The program of the 60th Meeting of the Polish Institute of Arts and Sciences of America was especially solemn and well attended, due to its location at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. and the involvement of Polish politicians and important personalities from the academic world (chairs and rectors of numerous universities). During the opening remarks Dr. Thaddeus Gromada, Executive Director of this organization, reminded all present that the Meeting featured the largest number of Polish scholars so far, and that it represented the continuing tightening of connections between Polish and Polonian scholars. The press was also well represented, especially that it was provided with a magnet, in the form of Zbigniew Brzezinski, vice-president of PIASA (the president, Prof. Wandycz of Yale University was serving as the most gracious and sophisticated host), and Mr. Jerzy Buzek, former prime minister of Poland.

Four concurrent sessions were held in various halls of Georgetown's Intercultural Center, dealing with economy, culture, history, music and medicine. The two music sessions, complementing the "arts" part of the Institute's name, were proposed by the Polish Music Center. As the author of the idea, I served as chair and speaker during a session on Polish music of the 19th and 20th century, featuring an interesting paper on Elsner's operas by Anne Swartz of Baruch College, and two ground-breaking presentations about Zygmunt Stojowski, by Joseph Herter, choral conductor at Warsaw's St. John The Baptist Basilica, and myself. Herter presented an overview of the life and music of this unduly forgotten composer and reminded the audience that Stojowski was among the founders of PIASA. His lecture was illustrated with slides prepared for our meeting dedicated to the life and music of the composer and presented on April 6, 2002 in Los Angeles (i.e.: the beautiful, signed photograph of the composer that I found in the Stojowski files in January 2002).

Zygmunt Stojowski's photo of ca. 1910.

In addition, Mr. Herter - a true "musical detective" involved in the pursuit of Stojowski's music for performance purposes - played short excerpts from Stojowski's compositions, giving the audience a glimpse of the composer's versatility and talent. In my talk about "Stojowski and Paderewski: A Musical Friendship" I focused on musical interactions between the two great men, and the similarities in their approaches to performance, composition, and politics. I noticed that there is a marked affinity of late-romantic stylistic traits, from tempo rubato and exaggerated expressivity, to traditional forms, genres, and tonal traits of the music. In order to prove a controversial point that Stojowski was clearly a much better pianist than Paderewski in his later years, I played excerpts from historical recordings, Stojowski's "By the brookside" played by Paderewski and Paderewski's "Legende" played by Stojowski. I also presented excerpts from a range of Stojowski's texts about Paderewski and noted their old-fashioned charm - in frequent comparison of the "great master" to Orpheus, Apollo, or Titan. The rejection of composition for the sake of political activities at the outset of World War I by Paderewski and somewhat later by Stojowski deserved a comment from Hannah Arendt's magisterial treatise The Human Condition - her praise for Vita Activa focused on the political arena as being more important than contemplative or creative lives of mere music makers. "It is hard to agree with Arendt," I concluded, noting the tragic musical consequences of the abandonment of composition for the sake of short-lived political gains that affected the reputations of both composers as composers.

Both Stojowski papers will appear in the next issue of the Polish Music Journal, along with copies and translations of Stojowski's essays on music (a selection was published already in vol. 4 no. 1). My choice of highlighting the life of this forgotten composer in our publications results from the wealth of newly discovered material, in the Zygmunt and Louisa Stojowski Collection, soon to be donated to the Polish Music Center. This summer the appraisal and inventory of the collection should be complete and next year the archives will be available for study by other scholars. Mr. Herter will work on a book dedicated to Stojowski and published in Polish. Other authors will be encouraged to avail themselves of this treasure trove of archival material, richly documenting the history of Polish immigrants in American musical life. The report from this session should end with a mention of the presence of the composer's son, Henry Stojowski - who drove from New York to attend the first scholarly talks about his father's music held in contemporary America. I asked Henry to speak in the "question" period and he had the most delightful anecdotes to offer about his life with music in a home visited by the greatest musicians and artists, whose names we only know from history books, and Mr. Stojowski had a chance of knowing the persons themselves. He had for instance, frequently encountered Paderewski and visited him in Switzerland; he remembered the musical and patriotic engagements of his father that we only now start to record and honor.

Paderewski as patriotic speaker: a 1916 portrait.

The second session that I proposed for the PIASA Metting was dedicated to Ignacy Jan Paderewski and Marcellina Sembrich. Chaired by distinguished historian, Prof. Anna Cienciala (of Kansas University, hence her frequent references to the Mid-west), the session included three papers. I presented Paderewski's portraits in poetry - citing the florid and exaggerated language of Paderewski worshippers, against the background of Paderewski's 1906 recordings of Chopin, Beethoven, and Liszt. The reading seems to have been a success, but it slowed down the presentation of the poetry and the discussion of its content so much that I decided to refer the public to the Polish Music Journal vol. 4 no. 1 where the article appeared in entirety, including all 13 poems, known so far. If our readers find more Paderewski-themed poetry, we will be very grateful for copies. The second paper during the session, presented again by an amateur music historian, with a B.A. degree in vocal arts, Mr. Stephen Herx, was dedicated to Marcellina Sembrich-Kochańska. Mr. Herx did as thorough a job of locating Sembrich documents and clippings in American libraries as did Mr. Herter in the case of Stojowski.

