PCs by L.Grossman, V.Pukhalski & H.Bobinski

[Artur Slotwinski]

Hello

I am Polish investigator of lost Piano Concertos. I am in touch with Grossman family and they told me their family house of the son of Ludwik Grossman was devastated during WWII. I hope the Concerto score wasn't there... And this is my kind request for any of You who might now something in this matter. We are looking for a manuscript (probably) signed by Ludwik Grossman or Louis or Wojciech Horejszo (his nickname). I searched some published scores by Grossman but no a piano concerto was found. Polish Encyclopedia of Music says only the title of the work and the key - no year nor publishing info or place of depository. We are looking for Piano Concerto/Concerto pour piano/Klavierkonzert etc. I need Your help now.

With best regards,

Artur

[markniew]

Dear Artur,

Nice to find on YT your very recent recording of Franciszek Mirecki's  Adagio et Allegro Concertans (1828) reconstructed by you.
Great input to the inventory of the Polish concertante pieces for piano and orchestra! Thank you so much.
BTW, have you noticed on YT the recording of the first movement of Henryk Bobinski's PF Cto no. 1? and also 1st movement of the PF Cto no. 1 by Vladimir (Włodzimierz) Puchalski (teacher of Vladimir Horowitz)?
best regards,
Marek Niewiadomski

[Gareth Vaughan]

Thanks, Marek, for drawing attention Artur's reconstruction and performance of the very lovely Mirecki piece. It's quite a gem. Unfortunately, I can't find either the Bobinski or Puchalski excerpts on YT. Can you help me find them, please?

[Christopher]

Volodymyr Pukhalski's piano concerto (first movement) is here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CRiUvSjDhTs   

The concerto starts at 4m30s. It's quite Liszty and a bit Saint-Saënsish (these are technical terms...!)

It seems he was Ukrainian?  1848-1933.  Though a couple of entries list him as Belarusian or Polish or Russian.

A few bios:

http://www.encyclopediaofukraine.com/display.asp?linkpath=pages%5CP%5CU%5CPukhalskyVolodymyr.htm

https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4384503

https://uk.wikipedia.org/wiki/Пухальський_Володимир_В'ячеславович   (in Ukrainian)

https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wladimir_Puchalski  (in German - calls him "Polish/Ukrainian/Russian")

https://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Władimir_Puchalski (in Polish - calles him Russian and Ukrainain)

https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/Пухальский,_Владимир_Вячеславович  - (in Russian - calls him Russian and Soviet!)

[markniew]

Yes, there is a complicated matter with the nationality of people who were born, educated, worked at that time on these territories. It must be remembered that there were no independent states of Ukraine or Belarus then and even for centuries before. Before 1790s these regions (incl. Minsk, Kyiv) were a part of Poland (including Great Duchy of Lituania) so called Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Staring from 1790s till the end of WW1 they were a part of Russian Empire (after partition  of Poland). As almost all institutions, theatres, schools, including musical ones, were under Russian administration so all officials, graduates could be called as Russian scientists, musicians, medicians, officials etc. regardless their roots. In fact the issue of nationality of  individual person depended on his/her belief and inner declaration.
Saying that I fully accept  considering Puchalski and many others as Ukrainian, Belarussian, Polish but rather not Soviet.
BTW, as other examples we may take: Paderewski, Zarębski, Moniuszko, Sowiński and many, many others musicians, writers, scientists.

[markniew]

And here you have the link to the first movement of the piano concerto by Henryk Bobiński - performed by Ukrainian forces. From the intro in Ukrainian language I cannot understand everything but it was said that the concerto were played at the ceremony of opening of the Kiev Consarvatory in 1912 (before the High Musical School existed).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z5BohRaoLEM
Performers are:
Фортепіано - Євгеній Логвиновський /piano Evgenyi Logvinovsky/
Симфонічний оркестр КІМ ім. Глієра /SO of the Kyiv Gliere Institute of Music (not sure if I correct decipher the acronym KIM)
Диригент - Віталій Протасов /conductor Vitalyi Protasov/

[eschiss1]

also, information and solo+reduced accompaniment version (2 pianos) publication of the Bobinski @ IMSLP.

[Christopher]

The Bobinski is GREAT!  Do you have biographical information on him?

