Polish Music Reference Center Newsletter Vol. 3, no. 1
News
LUTOSLAWSKI: BREAKING CHAINS, a weekend of music, talks and films about the great composer who would have been 84 years old on January 25th. At the Barbican Center, London. Friday 17 – Sunday 19 January, 1997.
The BBC Symphony Orchestra opens with Chain II and Chain III, two of the pieces that lend their title to the whole weekend. Other performers: BBC National Orchestra of Wales, BBC Symphony Chorus, BBC Singers with Simon JOLLY, London Sinfonietta, Guildhall String Ensemble, Brindisi String Quartet, students from Guildhall School of Music. Conductors: Andrew DAVIS, Mark WIGGLESWORTH, Oliver KNUSSEN, Jacek KASPRZYK, Wojciech MICHNIEWSKI.
Violinists: Antje WEITHAAS and Clio GOULD. Pianists: Paul WATKINS, John CONSTABLE and Anthony ZERPA-FALCON. Sopranos: Valdine ANEDERSON, Claron MCFADDEN, Lucy SHELTON and Caroline CHILDE. Mezzo-soprano: Mary KING. Baritone: David WILSON-JOHNSON. Over thirty of LUTOSLAWSKI’s works (including all four symphonies) are scheduled for the afternoon and evening concerts.
In addition to concerts, the program includes workshops on LUTOSLAWSKI’s masterpieces Jeux Venitiens and the String Quartet, films with LUTOSLAWSKI‘s music and lectures by musicologists from Great Britain (Adrian THOMAS, John CASKEN, Bernard JACOBSON), Poland (Jozef PATKOWSKI) and the U.S. (Steven STUCKY).
Calendar of Events
JAN 18: Kazimierz KORD conducts the WARSAW PHILHARMONIC in LUTOSLAWSKI’s FOURTH SYMPHONY. California Center for the Arts, Escondido, California.
JAN 19: MUSIC OF SZYMANOWSKI. (Symphonies no. 3 and 4)
AMERICAN SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA. Leon BOTSTEIN, cond.
Avery Fisher Hall, New York.
JAN 19: THE KOSCIUSZKO FOUNDATION CHAMBER MUSIC SERIES.
Program 4. The BACHMANN-KLIBONOFF-FRIDMAN TRIO.
Kosciuszko Foundation Concert Hall. NY. 3:00 p.m.
FEB 18 and FEB 22 : POLISH PIECES. Dutch choreograhper Hans VAN MENEN’S work for 12 dancers set to music by Polish composer Henryk GORECKI performed by the ALVIN AILEY AMERICAN DANCE THEATRE. At the Wiltern Theatre at 8:00 p.m. on Feb.18 and at 2:00 p.m. & 8:00 p.m. on Feb. 22. Part of the UCLA CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS series . Tickets: $40, $37, $32, $13.
FEB 21 & 22: Piotr GAJEWSKI leads The NATIONAL CHAMBERORCHESTRA in GORECKI‘s Piano Concerto. Bryan GANZ,piano. Rockville, Maryland. 8:30 p.m.
FEB 21: ALL-CHOPIN RECITAL.
Mack MC CRAY, piano.
Celebrating Chopin’s birthday and the 10th anniversary of the San Francisco Chopin Council.
Old First Concerts, 1751 Sacramento st. San Francisco. 8:00 p.m. $9, $7.
FEB 23: THE KOSCIUSZKO FOUNDATION CHAMBER MUSIC SERIES.
Program 5. The CHESTER STRING QUARTET.
Kosciuszko Foundation Hall. NY. 3:00 p.m. Broadcast live.
MAR 7: MAZOWSZE Polish Folk Dance Ensemble.
At the Northrup Aud. Minneapolis, MN.
Selected Highlights in 1996!
1996 Nominations & Prizes
Poland’s highest award, the Polonia Restituta signed by former president Lech Walesa was received during 1996 in separate events by composer Marta PTASZYNSKA,Stefan and Wanda WILK (founders of the PMRC) and tireless promoter of composer S. MONIUSZKO, Maria FOLTYN, for their promotion of Polish music.
SZYMANOWSKI,Sonata for violin and piano nominated for a GRAMMY for best chamber performance. Performers: Chee YUN and Akira EGUCHI.
Polish film composer Zbigniew PREISNER nominated for a CAESAR Award.
Essa PEKKA-SALONEN’s recording of LUTOSLAWSKI’s music awarded a prize by the DEUTSCHE SCHALLPLATTENKRITIK for most artistically outstanding CD. Ditto for Polish mezzo-soprano Eva PODLES’ CD of Rossini arias.
First prize to Polish composer, Cezary SKUBISZEWSKI, (now living in Australia) for his film score to Jerzy Domaradzki’s Lilian’s story.
PRIX DE MUSES AWARD for best biography for the French version of T. ZIELINSKI’s book on CHOPIN.
Nominated for Best Polka Album Vocal or Instrumental: Jimmy STURR for I Love to Polka.
Dr. Michael KLEIN and Joseph W. ROVAN, JR. win the WILK PRIZES FOR RESEARCH IN POLISH MUSIC for their essays on LUTOSLAWSKI‘s music.
The Legion of Honor, the highest French Order was awarded to Witold LUTOSLAWSKI and signed by French President Mitterand in March of 1990. News of this honor was relayed to the late composer’s heir and stepson in 1996. A mystery!
The Polish choral group Ars Antiqua wins a Gold Medal and a Special Award at the First Felix Mendelssohn International Choral Competition in Dautphetal.
