THERE was one pleasant surprise awaiting Frédéric soon after his rcturn home. His father and mother had for some time realized that their son needed seclusion for his work, that his nature was of the kind which demanded solitude for the purposes of concentration; and, though their home was a small one, they determined that he should have his own workroom. It meant a sacrifice on their part, but they were never selfish regarding their children, and the gain to their son seemed well worth their own deprivation.This independence was what Frédéric had longed for, not only because of his work, for naturally his thoughts were now far more likely not to be disturbed, but because he felt that he could now entertain his own particular friends, could talk and discuss the matters which were of interest at the moment. It was not only his music that was developing. The trip to Berlin had awakened in him a desire to know much more about life in general. We can see from the few quoted extracts from his letters that he had an observing eye; that the habits and manners of his fellow-beings were vitally interesting to him; that he was attracted far more by what he saw than by the doings of the scientists; that he was far more desirous of hearing music than of attempting to show off his own prowess; in short that he was receptive, not assertive. His fastidiousness had not been satisfied by the performances he had heard in Berlin, nor was he much impressed with the music except Der Freischütz and Handel's Ode to St. Cecilia. Without doubt, he was growing up, emerging from his adolescence, expanding into manhood. He had been very much of a boy, with his pranks and his practical jokes, but his period of youth had been short. By his nineteenthd year he had forsaken his timidity and had become almost selfreliant.We have evidence of the results of his new environment, and?of the first finished work emanating from it, in a letter to TitusWojciechowski, December 27, 1828.The score of the Rondo à la Krakowiak is finished. The introduction is original; more so than I myself even in a beige suit. But the Trio [Op. 8] is not yet finished. There's a room uptairs which is to be at my service, steps have been made to it from the wardrobe room. I am to have an old piano there, and an old bureau, and it's to be my den.In a postscript he informs his friend that he re-wrote the C major Rondo for Two Pianofortes [Op. 73] on September g. The Krakowiak is the best orchestrated of the concerted pieces of Chopin, and deserves occasional performances for this reason alone.The year 1828 was a fairly productive one for the young composer, for it is obvious that the following works were made ready for publication: Rondo for Two Pianofortes, Op. 73; Sonata in C minor, Op. 4; Fantasia on Polish Airs, Op. 13; Krakowiak for Pianoforte and Orchestra, Op. I4; and possibly the Polonaise in B flat, Op. 71, No. 2. In the first half of 1829 the following compositions were conceived: Valse in B minor, Op. 6g, No. 2; Valse in E major, published without opus number by Gebethner and Wolff in 1872; the Marche Funèbre, Op. 72, No. 2; Polonaise in F minor, Op. 71, No. 3, and possibly a Mazurka in D major, which was published in two forms, both poor, in 1851. None of these works is of great merit, though they are not without charm, and each has a distinct flavour of the composer's original mind. Chopin was away travelling for more than two months, and this may account for the apparent inactivity.Before writing about the young pianist's trip to Vienna (I say pianist here with a meaning, for the object of the journey was to see what prospects there were for him to earn a living by his playing), the visit to Warsaw of two distinguished musicians must be mentioned. Johann Nepomuk Hummel and Niccoló Paganini both gave concerts in the Polish capital. Hummel was a virtuoso of the highest class in his day, and a prolific composer of music of all types, though with a decided preference for the pianoforte. His works, with the exception of the Rondo Favori in?F minor, have long ceased to appear on concert programmes; but until the end of the nineteenth century his pianoforte compositions were frequently used by pedagogues for training pupils' fingers. Evidently he had a charming disposition and he was renowned for his kindness and encouragement to young musicians.d Chopin met his older colleague in Warsaw, and they were mutually attracted. During Frédéric's second visit to Vienna at the close of 183o, Hummel introduced him to many of his friends, and Chopin tells his parents that "Old Hummel was kindness itself'. In spite of the tremendous difference both in their work and in their attitude towards the pianoforte, the younger man had the greatest admiration and respect for the older man's compositions, and one can notice the influence of Hummel in many technical passages in Chopin's earlier works. The other great influence in these early compositions was John Field, the Irish composer who lived in St. Petersburg, and who will be discussed later.Paganini was probably too much of the showman