by Tyrone Greive
Part I: Kochański’s Life and Manuscripts
1. Biographical Sketch
2. Overview of Collaborations
3. Manuscripts and Career
Part II: Studies of the Manuscript Collection
4. Collaboration with Szymanowski
5. Kochański’s Creative Work Habits
6.Markings in Manuscripts
7. Conclusions
Part I: Kochański’s Life and Manuscripts
110 years after his birth Polish violinist Paul Kochański is remembered mostly for the technical assistance he gave composer Karol Szymanowski; however, the violinist collaborated with other important composers as well. Patterns in the type of work habits and attitudes which Kochański brought to these collaborations are suggested by examining the violinist’s endeavors in the following steps: (1) a biographical sketch outlining Kochański’s professional importance and qualifications including (2) an overview of his collaborations, (3) the relationship between the violinist’s personal manuscript collection and his career, and, in the second part of this paper, (4) connections between the collection and Szymanowski’s violin writing of 1915-16, (5) Kochański’s work habits and (6) attitudes as reflected through the collection, as well as (7) conclusions offering insights into his collaborative work.
1. Biographical Sketch
Paul [Paweł] Kochański was born in Orel, Russia on September 14, 1887. After starting the violin with his father he began his formal training at the age of 7 in Odessa, where he studied with Emil Młynarski, a Polish student of Leopold Auer. In 1897 Kochański went with Młynarski to Warsaw; when the latter became director of the Warsaw Philharmonic in 1901, his fourteen-year-old student was appointed concertmaster. In 1903 Kochański pursued further studies with César Thomson at the Brussels Conservatoire, where he was awarded the first prize after only a few months.
That Kochański successfully established and sustained an international solo concert career during a period when there were many excellent concertizing violinists with large followings—e. g. Elman, Enesco, Heifetz, Huberman, Kreisler, Powell, Spalding, Szigeti, Thibaud and Zimbalist—is in itself evidence that he was a unique artist. His concert reviews reveal that beyond his abilities as a violinist he possessed “sterling musical qualities and [an] absence of sensationalist methods”[1]and that it was as a “musician and interpreter that he won” his audiences.[2] .”
Kochański was esteemed by other musicians as well. German violinist Carl Flesch described Kochański as an “inimitable interpreter,”[3] and fellow violinists’ tributes at the time of his death included such statements as “. . . [one of the world’s] most distinguished artists” (Mischa Elman), “. . . not only a great artist but a great person” (Efrem Zimbalist), and “a fine colleague and valued friend.” (Jascha Heifetz).[4]English violist Lionel Tertis regarded Kochański as “brilliant”,[5]and Artur Rubinstein, a close life-long friend and frequent recital partner, wrote that from the beginning they played together as if musically they had been “made for each other.”[6]Furthermore, Kochański frequently performed chamber music with many outstanding musicians such as Pablo Casals, Eugene Goossens and Fritz Kreisler. Possessing a strong sense of humor, Kochański was also often included in musically-important social events. Hence, when the violinist prematurely died from cancer in 1934, “more than 1500 mourners including nearly every prominent musician in New York” attended his memorial, and 41 internationally-known personalities of the music world comprised the list of honorary pallbearers.[7]
On the basis of his relatively few recordings of mostly miniature works, in which he was a specialist,[8] Kochański’s playing can be described as reflecting his training through “a marvellous blend of the Russian school as represented by Auer’s finest pupils and the older, grandly romantic Belgian school as epitomized by [Eugčne] Ysaďe.”[9]Moreover, unlike many violinists of his day, Kochański’s playing was both musically and technically oriented toward late twentieth-century standards.[10]How Kochański’s musicianship transcended the violin itself has been described in a recollection of when the violinist expressively sang most of Franz Schubert’s Die Winterreise “with his small, well-trained voice and intensity of expression.”[11]
As a performer Kochański become known for his interest in new music. In addition to his brilliant interpretations of Szymanowski’s music, he presented works by many other composers of the time such as Ernest Bloch’s First Sonata and the revised version of Arnold Bax’s First Sonata for Violin and Piano. Among his last public appearances is the first New York performance of Sergei Prokofiev’s Sonata for Two Violins, which took place in April 1933 (with Louis Persinger).[12]
The virtuoso violinist also taught throughout his career. Beginning in 1909 at the age of 21, he was professor of violin at the Warsaw Conservatory for two years, and between 1916 and 1918 he succeeded Leopold Auer at the Imperial Conservatory in St. Petersburg. After teaching at the Kiev Conservatory between 1919 and 1920 and immigrating to the United States in 1921, Kochański taught at the Juilliard School from 1924 until his death. In addition to demonstrating a serious approach to violin pedagogy,[13]these appointments were also instrumental in making contacts with other musical artists.
Finally, Paul Kochański was also a composer and arranger. In more than one case, Kochański’s transcriptions represent a personal connection with the original composer. For example, in 1907 Kochański had not only performed in Bilbao with Manuel de Falla as pianist[14]but also financially assisted the Spaniard to go to Paris,[15] thus furthering the latter’s professional growth. The transcription of de Falla’s Siete canciones populares espanolas for voice and piano (1914-15), for which the violin and piano parts were revised by Kochański and the composer, respectively, [16]also lists the violinist as a dedicatee.[17]Retitled Suite populaire espagnole, the work is among the most popular of Kochański many transcriptions.[18]
A chronology of Kochański’s published work is shown in Table 1.[19]
Table I. Paul Kochański’s Compositions and Transcriptions
| COMPOSER | TITLE | PUBLISHER(S) | YEAR |
| Nicolo Paganini | Campanella | Carl Fischer | 1922 |
| Alexander Glazunov | Melodie Arabe | Carl Fischer | 1923 |
| Fryderyk Chopin | Mazurka, Op. 6, No.3 | Carl Fischer | 1923 |
| Paul Kochański (vln.) Karol Szymanowski (pno.) | Danse sauvage [Wild Dance] | Carl Fischer | 1925 |
| Paul Kochański (vln.) Karol Szymanowski (pno.) | L’Aube [The Dawn] | Carl Fischer | 1925 |
| Manuel de Falla | Suite populaire espagnole | Max Eschig | 1925 |
| Joaquin Nin | Chants d’Espagnole | Max Eschig | 1926 |
| Karol Szymanowski | Roxana’s Song from King Roger | Universal Edition | 1926 |
| Maurice Ravel | Pavane pour une infante défunte | Max Eschig | 1927 |
| Paul Kochański | Flight (Caprice) | Carl Fischer | 1928 |
| Manuel de Falla | Danse rituelle du feu [Ritual Fire Dance] tirée de El amor brujo | Max Eschig | c.1930 |
| Franz Schubert | Impromptu, Op. 90, No. 4 | Carl Fischer | 1930 |
| Karol Szymanowski | Dance from Harnasie | Universal Edition | 1931 |
| Karol Szymanowski | Kurpie Song | Universal Edition | 1931 |
| Fryderyk Chopin | Nocturne in C # Minor | Carl Fischer | ?? |
| Manuel de Falla | Pantomine (El amor brujo) | Chester | 1931 |
| Aleksander Scriabin | Etude, Op. 42, No. 4 | G. Schirmer | 1933 |
| Manuel de Falla | Danza del Terre | Chester | 1934 |
| Paul Kochański | Souvenir d’un lieu cher, Op. 42, No. 3 | published (?) | (?) |
Note that the dates of Kochański’s published works span from 1922, i. e. the year after Kochański moved to the United States, to 1933, the year before his death. This increasing focus on composition indicates that writing and transcribing had become important priorities alongside performing and teaching during approximately the last quarter of Kochański’s life. The data gleaned from Table 1 are supported by a statement of Dr. John Erskin, dean of the Juilliard School, who said about Kochański: “Had he lived, I believe he [Kochański] would have distinguished himself in composition, to which his attention was turning.”[20]
2. Overview of the Kochański Collaborations
Paul Kochański’s most lasting contribution to new music was his collaborative work with several important composers. The collaboration with Karol Szymanowski (1882-1937) had the most far-reaching scope.
