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Stanisław Moniuszko - Polonez d-moll Written in 1852 Pianist: Marcin Łukaszewski Biography Just as Glinka was the “fountainhead“ of Russian Romantic Music, Stanisław Moniuszko (1819-1872) could be considered the “fountainhead“ for Polish Romantic music. Besides Chopin, it would be difficult to argue that any other composer had as much influence on Polish music during the Romantic Era. Like many of the greatest composers, Moniuszko's education began early. While his family was still living in Ubiel (a small village in modern-day Belarus), his mother gave him a musical education. His education continued in Minsk under Dominik Dziewanowski and later in Warsaw under August Freyer. His family returned to Ubiel right before the outbreak of the November Uprising in 1831. In 1836, he moved to Berlin to take private lessons with Carl Rugenhagen. He studied counterpoint, harmony, instrumentation, and conducting. Moniuszko also did some practical work conducting choirs, accompanying singers, and conducting. In preparing for his conducting work and rehearsing with Rugenhagen, he developed quite a repertoire. After leaving Berlin, he moved to Vilnius, where he worked as a church organist at St. John's. He also embarked on artistic enterprises with the aim of breathing life into Vilnius' music scene. He organized showings of his operas in private salons, he formed an amateur choir at St. John's, and he pieced together performances of the works of Mozart, Hayden, Mendelssohn and others. During this time, he also took trips to St. Petersburg, where he met Glinka, Cesar Cui, and others. In 1848, Moniuszko's career would hit a new milestone. His friendship with the poet and novelist Włodzimierz Wolski influenced Moniuszko to write the Opera Halka. The opera would be a massive success. It achieved critical acclaim throughout Europe and is still considered one of Moniuszko's greatest operas. When it premiered, however, it was only the two-act version. The four-act version premiered in 1858, which led to Moniuszko receiving an invitation to become the director of the Polish Opera in Warsaw. Besides his opera career, he also taught counterpoint and harmony at the Warsaw Institute of Music. He would be the father of the Polish National Opera and also the father of the Polish Art Song. Moniuszko composed twelve song books with the words of Adam Mickiewicz, Antoni Odyniec, and Józef Kraszewski. Information Sources and Bibliography: (opera)