to excite any hero-worship in the delicate and sensitive Pole, but that Chopin admired his playing enormously is seen from a sentence in a letter from Vienna to his parents in December 183o. He was praising a violinist named Slawik, whom he describes as 'a great violinist, of real genius', that he 'liked him, after Paganini, better than anyone'. There is no available information about Paganini's Warsaw concerts, which perhaps is a pity, for it would be illuminating to know the reaction of the fastidious pianist to this extraordinary player. Paganini was at that time sweeping Europe before him, though he appears to have had a set-back in Prague (Chopin writes of his being 'grilled' there), and the magnetism of his playing was wielding a marked influence on many contemporary musicians. The effect of his influence on another man of genius, Liszt, was very noticeable, as can be seen from the latter's transcriptions.Chopin's trip to Berlin had whetted his appetite to see more of the world. He was restless and unhappy. He felt he must go away. Where to? Vienna had always lured him-would it be possible? At last he heard that three of his friends were going, and he begged his father to allow him to accompany them. His father managed to scrape together a little money, and about the?end of the second week in July the four set forth. Haslinger, the Viennese publisher, had been sent three or four manuscripts, but the optimistic young composer had received no hopeful answer from him. There was only one mode of procedure-to see him and inquire the reason, and to show the works off properly by playing them himself.This was one cause for his impatience to visit Vienna. But something else was troubling him. He was in love. Silently, secretly, he had borne these agitated feelings, at one time happy beyond measure, at another disconsolate almost to despair. His first admission of the gnawing at his heart was in a letter written in the following October to his nearest friend, Titus, but in this letter he speaks of having hidden his feelings for 'half a year'. After these months of solitude in his heart, not daring to speak to his 'ideal', hardly courageous enough to look at her, he felt he could bear the strain no longer.The four young men journeyed by way of Cracow, the old capital Poland, ful f hstorical associations and fine buildings. The effect of the ancient city on these eager travellers who so intensely loved their country must have been overpowering. Here they stayed a week, leaving for Vienna on the 24th in a peasant's cart. Their first stopping-place was to be Ojców, not in the town, but at a small house about six miles out which was popular with tourists. Unfortunately the driver missed the way and drove into the Pradnik, a little stream. The party wandered about in the dark, chiefly among rocks and stones, and were finally found by two peasants late in the evening. In the darkness they often stumbled over the half-hidden rocks, sometimes stepping into deep water. When they eventually reached the house, the three companions undressed and dried their clothes in front of the fire, but Frédéric, as usual, was slow in making up his mind. When he saw the wife of the innkeeper go to fetch some bedding he followed, and spying some large woollen nightcaps asked if he might buy one. He tore it in two, wrapped his feet in each half and tied the strings round to save himself catching a chill. Soon, beds were made up on the floor for them all, and with wine and a good fire, they were quickly fast asleep.

Vienna greeted the four tourists on the evening of July 3r. They were gay and happy, and began their sightseeing at once. One of the first visits Chopin made was to Haslinger, to whom he had a letter from Elsner. His curiosity was soon appeased, for the over-polite publisher told him at once that the 'La ci darem' Variations would probably be appearing in a week's time. 'I didn't expect that,' he writes to his parents. Haslinger also advised him to play in public, probably with an eye to selling the Variations more readily. Chopin was in no mood for playing, not having seen a pianoforte for a good two weeks, but the various people he met-Schuppanzigh the violinist, a great friend of Beethoven, Count Gallenberg, the director of the K?rnthnerthor Theatre and husband of Beethoven's 'immortal beloved', Countess Giulia Giucciardi, Blahetka, a journalist, whose daughter was a popular pianist, and the two pianoforte manufacturers, Graff and Stein-all pleaded with him, and at last his diffidence was overcome. Perhaps he was influenced mostly by the conductor Würfel, who knew him in Warsaw, and who told him that it would be a sin not to show off his talent in public, a slight on his parents, on his teachers and on his country. Würfel promised to arrange everything for him-he had only to decide which of the two makes of pianoforte he preferred. A Graff was decided on, and the advertisement of the concert appeared the following day. At the end of the letter to his parents in which he informs them of his decision he exclaims: 'I hope the Lord will