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Witold Lutosławski (1913-1994)

Witlod Lutoslawski, composerWitold Lutosławski was indisputably one of the major composers of the twentieth century. Born in Warsaw in 1913, he showed prodigious musical and intellectual talent from an early age. His composition studies in Warsaw ended at a politically difficult time for Poland, so his plans for further study in Paris were replaced by a period which included military training, imprisonment by the Germans and escape back to Warsaw, where he and his compatriot Andrzej Panufnik played their own compositions and transcriptions in cafes. After the war, the Stalinist regime banned his Symphony No. 1 (1941-47) as 'formalist', but he continued to compose and in 1958 his Musique Funèbre, in memory of Bartok, established his international reputation. His own personal aleatoric technique whereby the performers have freedom within certain controlled parameters was first demonstrated in  Jeux vénitiens (1961) and is to be found in almost all his later music. Over the years, Lutosławski was frequently inspired by particular ensembles and artists including the London Sinfonietta, Sir Peter Pears, Heinz and Ursula Holliger, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Mstislav Rostropovich and Anne-Sophie Mutter. His Symphony No. 4 was commissioned by the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra and received its world premiere in February 1993 under the baton of the composer. A powerful work, it reflected his increasing concern with expansive melody. Among many international prizes awarded to this most modest man were the UNESCO Prize (1959,1968), the French order of Commandeur des Arts et des Lettres (1982), Grawemeyer Award (1985), Royal Philharmonic Society Gold Medal (1986), in the last year of his life, the Swedish Polar Music Prize and the Inamori Foundation Prize, Kyoto, for his outstanding contribution to contemporary European music, and, posthumously for Symphony No. 4, the International Music Award.
- Chester Novello