The two Poles first met in Warsaw in 1901, when Szymanowski was 19 years old and Kochański was 14, and their final collaboration on the composer’s Violin Concerto No. 2 (1932-33) took place at the end of the violinist’s life. The two were intimate friends, and their friendship motivated Szymanowski to write for the violin.[21] Kochański and Szymanowski often performed together in recital presenting the composer’s violin-piano works. These international performances, as well as Kochański’s appearances with prominent conductors and other pianists, served to make Szymanowski’s music more widely known, and the violinist came to be considered “the most authentic exponent” of Szymanowski’s music.[22] Szymanowski greatly valued Kochański both professionally and personally; his respect and admiration is well-documented in Szymanowski’s published letters as well as reflected by the number of works the composer dedicated to the violinist and his wife.[23]
Kochański’s principal contribution to the violin idiom of Szymanowski’s works is usually described as the introduction of the technical means through which the composer-pianist was able to blend his uniquely-imaginative conceptions with an idiomatic use of the full virtuoso resources of the violin. The result was the creation a new type of violin writing which is “in the highest degree refined and exploratory.”[24]The works which launched the new style include the Nocturne and Tarantella, Op. 28 (1915), the Myths, Op. 30 (1915) and the Violin Concerto No. 1, Op. 35 (1916). It is interesting to note that Szymanowski did not continue to fully develop his new violin idiom in compositions written after 1920. This fact can has a twofold explanation:(1) the composer attempted to create a national style based on folklore, within which the new violin writing would have been inappropriate, and (2) he no longer had direct contact with Paul Kochański, who since 1921 was living in America.[25]The latter reason strongly suggests the significance of Kochański’s role in the development of Szymanowski’s new violin writing.
Kochański’s three transcriptions of Szymanowski’s music were either “authorized” by the composer or made with the composer.[26]The closeness of the entire Kochański-Szymanowski collaboration is evident in the facts that not only were the solo parts to both violin concerti written as a joint effort, but the violinist wrote his own cadenzas in precisely the same style, thus recalling a similar relationship between Joseph Joachim and Johannes Brahms in the writing of the latter’s violin concerto.
Later in their collaboration, Szymanowski himself came to realize that their work had truly innovative results:[27] “. . .Paul and I have created a new style in Mity and Koncert, a new utterance in violin playing, something you might call epochal.” According to Alistair Wightman, one composer strongly influenced by the Poles’ efforts was Béla Bartók.[28]Technical and musical influences from the Myths can be found in Bartók’s Sonata No. 1 and Sonata No. 2 for violin and piano (1921 and 1922, respectively) as well as the Second Violin Concerto (1938).[29]
At the same time Szymanowski was also aware that the influence of their new violin style was disseminated both through his own compositions and through Kochański’s collaborative work with other composers. The latter was considered by Szymanowski to be an extension of his own collaboration with the violinist; this conviction is implicit in his statement that:[30]
All works by other composers related to this style (no much how much creative genius they revealed) came later, that is through direct influence of Myths and the Violin Concerto [No. 1] or else through direct collaboration with Paweł.”
Works known to have been written with Kochański’s collaboration are chronologically listed in Table 2.
Table 2. Works Resulting from Collaboration with Paul Kochański
| COMPOSER | WORK | YEAR | DEDICATION |
| Karol Szymanowski | Nocturne and Tarantella, Op. 28 | 1915 | Auguste Iwański |
| Karol Szymanowski | Myths, Op. 30 | 1915 | Sophie Kochańska |
| Karol Szymanowski | Concerto No. 1 | 1916 | Paul Kochański |
| Serge Prokofiev | Concerto No. 1 in D Major | 1917 | |
| Arnold Bax | First Sonata (revised) | 1920 | Paul Kochański |
| Ernest Bloch | First Sonata | 1921 | Paul Rosenfeld |
| Serge Prokofiev | Five Melodies, Op. 35-bis | 1925 | Nos. 1, 3, 4: Paul Kochański, No. 2: Cecilia Hansen, No. 5: Joseph Szigeti |
| Igor Stravinsky [31] | Suite for violin and piano, after themes, fragments and pieces by Giambattista Pergolesi | 1925 [32]
(1921?) | Paul Kochański |
| Karol Szymanowski [33] | Three Paganini Caprices, Op. 40 | 1926 | No. 20, 21: Paul Kochański No. 24: Józef Ozimiński |
| Karol Szymanowski | Concerto No. 2 | 1932-33 | Paul Kochański |
Kochański’s collaborative influences represented in Table 2 and their inter-relationship with the new violin style of Szymanowski, along with its direct influence on Bartók, chronicle the remarkable impact of the Szymanowski-Kochański collaboration within less than twenty years. In the words of H. H. Stuckenschmidt,[34]
His [Szymanowski’s] compositions for violin [. . .] mark an enormous advance in the repertory of that instrument. [. . .] He was as much a pioneer in that domain as Debussy was in the pianoforte.
3. Relationship of Kochański’s Manuscript Collection To His Career
The Paul Kochański Manuscript Collection is an important resource in examining the violinist’s written creative work. Housed in the Music Department of the National Library in Warsaw, Poland since 1989, the collection was purchased at Sotheby’s New York location in December 1988 by using funds provided by the Polish Ministry of Culture. Prior to the sale it was probably owned by the Kochański family in the United States.[35] The majority of the individual items are signed or stamped, thus indicating the violinist’s personal ownership at one time.
Consisting of forth three numbered manuscript items and three printed scores, the collection represents all of Kochański’s professional life beginning with his student days in Brussels. The earliest dated items are from 1904 – i.e. his manuscript copies of Joseph Joachim’s cadenza to the Brahms Concerto (Mus.6028)[36] and Eugčne Ysaďe’s cadenza to the Tchaikowsky Concerto (Mus.6029), and the inscribed printed score to Francis Poulenc’s Huit chansons polonaises for female voice and piano is dated 1934.
Also, when viewed as a whole the manuscript collection mirrors different facets of Kochański’s career. First, the collection reflects Kochański as a violinist-performer. Short works and multi-movement suites make up most of the collection, thus paralleling the violinist’s specialty of performing pieces from the small-scale genre. Cadenzas to standard violin concerti (e. g. Brahms, Mozart and Tchaikowsky) mirror Kochański’s frequent role as soloist with orchestra. Representing Kochański’s broad musical tastes, composers range from Baroque masters (e. g. J. S. Bach, Antonio Vivaldi and Arcangelo Corelli) to nineteenth-century virtuosi (e. g. Nicolo Paganini) and active writers of the early twentieth century (e. g. Alexander Gretchaninov, Piotr Perkowski and Karol Szymanowski). Some composers also represent a personal relationship with Kochański (e. g. Manuel de Falla, Igor Stravinsky).
