Polish Music
Reference Center
Newsletter
June 1996
Vol. 2, no. 6
FLASH NEWS!

RESULTS of the 47th Annual Chopin Piano Competition at the Kosciuszko Foundation held May 9 - 11th in New York:

No I or II Prizes awarded!

Three-way Tie for III place:


Abbey Simon was the chairman of the panel of Jurors.
WINNERS of the new Chopin International Piano Competition Of The Pacific held on May 19th Hawaii:

First Prize:
Sean Kennard - 11 years old

SOMETHING NEW!

MULTIMEDIA CHOPIN is a CD-ROM available from Poland Import Export, 44216 Bettina Ave., San Mateo, CA 94403. Tel/Fax (415) 341-7359.

Made in the USA the disc consists of

  • (1) Chopin's Life written by Dr. A. Leikin
  • (2) Music Hall where Chopin's music is performed by Prof. Leikin, an internationally known specialist in Romantic piano performance.
  • (3) Ask the Professor contains discussion of Chopin's music
  • (4) Chopin's Europe. Here the user can "select from a map any place associated with Chopin" "19-th c. paintings, drawings and rare 19th c. postcards and also a slide show of images with Chopin's music in the background."

    STANDARD INTERNATIONAL of Wroclaw, Poland announced the release of a Limited Luxury Book, The Final Work Of Witold Lutoslawski with an audiophile cassette, Voice Of Lutoslawski , recorded in two languages (Eng/Pol) and a compact disc of the Last Concert and Last Symphony. Warsaw National Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by the composer. In addition to the Fourth symphony the CD includes the First Symphony, Les espaces de sommeil, Chain 3. US $150. A collector's item! Order from Standard Int'l, Pereca 30-6, 53-430 Wroclaw, Poland. FAX: (48 71) 62-52-25.

    NEW BOOKS:

    A book about Jozef Koffler, a composer who perished in a Nazi concentration camp during WWII, has just been published. Author: Maciej Golab. Szymanowski author/specialist Teresa Chylinska reviewed it in the music journal, Ruch Muzyczny. She reports that of only eight of his works dedicated to anyone, two were dedicated to composers Schonberg and Szymanowski.

    Szymanowski As Post-Wagnerian. The Love Songs Of Hafiz, Op. 24 has been published as an outstanding dissertation in music from British universities. Written by Stephen C. Downes, recipient of the Wilk Prizes for Research in Polish Music, it is available from Garland Publishing (800-627-6273).

    Reprint of the cherished classic, Song, Dance And Customs Of Peasant Poland by Sula Benet with a preface by Dr. Margaret Mead. New from HIPPOCRENE BOOKS, 171 Madison Ave. New York, NY 10016-1002, (212) 685-4371 or Charge orders (718) 454- 2366. $24.95.

    RECENT PERFORMANCES:

  • MAY 9: Live broadcast over radio station KUSC in Los Angeles of the Pacific Symphony performing Brahms, Tchaikovsky and Gorecki's Symphony no. 3, op. 36 "Symphony of the Sorrowful Songs" with Cheryl Parrish, soprano and Carl St. Clair conducting.

  • MAY: Last part of the "Musica Antiqua Polonica" series at the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts was completed in May with a performance by the ensemble II Tempo featuring Polish music of the 17th c. (Jarzebski, Mielczewski, Szarzybski and Podbielski, greatest representatives of the Polish Baroque) and also music of Oginski and Janiewicz (early classical period). Roman Markowicz reviewed it favorably in the Polish-American daily from New York. He also recommends looking for the CD "Jewels of the Baroque" Dorian Discovery label (DIS 80136) featuring Polish Baroque music by another Polish Ensemble, "Tutti E Solo" from Poznan with music by the same composers and the "exquisite vocals" by Benigna Jaskulska, soprano.

  • MAY 15: Adam Makowicz, jazz pianist, performed at Carnegie Hall in a program dedicated to Jazz great, Errol Garner. Last year Makowicz dedicated his program to Art Tatum. Both jazz greats are the pianist's idols and he credits them with his love for jazz. Adam is on his way to his native Poland to perform music of American composers Gershwin, Berlin and Cole Porter this summer.

  • MAY 17: Polish Pianist Krystian Zimerman performed at the Royal Festival Hall on the South Bank in London as part of the International Piano Series.

  • MAY 18: The Westchester Choral Society performed Gorecki's "Miserere" at the Performing Arts Center at Purchase College (SUNY).

    For graduation Shane Carpenter presented his Master's Recital at Akron State University in which he performed the music of the Polish composer, Marta Ptaszynska, exclusively. Marta is just completing another stint of teaching composition at Northwestern U.

    Jan Sporek celebrated the fifth anniversary of his Piano School (Music Education Center) at the Polish-Slavic Center in Greenpoint, NY. with a weekend of music in April: Recitals by his students, a jazz concert by Adam Makowicz and a performance by Esprit De Chorus, a choral group directed and founded by him.

    COMING EVENTS:

  • JULY 8: Young Polish pianist Piotr Anderszewski is paired with Russian violinist Viktoria Mullova in a recital of music of Brahms, Janacek, Webern and Beethoven in Draper's Hall. Part of the City of London Festival.

  • JUNE: Tour of Japan by Poland's greatest symphony orchestra of Katowice led by Antoni Wit, conductor. Performing with them, II Prize winner of the Chopin International Competition Phillipe Giusiano.

