Polish Music

[Mark Thomas]

Couldn't have put it better myself. A very rewarding listen. Many thanks.

[markniew]

Here there are some info on Maciej Zielinski - taken from the 2004 Warsaw Autumn Festival of Modern Music website:

Maciej Zieliński

  born in 1971 in Warsaw, he studied composition with Marian Borkowski at the Music Academy in Warsaw, gaining a diploma with distinction in 1996. He was also a postgraduate student of Paul Patterson at the Royal Academy of Music in London (diploma in 1999). He participated in the International Courses for Young Composers organized by the Polish Society for Contemporary Music (1993–97) and in the International Meetings of Young Composers in Apeldoorn, Holland (1995).
His works have been featured in major festivals including the 'Warsaw Autumn', the Lutosławski Forum in Warsaw, Musica Polonica Nova in Wrocław, the 'Gaude Mater' Festival of Sacred Music in Częstochowa, AudioArt, the 14th Synthesizer-Musik-Festival in Braunschweig, Musica del Novocento in Rome, the European Youth Music Festival Copenhagen '96, the Park Lane Festival in London, and the World Music Days in Romania. They have also been recorded for many European radio stations and on many labels (pwm, dux, zpr Records, Universal Music, Polskie Nagrania Edition, Acte Préalable). One of the recent cds, featuring String Quartet No. 1 (performed by the dafO Quartet on the pwm/dux label) won the 'Fryderyk' Award of the Polish Phono-graphic Academy in 2002.
In 2000 his work Lutosławski in memoriam for oboe and piano was selected by the Associated Board of Royal Schools of Music for the examination programme in English schools until 2006. His honours also include Second Prize of the Critics' Panel at the 2nd Young Composers' Forum in Kraków (1994), Second Prize at the 6th Com-petition for Synthesized and Computer Music (Germany, 1995), Second Prize at the 1st 'Musica Sacra' Competition for Young Composers (1995), Third Prize at the 'Jihlava' International Com-posers' Competition (the Czech Republic, 1996), Third Prize at the National Composers' Competition in Gdańsk (1997), the Main Prize in the competition for a multimedia project organized by the Polish Society for Contemporary Music (1999), the Alan Bush Composition Prize (Britain, 1999), and the Josiah Parker Composition Prize (Bri-tain, 1999).
He held grants from the Minister of Culture and Art (1995) and the British Council (1998). In 1994–96 he served as deputy chairman of the Youth Circle of the Polish Composers' Union. He was a moderator at the 20th International Course for Young Composers in Radzie-jowice in 2000 and served as its director in 2003. He was a member
of the National Jury of the iscm World Music Days (2002, 2004), and of the Tadeusz Baird and 'Musica Sacra' Composers' Competitions. In 2002 he was elected deputy president of the Polish Society for Contemporary Music. He is a member of the Polish Composers' Union (Board Member of its Warsaw Branch), the Polish Society for Contemporary Music and the zaiks Authors' and Composers' Association.
Incidental music for the theatre and film music constitute an important part of his artistic activity.
Selected works: Miniature for string quartet (1989), Concertino for clarinet and piano (1991), Variations for solo clarinet (1991), Miniatures for chamber orchestra (1992), Perchoir for mixed choir and percussion (1992–93), Capriccio for clarinet and piano (1993), Sonata for accordion (1993), Musica per archi a.d. 1993 (1993), String Quartet No. 1 (1994), Vox Humana for percussion and amplified cello (1994), Alone in a Crowd ... for alto saxophone and tape (1994), Domine, quis habitabit for unaccompanied mixed choir (1995), Capriccio for solo violin (1995), Clouds for tape (1995), Piano Concerto No. 1 (1995), Three Phrases for clarinet, trombone, cello and piano (1996), Tractus for unaccompanied mixed choir (1996), Shining for string orchestra (1996), a. for alto saxophone and piano (1996), Symphony No. 1 (1996), Abruzzo – Imaginary Landscape for chamber orchestra (1997), Capriccio for chamber orchestra (1998), Lutosławski in memoriam for oboe and piano (1999), Brass Quintet (1999), Oratio for solo organ (2000), Fallen Angel for percussion and tape (2003), Sololis for solo piano (2004).

[markniew]

In the Downloads there is a link to:

Apolinary Szeluto (1884-1966)

Cyrano de Bergerac – Symphonic Poem op. 27 (1933)

Polish Radio Orchestra of Kraków
cond. Antoni Wicherek

Szeluto is rather completely unknown and unplayed despite he was a member of the Young Poland in Music group (with Szymanowski, Różycki and Fitelberg) and was considered in the beginning of his career as the higly promising composer.

his short biogram can be found on the PWM website

=364445&sortuj=sattr_83&grupuj=&przedm=121366&strona=2]http://www.pwm.com.pl/szczegoly.php?&Szeluto_Apolinary&aukcja=0&grupa_p=6&grp=&pwd[6]=364445&sortuj=sattr_83&grupuj=&przedm=121366&strona=2

in the booklet notes of the only one CD with his (chamber) music (by DUX) one can read:
" In Szeluto's CV the truth was mixed with the fiction: the titles of his compositions and the fact of their existence were actually true. Later, since the end of the 1940's, as a result of the composer's developing depressioh, his operas and symphonies contained only titles and several words or notes (e.g. his opera in five acts filled two pages). the performances and recordings of his Majestic Peace Symphony were rather invented by Szeluto. he even failed to provide its instrumentation. The songs with political undertones (Stalin's Oath on lenin's Grave etc.) listed by Szeluto, were probably never written. A fairly detailed catalogue of Szeluto's compositions, prepared by Tadeusz Szantruczek, does not mention such titles. [...] The most important and probably the most accurate comments [on his music] were those by Feruccio Busoni stating that Szeluto's works "were one of a kind" and by Fritz Kresiler writing that his compositions are completely different than anything else".