Second, as is to be expected, creative work by Kochański himself is included within this collection. Original pieces in both completed and unfinished (or “in progress”) stages are represented. For example, Młynek (Mus.6008) consists of four pages in ink and 4 blank score pages; in the last three systems the piano part seems finished but the violin part has yet to be begun. The Introduction and Tarantella (Mus.1616) consists of a penciled violin part of one complete page (11 lines) for the “Introduction” and 3 1/2 lines for the “Tarantella.” Likewise, there are numerous manuscripts of Kochański’s transcriptions in varying degrees of completion. Some original composers and/or pieces are the same as those found in Kochański’s published transcriptions, e. g. Fryderyk Chopin, Maurice Ravel, Manuel de Falla and Aleksander Scriabin (Mus.6017 and 6018, 6019, 6020, 6039, respectively).
Third, the collection includes numerous other composers’ manuscripts, including some autographs which directly relate to Kochański’s collaboration with Szymanowski. [37]Suggesting possible use in some of the many joint concerts given by Kochański and Szymanowski, several works from the latter group appear to have been used in performance (Mus.6001, 6003, 6004, 6005 and 6006).[38] Reflecting Kochański’s popularity with other musicians are the items bearing signed dedications to the violinist. Good examples are three pieces by Poldowski (1879-1932), Henryk Wieniawski’s youngest daughter, Irena Wieniawska, who was known in England as Lady Dean Paul (Mus.6024 – Mus.6027).
Most of the collection’s items are not dated, but those which are by other composers and dated or can be dated through other sources are listed in Table 3.
Table. 3. Dated Items by Other Composers in the Kochański Collection
| COMPOSER | WORK | YEAR/ PLACE | KOCHANSKI DEDICATION ? |
| Karol Szymanowski | Sonata in D Minor for Violin and Piano, Op. 9 (Mus.6003) | 1903, Warsaw | |
| Karol Szymanowski | Kochański’s manuscript copy of Violin Concerto No. 1, Op. 35 (Mus.6007) | (1916) | yes, but not this manuscript |
| Karol Szymanowski | Three Paganini Caprices, Op. 40 (Mus.6001) | 1918 | yes (first two), but not this manuscript |
| Paul Kochański – Karol Szymanowski | Danse sauvage (Mus.6005) | May, 1920, Warsaw | |
| Tivador Nachez | Concerto in B Flat Major by Antonio Vivaldi (Mus.6042) | London Aug. 18, 1920 | yes |
| Jules Conus | Suite Sept Caprices rythmiques(Mus.6034) | 1923 | yes |
| Alexander L. Steinert | Barcarolle (Mus.6041) | 1925 | yes |
| R. Stoklas | Lento assai (Mus.6023) | 10/8/25 | |
| Karol Szymanowski- Paul Kochański | Air de Roxane from the opera King Roger (Mus.6004). | (1926) | |
| Alexander Gretchaninoff | Romance, Op. 112, No. 1 (Mus.6033) | 8/27/27 | yes |
| Paul Kochański | Flight (Mus.6043) | March 1928, N. Y. City | |
| Emil Młynarski | Second Concerto for Violin with Piano Reduction, Op. 16 (printed score) | 1931 | yes |
| Karol Szymanowski – Paul Kochański | Transcription of Dance from the ballet Harnasie (Mus.6002) | 1931 | |
| Karol Szymanowski | 36-page sketch to Violin Concerto No. 2, Op. 61 – (Mus.6043) | (1932- 33) | yes, but not this manuscript |
| Francis Poulenc | Huit chansons polonaises for Female Voice and Piano (printed score) | 1934 | No. 5 to “Madame Kochańska” |
Table 3 clearly shows that the time span of most of the dated materials of the Kochański Manuscript Collection (i. e. 1916 – 1934) roughly coincides with that of the violinist’s collaborations as outlined in Table 2 (i. e. 1916 – 1933) as well as indicating a concentration of the collection’s dated materials coinciding with the period when Kochański’s own works and transcriptions were published, i. e. 1922 – 1933 as shown in Table 1. Furthermore, it is probable that a number of Kochański’s undated manuscripts were written and worked on during this time. For example, undated transcriptions by Chopin and Ravel (Mus.6017 and Mus.6020) were published in 1923 and 1927, respectively. In short, the coinciding of the dates of a sizeable amount of the collection’s materials with (1) the writing and publication of Kochański’s original pieces and transcriptions and (2) the span of the collaborations further points to the violinist’s creative musical breadth during those years.
Part II: Studies of the Manuscript Collection
4. The Kochański Collection of Manuscripts And Szymanowski’s Violin Writing Of 1915-16
The violin techniques recognized as characteristic of Szymanowski’s color-oriented violin writing of 1915-16 are also found in a number of manuscripts from the Kochański Collection, composed either by the violinist himself or by other composers. As amply pointed out by previous researchers, while the techniques themselves are traditional in their origin, their uniqueness consists in that they are used in new ways or to create new colors within musically-innovative contexts.[39] The materials from the Collection suggest that Kochański and other composers continued to work imaginatively with these technical devices, either by using the technique within a context that emphasizes its uniqueness or by using it to an unusually extensive degree in order to create an unusual color. In either case (as in the pieces created by the Szymanowski-Kochański collaboration), each technique seems to have been used in a highly idiomatic manner. The point will be illustrated by demonstrating six techniques appearing in selected manuscripts from the Kochański Collection: (A) the use of different registers – especially the very high, (B) harmonics, (C) trills, (D) double stops, (E) chromatic glissandi, and (F) pizzicati.
(A) Use of registers. The colorful use of the violin’s different registers, especially the high “E” string in order to create a singing quality as well as an dreamy, soaring effect, is widely found within the collection’s many works. It has long been recognized that this quality was directly transferred from Kochański’s playing into Szymanowski’s works. In the words of Christopher Palmer, that the Violin Concerto No. 1, “an apotheosis of instrumental song,” was “specifically conceived with the ‘captivating sweetness’ of Kochański’s tone in mind can scarcely be doubted.” [40] In addition to the first two solo violin’s entrances in this concerto, among the most famous of the many other specific passages that could be cited in Szymanowski’s works are the first violin solo in the first of the three Myths, La Fontaine d’Arethuse, Op. 30, No. 1, especially measures 9 – 17 which feature the violin in a high register with a relative low piano part. Measures 14 – 18, 27 -30 and 57 – 64 of the idyllic Lento assai (1925) by R. Stoklas (Mus.6023) are written very similarly, with the latter passage being particularly expressive since its musical gesture is reminiscent of the opening of Claude Debussy’s Prélude a l’Apres-Midi d’un Faune (see Example 1).
An equally-effective use of the high “E” string register is also found in the straight-forward, much more traditionally written Serenade by Kochański (Mus. 6010); again, the violin’s high register contrasts with a low piano part (see Example 2).
An extension of this technique is the designation of another single string for the sake of a single, unique tone color, e. g. the use of the “G” string on the return of the violin solo in La Fontaine d’Arethuse, measures 87 – 98. One of the many such indications in the Kochański Manuscript Collection is the specification of “IV” (i. e. the “G” string) for the opening violin solo in Kochański’s transcription of the famous Pavane by Ravel (Mus. 6019); see Example 3.
(B) Harmonics. Among the most famous examples of Szymanowski’s and Kochański’s highly colorful use of harmonics are those in double stops in measures 49 – 50 and 53 – 55 of La Fontaine d’Arethuse and the sequence of natural harmonics imitating the pipes of Pan in measures 55 – 57 in Dryades et Pan, Op. 30, No. 3. Equally effective is the return of the opening in the Lento assai (1925) by R. Stoklas (Mus.6023): in measures 48 – 55 the haunting character of measures 1 – 4 is given a new color through the use of a mixture of natural and artificial harmonics dividing the vibrating string into segments of quarters and thirds (see Example 4).
