Ex. 3-3: Życzenie

No. 1 of Chopin's Polish Songs (Op. 74), composed c. 1829 to a poem by Stefan Witwicki, a friend of Chopin's family. Chopin wrote 19 songs in total, but only two were published in his lifetime — this song and "Wojak" (The Warrior), both in Kyiv in 1837 and 1839.

After Chopin's death in 1849, his friend Julian Fontana collected 17 songs and published them as Op. 74 in 1857. Due to censorship restrictions, only 16 could be published initially. Two more songs appeared in 1910.

Franz Liszt used this melody as No. 2 of his Glanes de Woronince (1847), and also transcribed it for piano solo as No. 1 of his Six Chants polonais (S.480). Chopin himself used a motif from the song in his Nocturne in C-sharp minor.

Track 1 from the album Chopin, F.: Songs by Joanna Kozlowska and Waldemar Malicki (2010)