THE LONDON SELECT CHOIR
Conductor,
ARNOLD FULTON
PAUL HERMANN (violoncello)
1. The Plough 2. The Orphan 3. The Question 4. The Journey 5. The Farewell
6. The Wedding MR. ARNOLD FULTON first performed these songs with The London Select Choir at the last concert of the Ninth Annual Festival of the International Society for Contemporary Music in 1931, which was broadcast from Queen's Hall.
The music of Szymanovski, who was born in Poland in 1883, is strongly national in flavour and the six songs to be performed this evening are folk songs from the Kurpic woodland. The tunes are taken from W. Skierkowski's collection of Kurpic folk-songs.
Szymanovski is one of the leaders of contemporary Polish music. As a composer he began as a disciple of Strauss, Scriabine, and Reger, but very quickly asserted a strong individuality of his own. Having written three symphonies, a violin concerto, an opera, piano sonata, and a number of songs, he fell under the influence of Polish folk-song which has considerably influenced the style of his later compositions.
The composer is also one of the founders of the Polish Society for New Music of which he is the Honorary President. In 1930 he was appointed Rector of the State Academy of Music, and also was awarded an honorary degree of Doctor of Philosophy of the Cracow Academy. PAUL HERMANN