Also quite impressive, but much more direct in character is the last statement of the main theme in Kochański’s Serenade (Mus.6010) when it is sounded all in harmonics (see Example 5).
(C) Trills. Among the best-known examples of colorful occurrences of the violin trill and left hand tremolo in Szymanowski’s oeuvre are the continuous trills combined with sul ponticello in the last seven measures of La Fontaine d’Arethuse and the numerous tremoli in double stops or on one string with another as a drone found toward the end of Dryades et Pan. In the Kochański Collection passages of equal inventiveness of color may be found in measures 37 – 38 from the Lento assai (1925) by R. Stoklas (Mus.6023), which combine trills and a drone “E” in contrast to the octaves without trills in the previous two measures (see Example 6).
A highly-spirited octave passage with continuous trills on the lower notes is found in measures 26 – 29 of Kochański’s violin part to the published edition of Danse sauvage (1920) (Mus.6005).[41] but the trills appear only on the longer-valued notes after the first measure in manuscript Mus.6005 (see Example 7).
(D) Double Stops. In contrast to the usual parallel thirds, sixths and other intervals of traditional double-stop writing, instances of unusual, but idiomatic, mixtures of double-stopped intervals are so numerous in Szymanowski’s violin works that there is no need to cite specific examples. A highly effective example from the Kochański Collection is found in measures 11 – 12 of Irena Wieniawska’s Berceuse de l’enfant mourant (undated) (Mus.6024), where sixths and perfect fourths and fifths mix with the more dissonant seconds and tritones (see Example 8).
An equally effective but contrasting example is found in Kochański’s violin part to L’Aube [The Dawn] (no date) (Mus.6006), measures 3-6. [42] Within the harmonic context, the many perfect intervals, especially the first fourth in measure 3, give a rather open, hollow effect which seems particularly appropriate to the character of the composition (see Example 9).
(E) Chromatic Glissandi. A glissando combined with a trill or left-hand tremolo is an easily-recognizable feature of the Szymanowski-Kochański violin style. Double-stop versions in ascending and descending forms are found in La Fontaine d’Arethuse, measures 71 and 109, respectively. Both forms of this type of glissando are very important throughout all five pages of the published violin part to Flight (1928) (Mus.6043) by Paul Kochański (see Example 10).
Single-stop versions, which are more numerous in Szymanowski’s works, are found in Kochański’s violin part to Danse sauvage (Mus. 6005), in measures 49 (descending, see Example 11) and 92 (ascending).
(F) Pizzicati. The colorful use of different types of pizzicato is frequent in Szymanowski’s violin works, to mention only the descending left hand pizzicato run at end of Dryades et Pan (bars 155 – 156), the patterns in measures 78, 80 of the Tarantella, Op. 28 and the strumming triple– and quadruple-stop pizzicato chords in the Nocturne, Op. 28 (bars 19 – 21 and 45 – 50). A comparably effective use of pizzicato which sounds very similar to a guitar is found in measures 7 – 10 of the violin part to Danse sauvage (1920) by Kochański-Szymanowski (Mus.6005); see Example 12.
In the same movement left-hand pizzicati alternating with arco in measures 38 – 39 impart the flavor of a folk violinist playing a passionate dance (see Example 13).
At times, two or more of these special techniques are used simultaneously or in close succession for the sake of contrasting colors. I believe that the continuing popularity of Kochański’s transcriptions is in part due to the color created by the frequent occurrences of these techniques, e.g. Suite Populaire espagnole (1925) by Manuel de Falla and Chants d’Espagnole (1926) by Joaquin Nin. An excellent example of successive use of multiple techniques is found in Irena Wieniawska’s Berceuse de l’enfant mourant (no date) (Mus.6024), measures 16 – 19. In each consecutive measure a different technique appears to create a new color, i. e. measure 16 features descending chromatic glissandi in major seconds and in a “ff” dynamics; measure 17, which begins with a sudden “pp”, brings a sul ponticello effect; measure 18 is made up of artificial harmonics; and measure 19 consists of after-beat eighth-note seconds with a trill on the upper voice. These measures, in turn, contrast with lyrical writing (for the “G” string) that both precedes and follows this inventive passage (see Example 14).
In brief, the Manuscript Collection demonstrates that during the third decade of the twentieth century Paul Kochański and at least a few other composers continued to utilize the innovations of the Szymanowski- Kochański color-oriented violin writing. Many of the characteristic features of this writing were also frequently employed in Kochański’s published works and transcriptions.
5. Kochański’s Creative Work Habit
The number of annotations made on the individual manuscripts of the Manuscript Collection and the variety of their types reflect the violinist’s creative work habits. Like many other composers and arrangers Kochański made minor and major corrections, as well as changes in his own manuscripts. In addition, in working with most manuscripts, both his own and those of others, Kochański would edit them for his own performance. Such editorial annotations are a common practice among artist-violinists; their purpose is to translate the composer’s ideas into practical performance solutions by matching the performer’s concept of the music with an individual technical approach, i.e. translating the composer’s phrasings into bowings, as well as articulations, fingerings, and dynamics. In most cases, Kochański’s markings are extensive enough to constitute his own, highly personalized edition. This aspect becomes of special interest in the case of the Szymanowski-Kochański collaboration since research has shown that, beginning with the Romance, Op. 23, Kochański started to perform each of Szymanowski’s violin works before they appeared in print.[42] Since the first printed editions included Paul Kochański’s fingerings and bowings,[43] Szymanowski must have felt that Kochański’s performance editings were an important part of realizing the fruits of their collaborative work. The violinist apparently shared these feelings, because his fingerings and bowings are amply included in all his published original works and transcriptions.
The reasons for these inclusions seem to be reflected in two ways in the documents from the Manuscript Collection. The first can be seen through Kochański’s experimental preparations for the practical application of the techniques associated with the Szymanowski-Kochański violin style. All sorts of possible solutions to short passages, specific technical problems and special techniques are written on the edges of manuscript pages and title pages. This profusion of annotations gives an impression that the violinist was experimenting with instrument in hand. The notations appear to have been quickly jotted down as an aid to help the violinist remember what he tried on the violin. For example, the title page of Air de Roxane from the opera King Roger (Mus. 6004) shows several such sketches (see Example 15).
Another sketch is written at the bottom of the first score page (see Example 16).
Similar annotations can be found throughout the Kochański’s manuscript violin part to the Szymanowski Violin Concerto No. 1 (Mus.6007) and at the top of first score page of Danse sauvage (1925). Often, the final solutions imply a specific fingering or bowing.
The second general aspect of Kochański’s working style apparent in the collection is the thoroughness with which the violinist worked with a manuscript he was preparing to perform, whether it was his own or that written by another composer. This is well illustrated by Kochański’s annotations for three Siloti transcriptions of music by J. S. Bach. The violin part (in ink) of the Adagio (Mus.6037) is extensively marked with bowings and fingerings (in pencil), including specific string indications and at least one scratchout indicating a change of mind. Interestingly, the piano score, written in ink, bears no such markings (see Example 17).
