Chopin museum opens in WarsawBy Vanessa Gera Associated Press Writer WARSAW, Poland
– The last piano that Frederic Chopin composed on. A death mask made
after he succumbed to what was probably tuberculosis. A lock of his
brown hair.
Those are among objects on display at a new museum
dedicated to the life of the Romantic-era composer that opened on his
200th birthday Monday in his native Poland. The interactive
multimedia museum is located in the center of Warsaw, where Chopin
moved in infancy from a nearby country estate, and where he spent the
first 20 years of his life before moving to Paris. Culture
Minister Bogdan Zdrojewski hailed it as "the most modern biographical
museum in Europe and the world" at a ceremonial opening that comes amid
a year of celebrations of the much-revered musician. A central
challenge that curators faced is the loss of many objects related to
Chopin's life. Some, like letters, were destroyed by women he was
romantically involved in; others were consumed in the devastation of
World War II. Polish authorities began gathering musical scores,
sketches and other objects tied to Chopin in 1899 and are still
pursuing them at auctions around the world, curator Alicja Knast said. "They are priceless in terms of emotional value," she said. The museum is arranged thematically with spaces devoted to different aspects of his life. A
room devoted to Paris salon life features Chopin's last piano, built by
the prominent piano maker Ignace Pleyel. Visitors learn that Chopin
earned his living in Paris by giving lessons - he was a much-prized
teacher and one of the city's most expensive. Another room is
devoted to the time he spent at Nohant, the French chateau that
belonged to his companion of eight years, writer Aurore Dupin - best
known by her nom de plume George Sand. The room is filled with
the sound of chirping birds, meant to evoke the natural setting of the
place where Chopin composed some of his masterpieces. On display
is a kerchief of white damask on which Sand embroidered Chopin's
initials. Visitors can pull out slabs labeled with the names of works
composed at Nohant, triggering recordings of the pieces. The
final room is devoted to his death at age 39 on Oct. 17, 1849. A dark
space bereft of the music filling most of the museum, it includes a
plaster death mask taken of Chopin's face. On display are also
invitations to his memorial service in Paris, as well as a lock of his
brown hair safeguarded by his family. The museum is housed in the
stately Ostrogski Palace, home of the Fryderyk Chopin Institute, which
underwent major renovation and expansion to house this revamped museum. Tickets cost 22 zlotys ($7.50) and must be reserved over the Internet or purchased in advance at the museum. |