The origins of Fryderyk Chopin’s connection with Czech culture date back to his early years, when his musical talent was nurtured, amongst others, by teachers of Czech descent. Even as a child, Chopin studied music under the guidance of Wojciech Żywy (Vojtěc Živný, 1757–1842), who, although he had been associated with Poland for many years, was originally from the Czech lands.

During his further musical education at the Warsaw Conservatoire, Chopin had the opportunity to study under Václav Vilém Würfl (1790–1832), a highly regarded Czech composer and pianist. Chopin dedicated his ‘Piano Concerto No. 4 in F major’ to Würfl. Furthermore, in the 1820s, Józef Javurek (1756–1840), also a Czech pianist, gave Chopin piano lessons. Even as a child, Chopin performed works by Czech composers (such as Vojtěch Jírovec). In his adult life, he maintained contact with eminent Czech musicians, such as Josef Slavík (1806–1833) and Josef Dessauer (1798–1876).

Fryderyk Chopin had the opportunity to visit the Czech lands four times – in 1829, 1830, 1835 and 1836. During these journeys, he visited cities and regions such as Prague, Teplice (Czech: Teplice), Duchcov, as well as the spa towns of Karlovy Vary and Mariánské Lázně. His first visits to Prague, which formed part of his journey to Vienna, were documented in entries in the *Prager Zeitung* dated 23 August 1829 and 23 November 1830.

One of the first Czech towns Chopin visited was Teplice, where, on 25 August 1829, at the request of the Aldringen family, the owners of the local castle, he gave an impromptu concert. Chopin returned to Cieplice during his subsequent travels, emphasising his interest in this spa town.

The composer also had the opportunity to visit historic sites such as Loket Castle and Děčín Castle, which belonged to Count František Antonín Thun, with whom Chopin became friends in 1834. The visit took place in September 1835 and resulted in the composition of the ‘Děčín Waltz’, whilst one of the rooms in the castle was dedicated to the composer.

However, it was Karlovy Vary that became the setting for one of the most romantic episodes in Chopin’s life, when his love for Maria Wodzińska blossomed in that town in 1836. It was also then that sketches and portraits of the composer depicting her were created.

Chopin’s visits to the Czech lands were not only opportunities for rest and socialising, but also significant moments in his artistic and personal life, which left a lasting mark both on his work and in the memory of the places he visited. Above all, however, Chopin’s music reached the Czech lands and became popular there. As early as 1836, the eminent pianist Alexander Dreyšok performed Chopin’s ‘Concerto in E minor’ in Prague. Experts highlight the influence that Chopin’s work may have had on the compositions of Bedřich Smetana, regarded as the father of Czech national music.

Chopin’s connections with the Czech lands, and above all the romantic thread of his feelings for Marianna Wodzińska, have been reflected in literature, both Polish and Czech. Jarosław Iwaszkiewicz, Jerzy Broszkiewicz and Juliusz Kaden-Bandrowski are just some of the authors who have referred to Chopin’s life and work in their writings. In the Czech Republic, one such author was Kamil Bednář, who, in his 1962 book *Chopin v Mariánských Lázních* (1962), recounts the story of Chopin’s stay in Mariánské Lázně, supplemented by illustrations by Ludmila Jiřincová depicting, amongst other things, the composer himself.

Fryderyk Chopin’s legacy in the Czech Republic remains alive and well, thanks to a variety of initiatives and venues dedicated to preserving his musical legacy. One of the most significant events is the Chopin music festival held in Mariánské Lázně, which attracts lovers of Chopin’s work from all over the world. Furthermore, Mariánské Lázně is home to the Fryderyk Chopin Museum, which pays tribute to the composer and his connection with the town.

There are also commemorative plaques in the Czech Republic marking various stages of Chopin’s life and work. In Prague, the National Museum houses the original ‘Prague Mazurka in G major’ from 1829, which is a priceless testament to his stay in the city. In Cieplice, meanwhile, there is a plaque on the piano on which Chopin played in 1829, serving as a historical marker at this site.

