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Ah,nthe Poet of the Piano!
Ah,nthe Poet of the Piano!n
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nFredericnChopin was a virtuoso pianist and a composer of piano music. He wasnborn in 1810 in Poland, but when Russia suppressed Poland in 1830,nChopin moved to Paris. (You may notice that his name looks French,nnot Polish—and indeed, his father had immigrated to Poland fromnFrance. When he was born, his name was Fryderyk Franciszek Chopin—butnhe used the French versions of his first and middle name once henmoved to Paris.)
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Chopinnhad a light touch on the piano, so he wasn’t suited to playing grand music in a huge concert hall. Still, he became popular playing in the private salons of thenrich—and he made quite a bit of money teaching piano to thenchildren of the rich. n
Chopinnhad a light touch on the piano, so he wasn’t suited to playing grand music in a huge concert hall. Still, he became popular playing in the private salons of thenrich—and he made quite a bit of money teaching piano to thenchildren of the rich. nn
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nSadly,nChopin died quite young—at age 39—of tuberculosis. It is quitenappropriate that it was on his birthday, almost a century later, thatnDr. Selman Abraham Waksman made an important announcement:
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nAnCure for Tuberculosis!
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nWaksmannwas a Ukrainian-American scientist who studied microorganisms thatnlive in soil. One of his graduate students (Albert Schatz) realizednin 1946 that Streptomycin, an antibiotic isolated from an organism Waksman studied, was effective against tuberculosis. (Waksman’snstudies led to the development of more than 20 different antibiotics useful for treating a variety of other illnesses, as well.)
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| I saw Chopin’s lovely grave when I went to Paris. What I didn’t know is that his heart was removed before he was buried–and it resides in an urn in Poland! |
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nCelebratenChopin!
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nAt Hey Kids, Meet Frederic Chopin, the composer’s birthdate is givennas March 1. Indeed, all his life, Chopin claimed March 1 to be hisnbirthday. However, his baptismal record says his birthday is Februaryn22.n Links below the short biography allow you to hear some music, so bensure to explore the webpage.
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nPiano Lessons 4 Children offers an amazing array of videos and audio files to help you learn about and enjoy Chopin’s music!
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nClassics for Kids also offers a “Hear the Music” button.
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nAlsonon this date:
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nPolitician Ted Kennedy’s birthday
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nGeorge Washington’s actual birthday
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nWorld Thinking Day
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