Frédéric Chopin's Piano Sonata No. 2 in B-flat minor, Op. 35, popularly known as The Funeral March, was completed in 1839 at Nohant, near Châteauroux in France. However, the third movement, whence comes the sonata's common nickname, had been composed as early as 1837. The Sonata is considered to be one of the greatest masterworks of the nineteenth century. The third movement Marche funèbre: Lento begins and ends with the celebrated funeral march in B-flat minor which gives the sonata its nickname, but has a calm interlude in D-flat major. The emotive "funeral march" has become well known in popular culture. It was used at the state funerals of John F. Kennedy, Sir Winston Churchill and Margaret Thatcher. It was also played in the funeral of the Spanish poet Miguel Hernández and at the graveside during Chopin's own burial at Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris.
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