Both the violin part and piano score of the Air for Violin and Piano “from the Suite No. 3 for String Orchestra” (Mus. 6038) display numerous editorial annotations for both instruments (in ink and pencil) and include phrasing and fingering; at the top of both parts is the notation “Violin part re-edited by P. Kochański” (see Example 18).
Similarly, in J. S. Bach’s Preludium from Partita No. 6 for Violin and Piano, found among the published musical scores collected by Kochański, so many penciled markings have been made that the violinist writes at the top “newly revised edition.”
In all three transcriptions the fingerings often indicate that the violinist is to remain on a single string; the purpose of this technique is to maintain an individual color of a single string instead of obtaining a more open sound favored in authentic Baroque performance-practice and created by crossing strings in a lower position. As can be seen in the previous two examples, these fingerings are interspersed with indications of the left-hand portamenti, i. e. a deliberately-audible change of the position from one note to another which is either indicated through the fingering itself or by a line between two notes. The appearance of this gesture as well as its relatively low frequency is typical for the published editions of Szymanowski’s violin works as well as for Kochański’s transcriptions. Its presence here reflects the prominence of this technique as an important expressive means of the time, a staple in the playing standards of many violinists, while the relative discretion with which Kochański employed this device is musically farsighted.
Kochański worked out performance annotations in the Szymanowski-related manuscripts with a comparable degree of attention to detail. In the violinist’s manuscript part to Szymanowski’s Violin Concerto No. 1, Op. 35 (Mus.6007) the violinist notated the bowings and fingerings side by side with sketches of possible solutions to passagework—apparently, Kochański’s performance-oriented editorial work began early. The manuscript of Three Paganini Caprices, Op. 40 (Mus.6001), for which Kochański prepared the violin parts when it was published by Universal Edition in 1926,[44] features different colors of ink and two shades of pencil (regular and blue) used for the performance-related annotations, sketches of ideas, and musically-substantial changes. A feature that stands out in this manuscript is the great care given to the bowings and fingerings of the violin line.(see Example 19).
Since the condition of this manuscript seems to indicate that it may have been used in performance, many of these markings may have evolved during Kochański’s many joint concert appearances with the composer.
Other markings demonstrate that the violinist made musical alterations in manuscripts written by composers other than himself. While many of these involved only isolated notes, or dynamics, etc., some are more musically substantial. An example is found in Alexander Gretchaninoff’s Romance, Op. 112, No. 1 (1927) (Mus.6033). In the piano score and the separate violin part (both in ink) the last two measures have been altered. (see Example 20).
Far more substantial changes are found in the Suite Sept Caprices rythmiques (1923) by Jules Conus (Mus.6034), which, like the two previously-discussed manuscripts, shows considerable page wear and numerous penciled annotations which indicated the reinforcing of repeats, etc. Both factors (page wear, annotations) suggest a heavy performance-related use (most likely by Kochański himself). In the sixteen-page violin-piano score and the twelve-page separate violin part, major scratch-outs and alterations of notes and entire passages appear, written in red and regular pencil. They are so numerous that, at a certain point, the page sequence of the score needs to be resorted – perhaps, this is why rehearsal numbers have been placed in both parts. The number of these alterations is comparable to that found in some manuscripts of Kochański’s own pieces and transcriptions such as the Theme and Variations (on a famous theme of Corelli) (Mus.6012). This twelve-page manuscript (which is written in ink) features many changes in blue and red pencil, among them there are lines crossing out the first two variations plus Variation IX and an insert pasted over Variation XII which is, thus, replaced with a return of the theme.
The prominence and thoroughness displayed in the alterations and other notations found in the manuscripts throughout the collection suggests that the manuscripts that do not bear such markings either didn’t fit Kochański’s artistic interests or were left without annotations because he didn’t have enough time to work on them. However, the prominence and abundance of such notations provides vital information for hypotheses about attitudes with which the violinist approached the music.
6. Kochański’s Work With Manuscripts by Other Composers
The style and scope of Paul Kochański’s markings in selected manuscripts by others included in his collection mirror the attitudes of the central figures of the violin schools in which he was trained. For example, the many changes Leopold Auer made in the solo part while working with the original text of P. I. Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto in D Major, op. 35 (1878) are reflected in the David Oistrakh edition, in which Auer’s altered version is placed on separate staves below the original text in 31 lines of music in the violin part. Furthermore, seven cuts as well as more changes in passagework are found in the last movement of the concerto.[45]Leopold Auer felt justified in making such extensive revisions. As he stated:[46]
. . . When I went over the score in detail, [. . .] I felt that, in spite of its great intrinsic value, it called for a thorough revision, since in various portions it was quite un-violinistic and not at all written in the idiom of the strings.
In other words, Auer did not feel obliged to perform what was literally written in the manuscript-score but, rather, while striving to preserve the spirit of the music, he adjusted the writing to fit the idiom of the violin and its technique as he knew it. However, in some alterations, such as the cuts in the last movement, he made musical decisions reaching beyond mere technical considerations. Similarly, Eugčne Ysaďe made both violinistic and musical alterations in preparing to present the premiere of the Poème for Violin and Orchestra by Ernest Chausson in 1896. In preparation for the performance,.”[47]he
. . . modified the bowing, the dynamics and the fingering and transformed insufficiently violinistic passages and those that would not speak out properly [. . .] by means of an analysis indicated by large strokes of blue or red pencil. [. . .] He read the copy, reread it, crossed out, altered.
In general, while looking through the manuscripts of this collection it quickly becomes evident that Paul Kochański’s written work always expressed the standpoint of a performing artist-violinist. The nature of his notations, e. g. well thought-out fingerings which transform phrasings into bowings as well as apparently experimental sketches of passagework, indicates that he either worked with the violin in hand or that he was thinking in those terms for a large percentage of time. While such an approach might imply an impulsive thinking “through the fingers,” Kochański appears to have worked methodically over a period of time with a number of manuscripts.
A methodical approach is suggested by an examination of the differences between the manuscript to Kochański’s transcription of Air de Roxane from the opera King Roger (1926) by Szymanowski (Mus.6004) and the printed text of Universal Edition 8694. [48]The manuscript from which UE 8694 was prepared is now housed in the Austrian National Library in Vienna, and the relatively small number of differences between the two is discussed in the editorial notes of the Complete Edition of Szymanowski’s works published by the PWM Edition in Poland. [49]The Kochański Collection manuscript displays few changes and other markings within the piano part; in the violin line, however, there are numerous performance editings, most of which are printed in UE 8694. Besides a different tempo indication (Mus.6004 -“Andante”; UE 8694 – “Andante tranquillo”) the majority of the differences between Mus.6004 and the UE 8694 are the printed score’s inclusion and the manuscript’s omission of directives relating to tempo (e. g. “rall.”, “molto rit.”, “a tempo”), dynamics (e. g. “p”, ” cresc.”), expression (e. g. “dolce”, “espr.”) and pedaling. A comparison shows well over 30 such instances. Also, measures 11 – 12 with upbeat and measures 15 – 16 are notated in their enharmonic equivalents, i. e. starting on “G sharp” and “E sharp” in Mus.6004 and “A flat” and “F natural” in UE 8694, respectively. In short, the existence of two scores and the number of differences between them suggests that the details reflected in UE 8694 were worked out over time, perhaps through practical performance since the condition of manuscript Mus.6004 suggests that it had been used in concert.
