Szymanowski, Karol

Szymanowski, Karol – Mandragora Op. 43, Pantomime in three scenes

6 October 1882 (Tymoszówka, Russia [near present-day Kiev, Ukraine]) – 29 March 1937 (Lausanne, Switzerland)

Pantomime in three scenes

Composed:
1920
First Performance
15 June 1920 at the Teatr Polski, Warsaw

The Composer
Szymanowski was a celebrated Polish composer and pianist. He was the Director of the Warsaw Conservatory from 1927-29 and 1930-31, and his internationally acclaimed opera King Roger (1917-21) established his reputation as a leading modernist. His compositions of the 1930s incorporate elements of southern Polish mountain music, and his vocal works are admired for their ineffable beauty. Born the same year as Stravinsky, Szymanowski is an important connection between late German Romantic expressionism and mid-century atonality.

Born into a cultured family, Szymanowski traveled widely, especially in the company of his friend Stefan Spiess, the young heir to a chemical fortune in Warsaw. When the young Szymanowski moved to Warsaw in 1901 to study piano, he met many musicians who became supporters of his music, including pianist Arthur Rubinstein, conductor Gregor Fitelberg (who premiered the Veni creator), and violinist Paweł Kochański. He composed several works for the piano, focusing on genres preferred by Chopin. Early inspirations included Richard Strauss’s brilliant orchestrations and the final orchestral works of Scriabin (esp. Prometheus, The Poem of Fire). …

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