Unfortunately, not all artefacts associated with Chopin have stood the test of time. In 1945, during the evacuation of Děčín, both the piano on which Chopin gave concerts and the manuscript of the ‘Děčín Waltz’ went missing, which represents a loss to our cultural heritage.

The history of Chopin’s stays in the Czech Republic is described in detail in the article ‘Chopin’s Heritage Sites in the Czech Republic’ by Witold Strauss, published on the chopin.pl website.

Sites associated with Frédéric Chopin in the Czech Republic

Monuments

Fryderyk Chopin monument in Bohumín
1962
Sandstone (monument), metal (plaque), black igneous rock (second plaque)
Štefánikova Street, at the junction with Masarykova Street, Bohumín

Monument in the form of a boulder (sandstone), with a metal plaque on the front depicting Chopin’s head in profile, turned to the left, with an inscription below. Beneath this plaque is a second plaque made of black igneous rock (diorite?) bearing an inscription with letters filled in with gold paint.

Inscriptions:

• on the plaque: FRYDERYK CHOPIN //.
• on the plaque: Měst. N.V. - PZKO / 1962 //.

Fryderyk Chopin Monument in Mariánské Lázně
Karl Otáhal
1960
Masarykova Street, Mariánské Lázně

The monument takes the form of a boulder on a plinth. On the front of the boulder is a rectangular metal plaque with a cast inscription. Fitted into the upper part of the plaque is a medallion that rises above the height of the plaque. The medallion features a bust of the composer framed by an inscription. The image depicts Chopin in profile, facing to the right. His features are delicately outlined.

Inscriptions:

• on the front: FRYDERYK CHOPIN / 1810–1849 / ON THE 150TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE BIRTH / OF THE BRILLIANT POLISH / COMPOSER, IN MEMORY OF / HIS STAY IN OUR / TOWN IN 1836 / TO MARK THE 150TH ANNIVERSARY / OF THE BIRTH OF THE GENIUS / COMPOSER / POLISH COMPOSER, IN MEMORY / OF HIS STAY IN OUR / TOWN IN 1836 //.
• Below is a smaller inscription referring to the restoration of the monument in 1989 (when the old plaque was replaced with a new one): RESTORED BY THE MUNICIPALITY OF N.V. / MARIÁNSKÉ LÁZNĚ 1989 //.
• On the medallion: FRYDERYK CHOPIN – * 22 February 1810 ŽELAZOWA / WOLA + 17 October 1849 IN PARIS //.

Monument commemorating Fryderyk Chopin’s stay on Mount Orlica
Mount Orlica, Oleśnica in the Orlické Mountains

Orlica is a mountain on the Polish–Czech border, though its summit, where the monument stands, is on the Czech side.

Plaques

A plaque commemorating Chopin’s stay in Karlovy Vary
Antoni Popiel (original), Marcel Hron and Michaela Absolonov (replica)
4 July 1908 (unveiled; removed in the 1970s due to its poor condition and probably reinstalled in the 1990s; stolen in 2003 and replaced with a replica in 2007)
Marble (plaque), bronze (medallion)
Goethe Footbridge, Mariánskolázeňská 580/31, Karlovy Vary

A marble plaque with a bas-relief portrait medallion featuring a bust of Chopin. Rectangular, tapering at the top, with a gable roof. Rectangular cut-outs on the sides and at the bottom; the cut-out at the bottom is decorated with a cuboid frieze. At the top, a stylised lyre is inscribed into the plaque. In the centre, a bronze medallion framed by a laurel wreath is inscribed within it, depicting a bust of Chopin shown in left profile. The wreath is rendered in high relief, whilst the bust is in low relief. Below the medallion, an inscription is engraved on the plaque, with the letters filled in with gold paint. There are four copper knobs on the plaque. The monument is situated in the spa woods along the ‘Chopin Trail’.

