Description

The Nocturne in E minor was written as early as 1827 and is among Chopin's juvenile works that were published only after his death. Chopin's long-time confidant and assistant, Julian Fontana, published a considerable number of previously unreleased compositions as "Oeuvres posthumes" in the mid-1850s, ensuring he would faithfully edit them according to the composer's manuscripts. However, in the case of the E-minor Nocturne, there are no surviving manuscript sources. We are therefore grateful that Fontana's edition has allowed us to become acquainted with this charming and melodious early work by Chopin. Our own Urtext edition is based on Fontana's publication.