Despite its high opus number, this Rondo was written by Chopin when he was a student at the Warsaw Conservatory. Initially, he conceived it for solo piano but later arranged it for two pianos. The composer's effort in fashioning this second version may have had more to do with his doubts about the original work than with cavorting its ideas in another guise. Indeed, he never sought publication of either version in his lifetime, though the two-piano rendition finally reached print in Berlin in 1855, along with a number of other previously unpublished early compositions. While the work is of only minor musical consequence, it is of more than passing interest to musicologists and Chopin mavens because this is his only composition in the two-piano genre.
The work begins with an introduction that alternates fiery and ponderous moods. The main theme is then presented, a delicate, lively creation whose high spirits revel in both the dainty and the muscular. This is Chopin looking back toward the Classical era rather than forward to the Romantic movement, which, in fact, was already in bloom. Other ideas sprout from the main material before a second theme is introduced, including a lyrical melody of Slavic character that blossoms from its subdued melancholy at the outset to an almost epic demeanor later on. The main theme returns, as well as the other material for another go-round, and then the main theme makes a final appearance near the end, followed by a brilliant coda to close the piece.
This is a colorful, well-crafted, but lesser composition in Chopin's output. A typical performance of it lasts around eight minutes.
