The programme of this concert is an excellent illustration of the presence of the so-called ‘Polish tradition’ in piano music. While listening to works by two twentieth-century classics, the spirit of Chopin will discreetly come through.

First to be heard will be the Piano Sonata composed by the 21-year-old Witold Lutosławski, at a time when he was fascinated by the instrumental music of Karol Szymanowski. Here, the piano reveals itself to be a source of myriad tone colours.

In Szymanowski’s Masques, the piano will show itself as a narrator and portraitist. Three figures – Scheherazade, Tantris (Tristan) and Don Juan – form the literary warp of a work that is enigmatic and ambiguous in its meaning.

These ‘musical masks’ will be framed by miniatures from two cycles inspired by Chopin’s music: Szymanowski’s Mazurkas and Lutosławski’s Etudes.



The Polish Music Scene is a programme of music organised by the National Institute of Music and Dance in collaboration with the Warsaw Philharmonic and financed by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage. We present Polish artists and Polish compositions – particularly works not often performed. We wish to promote the performance of Polish music, inspire musicians to turn to this repertoire and generate interest among audiences in Polish musical output as broadly understood. The programme is open to instrumentalists and singers, soloists and chamber ensembles. The programmes featuring Polish music, selected via a competition, will be performed in the Chamber Music Hall of the Warsaw Philharmonic and at other concert venues around Poland.