COMPOSITIONS                                                            Lutosławski  Links     ~ ~ ~     Works by Genre
Prelude, piano (1922)
Small Pieces, piano (1923-1926)
Lullaby, E major, piano (1926)
Three Preludes, piano (1927)
Two Sonatas, violin and piano (1927, 1928)
Poeme, piano (1928)
Variations, piano (1929)
Dance of the Chimera, piano (1930)
Scherzo, orchestra (1930)
Hymn of the Pupils of the Stefan Batory State Gymnasium in Warsaw, chorus or male chorus (1930-1931)
Haroun al. Rashid, orchestra (1931)
Two songs (Water-Nymph and Linden Lullaby), voice and piano (1934)
Piano Sonata (1934)
Music for three educational films Fire, Beware!, Short-circuit (1935-1937)
Fire, educational film score (1935-1937)
Beware!, educational film score (1935-1937)
Short-circuit, educational film score (1935-1937)
Double Fugue, orchestra (1936)
Prelude and Aria, piano (1936)
Requiem aeternam and Lacrimosa, chorus and and orchestra (1937) [surviving fragment of a Requiem]
        - Lacrimosa, soprano and organ (1937)???
        - Lacrimosa, soprano and orchestra or organ, w/opt. chorus (1937)
Symphonic Variations, orchestra (1936-38)
Two studies, piano (1940-1941)
Variations on a Theme by Paganini, 2 pianos (1941; arr. for 1 piano and orch, 1978 [1979?])
Pieśni walki podziemnej (Songs of the Underground), voice and piano (1942–44)
Fifty Contrapuntal Studies for Woodwind, etc. (1943-1944)
Trio, oboe, clarinet and bassoon (1944-1945)
Melodie Ludowe (Folk Melodies), 12 easy pieces, piano (1945)
    - Five Folk Melodies (1945; arr. for string orchestra, 1952)
    - Four Silesian Melodies (1945; arr. for 4 violins, 1954)
Three Carols, male and female solo voices, unison chorus and chamber ensemble (1945)
Along the Oder to the Baltic, documentary film score (1945)
Warsaw Suite, documentary film score (1946)
Twenty Polish Christmas Carols (Dwadzieście kolęd), voice & pf (1946; arr. for soprano, female chorus & orch, 1984-89)
Suita Warszawska (Warsaw Suite), documentary film score (1946)
Symphony No. 1, orchestra (1941-47)
Six Children’s Songs, voice and piano (1947; arr. children’s choir & orch, 1952; arr. mezzo-sop & orch, 1953)
Two Children’s Songs for voice and piano (1948; arr. for voice and chamber orch, 1952) [1953]
The Snowslide, voice and piano (1949)
Overture for Strings (1949)
Little Suite, chamber orchestra (1950; arr. for orchestra, 1951)
Service to Poland, a mass song, voice and piano (1950; arr. for male chorus and piano, 1951)
I Would Marry, a mass song, voice and piano (1950; arr. for chorus, 1951)
The Road of Victory, a mass song, voice and piano (1950)
Strawchain and Other Songs, soprano, mezzo-soprano, flute, oboe, 2 clarinets and bassoon (1950-1951)
Silesian Triptych (Tryptyk Śląski), soprano and orchestra (1951)
Recitativo e arioso, violin and piano (1951)
Wiosna (Spring), children’s songs, mezzo-soprano and chamber orchestra (1951)
Jesień (Autumn), children’s songs, mezzo-soprano and chamber orchestra (1951)
Ten Polish Folksongs on Soldiers’ Themes, male chorus (1951)
We Are Going Forward, a mass song, voice and piano (1951; also arr. chorus)
Nowa Huta, a mass song, voice and piano (1952)
The Most Beautiful Dream, a mass song, voice and piano (1952; also for chorus or male chorus)
A Silver Windowpane and Cockle Shell, [voice and piano] (1952; arr. for mezzo-soprano and chamber orch, 1953)
Bukoliki (Bucolics), piano (1952; arr. for viola and cello, 1962)
Comrade, a mass song, voice and piano (1952; also for chorus)
Spring week, a mass song, voice and piano (1952; also for chorus)
Song about a Sloe-Tree, a mass song, voice and piano (1952)
Three Fragments, flute and harp (1953)
Three Soldier Songs, voice and piano (1953)
Ten Polish Dances, chamber orchestra (1953)
Miniatura (Miniature), 2 pianos (1953)
Three Pieces for the Young, piano (1953)
A Little Sparrow and A Little Feather, children’s songs, voice and piano or chamber orch (1953)
Garlands and Goodbye to Holiday, children’s songs, voice and piano (1953)
Dandelions, orchestra (1953?/1954?)
Sleep, Sleep, a children’s song, mezzo-soprano and chamber orchestra (1954)
Winter Waltz, dance orchestra (1954)
Night is Falling, a children’s song, mezzo-soprano and chamber orchestra (1954)
Vegetables, mezzo-soprano and chamber orchestra (1954)
Difficult Sums, a children’s song, mezzo-soprano and chamber orchestra (1954)
Concerto for Orchestra (1950-54)
Four Orchestral Signals for the Second Festival of Polish Music, orchestra (1954)
Dance Preludes, clarinet and piano (1954; arr. for cl and chamber orch, 1955; arr. for nine instruments, 1959)
Zasłyszana melodyjka (An Overheard Tune), 4-part piano (1957) [2 pianos?]
Five Songs to Kazimiera Iłłakowiczówna’s poems, soprano and piano (1957; arr. with instrumental ensemble, 1958)
Musique funebre, string orchestra (1958)
Night Owl and A twiglet, a children’s song, voice and piano (1956-58)
Song on April Fools’Day, a children’s song, voice and piano (1958)
Cuckoo, Cuckoo!, a children’s song, voice and piano (1958)
The Tale of the Little Spark and Other Songs for Children, voice and piano (1958)
On Wronia Street in Warsaw, a children’s song, voice and piano (1958)
Six Christmas Carols, 3 recorders (1959)
Three Children’s Songs, voice and piano (1959)
Three Postludes, orchestra (1958-63) [1960]
Jeux vénitiens (Venetian Gamres) , chamber orchestra (1960-61)
Trois poemes d’Henri Michaux, chorus and orchestra of winds and percussion (1961-1963)
String Quartet (1964)
Paroles tissées (Woven Words), tenor and chamber orchestra (1965)
Symphony No. 2, orchestra (1965-67)
Invention, piano (1968)
Livre pour orchestre (1968)
Cello Concerto (1969-1970) [string orchestra?]
Preludes and Fugue, 13 solo strings (1970-72)
Les espaces du sommeil (Spaces of Sleep), baritone and orchestra (1975)
Sacher Variation, cello (1975)
Mi-parti, orchestra (1975-76)
Novelette, orchestra (1978-79)
Epitaphium [Epitaph], oboe and piano (1979)
Double Concerto, oboe, harp and chamber orchestra (1979-80)
Grave: Metamorphoses for cello and piano (1981; arr. for cello and 13 string instruments, 1982)
Nie dla ciebie (Not for you), soprano and piano (1981)
Mini-Overture, brass quintet (1982)
Who Can Say, male chorus (1982)
Symphony No. 3, orchestra (1981-83)
Chain I, chamber ensemble (1983)
The Holly and the Ivy, voice and piano (1984)
For Martin Norwall, clarinet (1984)
Partita, violin and piano (1984; arr. for violin and orchestra, 1988)
Chain II: Dialogue for violin and orchestra (1984-85)
Chain III, orchestra (1985) [1986]
Fanfare for Louisville, woodwinds, brass and percussion (1986) [1985]
Fanfare for CUBE, brass quintet (1987)
Piano Concerto (1987-88)
Slides (Przezrocza), chamber ensemble (11 soloists) (1988)
Prelude for G.S.M.D., orchestra (1989)
Fanfare for University of Lancaster, brass ensemble and side drum (1989)
Interludium (Interlude), orchestra (1989) [used to link Partita and Chain 2]
Lullaby ”for Anne-Sophie”, violin and piano (1989)
Tarantella, baritone and piano (1990)
Chantefleurs et Chantefables, soprano and orchestra (1989-90)
Symphony No. 4, orchestra (1988-92)
Subito, violin and piano (1992) [1991]
Fanfare for Los Angeles Philharmonic, brass and percussion (1993)