help me- Don't worry!'Here is the shy pianist already hesitating about appearing in public. This dislike for concert-playing was to increase, not diminish, even when he was acclaimed as one of the greatest of all pianists, and this, from our point of view, is one of the unfortunate things about his life; for had he been able to develop a liking for the public exposition of his art, he might have created a tradition of pianoforte-playing which would have prevented the advent of the hard-hitters who followed Liszt. Europe has been a long time recovering from the effects of the thumpers of the last quarter of the nineteenth century.The next letter to his parents, August 12, tells them all about the concert. Concerts in those days did not need the lengthy preparation they do nowadays. Chopin took eight days to decide upon giving one and three days to prepare it. The programme announced was:Overture to PrometheusBeethoven.Variations (La ci darem)Krakowiak (Rondo)Chopin.Arias (Mlle Veltheim).Rossini and Vaccaji.Chopin.The singer had to sing again, and a short ballet finished the programme. Chopin's manuscript was neither correct nor legible, and the orchestra made such difficulties at the rehearsal (a not very uncommon thing in past years) that the composer elected to play a free Fantasia on a chosen theme, instead of risking a bad performance of the Rondo.His account of the concert makes good reading in these times. 'As soon as I appeared on the stage, the bravos began; after each variation the applause was so loud that I couldn't hear the orchestra's tutti. When I finished, they clapped so much that I had to come out and bow a second time.' What would a modern pianist of even mediocre attainments think of an audience who only brought him back once? What would the present-day orchestras think if the audiences applauded duringtheir tutti?The press was mainly enthusiastic; the concert promoter, Count Gallenberg, was pleased with both Chopin's playing and his compositions. The improvisations were greeted with much applause, and well they might be, for even as a young and inexperienced man his efforts in this direction must have been extraordinary. I doubt whether any pianist, even Liszt, has ever improvised so marvellously, so musically and so poetically. The themes chosen were one from Boieldieu's opera La Dame blanche, and a popular drinking-song, Chmiel, which latter must have emanated from Chopin himself or from his three friends, who were assigned to different positions in the hall so as to overhear remarks, and who were instructed not to start the bravos themselves. Hube, one of the three musketeers, heard one lady say What a pity the boy is so badly turned out!' Chopin's retort to this was 'If that is all the fault anybody found then I needn't worry!'Chopin, however, despite the favourable Press criticisms,was upset that so many among the audience thought his playing too soft, too delicate 'for people used to the piano-pounding of the artists here'; but he preferred this to being told that he played too loudly. He had decided that 'interior house-painting' would be his future vocation if the papers wrote against him-'it's easy to smear a brush across paper.... To-day I am wiser and more experienced by about four years.' His humour had not deserted him, for he concludes his letter: 'Ah! You must have been surprised that my last letter was sealed with - "Madiera". I was so distracted that I took the seal nearest to my hand, which was the waiter's, and sealed my letter in a hurry.'A second concert was arranged for the 18th, a week later. In the meantime Chopin made the acquaintance of a number of the leading musicians, including Carl Czerny, who was rather patronizing, and Gyrowetz, whose concerto Frédéric had played on his first public appearance when he was 8 years old. The local nobility' liked him also, and he was radiantly happy when he met Count Moritz Lichnowski, a great friend and patron of Beethoven.At the second concert Chopin repeated the Variations, and, through the kind help of a brother Pole, Nidecki, who had corrected the parts, was able to include the Krakowiak. The rest of the programme consisted of an Overture of Lindpaintner, and a Polonaise for solo violin by Mayseder, which was played by a young violinist named Joseph Khayl. The concert-giver was more pleased with his second effort and did not hesitate to tell his parents of his satisfaction. He tells them of the 'bravos', the compliments of the different musicians, the overheard sayings of members of the audience. 'I have captured both the learned and the emotional folk.... I have played twice, and the second success was better than the first; it goes crescendo; that's what I like.' These were amongst the many short phrases in his exclamatory letter.Frédéric was certainly in the highest of spirits after his two concerts, and was elated with his success both as pianist and as composer. As he left Vienna before most of the criticisms appeared, we have nothing in his letters to Warsaw which enlightens us as to his reaction to the opinions of others.

