Frederic Chopin (March 1, 1810-October 17, 1849) is one of the most famous, influential and admired composers for the piano, and Poland's most significant composer. He was born Fryderyk Franciszek Chopin, of French and Polish parentage in the village of Żelazowa Wola, Poland. In Warsaw he was hailed as a child prodigy for his keyboard and composition skill. He left for Paris at the age of 20, having already composed his two piano concertos, and never returned to Poland. In Paris, he made a career as a performer and teacher as well as a composer, and adopted the French variant of his name, "Frédéric-François". In 1836 he met the French writer George Sand, with whom he had a relationship for nine years until 1847. After suffering from poor health for much of his life, his condition forced him to give up performing and teaching shortly before he died.
Chopin's compositions, which are almost exclusively for the piano, include his Funeral March (part of his second piano sonata but composed long before the other parts) and the twenty-four études and are widely considered to be among the pinnacles of the piano repertoire. Although some of his music is among the most technically demanding for the instrument, Chopin's style emphasizes poetry, nuance, and expressive depth rather than mere technical display. He is often cited as one of the mainstays of Romanticism in nineteenth-century classical music.
