News
106th Anniversary of the Birth of Grażyna Bacewicz
2015-02-04
We are celebrating the 106th anniversary of the birth of Grażyna Bacewicz, regarded as the greatest Polish woman composer of the twentieth century.
The Polish composer and violinist, was born on 5 February 1909 in Łódź and died on 17 January 1969 in Warsaw. She studied at the Warsaw Conservatory under Kazimierz Sikorski (composition), Józef Jarzębski (violin) obtaining diplomas in 1932 and also under Józef Turczyński (piano). In addition, she started studies at the faculty of philosophy of Warsaw University, but had to abandon them because of pressure of work. She completed her studies in compositions in Paris under Nadia Boulanger and violin playing under André Tourret and Carl Flesh. Untill 1952 she combinedcompositonal and performance activities which met with numerous successes on European stages where she gave recitals and concerts directed by such eminent conductors as Paul Kletzki, George Georgescu, Hermann Abendroth and Constantin Silvestri. For her work in both domains, she was awarded prizes and her music - highly valued by both conductors and performers - was increasingly to be found on programmes of concerts and festivals in Poland and abroad. From 1953 she devoted herself entirely to composition, which she had earlier combined with didactic work; between 1934-35 and 1945-46 she taught harmony, counterpoint and ear training and conducted the violin class at the Łódź Conservatory. From 1966 until her death she was a composition professor at the State High School of Music in Warsaw. Recognised as an authority both in the field of composition and violin playing, she served on juries of international violin competitions, chamber music competitions and contests for composers - in Poland and abroad (Warsaw, Paris, Liege, Moscow, Naples, Budapest - among other places).
Between 1955-57 and again from 1960 until her death she acted as the vice-chairman of the Polish Composers' Union.
Grażyna Bacewicz's creative output is extremely rich and varied, ranging from solo miniatures and chamber works to symphonies and concertos with solo instruments, songs, cantatas, ballets and a radio opera. She also wrote music for film and theatrical performances. Successful literary work was another facet of this comprehensively oriented creative personality, open and sensitive to all the manifestations of the world around her.
The numerous prizes and distinctions with which she was honoured are a symbolic expression of recognition for her titanic work and artistic and compositional achievements as a consequence of which she deservedly gained a reputation as the greatest Polish woman composer - an outstanding figure of our century's music.
Most popular:
The 4CD album featuring songs and instrumental works by the Silesian master goes on sale as of 8 November. Released by the ANAKLASIS music label, it will be premiered on 3 December during a special PWM Edition concert held as part of the 12th International Days of Henryk Mikołaj Górecki at the Silesian Philharmonic in Katowice.
The esteemed American-Canadian jazz musician Michael Bates, his Acrobat Ensemble and the Lutosławski Quartet will perform three concerts in Poland in November. The repertoire will include material recorded by the musicians on the album METAMORPHOSES: VARIATIONS ON LUTOSŁAWSKI, released by ANAKLASIS in the REVISIONS series.
The artists have already successfully presented it at Lincoln Center and Barbès Jazz Club in New York. In autumn 2024 we will have the opportunity to hear them live for the first time in Poland: 14.11 - Krakow, 15.11 - Lublin, 17.11 - Wroclaw.
The Fryderyk Chopin Institute in Warsaw invites to the inaugural session of the biennial International Digital Musicology Conference, which will be held 23–25 October 2024, at the Fryderyk Chopin Institute in Warsaw, Poland. The conference focuses on the integration of digital technologies into musicological research, with a special emphasis on introducing digital tools and methods to the Polish academic community, where digital musicology has not yet been widely adopted.
Although Ludomir Różycki - one of the most important representatives of Young Poland - enjoyed spectacular success as a composer during his lifetime, his works are rarely included in concert programmes today. It is therefore worth remembering his exceptional art.
Aleksander Nowak continues his original cycle of compositions that enter into a dialogue with most recent Polish literary works. The album premiere of his opera based on Marcin Wicha’s Nike-awarded book Things I Didn’t Throw Out will take place during the AUKSODRONE festival in Tychy.
Musical themes from Coppola’s cult movie, as deconstructed and reinterpreted by this wayward duo, will be performed at a live concert accompanied by the premiere of THEMES OF DRACULA from ANAKLASIS on vinyl records.
It’ s like a game. The memory game, thanks to which you can look at a very ordinary family from an extraordinary perspective. ALBUM RODZINNY [Family album] – an opera by Jerzy Kornowicz with a libretto by Michał Rusinek – is another premiere of the ANAKLASIS label this year. This time, the record brand is expanding its audience to include the youngest listeners. The album will be released on 21st June.
A common memory game that allows us to look at an ordinary family from an unusual perspective. FAMILY ALBUM - an opera by Jerzy Kornowicz based on a libretto by Michał Rusinek - is another premiere of the ANAKLASIS. This time, the audience is expanded to include the youngest of listeners. The album will be released on June 21.
Time passes constantly, changing the world and its soundscape around us. The title IL TEMPO PASSA may be both a reflection on the impermanence of life, world and things and a piece of advice to enjoy the moment. The latest album by ANAKLASIS presents Joanna Wnuk-Nazarowa’s cameral and symphonic works from recent years. Premiere on 28 May 2024, on the composer’s 75th birthday.
It is a musical-literary tale about a quest for identity, truth, and for what makes us human. The new stage work by Aleksander Nowak – which is, at the same time, Radek Rak’s operatic debut – explores the sources of good and evil, fusing reality with mythology and steering towards ‘the left-hand side of the world’. The authors spin a tale about the dual human nature. THE TALE OF THE HEART. FAVOLA IN MUSICA – the album that presents their joint project – will go on sale on 6th October.
