Polish 19th Century lost Piano Concertos & Symphonies

[Alan Howe]

I just listened to the Violin concerto. It is also late Romantic.

That's a relief. But please remember: it's a constant job for us to police the boundaries of UC's remit, particularly post-1918. It's up to contributors to consult us first about music that falls outside our timeframe rather than us having constantly to play catch-up.

[markniew]

Hi violinconcerto,

Where you've found Szeluto's Violin concerto? Some two years ago it was announced that Ewelina Nowicka was scheduled to play it but Ii did not trace any info on this performance.

[Alan Howe]

More info here (via Google Translate):
<<In 2001, she performed with the National Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra in Katowice the forgotten Violin Concerto Op. 70 by Ludomir Różycki (released ten years later on Acte Préalable AP0219). In the following years she undertook premiere performances of further, forgotten violin concertos - in 2004 it was the Violin Concerto by Ignacy Jan Paderewski, which premiered with the Baltic Philharmonic in 2005 - Violin Concerto by Piotr Perkowski, in 2011 - Violin Concerto in G minor op. 67 Mieczysław Weinberg (at the "Probaltica" Festival in Toruń) and in 2014 - Violin Concerto in A major Op. 98 Apollo Cheeluto (also within the Probaltica Festival).>>

[violinconcerto]

Hi violinconcerto,

Where you've found Szeluto's Violin concerto? Some two years ago it was announced that Ewelina Nowicka was scheduled to play it but Ii did not trace any info on this performance.

I got a copy from the soloist, if I remember correctly.

[mjkFendrich]

Hello markniew,

I've got a copy of the performance of Szeluto's concerto from Ewelina Nowicka too,
but after listening to it twice I don't think that it is a really great piece - the contemporary
concertos e.g. of Bacewicz and J.Fitelberg are much more rewarding.

[markniew]

Thank you guys.
I will contact the violinist also. In fact I do not expect a gem but it is interesting enough to me as I try to collect Polish music for years - especially piano concertos but also other musical forms.

[markniew]

Yes, that's exactly the point here. Lists of names are one thing, but whether these works have actually survived is quite another...

Hi Alan,
you are right. Knowing the names and the list of compositions is one thing and existance of scores and recordings that's completely other thing. I am not "notes-literate" so can valuate the music only by hearing it. As I mentined years ago the commercial recordings of Polsih music were for years unavailable. In recent times the situation is getting better but so many music is still not registered. I know that some pf concertos were recorded for Polish radio archives but I never got them off radio. Of course the music I mean is from the time beyond the interest of US forum. I do not believe the 9th century concertos were ever registered by PR.

[FBerwald]

More info here (via Google Translate):
..... In the following years she undertook premiere performances of further, forgotten violin concertos - in 2004 it was the Violin Concerto by Ignacy Jan Paderewski, which premiered with the Baltic Philharmonic in 2005

Dear Alan, am I reading this right... a Violin concerto by Paderewski or is this a typo?

[Alan Howe]

No idea! I wondered about this, of course, but haven't had the time to investigate...

[Gareth Vaughan]

The Polish Music Journal Vol. 4, No. 2, Winter 2001 has a comprehensive list of works by Paderewski. The Violin Concerto 1886-88 is described as "Destroyed, only violin part for and mvt. remained. Reconstructed by A. Roezler, Premiere: Warszawa 1991 S. Tomasik - violin, E. Wolanin - piano." I'm not quite sure what "only violin part for and mvt. remained" means. Does it mean piano/violin score of whole work plus one complete (i. e. full score) movement, or what? If only the violin part of the work is extant any reconstruction must be highly conjectural.

[Martin Eastick]

The Paderewski "violin concerto" is in fact an allegro de concert which he left in an unfinished state in piano reduction, but which has been recorded twice as far as I know. Firstly with piano accompaniment, by Konstanty Kulka, on a Dux CD consisting of his complete works for violin and piano. Then there is a CD issued by Polskie Radio (PRCD 143), with Slawomir Tomasik, which has all the works for violin and piano but the allegro de concert is performed with orchestra. It seems that both reconstructions/supplementations were done by Arnold Rezler, with some contribution by Tomasik. The notes also state that Paderewski also left some sketches for a 2nd & 3rd movement but probably not enough for a realistic and sympathetic reconstruction. However, all I will say is that it is a great pity that the work was never completed, certainly going on what we have been left!

[Gareth Vaughan]

Thank you,  Martin. Very informative.

[Alan Howe]

Indeed. Thanks, Martin. I have the Dux CD - must give it a spin.

[Alan Howe]

The Allegro de Concert (violin & piano version) turns out to be a fine, if conventional piece. The violin & orchestra version would make an attractive filler for a CD of other such music.

[eschiss1]

Re Tausig's concerto isn't it one of several works of that Liszt pupil that's been missing for ages (according to Walker's discussion of Tausig's life and works in his Liszt bio?)

The existence at one point of concertante works of some kind by Antoni Kontski/Katski for piano and orchestra seems to be testified to by a brief bio of him (... my Polish is non-existent, sorry, but here's the link) - https://books.google.com/books?id=tDIpAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA180 - (the bio, which seems to mention something with piano and orchestra, is on pp.180-81.) Not sure it claims they were called concertos, so maybe the still-extant op.90 suffices iirc, or something like that. Anycase will look further.