1996 Discoveries
A Quartet by Franciszek LESSEL (1780-1838) discovered at the French National Library.
Mieczyslaw HORSZOWSKI’s complete MOZART piano cycle unearthed and released.
Some Firsts In 1996
The FIRST INTERNATIONAL MUSICAL ENCOUNTERS IN CATALONIA organized by Polish composer Joanna BRUZDOWICZ in Ceret and Vallespir, France. Devoted to music of the first three democracies in the world: USA, Poland and France.
The FIRST GROBLICZ FAMILY INTERNATIONAL VIOLIN COMPETITION for younger artists (under 18 and under 22) in Krakow.
A new Chopin piano competition: THE CHOPIN INTERNATIONAL PIANO COMPETITION OF THE PACIFIC sponsored by the Polish Cultural Society of Hawaii.
The FIRST COMPETITION IN JAZZ COMPOSITION was won by Marcin MALECKI.
The FIRST SAN FRANCISCO CHOPIN COMPETITION FOR YOUNG PIANISTS sponsored by the Chopin Foundation of San Francisco.
The XI INTERNATIONAL HENRYK WIENIAWSKI VIOLIN COMPETITION has its own home page on the Internet.
Two CD-ROMs on CHOPIN released, one in Poland; one in the U.S.
The first book on Jozef KOFFLER by Maciej Golab published in Poland by Musica Iagellonica.
Polish pianist Piotr ANDERSZEWSKI records his first CD, playing violin and piano Sonatas with violinist Victoria MULLOVA.
Violinist Leila JOSEFOWICZ makes her recording debut on a Philips label.
Grazyna BACEWICZ’ sonatas for violin and piano recorded by Arnold BELNICK, violin and Sergei SILVANSKY, piano on CAMBRIA Records. Followed by a live concert at USC’s Hancock Auditorium.
1996 Books In English
Szymanowski as post-Wagnerian. The love songs of Hafiz. By British musicologist, Stephen C. DOWNES, former Wilk Prizes winner.
First book in English on Mieczyslaw KARLOWICZ. Written by British musicologist, Alistair WIGHTMAN. Published by Scolar Press.
Harvard U. Press publishes a new book on CHOPIN by Chopin specialist Jeffrey KALLBERG, also a former Wilk Prizes winner.
A new CHOPIN thematic-bibliographic catalog is published by G. Henle, USA.
1996 Premieres
Marta PTASZYNSKA’s Silver echoes of distant bells for mezzo soprano and string quartet received its world premiere. (Her Holocaust Memorial cantata is released on Polygram Records with Sir. Yehudi MENUHIN conducting).
The ballet, Iluminata by Jerzy SAPIEYEVSKI commissioned by the Washington Ballet and Choreographer Simon DOW received its premiere at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. last October.
World premiere of Eugeniusz KNAPIK’s opera, La liberta chiama la liberta at the Warsaw Autumn International Contemporary Music Festival.
SKROWACZEWSKI’s Chamber Concerto receives its Polish premiere at the same event.
1996 Miscellanea
UNESCO proclaims 1999 as the CHOPIN YEAR.
Annual PADEREWSKI Festival held in March in Paso Robles.
English pianist Angela LEAR vows to perform Chopin’s music as the composer intended!
HALKA, an opera by S. MONIUSZKO, was performed in Chicago in November.
Ursula DUDZIAK gave a benefit performance at the Kosciuszko Foundation in New York.
Krzysztof MEYER was the first composer-in-residence in Seattle, Washington in June.
Composer Wlodzimierz KOTONSKI lectured and conducted a work for ten Japanese instruments in Japan, commissioned by the Japanese ensemble Pro Musica Nipponia.
Star of the INTERNATIONAL JAZZ JAMBOREE 96 festival in Poland was Ray CHARLES. He was accompanied by the Lodz Philharmonic Symphony.
A festival of Polish Early Music organized by Marta PTASZYNSKA, was held at the Lincoln Center from March through May.
Polish Radio Concert Studio S-1 has been renamed after the late Witold LUTOSLAWSKI.
Polish grand dame of the piano, Halina CZERNY-STEFANSKA performed in Los Angeles and New York.
The famous mens’ and boys’ choir, POZNANSKIE SLOWIKI appeared in Washington, D.C. and other American cities.
Polka home pages appear on the Internet. First pioneered by Chris Szymczak with POLKANET.
1996 PMRC News
PMRC has its own page on the World Wide Web.
Dr. Maria Anna HARLEY arrives from Canada in September to assume post of new director of PMRC and joins the faculty of the School of Music as assistant professor of music history and literature department at USC.
In December 1996, our Home Page was selected the Best Site by the Polish World !!!
Did You Know That…
There are four Jan KIEPURA videos to select from?
Order from the BEL CANTO SOCIETY, Dept D5, 11 Riverside Dr., New York, NY 10023. 1-800-347-5056. $30 each + $4.75 shipping. Free catalog.
#667: My Song for You (Aida, Trovatore & songs).
#534: The Charm of La Boheme (with Marta EGGERTH).
#34:Ten Tenors ( BERGONZI, GIGLI, SCHIPA, TAGLIAVINI, etc.). KIEPURA sings
Turandot’s Act I finale.
#688: City of Song. Music by Enrico TAGLIAFERRI. Also TAUBER in Pagliacci.
Anniversaries
Composers born in January – for a list of birthdates see our January 1996 Newsletter.