It is perfectly obvious that Frederic Chopin’s favorite instrument was the piano. However, if we were looking for another instrument dear to the heart of our national composer, we would have to point to the cello. For this reason, seeking a fresh take on his music by transcribing it for this particular instrument is a welcome endeavour. The latest album of the Polish Cello Quartet is devoted to arrangements of Frederic Chopin’s works for this line-up created by leading Polish composers and arrangers.

Chopin not only composed for the cello (it is enough to mention the wonderful Sonata op. 65), but he may have played it as well. “It was almost 11 o’clock when Frycowa brought a basset worse than a violin, with only one string. When I got to the dusty string, when I started to bass, I was pounding so hard that everyone came to look…” – fifteen-year-old Frederic reported in a letter to his mother from his stay in the countryside. He did not mention the cello though, but a folk instrument resembling the cello in the shape and playing style – the basset, or bass.

Throughout his life, Chopin was friends with cellists. Among them, two important figures deserve attention: Prince Antoni Radziwiłł, governor of the Grand Duchy of Poznań, a proficient cellist and talented composer, a kind protector of the young artist, and Auguste Franchomme – a French cellist, composer and Chopin’s close friend. Chopin accompanied and dedicated his works for cello to them both.

The first transcriptions of Chopin’s works for this instrument were made in the 19th century by Karl Davydov, David Popper, Aleksandr Krein and Antoni Orlovsky. All told, several thousand of them have been written. The authors of the latest arrangements performed by the Polish Cello Quartet are Sabina Meck, Piotr Moss, and Leszek Kołodziejski. Prepare for an unforgettable night.