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Rating: 
Summary: Good, but not essential
Review: I was given this book by my piano teacher. Apparently it's a 1975 hard cover reprint (the book was originally published in 1952, probably in French).This is not an exhaustive biography of Chopin; it only illuminates certain parts of his life, and only deals with a few characteristics of his artistry. The most interesting chapter is Chopin the Pedagogue, in which the author writes about Chopin's relationship with his students, among other things. We learn some interesting facts in this book: Chopin never had real, technical piano instruction. He was nearly entirely self-taught (an affirmation I have some trouble believing). His hands were very small, which is also very surprising, considering that some of his compositions have very wide chords that require quite a bit of "gymnastics" on the part of the performer. Finally, Chopin wasn't able to extract a huge sound from the piano, unlike his contemporary Liszt. His concerts were comparatively quiet, and his sonority subdued, but fascinatingly poetic. Also of interest are Chopin's letters, which give us a good idea of his personality and his daily problems, grievances and hopes. But there is an entire volume dedicated to them -- this book merely gives us some interesting tidbits here and there. The book has many typographical errors, including some truncated sentences. The translation (or the original, who knows) has very convoluted language at times. This is certainly an outdated translation that hasn't been revised or edited since it was first published. As a result, I don't recommend this book as a first step for somebody wishing to learn more about the composer. There are better books out there. This one is perhaps of interest because Alfred Cortot is a great pianist in his own right, and a good performer (or so I'm told) of Chopin's works.
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