April 4, 2016 marked the passing of Dr. Elżbieta Dziębowska, a noted musicologist and specialist in music of the nineteenth and twentieth century. For many years Dr. Dziębowska was associated with the Jagiellonian University in Kraków, serving as a Head of Music History and Theory Department from 1974-1978. She was also one of the founders…Continue Reading Elżbieta Dziębowska
By Marek Żebrowski Jann Castor, an outstanding Polish rock musician, guitarist, composer, arranger, poet, sound designer and film editor, died in Hollywood on 21 April 2016 after a long illness. He was 61 years old. Born Wiesław Ruciński in Włocławek, Poland, on 27 June 1954, he began using stage name Jann Castor after emigrating from Poland…Continue Reading Hope in Hollywood
Boguslaw Kaczynski passed away in Warsaw on January 21. He was 73. Not only was he a journalist, music theorist, popularizer of opera and operetta, TV presenter, and author of many TV broadcasts, but Kaczynski was also the founder of the Jan Kiepura European Festival in Krynica and world-famous Music Festivals in Łańcut. Between 1994…Continue Reading Boguslaw Kaczynski Obituary
Paweł Buczyński, a composer and lecturer at the Chopin Music University, and member of the Polish Composers’ Union, died January 5 at the age of 62. Professor Andrzej Koszewski died in Poznań on February 17 at 92. A renowned composer of choral music and a musicologist, he was also a professor of composition at the Poznań Music…Continue Reading 2015 in Review – Obituaries
By Marek Żebrowski Anne Strakacz-Appleton died in Sacramento, California on Friday, 31 July 2015. She was 93 years old. Widow of Louis B. Appleton, Jr., she leaves daughters Amy and Louise, residing in California, daughter Marguerite, a resident of Kansas, and four grandchildren. Born in Warsaw on 17 March 1922, Anne Strakacz was the only…Continue Reading In Memoriam: Anne Strakacz-Appleton
On August 3, Adam Walaciński—composer, music critic, retired professor and vice-president of the Music Academy in Kraków—passed away at 87 years old. He was a student of a violin class at the Eugenia Umińska Music School in Kraków, but then he changed his major and attended the composition class of Artur Malawski. After some time…Continue Reading In Memoriam: Adam Walaciński
Professor Andrzej Koszewski died in Poznań on February 17. He was 92. A renowned composer of choral music and a musicologist, he was also a professor of composition at the Poznań Music Academy, whose students included Krzesimir Dębski and Lidia Zielińska. Prof. Koszewski received an honorary doctorate from the Poznań Music Academy in 2013 in…Continue Reading Andrzej Koszewski
Jerzy Semkow, one of the most prominent Polish conductors and champions of Polish music around the world, died on December 23 near Lausanne, Switzerland after a long illness at the age of 86. Born in Radomsko, Poland, he first studied conducting in Kraków and later continued with the legendary Evgenii Mravinsky, the Artistic Director and…Continue Reading Jerzy Semkow (1928-2014)
Paweł Buczyński, a composer and lecturer at the Chopin Music University, and member of the Polish Composers’ Union, died January 5 at the age of 62. He studied composition with Tadeusz Baird in Warsaw and later with Roman Haubenstock-Ramati in Vienna. Since 1979 he was associated with the Warsaw Music Academy and during the 1980s…Continue Reading Pawel Buczyński (1953-2015)
Polish pianist, composer and pedagogue Jan Ekier passed away on August 15, 2014. Below is more information from the external news service of Polish Radio: Prominent Polish pianist and composer Jan Ekier has died in Warsaw, just two weeks before his 101st birthday. Ekier was known primarily for his outstanding interpretations of Chopin’s music and…Continue Reading Jan Ekier Obituary