Cziffra, piano. Chopin's physical decline, his UK tour and his unusual relationship with Jane Stirling. |
| 2018 | 05 LAST | Ludwika | 20180608 | As Chopin's friends gathered around his death-bed, it was his sister Ludwika he called for. Donald Macleod looks back at Chopin's final moments and plays some of the last music he wrote. Mazurka in F minor, Op posth. 68 No 4 (1849) Vladimir Ashkenazy, piano Polonaise-Fantaisie in A flat major, Op 61 (1846) Maurizio Pollini, piano Melody, Op 74 No 9 (1847) Olga Pasichnyk, soprano Natalya Pasichnyk, piano Piano Sonata No 2 in B flat minor, Op 35 (1839) Murray Perahia, piano Polonaise in A flat major, Op 53,'Heroic' (1842) Maurizio Pollini, piano. Chopin's final moments and the return into his life of his sister Ludwika. |