The plaque was commissioned on the initiative of the Viennese MP Włodzimierz Gniewoski, who founded a committee for the construction of monuments to Chopin and Mickiewicz and began a fundraising campaign for this purpose. Originally, the bust was to be placed on the house ‘Pod Złotą Różą’ (No. 141) on Vřídelní Street, where Chopin lived in 1835.

Inscription: FRYDERYK CHOPIN / 1835 //.

Plaques at the Chopin School in Mariánské Lázně
Vítězslav Eibl (creator of the bust)
1978 (unveiling)
Chopin School, Lužická 412, Mariánské Lázně

The composition consists of two separate plaques. The upper one, featuring a bust of Chopin, and the lower one, bearing an inscription in flat relief. Both plaques are rectangular; the upper one is positioned vertically, whilst the lower, smaller one is horizontal, and both are made of bronze. The upper panel features a bust of the composer in flat relief, shown in a slight profile, facing to the right. The image is characterised by delicate yet distinct features, such as the precisely defined lines of the face, the hair and the clothing. His hair is of medium length, falling in smooth strands. His attire appears to be the upper part of a frock coat, with a tied bow tie visible beneath his neck.

The school was founded in 1926 and was named after Fryderyk Chopin in 1978.

Inscription: LIDOVÁ ŠKOLA UMĚNÍ / F. CHOPINA //.

A plaque commemorating Chopin’s stay at the ‘Black Horse’ hotel (“Černý kůň”) in Prague
Maria Durasova (sculptor)
1961 (unveiling)
Bronze
Senovážná 12, Prague

A rectangular bronze plaque of varying depth, giving it a slightly undulating appearance, with a rough-textured border at the top. It features a frontal depiction of a bust of Chopin in his youth, executed in deep relief. Chopin is depicted with distinctive facial features, slightly wavy hair, and a scarf tied around his neck. Below is an inscription in relief with polished gold letters.

Inscription: FRYDERYK / CHOPIN / CREATOR OF POLISH NATIONAL MUSIC / LIVED IN 1829 AND 1830 IN THE HOUSE / WHICH ONCE STOOD ON THIS SITE //. (Fryderyk Chopin, the creator of Polish national music, lived in 1829 and 1830 in the house which stood on this site; erected in 1961).

Other

The Chopin Museum in the former ‘Pod bílým labutem’ guesthouse in Mariánské Lázně
1960 (opening)
Hlavní tř. 47, Mariánské Lázně

On 31 July 1902, two plaques made of dark granite from Silesia were unveiled on the building to commemorate Chopin, bearing inscriptions in Czech, Polish and French, stating that Chopin lived in this house in 1836. Indeed, Chopin spent several weeks there, accompanying his fiancée Maria Wodyńska and her family. The plaques were made in Kraków. The initiative to install them on the building came from the Music Society in Warsaw. The plaques were funded by public donations and placed on either side of the building’s entrance. The building has been the Chopin House since 1952, and since 10 June 1959 it has been home to one of the oldest Chopin societies. In 1959, a bronze plaque was placed in front of the entrance to commemorate Chopin’s stay at the spa; it features a profile of Chopin’s head – a simplified version of Antoni Popiel’s sculpture in Karlovy Vary – and the inscription: ZDE ŽIL 1836 / FRYDERYK CHOPIN / TVŮRCE POLSKÉ / NÁRODNÍ HUDBY //. (Fryderyk Chopin, the creator of Polish national music, lived here in 1836). The plaque was created by the sculptor A. Kuchař. The museum opened in 1960, and the first exhibition was curated by Josef Vlčka and the painter Osvald Klapper. The building underwent renovation in 1974–1977 and 2021–2023; the reopening of the exhibition is planned for 2024. The museum houses, amongst other things, a plaster cast of the composer’s left hand and a copy of his death mask, a medallion featuring a bust of the composer, and other small memorabilia. There is another important aspect associated with the activities of the Chopin Society – the posters that accompanied its successive editions, which were designed by renowned Czech graphic artists such as Osvald Kapper and Jiří Anderle.