The final paper, by eminent historian Mieczysław Biskupski, newly elected to chair the Polish Studies program at Central Connecticut University (after the untimely death of Prof. Stanislaus Blejwas), was the most controversial. Bringing Sembrich and Paderewski together, Biskupski presented a thesis that Paderewski was instrumental in the destruction of the singer's charitable committee gathering funds for Polish victims of the war because he wanted his own committee to be the only one in the field, and because he opposed the pro-Austrian orientation of Sembrich's well-established and active committee. Furthermore, he accused Stojowski of serving as Paderewski's right hand and using some dirty tactics in order to get members of Sembrich's committee to step down. This action took place in the 1915-1917 and is documented in various Polish American archives. Mr. Herter is now given a task of verifying this information and making sure that his portrayal of Stojowski is well balanced. The fact that Sembrich was a God-mother of one of Stojowski's sons, and that Paderewski shared the honor, as well as that all three musicians frequently collaborated in musical and charitable endeavours seems to contradict Prof. Biskupski's thesis that greatly aggravated a part of the audience. The discussion that ensued was most lively and dramatic, continuing afterwards in the hallways. Thus, the Polish Institute, yet again served as a locus of scholarly debates that will result in the progress of knowledge. [reported by Maja Trochimczyk]

This year's Fryderyki winners in classical music categories are:

Reissue of Paderewski playing from piano rolls housed in the archives of the National Library in Warsaw.

CHOPIN FESTIVAL IN DUSZNIKI

The Annual International Chopin Festival in Duszniki-Zdrój will take place in August. Pianist Piotr Paleczny, director of the annual Chopin Festival for the last ten years, gives an extensive interview with Józef Kański in the 17 February issue of Ruch Muzyczny. It will be the 57th International Chopin Festival held in Duszniki-Zdrój, where Chopin spent many of his youthful years. This year's festival to be held August 2-10th will mark the 200th anniversary of the existence of Chopin's "dworek" (manor).

The festival this year will feature pianists: Dominique Merlet, Nelson Freire, Alexy Nasiedkin, Denis Matsujev (winner of the previous Tchaikovsky Competition) and the winner of this year's Tchaikovsky event. Mr. Paleczny reported that the 120th birthday of Karol Szymanowski will also be celebrated during the Chopin Festival with the appearance and recital by British pianist Martin Roscoe, who has recorded all of Szymanowski's piano works. He also said he hoped that the new piano sensation Piotr Anderszewski will also be present.

PADEREWSKI LECTURE AFTERTHOUGHTS

The first Annual Paderewski Lecture, featuring composer-pianist Zygmunt Krauze, with the participation of the Polish Folk Dance Ensemble Krakusy, took place on 3 May 2002, 8 p.m., at the Alfred Newman Recital Hall, USC Campus, Los Angeles. In addition to the review in the Los Angeles Times the Lecture was reported in Nowy Dziennik (Przegląd Polski), News of Polonia, and in USC Chronicle.

Krakusy with M. Pasternak, consul K. Kasprzyk, M. Trochimczyk and Z. Krauze

In the report published in the Californian monthly, Dr. Zbigniew Petryka wrote not only about the "academic" part of the lecture (commenting on the informative and educational content of Krauze's introduction to Polish avant-garde, shocking for many Californian Poles), but also about the "social" aspect - the quality of our reception prepared by Polka Restaurant of Eagle Rock, and the entertainment provided by children of the Polish Folk Dance Ensemble Krakusy, who sang Polish folk songs during the event. The report was illustrated with photographs by Jacek Nowaczyński, some of which are reproduced below. The report in News of Polonia appeared both in Polish and in English, so that no segment of Polish American population would be left without knowing what a significant cultural event it was. The next lecture in 2003 will hopefully be given by Ewa Podleś, a famed contralto.

Zygmunt Krauze with Wanda Wilk

Krakusy with choreographer, Maciej Pasternak

CHOPIN SOCIETY ELECTIONS

The Frederic Chopin Society in Warsaw, which has a membership of six hundred, held its election last year. Kazimierz Gierzod, former director of the Chopin Academy, remained as president with Bronisław Kawalla and Józef Stompel as vice- presidents. They are elected for five years and the officers and board members are the official organizers of the International Chopin Piano Competition, which is also held every five years.

ŁUKASZEWSKI WEB SITE
Composer Paweł Łukaszewski, whose name was frequently mentioned in the past issues of the Newsletter, informs us that he has now his own web site with his biography, list of works, and assorted news about his musical career and activities. The site is located at: http://www.republika.pl/lukaszewskip/

ANTISEMITISM CONFERENCE
The West Virginia University History Department will host a conference on antisemitism in 19th and 20th-century Poland: June 17-18 at the Clarion Hotel Morgan. Entitled 'Antisemitism and Its Opponents in Modern Poland,' the conference will feature presentations by a dozen leading historians and social scientists from the United States and Poland.

