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The piano, then, was of central importance
in his œuvre. He wrote many sets of music
for the instrument, among them the thirteen
Nocturnes, the thirteen Barcarolles, the eight
Pièces brèves
, the nine
Préludes
and the five
Impromptus, toname only themost significant.
It is also noteworthy that the piano is a
singular driving force in his substantial corpus
of chamber music, which includes two violin
sonatas, two cello sonatas, a trio, two quartets
and two quintets, all of them featuring the
keyboard instrument; only at the very end of
his life did he compose a solitary string quartet.
PHILIPPE CASSARD 23