National Song op. 12 nr 8

Claude Debussy was a great admirer of Chopin's music, and oversaw these editions for Durand in 1915. Includes a brief introduction by Debussy and a historical article. The term 'polonaise refers to a dance in triple time of Polish origin and, by extension, to an instrumental piece most commonly characterized, in the definitive phase of its development, by the rhythm. The dance originally drew on the traditional music sung at Polish weddings and other festive occasions. Later, the traditional dance with sung text was adopted by the Polish nobility and became a slow instrumental dance such as might suit a majestic procession. This flowering of the polonaise within the aristocracy encouraged, from the late seventeenth century, its international diffusion into other European courts. The French name 'polonaise' was generally employed in the eighteenth century. The from was fixed as a ternary ABA structure, the central section acting as a trio before a da capo reprise of the first part.