[Gareth Vaughan]

Thanks very much indeed for the links. Marvellous music. I knew the Bobinski from the 2 piano score but that is never enough. One must hear the full orchestral scoring. I would be very interested to learn the whereabouts of the score of the 2nd PC - if it still exists.

[Mark Thomas]

What an attractive piece the Bobinski movement is, I'd love to hear both the full concerto and other works by him.

[eschiss1]

There's a little biographical information @ Polish Wikipedia which Google-translates-in-a-hurry (sorry...) as

In Warsaw he attended the Musical Institute. He studied at Strobel, playing the piano and composing with Zygmunt Noskowski. He obtained his diploma in 1879. After graduation he went to Krakow. He worked there as a piano teacher at the Music Society. Parallel to his work, he gave concerts (among others: Lublin, Krakow, Warsaw). Then he left for Vienna to complete his education under the direction of Teodor Leszetycki. Later, he studied composition with Szostakowski at the Moscow Philharmonic. There, after obtaining his first degree, he taught piano for the next three years. In 1893, he lived in Odessa for a short time and then moved to Kiev. He became a professor of higher piano class at the school of the Russian Musical Society. In the years 1893-1903, he gave concerts in Warsaw, Kiev and Vienna. In 1914 he became seriously ill. He moved to Warsaw in the same year, where he lived for the last few months of his life.

Cited source: "Irena Poniatowska: Bobiński Henryk [w:] Encyklopedia muzyczna PWM. Część biograficzna t. I, Kraków 1979 ​ISBN 83-224-0113-2​".

Mr. Vaughan- Fleisher, I gather, has the Jurgenson score (and parts) , problem is as usual they probably don't loan to just anyone. Someone else might have it though.

[Gareth Vaughan]

Eric,
I know Fleisher have score and parts for PC 1. It's PC 2 that I haven't been able to trace. They don't list that.

[eschiss1]

you mentioned something about being unsatisfied (understandably) with the reduction (qua reduction, that is) of concerto 1, too, I thought. That's what I meant.

[Christopher]

A small bio of Bobinski here in English, and a link to the score of the piano concerto No 1:

Bio: https://musopen.org/composer/henryk-bobinski/

Born: 1st February 1861  -   Died: 24th April 1914  -  Birthplace: Warsaw, Poland
Henry Bobiński was a Polish pianist and composer. In Warsaw, he attended the Institute of Music. He learned piano and composition at Strobel, with Zygmunt Noskowski .He graduated in 1879. After graduation he moved to Krakow . He was employed there as a piano teacher of the Music Society. Then he went to Vienna.

Score:  https://musopen.org/music/29908-piano-concerto-op8/

[Artur Slotwinski]

Hey Guys!

Thanks! I appreciate Your interest into my Mirecki restoration - parts found in Aarhus, brought to Poland and with help of my friend who is engraver we created a score for conductor. We had also a conference on our Chopin University in Warsaw. I gave a lecture about Mirecki's piece and other people also talked about Mirecki's life and output. As in a topic any info on Ludwik Grossman Concerto in C-major are welcome. About Bobinski 2nd Concerto - I found only second movement in piano arrangement (worldcat says so in search). But no entire concerto. Thanks for links to Bobinski and Puchalski (as written in Polish version). There is so much treasures to be found - it is about crawling in mud on some last stories where garbage is kept - and also maybe lost manuscripts - it's a pity that orchestral scores were not published or even many Piano Concertos stay in manuscripts so Pazdirek is obviously silent - Grossman's PC was probably in manuscripts - his house was destroyed in 1939 in bomb attacks... Maybe he buried a box in ground with the scores.... Looking forward also for info about Wiktor (Victor) Kazynski (Każyński) ( or in russian version - he worked in Petersburg) Concerto in f-sharp minor, Anton de Kontski (Antoni Kątski) Piano Concertos - I searched many libraries and dissertations but find no answer where Kontskis Concertos are to be found (I wrote even to Grand Rapids in US where Kontski lived). And finally I searched in Lviv libraries for Wilhelm Czerwinski Concerto but found only some Nocturnes. Wish You all the best and looking forward to any tips on Grossman, Kazynski, Kontski, Czerwinski Pno Concertos....

My best

Artur