More substantial evidence of a methodical approach to performative revisions over a period of time can be found when comparing two manuscripts co-composed by Paul Kochański (violin part) and Karol Szymanowski (piano part) with their printed counterparts: Adagio languido (L’Aube) (Mus.6006) and Danse sauvage (Mus.6005). Separately published in 1925 by Carl Fischer in New York City, the two works were reissued in a single edition by PWM in 1982. A comparison of the PWM text with the facsimile of the first score pages of both Fischer editions (also given in the Polish publication) suggest that the former is intended as a literal reprint of the latter. An examination of the Kochański manuscripts in terms of changes within each manuscript and differences with the printed text suggests how these pieces may have evolved.
The revisions within the manuscript of Adagio languido (L’Aube) (Mus.6006) were made mostly in the piano staves, which are notated in a lighter ink than the single violin line. Within the piece’s 77 measures changes take place in 27 measures within the piano part and in only 5 measures within the violin part. The violin alterations consist of a revised first double stop in measure 15 and a new placement of pizzicato eighth-notes from the second to the third beat in measures 25 and 27. In addition, a new ending for both instruments was introduced in the last two bars. The much more extensive revisions of the piano part consist mainly of the deletion and addition of pitches and the outright transformation of passages through the use of scratch-outs followed by notating a new version, sometimes even on a new stave (see Example 21).
In the period between completion of the manuscript and the publication of the piece the violin part was subject to many more revisions. Table 4 shows the differences between Mus. 6006 and the published score in terms of the number of measures affected by each type of difference, presented in the decreasing order of frequency of occurrence (from the most to the least frequent usage). Note that there is a total of 77 measures in the piece.
Table 4. Adagio languido: Comparison of Mus. 6006 and Published Score
| TYPE OF DIFFERENCE | NUMBER OF BARS AFFECTED |
| Phrasing/bowing (incl. ties and slurs) | 26 |
| Tempo indications (incl. rall and accel.) | 12 |
| Dynamics | 10 |
| Different notes/pitches | 3 |
| Inclusion of glissando in violin part | 3 |
| Inclusion of words indicating of specific expression | 2 |
| Note/rest values | 1 |
In summary, of the total 77 measures changes were made in 34 measures of the violin part, 6 measures of the piano part and 11 measures of both parts – i. e. differences between the manuscript and the printed score were found in a total of 51 measures or in about 66% of the 77 measures.
Similarly, the changes found within the manuscript of Danse sauvage (Mus.6005) were made mostly in the piano part. Of the first 61 measures, which include the first two sections of the piece, only one measure of the violin line has an alteration, which corrects a mis-notation; the piano part bears changes in 32 measures. Many of latter are similar to those in Adagio languido from L’Aube (Mus. 6006). Most of the alterations found in measures 62 – 88, that is in a return of the first “A” section of the piece, parallel those made in measures 1 – 27. The manuscript originally included ten additional measures of material between measures 61 and 62 and another section of 27 measures between measures 89 and 90, but both segments were subsequent cut. In addition to these changes, sketched ideas are found on the first and last pages.
Table 5 shows the differences between Mus. 6005 and the published score in terms of the number of measures affected by each type of change and in the decreasing order of frequency of occurrence (from the most frequent revisions to the least). Note that the chart measures only the first 61 bars. The differences which are found in the remainder of the piece (i. e. measures 62 – 88) correspond to those found in measures 1 – 27.
Table 5. Danse sauvage: Comparison of Mus. 6005 and Published Score
| TYPE OF DIFFERENCE | NUMBER OF BARS AFFECTED |
| Dynamics, inflections (accents, etc.) | 28 |
| Phrasing/bowing (incl. ties and slurs) | 16 |
| Note and octave changes | 12 |
| Inclusion/placement of trills | 9 |
| Inclusion of words indicating of specific expression | 4 |
| Tempo indications | 2 |
| Inclusion of grace note | 1 |
| Inclusion of glissando in violin part | 1 |
| Note/rest values | 1 |
In the 61 measures of the first two sections of the work changes were made in forty seven measures of the violin part, seven measures of the piano part and one measure of both parts. Differences between the manuscript and the printed score were found in a total of 55 measures or in about 90% of the 61 measures. In comparing these differences with those of the previous piece it can be seen that the proportions of the number of measures with differences to the total number of measures are great in both cases.
Differences between the manuscripts and printed parts also suggest that the evolution of these pieces, especially the substantive changes in the violin part, took place over a period of time. Indeed, the composition date for both pieces is given in the PWM- Edition as 1922 [50]and in the Szymanowski Thematic Catalogue as 1921 – 1922;[51]however, the date on the manuscript to Danse sauvage (Mus. 6005) is “Warsaw, 1920.” Since the two pieces are generally regarded to have been composed about the same time, the difference between the date of manuscript Mus. 6005 (1920) and the publication date (1925) suggest that Kochański worked to refine the violin parts for close to four or five years before they reached their final form. Moreover, there might have been another manuscript of each piece, perhaps still in existence, from which the editions were made.
In short, the different types of markings found in the manuscripts of the Kochański Collection indicate that Kochański’s creative work appears to have been an extension of his role as a violinist-performer. He did what he felt was necessary to effectively communicate the spirit of the music (either his own or written by others); this was, for him — in accordance with his early training — more important than reproducing exactly what was written by the composer. A highly imaginative approach in implementing this attitude is strongly implied by Kochański’s many notations indicating extensive experimentation, seemingly conducted with the violin in hand or certainly in mind. At the same time, the numerous notations reflect his meticulous attention to detail, often implying that final versions were worked out over a period of time. These indications of Kochański’s attitudes take on special significance in the collection’s numerous instances where the violinist continued to work with special technical features that characterized Szymanowski’s violin writing of 1915-16.
7. Conclusions
We have seen how Paul Kochański’s multifaceted career and his collaborations were intertwined. That the time spans of Kochański’s collaborations (1916 – 1933) and that of the publication of Kochański’s own works and transcriptions (1922 – 1933) approximately coincide with much of the Manuscript Collection (especially 1916 – 1934) demonstrates the richness of the violinist’s involvement in creative endeavors during this time; moreover, it also makes it possible to suggest that the types of work habits and attitudes reflected in Kochański’s work in the collection may have also been brought to his different collaborations in several ways.
First, that Kochański’s collaborative work spread the use of specific technical devices which distinguished the Szymanowski’s violin writing of 1915-16 is implied by the composer himself when he said in March 1930 that “all works by other composers related to this style . . . came . . . through direct influence of Myths and the [Violin] Concerto [No. 1] or else through direct collaboration with Paweł.”[52]
Indeed, research has specifically linked Kochański’s collaborating composers’ adaptation of these techniques with the violinist. For example, the “special kind of glissando on two strings combined with tremolo,” which was added as part of Kochański’s contributions in the revision of Arnold Bax’s First Sonata for Violin and Piano in 1920, is called not only an influence of La Fontaine d’Arethuse but “one of Kochański’s ‘discoveries’.” [53]Likewise, the glissandi, harmonics, trills found in the solo part of Prokofiev’s Violin Concerto No. 1 in D Major, Op. 19 (1917) have been compared to parallel passages in Szymanowski’s Myths, Op. 30 and Violin Concerto No. 1, Op. 35 but in noting their absence in the Russian composer’s second violin concerto, their presence, along with the nature of the solo violin writing, has been attributed to Kochański’s collaboration.[54]
The manuscript collection partly explains how Kochański could so effectively adapt these techniques to a variety of musical styles. The collection shows that Kochański’s work with them was much more extensive than suggested by the published scores. Moreover, the collection demonstrates that he experimented with their use in new, creative ways. Certainly, the breadth of the collection demonstrates Kochański’s popularity with other musicians, which helped spread the idiomatic use of these devices to other composers. Kochański’s work with these techniques was so extensive that they became “signatures” of his creative work and influence.
