The poet of the keyboard

The celebrations of Chopin's bicentenary are moving on to his chamber music and some rarely heard compositions that will be aired by some of our top pianists in Dublin this week, writes EILEEN BATTERSBY

OF ALL THE great composers, Chopin is the one most exclusively associated with the piano. By his day, the instrument that had been radicalised by the demands imposed by Beethoven was the defining icon of Romanticism. Chopin’s beautiful, at times ethereal, intimate music is subtle yet also innovative, at times bold.

All the passion of his piano work was brilliantly articulated by the performers of the Royal Irish Academy of Music in a concert at the National Gallery in Dublin on March 1st. On the night of the 200th anniversary of Chopin's birth, a succession of pianists, led by John O'Conor, who performed Ballade No 1in G minor, op 23, one by one, walked to the piano, played a piece, and then left the podium, as another musician took their place.

It was simple and highly effective. The soloists deferred to the music; there was no talking, no introductions. Chopin's music spoke for itself, the ballades and scherzos filing the room, to culminate in Therese Fahy's dramatic interpretation of Andante Spianato et Grande Polonaise Brillante, op 22. It was the first in a series of six recitals, celebrating the Polish composer who left his beloved country and settled in Paris, and although he performed only 30 recitals in public before dying at the age of 39, he dominated the piano, leaving a vast body of exciting work.

The great Romantic whose vision, shaped by Bach, was consummately classical was, above all, an experimental artist. If there is a key to his genius it must be the improvisational quality that creates a feeling of spontaneity. The series has been devised by Réamonn Keary, pianist and teacher at the academy, who has twice served as an international jury member for the AXA Dublin International Piano Competition. He wanted to celebrate Chopin’s legacy and decided the only way to do it justice was to perform all the work.

“In December 2008, when Chopin’s bicentenary was just over a year away, I hit on the notion to use the occasion both as an opportunity to showcase the immense pianistic talents in the Royal Irish Academy of Music and also to explore some of the most exquisite music in piano literature. My ambition is that, between the staff and students of the academy, we take on the challenge to perform Chopin’s entire oeuvre. Quite a feat, considering the complete works stretch to 17 CDs.”

To date, the concerts have been impressive. This Thursday, the emphasis moves slightly away from the piano to feature Chopin's chamber work. Flautist William Dowdall, accompanied by Keary, will perform Variations on 'Non più mesta'from Rossini's La Cenerentolafor flute and piano. "It's a beautiful little piece," says Keary, who has always enjoyed chamber music. "I just love playing with other musicians, I was never that attracted to solo performance."

His pride in the academy and his excitement in seeing his project come to life is obvious. He is like a stage director, pleased with the work to date and looking forward to the next elements. “We have already made considerable inroads into the repertoire with performances from such wonderful musicians – such as the academy’s director John O’Conor, Fahy, Hugh Tinney and Conor Linehan – “all staff members of the academy.” Along with the established performers such as Finghin Collins – a singular Chopin performer – academy students are also performing, many of whom are, as Keary points out, prospective competitors in the forthcoming Frederyck Chopin Competition to be held in Warsaw this October.

Held only every five years, it is one of the most prestigious music competitions in the world and pays fitting tribute to Chopin who was born in Zelazowa Wola, a village about 30 miles outside the city. His father, a Frenchman who had fled to Poland to avoid military service, was a tutor working for a landed family. When the future composer was about seven months old, his father secured a teaching post and moved with his wife, who had by then had the first two of their four children, to Warsaw, where they settled. The city is proud of its association with Chopin. Although his body lies in Paris, where he died in 1849, his heart was placed in an urn and sent to Warsaw. It rests in the Church of the Holy Cross, close to the house in which Chopin once lived.

THE CONCERT PROGRAMMEalso includes Grand Duo Concertant, on Themes from Meyerbeer's opera, 'Robert Le Diable'.The opera was well received when it premiered in Paris in 1831. The publisher of the score wanted to capitalise on its success and commissioned several composers to write pieces on themes. One of the artists was Chopin who had loved the romance and theatricality of the original opera. He paraphrased three themes; a romanza from Act 1, one of the choral sections and the final trio. The cello section was composed with cellist August Franchomme. Interestingly, the Grand Duodid not impress the critics, although Schumann recognised its glories. It will be performed by cellist Miriam Raycroft with Keary on piano and is a rare and wonderful opportunity to hear this work. The same partnership will also play Introduction et Polonaise Brillante, op 3, written in 1829 when Chopin was only 19.

The Piano Trio in G Minor,op 8 features Conor Linehan with Michael d'Arcy on violin and Annette Cleary on cello. It was written during 1828-9; it is Chopin's earliest chamber work and is a major contribution to the 19th-century repertoire. Classical in form, it has echoes of Schubert marked by Beethoven. Chopin was studying under Elsner at the time and to listen to the piece is to hear a musician maturing. Keary is also planning Chopin concerts for later in the year, in which the concertos will also be feature. By the end of 2010, all of Chopin's works for piano and orchestra will have been performed. Keary's zeal is comparable to the joyful determination that inspired Lindsay Armstrong in his magnificent ambition to perform all of Bach's surviving church cantatas during a 10-year period, a labour of love that he recently completed in triumph at St Ann's church on Dawson Street.

Chopin’s music has inspired many great pianists such as his fellow Pole, Artur Rubinstein, the Italian virtuoso, Maurizio Pollini, winner of the 1960 Chopin Competition, Argentinian Martha Argerich, US virtuoso Murray Perahia, who majestically balances his love of Bach and Chopin, while Russia’s Evgeny Kissin established his genius while still a teenager, through playing the works of Chopin.

Why is the music so enduring? Finghin Collins smiles a “how long is a piece of string?” smile, and smiles again. “No other Romantic composer exploited the technical and melodic potential of the piano more than Chopin. To perform his solo works is unadulterated joy; the beautiful, original melodies, the adventurous harmonies, the tight control of form and the overarching passion and nostalgia make this music incredibly satisfying . . . Some of the works are greatly demanding, others are more simple. His music is so well written for the piano and fits convincingly, if not always comfortably, under the fingers.”

Collins admits it is difficult for him to be brief on the subject of Chopin's work. "The variety of his output constantly amazes me, from the formal sonatas to the playful waltzes and mazurkas, the polonaises, the ballades . . . ". There is no doubt that Chopin is a pianist's composer; instinct as well as compositional and technical brilliance dictate every piece. "The chamber music is also fascinating," says Collins. "One of the most demanding works is the Sonata for Cello and Piano, which I performed in recent years with Korean cellist, Han-Na Chang. It's extremely difficult . . ." he pauses " . . . but amply rewards the effort".

John O’Conor, who sees the debt Chopin always acknowledged to an earlier artist, the Irishman John Field who spent most of his life in Russia, agrees. “I never tire of listening to or playing Chopin. Playing one of his pieces was one of the first exquisite sensations I had as a kid. It gave me the ambition to play lots more – which I have, over the years. I was on the jury of the International Chopin Competition in Warsaw in 2005 and we listened to nothing but Chopin for three weeks. I worried that it might be too much of a good thing, but I was as eager to keep listening at the end as I was at the beginning.” Such is the seductive and subtle, at times surprisingly robust, art of Chopin, the poet of the keyboard.

The Piano Plus Chopin Chamber Music Concert is at the National Gallery of Ireland this Thursday, March 25th, at 6.30pm.