200 years years ago today, one of the great masters of Romantic music was born! His home country Poland will be rolling around. Special events and an opening of a newly renovated Chopin museum in Warsaw are planned. The city of Warsaw will be holding concerts, exhibitions and special events to honour his contribution to music all year long.

Ever notice how Chopin's first name is always spelled differently in different sources? This is due to the fact that his mother was French and his Father was Polish and therefore the spelling "Frédéric" is the French spelling and "Fryderyk" is the Polish spelling.

Personally, I think Chopin is most intriguing, because of the simple lyrical melodies that clearly pertain to certain moods. His music benefits from his effective use of essentuated "Rubato" (borrowed time).

I find Chopin's relationship with composer John Field to be quite interesting. Field was a great influence on Chopin, although much older. In his early years Chopin was often told that he sounded much like Field, and Field was also told he sounded "Chopinesque". Dissapointingly, Field wasn't quite a fan of Chopin and had even said that he was a “sickroom talent.” That however, didn't affect Chopin's view of John Field. He still admired his works and continued to take inspiration from him.