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The New York Times reports this morning that a never-before-heard piece by the Polish composer Frédéric Chopin has been discovered.
The Times reports that the work was discovered on a small scrap of paper in a vault at the Morgan Library & Museum in Manhattan back in the spring, and that experts in handwriting and musical scholarship have confirmed its authenticity. The piece is said to have been written sometime between 1830 and 1835, when Chopin was living in Paris.
Per the Times, The Morgan Museum believes that the miniature piece was acquired by A. Sherill Whiton, a director at the New York School of Interior Design. According to Whiton’s son, who is quoted by the Times, A. Sherrill was fond of Chopin’s music and would play it as an escape.
The piece, a short waltz in the key of A minor, was also performed at the request of the Times by the international superstar pianist Lang Lang at Steinway Hall. According to him, the piece is “one of the most authentic Chopin styles that you can imagine.”
You can watch Lang Lang's performance of the newly-discovered waltz by Chopin here.