Second, Kochański’s contributions in his collaboration usually recognize his input on bowing and making the writing idiomatic. For instance, while working with Serge Prokofiev in 1917 Kochański is said to have helped the composer “on questions of bow marking and other technical details.” [55] Also, the violin part of Bax’s revised First Sonata “was almost certainly edited by Kochański,”[56] The sound– and color-oriented approach, care for detail and idiomatic qualities demonstrated in the markings of the Manuscript Collection suggest the violinist’s practical “playing approach” to this aspect of his collaborative work.
Third, there are several accounts of Kochański’s advice on violin writing being sought. One case took place in 1921 when Ernest Bloch is said to have “listened carefully to Paul’s advice on possible improvements for the violin part of his First Sonata”[57] Kochański himself mentioned that Prokofiev and Stravinsky had been “entirely willing to meet [his] demands with regard to practical, playability (not merely because we were friends).” [58] In talking about his early collaboration with Szymanowski the violinist said[59]
We worked out these violin things together, for Szymanowski is not a violinist [. . .] He would develop his themes, his musical ideas, at the piano, and, talking and studying them together, I would fix the mechanical form [. . .] so they would sound, so that the violin sonorities would obtain their fullest value.
Much of Kochański’s advice was technically-oriented; this feature is suggested by the large number of such notations in the individual manuscripts of the collection. However, the numerous musical revisions found throughout the collection point to the probability that Kochański was more than a technical facilitator at least some of the time. Since he himself was a composer and had a very broad musical involvement as a transcriber and performing violinist, it is possible that in more than a few situations Kochański presented his technical solutions with an additional measure of his own musical imagination, thereby stimulating the composer with whom he was collaborating. This possibility, as well as the variety of the types of Kochański’s contribution widely evident throughout this manuscript collection, gives a more vivid quality to the meaning of the violinist’s description of working with Szymanowski on the Violin Concerto No. 2 at the end of his career:[60] “Karol is writing a beautiful second concerto for the violin and needed my help for the solo part. We spent hours and hours working at it but I feel happy to be of any use to him.”
The fact that at least some of the creative effort (beyond the technical considerations) of Paul Kochański was shared by his collaborators (while remaining unacknowledged in their scores) is made even more likely when one considers that the violinist was increasingly drawn to his written creative work by the time he died in 1934. In the words of Dr. John Erskin, dean of the Juilliard School:[61]
Magnificent his [Kochański’s] playing and teaching were, I think he was a bigger man than we had yet realized. His influence and his fame were only beginning. Had he lived, I believed he would have distinguished himself in compositions, to which his attention was turning.
Perhaps, however, it was the breadth of Kochański’s creative influences already achieved, as an extension of his role as a performing artist, to which Albert Spalding was referring when he declared that “Paul Kochański gave to the art world and to life something too rare, too enduring for mere death to efface or dim.”[62].
NOTES
[1]. Alfred Kalisch, ” London Concerts – Pianists and Violinists” in The Musical Times 62 (January 1, 1921) 29. [Back]
[2]. “Paul Kochanski Appears,” The New York Times, February 15, 1921, p. 9, col. 4.[Back]
[3]. Carl Flesch: The Memoirs of Carl Flesch, 1979 (1957), p. 340. [Back]
[4]. “Paul Kochanski, Violinist, Is Dead,” The New York Times, January 13, 1934, p. 13, col. 4 and 5. [Back]
[5]. Lionel Tertis: My Viola and I, A Complete Autobiography, 1974, p. 45. [Back]
[6]. Artur Rubinstein: My Young Years, 1973, p. 109. [Back]
[7]. Among the names were Walter Damrosch, Mischa Elman, Carl Friedberg, Ossip Gabrilowitsch, George Gershwin, Jascha Heifetz, Vladimir Horowitz, Jose Iturbi, Fritz Kreisler, Serge Koussevitzky, Louis Persinger, Gregor Piatigorsky, Artur Rodzinski, Felix Salmond, Theodore Steinway, Leopold Stokowski, Joseph Szigeti, Arturo Toscanini and Efrem Zimbalist. “Musicians Mourn Paul Kochanski,” The New York Times, January 15, 1934, p. 16, col. 2. [Back]
[8].In addition to the recording of the entire Johannes Brahms Sonata in D Minor, Op. 108 (with Artur Rubinstein), Kochański’s recordings include the following short pieces: Johannes Brahms-Joachim: Hungarian Dance No. 1, Fritz Kreisler: La Gitana, Gabriel Pierné-Haddock: Serenade in A Major, Op. 7, Serge Rachmaninov-Press: Vocalise , Op. 34, No. 14, Joseph Raff: Cavatina, Op. 85, No. 3, Pablo Sarasate: Malaguena, P. I. Tchaikowsky: Melodie, P. I. Tchaikowsky-Kreisler: Chant Sans Paroles in F Minor, Richard Wagner-Wilhelmj: Prize Song and Henryk Wieniawski: La Carnaval Russe, Op. 11. James Creighton, Discopaedia of the Violin, 1884-1971, (1974,) pp. 377-78. [Back]
[9]. Henry Roth: “Refined Colourist” in The Strad, 98, No. 1169 (September 1987) 689. [Back]
[10]. Ibid. [Back]
[11]. Rubinstein: My Young Years, p. 406. [Back]
[12]. “Paul Kochanski, Violinist, Is Dead,” The New York Times, January 13, 1934, p. 13, col. 4. [Back]
[13]. “Paul Kochanski” in Frederick Martens, String Mastery, 1922, pp. 72-75 [Back]
[14]. Jaime Pahissa: Manuel de Falla, His Life and Works, 1954, pp. 38 – 39. [Back]
[15]. B. M. Maciejewski: Karol Szymanowski: His Life and Music, 1967, p. 2. [Back]
[16]. Antonio Gallego, “Los ineditos de Manuel de Falla” in Manuel de Falla tra la Espagna e l’Europa, 1989. [Back]
[17]. The dedication reads “à Madame Ida GODEBESKA et à Paul KOCHAŃSKI.” Manuel de Falla, Suite populaire espagnole pour violon et piano (1925) 1990, p. 1. [Back]
[18]. For a listing of the many, often famous violinists who had recorded one or more of the movements of this suite by the early 1970’s see James Creighton, Discopaedia of the Violin, 1884-1971, 1974, p. 863. [Back]
[19]. Adagio languido (L’Aube) and Danse sauvage were co-composed by Paul Kochański (violin part) and Karol Szymanowski (piano part); the transcriptions of Szymanowski’s Dance from the ballet “Harnasie” and Kurpie Song were made with the composer. The listing in Table 1 does not pretend to be complete since several works have been out of print for a number of years and it is often difficult to obtain publication information. Publication information is cited as found in The National Union Catalogue, 1968, 1970, 1973, 1978; the card catalogue of the Music Division of the National Library in Warsaw, Poland; publishers’ lists on the author’s copies of Kochański’s works, and computerized inter-library loan listings. The last item was found in Music for Violin and Viola by Hans Letz (1948), p. 49 only; no publisher or date was given. [Back]