On the 12th September he wrote a very lengthy letter to Titus in which he told his friend everything, perhaps even more vividly than to his parents. After describing the more pleasurable moments of the journey, and saying how Vienna 'overwhelmed, stupefied and hallucinated' him, he proceeds to explain how he was cajoled into playing. What undoubtedly convinced Chopin that he had to accede to the wishes of the various musicians there was Haslinger's suggestion to Count Gallenberg that he was a coward and was afraid to appear. He then speaks of the kind reception he had from most of the prominent musicians, and mentions the frightful muddle the orchestra made of his Krakowiak. 'All the confusion was caused by pauses written differently at the top and the bottom of the score, although I explained that only the top numbers count.'He admits it was 'partly' his own fault, but hints that the players were annoyed at his inaccuracies. He goes on: "Who knows whether the risk [of improvising] and my bad temper were not just the goad that stirred me up to do my best in the evening.' It was still the custom to play with music, even for composer-pianists, for he had 'a rouged-up partner to turn the leaves, who boasted to me that he had turned over for Moscheles, Hummel, Herz, etc.'. After the success of the first concert he says he was glad that he gave another one 'because no one could say I had played once and run away'.Frédéric apparently was attracted by Leopoldina Blahetka, whom he calls "the first pianist of Vienna. She must like me (nota bene she is not 20 yet; living at home; a clever and even pretty girl); she gave me her own compositions with an autograph inscription, for a keepsake'. Was he trying to forget his 'ideal' in Warsaw, or was he just succumbing to the compliments of a pretty and clever girl? We are not left long in doubt, for Miss Blahetka is quickly out of his mind, and Constantia cannot be forgotten for years.Chopin did not seem enamoured with Carl Czerny as a musician: 'I have made close friends with Czerny; we often played together on two pianofortes at his house. He's a good fellow but nothing morc.'In an earlier letter Frédéric said 'Czerny is more sensitive than any of his compositions'. On the other hand he was greatly impressed with August Klengel's forty-eight??fugues, which he maintained were a continuation of Bach's. He met Klengel at Prague on his homeward journey. 'He plays well, but I should have liked him to play better.'There can be no doubt that Chopin's originality both as pianist and composer had pleased most of the important Viennese musicians, amongst whom were Franz Lachner, a fine teacher and one-time friend of Schubert (who had tragically died the year before); Conradin Kreutzer, an eminent conductor and composer; Ignaz Schuppanzigh, excellent violinist and leader of a string quartet which bore his name; Adalbert Gyrowetz, of whom we have already heard; Ritter von Seyfried, a conductor and editor of Albrechtsberger and Beethoven; Joseph Mayseder, the leading Viennese violinist, and many others. They all warmly welcomed this elegant and sensitive young musician whose gifts were so rare, yet who was so entirely simple and without conceit. No wonder that Chopin felt the sincerity of their clamourings for his return, and that directly he arrived in Warsaw again he should have wished to revisit the friendly city which was willing to receive him with open arms.The Viennese Press was enthusiastic, but hardly equalled the praises of the musicians. The Allgemeine musikalische Zeitung which appeared on November 18 speaks of him as 'a master of the first rank, with his exquisite delicacy of touch, indescribable finger dexterity, and the deep feeling shown by his command of shading. His interpretations and his compositions both bear the stamp of genius, and reveal a virtuoso liberally endowed by nature who appears on the horizon like a most brilliant meteor'. The Wiener Theaterzeitung admired the modesty of his playing and his compositions, and the artist's desire to entertain his audience with music as music, not to shine as a virtuoso. The critic said that 'his touch, although neat and sure, had little brilliance comparable with the virtuosos who wish to conquer with their first few bars, but his playing was like conversing amongst clever people'. He spoke of a noticeable defect in not indicating by accent the beginning of each musical phrase, and favourably compared Chopin's improvisational gifts with the great masters Beethoven and Hummel.After the second concert the same paper, probably the same critic, admits the justification of the previous opinions. "

This is a young man who goes his own road, on which he knows how to please, although his style differs widely from all other virtuosos. His predominating gift is his desire to make good music, not his desire to please.'Another paper, the Wiener Zeitschrift für Kunst, says of the Krakowiak, after the second concert: 'It is written throughout in chromatic style, is rarely of genius; but one is forced to admire the thoughtfulness and depth of his artistry. On the whole, however, the work lacks variety.' The critic goes on to suggest that a longer stay in Vienna might be profitable to the pianist's touch and to a higher perfection of ensemble playing with orchestra.Some of the audience, amongst them Count Moritz Lichnowski, thought Chopin's tone too feeble. The Count offered his own instrument for the second concert, politely suggesting that his pianoforte had a fuller tone, but Chopin rejected the offer. 