Chopin, Frédéric.

the working manuscript of the complete work in A flat, with extensive deletions and revisions, notated in dark brown ink on five two-stave systems per page, with revisions written in the margins, indicated repeats, and alterations to the time signature, and the autograph title-page, laid out by Chopin for the first edition ("Tarentelle pour pianoforte par F.Chopin, Oev [...] / Hambourg Chez Schubert et Cie/ Paris Chez Troupenas et Cie/ Londres Chez Wessel Cie"), with a note by Chopin to the copyist Fontana on p.6 ("...to napiszesz cala nute O."), two repeated passages indicated by  bar-numbers, comprising 234 bars in all, and initialled by the composer at the end



7 pages, oblong 4to (c.20 x 28cms), including autograph title, 14 staves, modern card wrappers, [Nohant, summer 1841], repaired (light silking), scorch-marks to upper margins (paper restored) with slight loss to the top outer corners throughout

Julian Fontana  (1810-1865), by descent.  

K. Kobylanska Rekopisy utworów Chopina, Katalog. Manuscripts of Chopin's Works, Catalogue (1977) no. 654; Chominski & Turlo (1990) no. 205.  M. Brown, Chopin, An Index of His Works (1972), p.142, ms (1);  F. Chopin,  Klavierstücke, edited by E. Herttrich (1978), p.28 & 114; Corréspondance de Frédéric Chopin, edited by B. v Sydow, no.410.

Condition is described in the main body of the cataloguing, where appropriate
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This is the only autograph manuscript of this mature work for piano. It is a major composition and a permanent fixture in the piano repertory.

It is a spectacular composing manuscript, with revised passages written in the free staves and on hand-drawn staves in the lower or side margins, Chopin having deleted the earlier versions with his characteristic heavy cross-hatching. 

Chopin composed the Tarantella in the summer of 1841 as an independent work with its own opus number, inspired, it seems, by Rossini's celebrated song La Danza (the 'Tarantella napolitana' from the Soirées musicales).  Chopin even asked Fontana to check the best edition of Rossini's "Tarentelle in A", to see if it was notated in 12/8 or 6/8, to ensure that his work followed Rossini's example. Chopin has in fact altered the time signature in his autograph to 6/8--presumably from 12/8, though it is difficult to read the original through his heavy deletion.

The Tarantella is a wild and relentless moto perpetuo, quite distinctive amongst Chopin's oeuvre. Schumann described it as being in "Chopin's most extravagant manner; we see before us the dancer, whirling as if possessed, until our senses reel. To be sure, nobody could call this music lovely, but we willingly forgive the master his wild fantasy.  For is he not once in a while permitted to display the dark side of his soul?..." (Schumann, Gesammelte Schriften, edited by M. Kreisig (1914), II, 151, [translation]).  

This manuscript has descended to the present owners from Julian Fontana. Chopin sent it to his friend and assistant  with instructions about making copies for the publishers and finding out what the correct opus number should be (letter to Fontana of 20 or 27 June 1841).  Fontana made at least three recorded copies of the Tarantella for publishers in Paris, London and Hamburg, of which only the Stichvorlage in Paris survives (it was once thought to be the autograph).  In the present manuscript, the title page is laid out by Chopin as it appears in the first edition by Troupenas.  The manuscript suffered damage during a bombing raid in 1941, but the scorch marks have been carefully repaired and the paper restored.  The tempo indication ["Presto"] has been lost at the beginning and a few notes elsewhere.

There are a few divergences from Herttrich's edition for Henle: the A at bar 60 (held over from bar 59) is not present.