Interesting fact about Witold Lutosławski: During the Second World War, Lutosławski and his fellow composer Andrzej Panufnik helped to lift spirits in the misery of Nazi-controlled, half-starved Warsaw, playing piano duets in cafés. The documentary Warsaw Variations traces the experiences of these two young musicians through the Occupation, the Warsaw Uprising (in which virtually all their manuscripts were destroyed) and into the era of Socialist Realism. Immediately following the war Panufnik was designated Composer Number One. But by 1954, hed had enough of pleasing the authorities and defected to Britain. Lutoslawski stayed in Poland and emerged as one of the most prominent composers of the late 20th Century. This programme received the Prix Europa in October 2012 for the Best European Music Programme of the Year. It was originally broadcast on BBC Radio 4. The programme is no longer available on the BBC website but you can listen to it at the link below from the website of the production company, Falling Tree Productions (28) fallingtree.co.uk/listen/warsaw_variations
Posted on: Tue, 30 Sep 2014 14:49:29 +0000