Then he went to
Dresden and later to Leipzig, playing privately for Schumann,
Clara Wieck, Wenzel and Mendelssohn. Schumann gushes over Chopin,
but this friendliness was never reciprocated. On his return to
Paris Chopin visited Heidelberg, where he saw the father of his
pupil, Adolphe Gutmann, and reached the capital of the civilized
world the middle of October.
Meanwhile a love affair had occupied his attention in Dresden. In
September, 1835, Chopin met his old school friends, the
Wodzinskis, former pupils at his father's school. He fell in love
with their sister Marie and they became engaged. He spoke to his
father about the matter, and for the time Paris and his ambitions
were forgotten. He enjoyed a brief dream of marrying and of
settling near Warsaw, teaching and composing--the occasional
dream that tempts most active artists, soothing them with the
notion that there is really a haven of rest from the world's
buffets. Again the gods intervened in the interest of music. The
father of the girl objected on the score of Chopin's means and
his social position--artists were not Paderewskis in those days--
although the mother favored the romance.
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