A Narrative Concert Honouring Chopin’s Scottish Muse
On 24 October, the Low Parks Museum in Hamilton hosted a unique narrative concert devoted to Jane Stirling — the Scottish pupil, patron, and posthumous guardian of Frédéric Chopin’s legacy.
Pianist Anna Dębowska and narrator Marcin Jaroszek guided the audience through the intertwined lives of Stirling and Chopin, retracing his 1848 journey to Scotland through music, letters, and storytelling.
At the heart of the evening was the world premiere of Jane Stirling Variations (2025) by Philip Czaplowski, an Australian composer of Polish descent. Commissioned by Dębowska, the work takes Chopin’s Nocturne in F minor, Op. 55 No. 1—dedicated to Jane Stirling—as the basis for a contemporary reflection on Romantic devotion.
“I wanted to stay close to Chopin’s language,” Czaplowski explains, “but also introduce modern rhythmic and harmonic elements that remind us this is not nineteenth-century music.” The variations incorporate moments of dissonance, asymmetry, and suspended endings that echo both Chopin’s fragility and Stirling’s enduring reverence.
Blending Chopin’s own works with Czaplowski’s new composition, the performance offered a moving portrait of artistic friendship — of a composer and the woman who preserved his memory with unwavering care.
Tender, introspective, and luminous, the Jane Stirling Variations left the audience with the sense that Chopin’s spirit had returned, briefly, to Scotland.
Programme:
F. Chopin
Nocturne No 1 in F minor, Op. 55
Etude No 12 in C minor, Op. 10
Nocturne in C sharp minor, Op. posth.
Prelude No 15 in D flat major, Op. 28
Nocturne No 2 in E flat major, Op. 55
Mazurka No 3 in C major, Op. 67
Prelude No 20 in C minor, Op. 28
P. Czapłowski
Jane Stirling Variations (World Premiere)
On 23 October 2025 at Wishaw Golf Club, the delicate strains of Chopin’s music once again echoed across the grounds that were once part of the Wishaw House estate — the very place where the composer stayed during his visit to Scotland in 1848 under the care of Jane Stirling.
The occasion was the launch of Gerry Carr’s new book, From Warsaw to Wishaw, a title that fittingly captures the spirit of connection between Poland and Scotland that lies at the heart of the Jane Stirling Project. Though the venue is today more often associated with sport than with art, the choice of location could not have been more symbolic. The Wishaw Golf Club now occupies what was once the heart of the Stirling family’s estate — the grounds that once welcomed Chopin himself.
The evening began with a performance by Anna Dębowska, whose interpretations of Chopin’s works filled the space with warmth and reflection. In this unexpected setting — amid the quiet of the golf club — Chopin’s music took on a special intimacy, linking the past to the present through sound alone.
Adding to the evening’s sense of continuity and symbolism was the presence of Lady Belhaven and Stenton, wife of the last owner of Wishaw House. Her attendance was more than ceremonial — it represented a living connection between the heritage of the estate and the renewed effort to keep its cultural story alive.
Marcin Jaroszek gave a short address on the occasion, reflecting on the shared strands of Polish and Scottish history and on the importance of Wishaw in Chopin’s final journey. I spoke of how both nations have known resilience in adversity, and how music — like friendship — often travels quietly, finding new places to belong.
The event was not only a celebration of a new book but also a reaffirmation of the mission of the Jane Stirling Project to preserve and deepen the understanding of Jane Stirling’s role in Chopin’s life, and to highlight the enduring cultural links between our two countries. Holding the event on the very grounds of the former Wishaw House brought that mission full circle — back to where history first unfolded.
As the final notes of Chopin’s music faded into the autumn air, there was a sense that the story of From Warsaw to Wishaw had come home — not only as a historical narrative, but as a living connection.
It was, in every sense, a return — from the heart of Poland to the heart of Scotland.