  • June 21-24: Fete De La Musique in Honolulu. Sponsored by the Polish Cultural Society of Hawaii (formerly the "Chopin Society of Hawaii") with Polish artists participating. For more information contact the Events Coordinator for the festival, Voytek Jarnot. FAX: (808) 845-2466.

  • AUGUST 2-10: 50th International Chopin Festival in Duszniki- Zdroj. Last year 420 piano works, including 276 by Chopin, were performed by 25 pianist in 11 days, 33 concerts. Duszniki-Zdroj is a well-known health resort in the southern part of Silesia.

  • JAN 14-19, 1997: Barbican Lutoslawski Festival under the auspices of BBC and Guildhall School of Music Events will be dedicated to the late Witold Lutoslawski, who was born on January 25, 1913. Participants will include the BBC Symphony Orchestra, BBC Singers, BBC National Orchestra of Wales, composer/musicologists Jozef Patkowski, Steven Stucky, John Casken, Charles Bodman Rae and Adrian Thomas.

    DISCOGRAPHY. NEWEST RELEASES:

    New and recommended for purchase:

  • SONY Classical SK 67189. LUTOSLAWSKI's "Fanfare for Los Angeles Philharmonic (1993); Piano Concerto (1987); "Chantefleurs et Chantefables" (1990); Symphony no. 2 (1967). Los Angeles Phil., Esa-Pekka Salonen, cond.; Paul Crossley, piano; Dawn UPSHAW, soprano. Daniel Cariaga of the Los Angeles Times describes it as "brilliantly revealing four facets of Witold Lutoslawski's progressive and atonal style."

  • POLYGRAM RECORDS in a co-production with ACCORD RECORDS (Polish Radio) has released Marta Ptaszynska's "Holocaust Memorial" with Lord Yehudi Menuhin, conducting. The US premiere of the cantata took place on January 29, 1996 at Drinko Recital Hall, Cleveland State University performed by the Cleveland Chamber Symphony.

  • The music of Petrus de Grudziadz (c. 1400-1700): 13 Chansons and 5 Motets. Performed by the Bornus Consort and Ensemble Ars Nova De Varsovie. Accord. Order from Ethel Enterprises (800-648-2042) as #201412ACC for $15.59. On the Internet at http://www.grove.net/~ethelent.

  • CONCORD JAZZ CCD 4673. Ken Peplowski in "It's a Lonesome Old Town." "Glossy sound of Peplowski's clarinet combines beautifully with Tom Harrell, one of the most delicate and subtle of all contemporary trumpeters," in three of the pieces and "Marian McPartland plays piano in three others." Reviewed by David Gutman in Gramophone, April 1996. Best Jazz ever!

    SUMMER BARGAINS:

    50% off on Polish Christmas Carols music VIDEOS:

  • #V415 Children from the Opole region;
  • #V339 Children from Zakopane- Olcza grade school;
  • #V076 Children of Giewont Ensemble from Zakopane;
  • #V230 famous SLASK Ensemble;
  • #V127 Four ensembles (Catholilc, Evangelis and Orthodox choirs);
  • #V129 Soloists Ewa BEM, Andrzej HIOLSKI, Bernard LADYSZ, Janusz OLEJNICZAK, Irena SANTOR.
  • #V128 Children's Choir from Poniatowa. Also "Wigilia" (Polish Christmas Cooking) from POL ART (800-278- 9393). $12.48 each.

  • From H&B RECORDINGS DIRECT you can order CHOPIN: PIANO COLLECTIONS PRL 9641 for $14.83. Includes pianists Cortot, Backhaus & Ashkenazy. (800-222-6872).

    DID YOU KNOW THAT...

    Hard-to-find scores of Polish composers can be yours now? Enter Robert COMMAGERE of Los Angeles to the rescue! He makes beautifully bound copies from originals.

    Polish composers in the Robert Commagere Music Collection:

    Badarzewska, Deszczynski, Dobrzynski, Dombroski, Jules Fontana (friend of Chopin), Ignaz Friedman, Clementine Grabowska, Josef Hofmann, Lipinski, Melcer, Michalowski, Mlynarski, Moszkowski, Koczalski, de Kontski, Noskowski, Nowakowski, Oginski, Pachulski, Paderewski, Rozycki, Stojowski, Szymanowska (Maria), Szymanowski, Wielhorski, Wieniawski Henri & Joseph, Zarebski, Zarzycki & Zelenski. E-mail address: rcommage@ix.netcom.com or telephone (310) 476-1941.

    French composer Henri Dutilleux's great grandfather on his mother's side was born in Poland (name of Koziel)? The family later emigrated to the Alsace region of France. Dutilleux spoke of his Polish connection in the April issue of Ruch Muzyczny.

    COMMEMORATIONS & ANNIVERSARIES:

  • June 6, 1929 - Boguslaw Schaeffer
  • June 12, 1897 - Alexandre Tansman

    COMPOSER OF THE MONTH: ALEXANDRE TANSMAN

    Plan for a CENTENNIAL CELEBRATION of Tansman's birth in 1997! For addresses of the composer's publishers or the Friends of Tansman Society in France or individuals dedicated to the memory of this outstanding composer contact me by e-mail: wilk@mizar.usc.edu or write to Polish Music Reference Center, USC School of Music, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0851. 

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    This page updated on May 27, 1996 by Conrad Hunziker III