WORKS BY GENRE                                                            Lutosławski Links     ~ top of page ~
Orchestra
Scherzo, orchestra (1930)
Haroun al. Rashid, orchestra (1931)
Double Fugue, orchestra (1936)
Symphonic Variations, orchestra (1936-38)
Five Folk Melodies (1945; arr. for string orchestra, 1952) [from original work for piano]
Symphony No. 1, orchestra (1941-47)
Overture for Strings (1949)
Little Suite, chamber orchestra (1950; arr. for orchestra, 1951)
Ten Polish Dances, chamber orchestra (1953)
Dandelions, orchestra (1953?/1954?)
Winter Waltz, dance orchestra (1954)
Concerto for Orchestra (1950-54)
Four Orchestral Signals for the Second Festival of Polish Music, orchestra (1954)
Musique funebre, string orchestra (1954-58)
Three Postludes, orchestra (1958-63) [1960]
Jeux vénitiens (Venetian Gamres) , chamber orchestra (1960-61)
Symphony No. 2, orchestra (1965-67)
Livre pour orchestre (1968)
Preludes and Fugue, 13 solo strings (1970-72)
Mi-parti, orchestra (1975-76)
Novelette, orchestra (1978-79)
Symphony No. 3, orchestra (1981-83)
Chain I, chamber ensemble (1983)
Chain III, orchestra (1985) [1986]
Fanfare for Louisville, woodwinds, brass and percussion (1986) [1985]
Prelude for G.S.M.D., orchestra (1989)
Fanfare for University of Lancaster, brass ensemble and side drum (1989)
Interludium (Interlude), orchestra (1989) [used to link Partita and Chain 2]
Symphony No. 4, orchestra (1988-92)
Fanfare for Los Angeles Philharmonic, brass and percussion (1993)

Band
Fanfare for Louisville, woodwinds, brass and percussion (1986) [1985]
Fanfare for University of Lancaster, brass ensemble and side drum (1989)
Fanfare for Los Angeles Philharmonic, brass and percussion (1993)

