That's Mr. Chopin to you

"In my view, the only way to bring the piano to life is to infuse every note that you play with your soul ."

And with those words, the lesson begins. In Hershey Felder’s new one-man show, ‘‘Monsieur Chopin,’’ he brings to life the great 19th-century Polish pianist-composer Frederic Chopin with an artful blend of live music and vivid storytelling. He is the teacher, and we in the audience are the students.

‘‘Monsieur Chopin,’’ making its East Coast premiere tonight, is the second in a trilogy of one-man musical plays about great composers. An actor, composer, concert artist, and former scholar in residence at Harvard, Felder has created a genre-defying format that integrates live performances with theatrical portrayal, illuminating both the music and the composer. His first piece, ‘‘George Gershwin Alone,’’ had 2,500 performances from Los Angeles to London, including sold-out performances at Cambridge’s American Repertory Theatre in 2002 and 2003. The final production work will focus on Beethoven and is set to premiere in Chicago in February.

‘‘Monsieur Chopin’’ was actually the first of the three works Felder began. The son of Polish immigrants, Felder feels an affinity with the composer. And in performance, with his impeccably cut morning coat, tousled mane of reddish hair, and dazzling pianist skills, the similarities to the ‘‘poet of the piano’’ are striking.

‘‘It’s just an illusion,’’ Felder says during an interview in which he occasionally rushes to the piano to illustrate his point. ‘‘I believe in observing and imitation in context but always being honest. I just have this desperate need for the audience to be allowed into the story and the context of where this great music comes from.’’

And Chopin’s story is an especially compelling one. The premise of the show is an actual piano lesson that took place at Chopin’s salon at 9 Square d’Orleans in Paris just days after the February 1848 revolution. As the lesson unfolds, the reclusive, intensely emotional musician offers insight into the art of composition and piano playing, while slowly revealing his own character and some of the crucial aspects of his life. He discusses, for instance, his heartbreaking romance with the female novelist George Sand and his ongoing struggle with what is believed to have been bipolar disorder.

‘‘The story is about how he brings the piano to life,’’ Felder explains, ‘‘and he talks about his soul and how it relates to his music. And his illness significantly affected his outlook and his playing. He was able to express the ups and downs of his illness in his music.’’

In one pivotal scene, Felder’s Chopin recalls the funeral bells during the burial of his beloved young sister and seamlessly segues into the famous ‘‘Funeral March.’’ It nearly gives you goose bumps. But there’s also humor in the show. Chopin was a notorious mimic, and Felder has his character bring to life a variety of unseen guests, such as Franz Liszt. Holograms visually suggest other people and places important in Chopin’s life.

Directed by filmmaker Joel Zwick (‘‘My Big Fat Greek Wedding’’), the show is in two parts. Following the lesson, Felder presents an interactive salon, playing more music, singing, and answering questions: ‘‘Chopin was a great actor, and I do that,’’ Felder says. ‘‘I become whatever characters in the play the audience wants me to be.’’

With the help of noted Chopin scholar Jeffrey Kallberg, Felder created the script based on scrupulous research around the world, including manuscript study, investigations into period history, and stays in residences where Chopin once lived. ‘‘I may give words to the character, but the basis is in history,’’ Felder says. ‘‘It’s top-of-the-line academia.’’

But as with Felder’s other shows, ‘‘Monsieur Chopin’’ is not just aimed at the musically knowledgeable.

‘‘In the beginning, it was entertainment, but as it’s developed, it is a way to bring classical music to a public not so keen on going [to concerts]. It makes the music accessible,’’ he says.

While he bemoans the marginalization of classical music in this country, Felder also reveals his delight at discovering a blog by two teenage girls discussing how they initially resisted going to ‘‘Monsieur Chopin.’’ It was, after all, about a guy they had never heard of, but they quickly were drawn into the play’s magic and went home making up songs to his music.

‘‘It’s so heartening to see that,’’ Felder says. ‘‘I don’t fancy myself any kind of genius, but I feel a little Bernstein-esque in this need to teach and share.’’