[20]. “Paul Kochanski, Violinist, Is Dead,” The New York Times, January 13, 1934, p. 13, col. 4. [Back]
[21]. Christopher Palmer: Szymanowski, 1983, p. 100. [Back]
[22]. Flesch: The Memoirs of Carl Flesch, p. 340. [Back]
[23]. Szymanowski’s violin works which are dedicated to Paul Kochański include Romance in D Major for Violin and Piano, Op. 23 (1910), Violin Concerto No. 1, Op. 35 (1916), the first two of Three Paganini Caprices, Op. 40 (1918) – i. e. Nos. 20, 21, and Violin Concerto No. 2, Op. 61 (1932-33) for which the dedication reads “To the memory of the Great Artist and Great Friend – Paweł Kochański.” Also, the Myths, Op. 30 (1915) is dedicated to the violinist’s wife Zofia Kochańska. [Back]
[24]. Teresa Chylińska: “Szymanowski” in the New Groves Dictionary of Music and Musicians, London: McMillan, 1980, vol. 18, p. 503. [Back]
[25]. Also see Adam Walaciński’s Introduction to Karol Szymanowski: Complete Edition , Series B, Vol. 9 Works for Violin and Piano, 1978, p. ix. [Back]
[26]. Ibid, p. ix. Roxana’s Song from the opera King Roger was authorized”; the other two (listed in Table I) were transcribed with the composer. [Back]
[27]. Szymanowski’s letter to Zofia Kochańska, March 5, 1930 in Teresa Chylińska, Dzieje Przyjaźńi: Korespondencja Karola Szymanowskiego z Pawłem i Zofią Kochanskimi [Correspondence of Karol Szymanowski with Paweł and Zofia Kochańska], Krakow: PWM, 1971, p. 242; translated for the author by Edmund Zawacki, Professor Emeritus of Slavic Languages, University of Wisconsin-Madison.[Back]
[28]. In 1921 Bartók ordered Szymanowski’s latest works from Universal Edition and studied them sufficiently to call to the attention of the publisher a printer’s error in the third Myth. In the same year he and violinist Zoltán Székely publicly performed all three Myths in Budapest. See Alistair Wightman, “Szymanowski, Bartók, and the Violin” in Musical Times 122, no. 1657 (March 1971): 161-62. Also see Walaciński, Introduction to Karol Szymanowski Complete Edition, Series B, Volume 9, p. X. [Back]
[29]. Ibid. [Back]
[30]. Teresa Chylińska: Dzieje przyjaźni, op. cit., p. 242. [Back]
[31]. This work, a five-movement transcription of music from Pulcinella (1919-20), was first published by Edition Russe de Musique in 1926; it is an early version of the Suite Italienne, which was arranged for cello and piano by Stravinsky and Gregor Piatigorsky in 1932 and for violin and piano by Stravinsky and Dushkin about 1933. Both were published by Edition Russe de Musique in 1934. The composer’s two violin-piano transcriptions from The Firebird (“Prelude and Ronde des Princesses” and “Berceuse,” 1929) are also dedicated to Paul Kochański. [Back]
[32]. Sources seem to be unified in dating this work from 1925; however, in an interview which was published in 1922 Kochański states “. . . during the summer just passed I worked with Stravinsky on some of the things he is doing for violin. . . . The Stravinsky composition is a delightful violin suite which he has made out of the Scarlatti ‘Pulcinella’ music of his ballet, in five or six movements. I expect to play it here next year.” Martens, “Paul Kochanski,” p. 78. Italics added by the author. [Back]
[33]. While Szymanowski’s Three Paganini Caprices, Op. 40 was written in 1918 with the assistance of violinist Victor Goldfeld, the work also represents a collaboration with Kochański since the violinist prepared the violin part for publication in 1926. Similarly, Kochański’s performance editings are included in the published editions of Szymanowski’s Romance, Op. 23. [Back]
[34]. H. H. Stuckenschmidt: “Szymanowski” in The Book of Modern Composers , 1942, p. 21. [Back]
[35]. Interview with Włodzimierz Pigła, Head Music Librarian, National Library, Warsaw, Poland on July 23, 1996.[Back]
[36]. All catalogue numbers given hereafter refer to those assigned by the Polish National Library. The printed scores within the collection have not been assigned numbers. [Back]
[37]. Several manuscripts promise to shed additional light on future Szymanowski research. For example, Sonata in D Minor, Op. 9 is usually dated 1904 (“or earlier”) but the end of Mus.6003 is clearly dated “1903, Warsaw.” Kochański’s manuscript copy of Violin Concerto No. 1, Op. 35 (Mus.6007) is not listed among the sources in the Complete Edition, Series A, Volume 3 “Violin Concerti,” 1976, p. 194. [Back]
[38]. Signs include great wear, repeated page turns, markings to reinforce dynamics, accidentals, etc In Mus. 6003 some notes are rewritten at page breaks so as to facilitate turning. Both Mus. 6005 and Mus. 6006 have been folded in the middle lengthwise, suggesting that they might have been fitted into a shaped violin case. [Back]
[39]. See, for example, Walaciński: “Introduction” in Szymanowski: Complete Edition, Series B, Volume 9, p. xi. [Back]
[40]. Palmer: Szymanowski, p. 64. [Back]
[41]. Note that the piano part in Danse sauvage (Mus.6005) and Adagio languido (L’Aube) (Mus.6006) is by Szymanowski. [Back]
[42]. Adam Walaciński: “Introduction” in Karol Szymanowski Complete Edition, Series B, Volume 9, p. xi. In 1909 Kochański and Artur Rubinstein also presented the first public performance of the Violin Sonata, Op. 9, which was first published in 1911. See Jim Samson, The Music of Szymanowski (p. 53) and Kornel Michałowski, Karol Szymanowski. Thematic Catalogue of Works (1967, p. 45). [Back]
[43]. Walaciński, op. cit., p. xi. [Back]
[44]. Ibid., p. ix. [Back]
[45]. P. I. Tchaikovsky: Violin Concerto In D Major, Op. 35, edited by David Oistrakh and Konstantin Mostras, 1956. [Back]
[46]. Leopold Auer: My Long Life in Music, 1923, p. 209. [Back]
[47]. Eugčne Ysaďe: Ysaďe, 1980, p. 108. [Back]
[48]. Szymanowski Complete Edition, Series B, Volume 9,” pp. 103 -107. [Back]
[49]. Ibid., p. 144. [Back]
[50]. Paweł Kochański and Karol Szymanowski: L’Aube and Danse sauvage pour violon et piano [The Dawn and Wild Dance for Violin and Piano], 1982. [Back]
[51]. Michałowski: Szymanowski, Thematic Catalogue, p. 261. [Back]
[52]. Chylińska: Dzieje przyjazńi [Story of a Friendship], p. 242. [Back]
[53]. Lewis Foreman: A Composer and his Times, 1988, p. 176-177. [Back]
[54]. Martin Risely: The Violin Concertos of Sergei Prokofieff, 1995, pp. 35 and 43. [Back]
[55]. Israel V. Nestyev: Prokofiev, 1960 (1957), p. 140. [Back]
[56]. Foreman: A Composer and his Times, pp. 176-177. [Back]
[57]. Artur Rubinstein: My Many Years, 1980, p. 145. [Back]
[58]. Martens: “Paul Kochanski,” p. 78. [Back]
[59]. Ibid., p. 76. [Back]
[60]. Rubinstein: My Many Years, p. 274. [Back]
[61]. “Paul Kochanski, Violinist, Is Dead,” The New York Times, January 13, 1934, p. 13, col. 4. [Back]
[62]. Ibid., col. 5. [Back]