Soloist(s) w/Orchestra
Variations on a Theme by Paganini, 2 pianos (1941; arr. for 1 piano and orch, 1978 [1979?])
Dance Preludes, clarinet and piano (1954; arr. for cl and chamber orch, 1955; arr. for nine instruments, 1959)
Cello Concerto (1969-1970) [string orchestra?]
Double Concerto, oboe, harp and chamber orchestra (1979-80)
Grave: Metamorphoses for cello and piano (1981; arr. for cello and 13 string instruments, 1982)
Partita, violin and piano (1984; arr. for violin and orchestra, 1988)
Chain II: Dialogue for violin and orchestra (1984-85)
Piano Concerto (1987-88)

Chorus w/Orchestra
Requiem aeternam and Lacrimosa, chorus and and orchestra (1937)
        [surviving fragment of a Requiem] - Lacrimosa, soprano and organ (1937)???
Twenty Polish Christmas Carols (Dwadzieście kolęd), voice & pf (1946; arr. for soprano, female chorus & orch, 1984-89)
Six Children’s Songs, voice and piano (1947; arr. children’s choir & orch, 1952; arr. mezzo-sop & orch, 1953)
Trois poemes d’Henri Michaux, chorus and orchestra of winds and percussion (1961-1963)

Choral
Hymn of the Pupils of the Stefan Batory State Gymnasium in Warsaw, chorus or male chorus (1930-1931)
Three Carols, male and female solo voices, unison chorus and chamber ensemble (1945)
Ten Polish Folksongs on Soldiers’ Themes, male chorus (1951)
We Are Going Forward, a mass song, voice and piano (1951; also arr. chorus)
The Most Beautiful Dream, a mass song, voice and piano (1952; also for chorus or male chorus)
Comrade, a mass song, voice and piano (1952; also for chorus)
Spring week, a mass song, voice and piano (1952; also for chorus)
Who Can Say, male chorus (1982)
The Holly and the Ivy, unison voices and piano (1984)

Chamber
Fifty Contrapuntal Studies for Woodwind, etc. (1943-1944)
Trio, oboe, clarinet and bassoon (1944-1945)
Four Silesian Melodies (1945; arr. for 4 violins, 1954) [from original work for piano]
Bukoliki (Bucolics), piano (1952; arr. for viola and cello, 1962)
Three Fragments, flute and harp (1953)
Dance Preludes, clarinet and piano (1954; arr. for cl and chamber orch, 1955; arr. for nine instruments, 1959)
Six Christmas Carols, 3 recorders (1959)
String Quartet (1964)
Preludes and Fugue, 13 solo strings (1970-72)
Grave: Metamorphoses for cello and piano (1981; arr. for cello and 13 string instruments, 1982)
Mini-Overture, brass quintet (1982)
Chain I, chamber ensemble (1983)
Fanfare for CUBE, brass quintet (1987)
Slides (Przezrocza), chamber ensemble (11 soloists) (1988)
Fanfare for University of Lancaster, brass ensemble and side drum (1989)

Solo Instrument
Two Sonatas, violin and piano (1927, 1928)
Recitative e arioso, violin and piano (1951)
Dance Preludes, clarinet and piano (1954; arr. for cl and chamber orch, 1955; arr. for nine instruments, 1959)
Sacher Variation, cello (1975)
Epitaphium [Epitaph], oboe and piano (1979)
Grave: Metamorphoses for cello and piano (1981; arr. for cello and 13 string instruments, 1982)
For Martin Norwall, clarinet (1984)
Partita, violin and piano (1984; arr. for violin and orchestra, 1988)
Tune, a trumpet fanfare (1985)
Lullaby ”for Anne-Sophie”, violin and piano (1989)
Subito, violin and piano (1992) [1991]

