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Ignacy Jan Paderewski Biography and Music
Ignacy Jan Paderewski
Ignacy Jan Paderewski (1860-1941)
Polish composer, pianist, diplomat and statesman. He was the second Prime Minister of Poland.
Born: Kurylowka, Poland, 6 November 1860
Died: New York, 29 June 1941
Ignacy Jan Paderewski was an outstanding Polish musician who began composing at the age of six. He was an internationally acclaimed pianist, and the only musician to head a government. In 1936-38, he supervised publication of Chopin’s complete music. He was made president of the Polish National Council in Paris in 1940.
Paderewski studied at Warsaw Conservatory (1872-78) becoming a pianoforte teacher there (1879-83). In 1884, he studied in Vienna until 1887 and debuted in Vienna the same year.
Paderewski – Composer
He became celebrated in Europe and the USA as an interpreter of Chopin’s music. He composed the exciting Polish Fantasy (1893) for piano and orchestra, and the romantic ‘Polonia’ Symphony (1903-1909).
Up to 1899 he wrote mainly pianoforte solos including the “Tatra Album” (1885) based on songs and dances of the Polish Tatra mountain-dwellers. In the 1890s, he composed a violin sonata, the six Humoresques de Concert for pianoforte, and the Polish Fantasy for pianoforte and orchestra.
Considered his masterpiece is the tragic opera Manru (1897-1900), presented in Dresden (1901) and NY Met (1902). From 1903, he wrote more sonatas and songs.
Paderewski – Statesman, Prime Minister and Foreign Minister
Patriotic, he worked tirelessly for the Polish cause during the First World War (1914-1918). In 1919 when Poland became independent, he became Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of the first government, then retired a year later after some political disagreements, but became Poland’s delegate to the League of Nations (1920-21).
Paderewski – Piano Performances for War Victims and other Good Causes
In 1922, he resumed his recitals, raising large amounts of money for war victims. He sponsored several competitions and established scholarships such as $10,000 trust fund for US-born composers in 1900. In 1936 he appeared in the film “Moonlight Sonata.”
Paderewski married twice. He died in NY, and pending liberation, was buried at Arlington National Cemetery, but reburied in Warsaw with a state funeral (1992). He was made an Honorary Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire (GBE) in 1925.
Credit to YouTube and uploads by deviantrake, I found Paderewski’s 3-part Fantaisie Polonaise for Piano and Orchestra Op. 19. Thomas Tirino is on the piano with the Polish National Radio.
Ignacy Jan Paderewski – Fantasie Polonaise for Piano and Orchestra Op.19 PART 1 of 3 – Thomas (Pianist)
Ignacy Jan Paderewski – Fantasie Polonaise for Piano and Orchestra Op.19 PART 2 of 3 – Thomas (Pianist)
Ignacy Jan Paderewski – Fantasie Polonaise for Piano and Orchestra Op.19 PART 3 of 3 – Thomas (Pianist)
YouTube Video Sources:
Paderewski’s Fantasie Polonaise for Piano and Orchestra Op. 19
References:
- The Grove Concise Dictionary of Music, edited by Stanley Sadie. Macmillan (1994)
- The Oxford Companion to Music, edited by Allison Latham. Oxford University Press (2002)
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