The conference, funded by the National Council for Eurasian and East European Research as part of a collaborative research project directed by Professor Robert E. Blobaum, is free and open to the public. The conference program is available on the web at http.www.as.wvu.edu/history (scroll down and click "Collaborative Research Project on Antisemitism and Its Opponents in Modern Poland"). For further information, please contact Professor Blobaum (rblobau@wvu.edu) or call 304-293-2421, x5241.

Reported by Mara Kozelsky, Graduate Assistant, Skalny Center for Polish and Central European Studies, University of Rochester / 101 Harkness Hall - Box 270147 / Rochester, NY 14627-0147 / kozm@mail.rochester.edu / phone: (716) 275-9898

OBITUARIES

Dr. Sandra P. Rosenblum, of Belmont, Massachusetts, a renowned Chopin expert, has reviewed the Polish Music History Series for the current issue Notes - Journal of the Music Library Association. The review focuses on the most recent addition to the series, After Chopin: Essays in Polish Music and presents an overview of the earlier titles. Dr. Rosenblum writes:

This richly textured collection of essays, employing diverse historical and analytical methodologies, considers “the three Polish composers of the greatest international significance over two centuries”—Chopin, Szymanowski, and Lutos awski—(p. 12) and topics of “Music and National Identity.” Trochimczyk’s “Introduction: Music for the Nation or the Nation for Music?” and her notes to the historical essays of Pt. I provide valuable orientation and background. In “100 Years of Defining Chopin,” essays by Polish composers published between 1899 and 1970 represent stages in Chopin reception in his homeland. Some “exemplify a Polish tradition of constructing Chopin’s identity” … (p. 2), of which an important component was the reclaiming of their native son—born of a French father and Polish mother, but resident of Paris for approximately half his life—as a Pole and as the creator of Polish music. . . The seven modern contributions (Downes, Zielinski, Klein, Trochimczyk, Helman, Cooley) are challenging and engaging, each offering some new understanding of its topic. . . The variety of significant subject matter and recurring themes—including issues of Polish national culture, the methodological richness, and the originality of thought make this volume an important source for anyone seriously interested in Polish music.

This “life and works” is notable for its extensive extracts from the composer’s correspondence, which reveals much about his changing psychological moods and thoughts about his recent compositions, and from his articles about music, which became an increasing part of his productivity and influence on Polish music culture after 1920. Szymanowski’s life was not unproblematic and Chylinska presents it with sensitivity and perception. She also includes contextual information about his works, with critical reactions to first performances and important performers, including those in the United States. . . A worklist and a very good bibliography conclude this engaging and significant addition to the literature on Szymanowski, who has recently gained recognition as “an outstanding artist and a great humanist” of the twentieth century (p. 293).

A new book, "Henryk Wieniawski. Composer and Virtuoso in the Musical Culture of the XIX and XX Centuries." Edited by Maciej Jabłoński and Danuta Jasińska. Poznań, 200l, 334 pages. This book includes 17 articles (in English or German by various authors) who participated in the music conference on Wieniawski in April 2000. Jan Steszewski wrote the foreword. It also contains a "Chronology of the Concert Performances of Henryk Wieniawski 1835-1880" and a supplement of Wieniawski's discography is included.

The second edition of the Wilk Book Prize for Research in Polish Music will be held in 2002. Submissions are welcome from the publishers or authors (two copies of the book). The rules below describe the conditions of this Prize. The deadline this year is extended to July 31, 2002.

1. All books published outside of Poland by scholars who are not normally based in Poland are acceptable. Polish scholars on sabbatical or fellowship abroad are not eligible. Books by non-Polish authors published in Poland and in Polish are not eligible.

2. Submissions may be forwarded by the authors, publishers or third parties.

3. The submitted book should be published within the past 5 years (first edition of the competition in 2000) and 3 years (thereafter).

4. The books may be published in English, German, or French.

5. The authors should be professional scholars, who hold a doctorate or have equivalent experience and are professionally active in the field of Polish music.

6. The jury is chaired by the Stefan and Wanda Wilk Director of the Polish Music Center and consists of invited scholars who specialize in Polish music, especially those from Poland.

7. The Competition is held biennally in even years (2000 and so forth).

8. The submissions (2 copies of the book) must be received on or before June 30th of the year of the Competition.

9. The award will be given by November 30 of the year of the competition, preferably during a national meeting of a major professional society.

10. The award will consist of a $2,000 cash prize and a certificate of award.

11. In the case of a tie, or a larger number of deserving books in the competition the jury will divide the award into two or three prizes of equal cash value. However, preference will be given to awarding one prize.

12. The jury reserves the right of not awarding the prizes if no submissions are deemed acceptable. All the decisions of the jury are final.

13. All entries should be addressed to the Wilk Book Prizes in Polish Music, Polish Music Center, Thornton School of Music, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0851.