Piano
Prelude, piano (1922)
Small Pieces, piano (1923-1926)
Lullaby, E major, piano (1926)
Three Preludes, piano (1927)
Poeme, piano (1928)
Variations, piano (1929)
Dance of the Chimera, piano (1930)
Piano Sonata (1934)
Prelude and Aria, piano (1936)
Two studies, piano (1940-1941)
Variations on a Theme by Paganini, 2 pianos (1941; arr. for 1 piano and orch, 1978 [1979?])
Melodie Ludowe (Folk Melodies), 12 easy pieces, piano (1945)
Bukoliki (Bucolics), piano (1952; arr. for viola and cello, 1962)
Miniatura (Miniature), 2 pianos (1953)
Three Pieces for the Young, piano (1953)
Zasłyszana melodyjka (An Overheard Tune), 4-part piano (1957) [2 pianos?]
Invention, piano (1968)

Vocal
Two songs (Water-Nymph and Linden Lullaby), voice and piano (1934)
Requiem aeternam and Lacrimosa, chorus and and orchestra (1937) [surviving fragment of a Requiem]
        - Lacrimosa, soprano and organ (1937)???
        - Lacrimosa, soprano and orchestra or organ, w/opt. chorus (1937)
Pieśni walki podziemnej (Songs of the Underground), voice and piano (1942–44)
Twenty Polish Christmas Carols (Dwadzieście kolęd), voice & pf (1946; arr. for soprano, female chorus & orch, 1984-89)
Six Children’s Songs, voice and piano (1947; arr. children’s choir & orch, 1952; arr. mezzo-sop & orch, 1953)
Two Children’s Songs for voice and piano (1948; arr. for voice and chamber orch, 1952) [1953]
The Snowslide, voice and piano (1949)
Service to Poland, a mass song, voice and piano (1950; arr. for male chorus and piano, 1951)
I Would Marry, a mass song, voice and piano (1950; arr. for chorus, 1951)
The Road of Victory, a mass song, voice and piano (1950)
Strawchain and Other Songs, soprano, mezzo-soprano, flute, oboe, 2 clarinets and bassoon (1950-1951)
Silesian Triptych (Tryptyk Śląski), soprano and orchestra (1951)
Wiosna (Spring), children’s songs, mezzo-soprano and chamber orchestra (1951)
Jesień (Autumn), children’s songs, mezzo-soprano and chamber orchestra (1951)
We Are Going Forward, a mass song, voice and piano (1951; also arr. chorus)
Nowa Huta, a mass song, voice and piano (1952)
The Most Beautiful Dream, a mass song, voice and piano (1952; also for chorus or male chorus)
Srebna szybka & Muszelka (Silver Windowpane & Cockle Shell), voice & pf (1952; arr. for mezzo-sop & chbr orch, 1953)
Towarzysz (Comrade), a mass song, voice and piano (1952; also for chorus)
Spring week, a mass song, voice and piano (1952; also for chorus)
Song about a Sloe-Tree, a mass song, voice and piano (1952)
Three Soldier Songs, voice and piano (1953)
A Little Sparrow and A Little Feather, children’s songs, voice and piano or chamber orch (1953)
Garlands and Goodbye to Holiday, children’s songs, voice and piano (1953)
Śpijże, Śpij (Sleep, sleep), a children’s song, mezzo-soprano and chamber orchestra (1954)
Idzie nocka (Night is falling), a children’s song, mezzo-soprano and chamber orchestra (1954)
Warzywa (Vegetables), mezzo-soprano and chamber orchestra (1954)
Trudny rachunek (Difficult Sums), a children’s song, mezzo-soprano and chamber orchestra (1954)
Five Songs to Kazimiera Iłłakowiczówna’s poems, soprano and piano (1957; arr. with instrumental ensemble, 1958)
Night Owl and A twiglet, a children’s song, voice and piano (1956-58)
Song on April Fools’Day, a children’s song, voice and piano (1958)
Cuckoo, Cuckoo!, a children’s song, voice and piano (1958)
The Tale of the Little Spark and Other Songs for Children, voice and piano (1958)
On Wronia Street in Warsaw, a children’s song, voice and piano (1958)
Three Children’s Songs, voice and piano (1959)
Paroles tissées (Woven Words), tenor and chamber orchestra (1965)
Les espaces du sommeil (Spaces of Sleep), baritone and orchestra (1975)
Nie dla ciebie (Not for you), soprano and piano (1981)
The Holly and the Ivy, voice and piano (1984)
Tarantella, baritone and piano (1990)
Chantefleurs et Chantefables, soprano and orchestra (1989-90)

