Chopin’s Waltz No. 14 in E minor (Presented here in A minor), often called the “Posthumous Waltz,” is a fascinating work with a delicate history and a striking emotional profile. Found among Chopin’s personal papers, it was likely intended as a private piece or a gift - the kind of intimate music that naturally lends itself to the guitar’s expressive voice.

Composed around 1830, the waltz captures Chopin at a pivotal moment in his life. At about twenty, living in Warsaw and already admired as a prodigious talent, he had just completed his studies under Józef Elsner, who praised his “musical genius.” This was the period of his two piano concertos, early mazurkas, and polonaises - works that blended Polish folk color with Romantic lyricism. Chopin was performing in salons, moving in elite artistic circles, and shaping the musical identity that would define his career.

Only weeks after writing this waltz, Poland erupted in a nationalist uprising against Russian rule. Chopin left Warsaw for Vienna in October 1830, believing it was a temporary trip, unaware he would never return. The revolt shook him deeply. His letters from this time reveal anxiety, guilt, and a profound longing for home - emotions that would later surface in works like the “Revolutionary Étude.”

This waltz sits precisely at that crossroads: between youth and exile, between the comfort of home and the uncertainty of artistic destiny. It feels like a quiet echo of Warsaw just before the storm.

More a musical soliloquy than a dance, the piece turns inward rather than outward. It lacks the glitter of Chopin’s salon waltzes, offering instead a glimpse into his private emotional world. Its sense of longing and impermanence resonates strongly on the guitar, where the instrument’s natural warmth and shading can bring out the waltz’s introspective, almost confessional character.

Score: 7 pages

Comments: 4 pages

Below is a link to Youtube which will allow you to get an idea of what this piece sounds like on the piano. (Performed by Valentina Lisitsa)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5-UOUvcgvUk&list=RD5-UOUvcgvUk&start_radio=1

(Don´t worry about the tempo: it does not need to be played this fast on the guitar)

Over the coming months, I will be playing short excerpts from all pieces listed in this catalogue on classical guitar myself and post them on my Youtube channel, titled:

Michael De Baker Arrangements for Classical Guitar.

Thanks for tuning in. Wishing you much musical enjoyment and many rewarding hours with our instrument, the classical guitar.

Michael

Contact. If you’d like to reach out - whether about repertoire, arrangements, or upcoming projects - feel free to email me at mdebakerclassicalguitar@use.startmail.com