Grazyna Bacewicz: Calendar of Life

by: Ken Song

Bacewicz was a consummate artist who constantly challenged herself with an unstoppable passion to compose new music. She never quit working on music, even through hardships, always inventing new materials and exploring different techniques of composing. She was dissatisfied with many of her own compositions, which shows her drive toward making better compositions. Being independent and having a strong inner strength, Bacewicz was able to work tirelessly. Having a philosophical background, her analytical skills ranged from life in general to the very specific of her work. As a true artist, she concentrated on the originality of her works but she was also open to the different ideas and techniques of compositions from others. Having produced over two hundred works, ranging from symphonies to violin concertos to piano sonatas, her life was devoted to music.

Born on February 5, 1909 in Poland, Bacewicz had a early start in music by her father, learning violin, piano and theory at age of 5. Her two older brother, Kiejstut and Witold, were also musicians and her younger sister, Wanda, was a writer and poet who devotedly kept the record of Bacewicz. She gave her first concert at age of 7, with her brothers and wrote her first composition, Preludes for Piano when she was 13 years old. She moved to Warsaw where she attended the Warsaw Conservatory of Music, studying violin and piano. In 1928, at the age of 19, she went to study violin, piano, and composition at the University of Warsaw. While in tenure at the University of Warsaw, she also studied Philosophy. Taking advice from Karlol Szymanowski, who was a professor of the University at that time, Bacewicz went to study in Paris to broaden her musical knowledge. She obtained diplomas in composition and violin and graduated summa cum laude in 1932. Her graduation was completed by presentation of her compositions; Sinfonietta for string orchestra, Cantata for orchestra, String Quartet, and Sonata for violin.

Her studies in music did not end with the graduation, for Bacewicz went on to Paris to further her studies in composition with Nadia Boulanger and violin with Andre Touret. Her Wind Quartet was awarded first place in a competition for young composers in 1932. From then, she traveled to Spain and Majorca to give concerts as a violinist. In 1934, when Bacewicz was 25, she started to teach at the State Conservatory of Music in Lodz. At the end of 1934, she went to Paris for the second time to study violin with Carl Flesh. Her successful composition, Partita for Violin and Piano, was written while she was studying with Flesh, who was a stern and demanding teacher. By this time, Bacewicz's compositions were written in the neoclassical style.

In 1936, she married Andrzej Biernacki, who was a physician and a scientist. In the same year, Bacewicz joined the Polish Radio Orchestra, organized by a conductor, Grzegorz Fitelberg. She toured with them for two years as a principal violinist. She won the second prize for her Trio for Oboe, Violin and Cello and honorable mention for Sinfonietta for String Orchestra at the Composer's contest of the Polish Music Publishing Society. The Polish Radio Orchestra provided her with a chance to perform some of her work, including Violin Concerto no.1 and Three Songs for tenor and orchestra. Leaving the orchestra, she went to Paris for the third time to supervise her music at the concert room of the Ecole Normale de Musique. In 1939, she returned to Warsaw.

During the World War II, Bacewicz's family was temporarily displaced, and suffered many difficulties. Despite these hardships, she was able to work on new compositions such as String Quartet no.2 and the Symphony no.1. In 1942, at the age of 33, she gave birth to her only child, a daughter named Alina (now a well-known painter). During the war, Bacewicz managed to give some underground concerts in Warsaw, premiering her Suite for Two Violins. After the war, in 1945, she returned to work as a teacher in the State Conservatory of Music in Lodz. Now she began to compose more intensely, completing the Sonata da Camera and the Violin Concerto no.2. She also gave concerts, performing Szymanowski's Violin Concerto no.1 and her own Suite for Two Violins. A new work, Overture was performed for the first time at the Festival of Polish Contemporary Music in Cracow.

