The Reception of Chopin and His Music in Polish Society

It is broadly believed in Poland that Chopin is the greatest Polish composer. Interestingly, the results of research presented in this paper indicate that neither his life nor his music is well known by the mass audience in Poland. The collected data allowed for examination of Polish listeners' attitudes toward Chopin's figure and his music. I specifically focused here on both positive and negative criteria used by respondents to evaluate Chopin's music, because they allow an insight into what constitutes the music taste and preferences of Polish society and they are also a reflection of the cultural activity of Polish society. Moreover, the results of this study indicate social factors that influence how music tastes and preferences are being shaped in Polish society.