For music fans it is very difficult to form their own opinion on his music as there are almost no recordings of it (DUX Cd is an exception). I do have only  few his solo piano pieces.

Nice listening

[britishcomposer]

Thank you so much, Marek!

Some time ago I requested music by Szeluto - in vain. I am looking forward to listening to this substantial work! 

[markniew]

Few days ago the symphony no. 1 op. 8 of 1902 by Maliszewski was its modern premiere.
In the Downloads I have uploaded his work of the same year (1902 - according to the commentary) Sonata for Violin and Piano in G Major op. 1.
It is rather more traditional and conventional compostion than the symphony. But as a piecen ot commonly known and rather rarely played it is worth listening.

[britishcomposer]

Marek, thank you very much for the new Maliszewski Sonata! 

When Frank posted the 1st Symphony he gave 1907 as the date. This is certainly the date of publication (Belaieff) according to several online sources. I couldn't find any reference about when Maliszewski actually wrote his Opus 8. Can you confirm that it was 1902?

[eschiss1]

Published but not composed (well, perhaps revised) as late as 1907, since it was performed, according to Taruskin, on 21 March 1904 in a St. Petersburg concert along with the premiere of Lyadov's Baba-Yaga.

[eschiss1]

Did the Maliszewski symphony and Wieniawski piano concerto come from a June 17 concert (with Zielinski's Element, world premiere)? I see there's a webpage ("World Concert Hall") that offered a live stream of them when they were going on... performers seem to be  Borowicz, Biliska, etc.

[fr8nks]

Did the Maliszewski symphony and Wieniawski piano concerto come from a June 17 concert (with Zielinski's Element, world premiere)? I see there's a webpage ("World Concert Hall") that offered a live stream of them when they were going on... performers seem to be  Borowicz, Biliska, etc.

Quote from markniew on June 16th, 2012:

"On Sunday at. 7:00 p.m. CET Polish Radio 2 will broadcast the concert with  Symphony no. 1 op. 8 by Witold Maliszewski. It is - up to my knowledge - the first performance of the piece in modern times."

Also the source for all three works is given as being taken from this concert.

[markniew]

Yes, the Zieliński, Wieniawski and Maliszewski were played at the same evening closing the concert season 2011/12 of the Polska Orkiestra Radiowa (Polish Radio Orchestra of Warsaw).

as to the Maliszewski's symphony PWM gives the date 1902 as the date of composiong

=364447&sortuj=sattr_83&grupuj=&przedm=118559&strona=3&change_lang=1&change_skin=103374]http://www.pwm.com.pl/szczegoly.php?&Maliszewski_Witold&aukcja=0&grupa_p=6&grp=&pwd[6]=364447&sortuj=sattr_83&grupuj=&przedm=118559&strona=3&change_lang=1&change_skin=103374

[markniew]

One more composition by Witold Maliszewski - in the Downloads

5 Songs to texts by Leopold Staff (Polish Poet, 1878-1957, short info on him http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leopold_Staff )

In the announcement nothing was told on the date of composition of the songs.

Anyhow recording is over 60 years old. The soloist is:

Wiktor Brégy (b. 1903 in Kiev, d. 1976 in Warsaw) Polish Singer, son of a Frenchman working in Russia and a Greek woman. In 1920 his family moved to Warsaw. He studied law at the Warsaw University and also music. In 1920 was engaged to the Warsaw Opera. In 1931-33 he was the soloist at the Opéra Comique in Paris, in 1934-39 sung at at operas in Switzerland. During WW2 was engaged in resistance. Was arrested and kept in Pawiak, Stutthof and Altvorwerk. Managed to escape and found himself in Krakow.
After the war He was active as pedagogue and opera director

[eschiss1]

It's possible at least no.4 may have to be removed from our downloads section, if only because of this and our policy about commercially available downloads (the performers and work are the same) - especially since that seems to be a Polish Radio site and they may well have the rights to the recording and to charge for the recording. (Hopefully searching will not reveal that the other four are on other pages similarly!)

[markniew]

hmmm! yes, we have problem. I agree even to delete the whole upload of songs however I do not expect that remaining ones have been offered for commercial download on other websites.

[markniew]

I delete it. All five songs are available on the Polish Radio website.
sorry, that happenet to me for the very first time. In fact it seems rather strange that they offer particularly that composition.

[eschiss1]

It's good to know of the work, anycase, and thank you for the biographical material etc.!