'This is my manner of playing, which gives the ladies so much pleasure.'We know that the playing of Chopin, like his compositions, has always had an immediate appeal for the feminine sex, and that this fact has often reacted against him. But though we shall find exclamations and asides of that nature during the course of the biography, they usually emanate from disappointed or disgruntled colleagucs. The ultra-refinement of his music, the delicacy of nuance, and the exquisite sensitiveness with which his works abound, are qualities which may make a quicker appeal to women; but this does not mean that the stronger and less pliable creaturc, man, cannot be touched by tenderness. The frailty of Chopin himself and the supreme intimacy of both his piano-playing and his writings laid him open to unfriendly taunts and gibes, which are occasionally heard even to this day: yet he suffered less from the jealousy of his colleagues than almost any other musician, and has had fewer enemies than any other great composer.The return journey to Warsaw was made via Prague, Teplitz, Dresden and Breslau. Chopin was embraced on leaving by many of his newly-made friends, and promised to come back. He departed by Eilwagen. Perhaps he was happy at that moment, for he still had the young man's enthusiasm for seeing the world; but he must have regretted the opportunities of hearing fine music that he was leaving behind. He had heard several operatic performances, including La Dame blanche of Boieldieu,La Cenerentola of Rossini, Il Crociato in Egitto of Meyerbeer, andMosè in Egitto of Rossini; he had also been to two violin recitals by Mayseder, and had visited the picture galleries and museums. All these things were vitally necessary to his development. He missed also the intercourse with the aristocratic families, with whom he was always a favourite. He was intelligent enough to know what he was leaving, and had already determined to hurry back at the first possible moment.At Prague, whither the travellers went as quickly as was possible in those days, taking from 9 p.m. on the Igth until noon on the 2ist, Frédéric's first visit was to the cathedral. He thought the city beautiful, "large, ancient and once opulent'. He carried a letter of introduction to Waclaw Hauke, the librarian of the National Museum, and a renowned scientist. Hauke requested Chopin and his two friends (for one of the party, Hube, had stayed on in Vienna) to sign the visitors' book. 'So each of us had to think of something to say; one in verse, the other in prose. Szwejkowski wrote a long speech. What was a musician to do here? Luckily Maciejowski hit on the idea of writing a fourverse Mazurka, so I added the music and inscribed myself together with my poet, as originally as possible. Hauke was pleased; it was a Mazur for him.'Another introductory letter was to Frederick Pixis, the director of the Prague Conservatorium, and also a violinist of ability. It was he who made Chopin acquainted with Klengel, and who tried in vain to induce him to give a concert whilst in Prague. Frédéric was not eager to do so, particularly after hearing of the cold reception that Paganini had had there.On the second day Frédéric, half-dressed, blundered into the wrong room in the hotel. An astonished voice told him in German of his mistake. 'Guten Morgen!' 'Bitte um Verzeihung!' And he fled.The stay at Teplitz occupied one whole day and two nights. He went on the first evening with a Polish friend called Lempicki to dinner with the 'great, almost sovereign family' of Prince Clary. A 'small but choice gathering' had been invited to meét him. After the meal the Princess, mother of his host, asked him 'to be pleased to sit down to the pianoforte'. He?acceded, thereupon asking the company 'to be pleased' to give him a theme. A melody from Rossini's Moses in Egypt was chosen, to which the young guest added his impromptu variations and arabesques. He had to play four times, and the young princesses were loth to let him stop. A cordial invitation was extended for the following evening, but this was not accepted.In Dresden the travellers were fortunate enough to find that there was a representation of the first part of Goethe's Faust at the National-Theater, with the great actor Carl Devrient playing Faust. Chopin had already seen Devrient in Berlin, and was naturally excited at the prospect of renewing acquaintance with his acting, especially in such a r?le. The occasion was in celebration of the eightieth birthday of the great German poet. Frédéric had to stand outside the theatre from 4.30, and the play lasted from 6 till I1. 'It's terrible phantasy, but a great one. Between the acts they played selections from Spohr's opera of the same name.'Dresden had a special attraction for Chopin; for his idol Weber had been Kapellmeister at the Opera there. Weber had been dead for three years, and had been succeeded by an Italian, Francesco Morlacchi, to whom Klengel had given Chopin a letter. Klengel was anxious that Morlacchi should introduce Chopin to an old pupil of his, a Miss Pechwell, whom he considered the best pianist in Dresden. That Chopin knew of the intrigue against Weber in which the Italian had been involved may be deduced from the following few words with which he finishes a letter to his parents: "To-morrow morning I expect Morlacchi; I am to go with him to Miss Pechwell. He comes to me, not I to him! Ha! Ha! Ha!'Breslau is not mentioned in any of the letters, so we must presume that nothing of importance happened there. The party arrived back in Warsaw about the beginning of the second week in September. Chopin had been away from his home for roughly two months. He had left it more or less unknown outside the precincts of Warsaw and his own intimate circle: he returned quite a young man of the world, with the halo of a great musical city's acclamation. His receptive powers were extraordinary, his quick eyes and alert mind had seen and taken in many new and wonderful beauties. He can no longer be considered a boy.