Life & Works of Chopin

Excellent bio with musical illustrations by J. Siepman make Chopin come alive.

My husband found this very interesting.

Siepmann's treatment of the life and works of Chopin is simply one of his best out of the set he has made (Bach, Brahms, Mozart, etc.). We are lead from the early background of the child prodigy, including his birth in Poland (to a French father and a Polish mother), the state of European affairs at that time, his early hints of ability, and then hid first public write-up at age eight, where it was already beginning to be realized that there was something special about this boy. As with all his recordings, Siepmann does a wonderful job of contextualizing each period of the composer's life with works being written at that time, so you build an unfolding understanding of the composer's development over time. I would have to say that this particular production uses especially well selected pieces to play within the narration, which, as with his others, Siepmann wrote himself. This would be a wonderful set to give to someone not yet familiar with the works of Chopin, because the interspersed pieces are long enough to generate interest in the complete pieces. Siepann's narration, too, is splendid, he being blessed with a wonderful speaking voice, and when coupled with his expertise of the piano cultivated over decades, results in a thoroughly enjoyable and informative set. Yes, it is expensive. But it is worth every cent. You'll likely want to replay the set over and over to learn the inns and outs, and then you are on good footing to move on to experience the composer more.When you want to dive into Chopin, I can highly recommend the Deutsche Grammaphon complete Chopin set, which you can now download from Amazon in mp3 format for only nine dollars (!) here:  Chopin Complete Edition [17 CD Box Set ] (make sure you click on the "mp3" box to get the nine dollar download).This is another five star production from Siepmann and Naxos. Highly recommended.

Another one of Jeremy Siepmann's truly impressive works, this narrated version of the life and works of Schubert is simply superb. Siepmann brings his many decades of music expertise to help illuminate key works of Schubert, and he also contextualizes these key works by inserting them at the appropriate points within the narration (which he does in all his "Life and Works of" series). And, as an added bonus, Siepmann's speaking voice is just wonderful for this type of venue. The result is a truly fascinating and enjoyable trek through Schubert's life, something that you will want to listen to over and over again. Even the most knowledgeable Schubert aficionado is bound to find new things to learn about the composer, but Siepmann's approach makes it so that the complete novice can listen to the production as a way to become acquainted with Schubert's compositions, and then move on to enjoying them whole.All of Siepmann's "Life and Works" are simply excellent, immensely enjoyable to listen to over and over again, and the inserted music pieces from Naxos are done with very good quality, so you can really enjoy the music as the pieces are played. I can't recommend them more highly, including this marvelous set on Schubert. Five stars.

Not having known very much at all about Chopin, I cannot vouch for the accuracy in the Naxos entry in their CD and cassette Biography series; but I can vouch for the enjoyment <The Life and Works of Chopin> (NA 421912) afforded me. Written and produced by Jeremy Siepmann, this audio-bio not only tells the strange story of Chopin's life but also includes generous examples of his music, drawn from the bottomless pit of Naxos musical CDs. An excellent idea was to use actors for the voices of Chopin (Anton Lesser), George Sand and other females in his life (Elaine Claxton and Karen Archer), and other male acquaintances (Neville Jason). It is the kind of reading that would fascinate even if the work were fictional. His letters are particularly fascinating, especially as they are read dramatically by the small cast; and one would rather hear about all his faults--physical and psychological--from people who knew him well. Perhaps his strange epistolary relationship with his Titus is dwelt upon a bit too much, but such are the times (then and now). My only criticism in a negative direction is the length of the musical examples. I do not really think the entire "Revolutionary Etude" had to be played or the entire "Funeral March"; a minute or two with a fadeout would have been fine, especially on repeated hearings where one wants the facts. Nevertheless, highly recommended.

You don't have to know anything at all about Classical music in order to enjoy this audiobook.This is not a typical voice only audiobook -its a combination of audiobook and music. The story of Chopin's life is narrated in a very interesting way, and interspersed with extracts of the most beautiful piano music.I was able to enjoy the music all the more for being part of life story, and looked forward to the changes from narrative to music and back again. I would recommend to anybody who loves the sound of piano music!

Jeremy Siepmann has great knowledge and this biography on a great musician is wonderful. It mixes with the story of and some of his music, and the story is not really READ to you, but it's told - very, very good.