During the period from 1945 to 1955, Bacewicz was able to continue to create despite increasing ideological control over creative artists conducted by the new "socialist" government. Initially, she still continued to travel and perform abroad: she visited Paris for the fifth time, giving concert at the Ecole Normale de Musique, playing Sonata for Violin no.2. Soon after, however, she decided to devote all her time to composition. At the age of 39, Bacewicz received a honorable mention at the International Olympic Games Art Contest in London for her Olympic Games Cantata. Her music received alsos the second prize at the prestigious Chopin Contest for Composers, and two more third prizes at the Second Contest. Her musical efforts continued to be recognized. She was awarded the music award of the City of Warsaw for her work as a composer, virtuoso, organizer and teacher. In 1950, her composition, the Concerto for String Orchestra received the National Prize and was performed by National Symphony Orchestra in the United States. Bacewicz won the first prize for her String Quartet no.4. at the International Contest for Composers in Liege in 1951.

Her first ballet, The Peasant King, was completed in 1953, along with her Piano Sonata no.2. Unfortunately, this stream of successes and premieres was soon interrupted. Bacewicz experienced a serious automobile accident in 1954, injuring her pelvis, ribs and her head. By her inner strength, she was able to recover from the serious condition and as soon as she was released from hospitalization, she resumed composing. I n 1955, she received awards at the Polish Composer's Union Contest, and prizes from the Minister of Culture and Art for her Symphony no.4, Violin Concerto no.3 and String Quartet no.3. By 1955, Bacewicz had completely withdrawn from concertizing and concentrated all her efforts on composing.

In 1956, Bacewicz traveled to India with a group of artists to establish cultural relations between Poland and India. In the same year, she was awarded second prize at the International Contest for Composers in Liege for her Violin Quartet no.4. Meanwhile she had many other duties. An accomplished violinist, Bacewicz served as a jury member of the Wieniawski International Competition. During this time, Bacewicz continued her literary pursuits, publishing the collection of anecdotes, Znak Szczegolny.

After a long period of political control of music in Poland, the first Warsaw Autumn festival took place in 1956. Three of Bacewicz's compossitions were performed at this Warsaw Autumn (String Quartet no.4, Concerto for String Orchestra and the Overture). In the same year, the Ten Etudes were composed, which was played at the second Warsaw Autumn in 1958. Soon afterwards she was invited to be a member of the jury at the prestigious Tchaikowsky International Competition in Moscow. At the end of 1958, she completed one of her best works,Music for Strings, Trumpets and Percussion, which was performed at the Warsaw Autumn of 1959, receiving the first prize in the orchestral division and third prize overall at UNESCO's International Rostrum of Composers in the same year.

From 1960, Bacewicz's technique of composition began to take a new form, having been influenced by composers such as Schoenberg and Bartok. The String Quartet no.6. was completed in 1960 and it became one of her most successful works. With the String Quartet no.6. and Pensieri Notturni (1961), her music started to venture into a more atonal style. Her contributions to the Polish school of "sonorism" are hard to be overestimated.

In 1962, Grazyna was granted the award of Minister of Culture and Art, second degree, for Pensieri Notturni. In 1965, she was awarded a prize of the Belgian Government and Gold Medal at the Queen Elizabeth of Belgium International Competition for Composers in Brussels for her Violin Concerto no.7. After these immense successes came more work: she became a member of the jury of the International Competition in Naples in 1967, and was invited to chair the jury at the Wieniawski International Competition in Poznan. In 1968, Bacewicz became a member of the jury during the International Quartet Competition in Budapest.

Her third ballet, Desire, based on Picasso's play, was her main creative project of 1968. The work for the ballet was constantly interrupted by her busy schedule of teaching, travelling to performances of her works, and serving as competition juror. She did not live to finish this interesting project: the last section of about five minutes is missing.

On January 17, 1969, Bacewicz suddenly died of a heart attack, never seeing her last ballet performed. In 1973, Desire was premiered at the Grand Theatre in Warsaw; the performance, which took place thanks to the efforts of Wanda Bacewicz, the composer's sister, was quite controversial and did not follow the outline of the libretto used by the composer. Bacewicz is well remembered in Poland. Her statue is placed in Philharmonic Hall in Bydgoszcz, there are several streets and schools bearing her name. Within her short lifetime, she never stopped working as an artist, always learning and applying new techniques to her music. The depth and richness of music in this great artist continues to amaze her colleagues and public who admires her.

Bibliography