Incidental/Film
Fire, educational film score (1935-1937)
Beware!, educational film score (1935-1937)
Short-circuit, educational film score (1935-1937)
Along the Oder to the Baltic, documentary film score (1945)
Suita Warszawska (Warsaw Suite), documentary film score (1946)


LUTOSLAWSKI  LINKS                                                            Works by Genre      ~ top of page ~
Obituary: Witold Lutoslawski (The Independent)
A Protean Diversity: Lutosławski Studies (review essay by Nicholas Reyland, Univ Southern California)
Time and Texture in Lutoslawski's Concerto for Orchestra and Ligeti's Chamber Concerto (Rosemary Mountain)
What Vastness of Suffering? (Nicholas Reyland, Central Europe Review)
Witold Lutosławski's Venetian Games (Michael O'Brien, Moldenhauer Archives)

Books
Lutosławski Studies (Edited by Zbigniew Skowron, Oxford Univ Pr, books.google.com)
The Music of Lutosławski (Charles Bodman Rae, Omnibus Pr, books.google.com)
Witold Lutosławski: A Bio-Bibliography (Stanisław Będkowski, Stanisław Hrabia, Greenwood Pr, books.google.com)

Composer website (at Chester Novello)   . . .   inquire about Witold Lutosławski:  here

Lutosławski @ Wikipedia
Lutosławski @ About.com
Lutosławski @ Answers.com
Lutosławski @ Chester Novello
Lutosławski @ CITWF / Complete Index to World Film
Lutosławski @ Classic Cat
Lutosławski @ Classic CD Review
Lutosławski @ Classical Archives
Lutosławski @ Classical Composers Database
Lutosławski @ Classical Net
Lutosławski @ ClassicsToday
Lutosławski @ composition:today
Lutosławski @ culture.pl
Lutosławski @ Dr. Estrella's Incredibly Abridged Dictionary of Composers
Lutosławski @ Dolf van der Haven
Lutosławski @ Facebook
Lutosławski @ filmpolski.pl
Lutosławski @ gotoMidori.com    also    here
Lutosławski @ Grawemeyer Awards
Lutosławski @ Dr. Martina Homma (translated by google from original German)
Lutosławski @ Humanities Web
Lutosławski @ IMDb (Internet Movie Database)
Lutosławski @ infoPoland/SUNY Buffalo
Lutosławski @ Issacson/University of Indiana/Annotated Bibliographies
Lutosławski @ Karadar Classical Music
Lutosławski @ The Kennedy Center
Lutosławski @ Los Angeles Philharmonic
Lutosławski @ MusicWeb International
Lutosławski @ MySpaceMusic
Lutosławski @ Naxos
Lutosławski @ The New York Times
Lutosławski @ NNDB
Lutoslawski @ Piano Society
Lutosławski @ Polish Music Center
Lutosławski @ Polish Music Information Centre
Lutosławski @ Prominent Poles
Lutoslawski @ PWM (Polskie Wydawnictwo Muzyczne)
Lutosławski @ REC Music Foundation /The Lied and Art Song Texts Page
Lutosławski @ Todd Tarantino's Blog

Publisher
Lutosławski @ Chester Novello
Lutoslawski @ PWM (Polskie Wydawnictwo Muzyczne)

Streaming Audio
Lutosławski @ The Classical MIDI Connection
Lutosławski @ Classical Archives
Lutosławski @ Internet Archive/Interview with Charles Amirkhanian (Other Minds)
Lutosławski @ last.fm
Lutosławski @ Rhapsody.com

Recordings
Lutosławski @ Amazon.com
Lutosławski @ ArkivMusic
Lutosławski @ CD Universe
Lutosławski @ ClassicsOnline
Lutosławski @ Discogs
Lutosławski @ itunes (via Google Advanced Search)
Lutosławski @ Naxos

Video
Lutosławski @ YouTube
Lutosławski @ Google Video
Lutosławski @ Vimeo (via Google Advanced Search)
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