By: Will Scarlet

An anniversary, a presidency, and a concert. On the eve of the 70th anniversary of his death, Ignacy Jan Paderewski, one of the first prime ministers of an independent Poland, would have been exceptionally proud to be witness to Poland’s succession in the Presidency of the European Union. The Paderewski Music Society held up its high standard of wonderful events yet again on June 11, 2011 with a concert and multimedia event titled “The Legacy of Paderewski.”  The event was co-sponsored by the Consulate General of the Republic of Poland in Los Angeles.  In attendance were also representatives of two other consulates, Consul Gabor Kaleta of Hungary, and Consul Claude Wattiaux of Belgium.

Hosting the concert and playing the part of Paderewski for the evening was Paul Jan Zdunek, CEO of the Pasadena Symphony, who took on the role of the former Prime Minister with great ease and charm. His elocution while reading excerpts from one of Paderewski’s speeches was to be envied and his presentation very much resembled the style of the great master – strong, refined, dignified, and always elegant.

Following an introduction by the Consul General of Poland, Honorable Joanna Kozińska-Frybes about Poland’s new role and assumption of presidency from Hungary, two short documentary films were presented, both about Paderewski. The first showed the Master in the light of his artistic career, while the second titled, President of Ministers, which contained video of Paderewski himself, was an insightful look into his time as a statesman and politician. Both videos featured commentary by the likes of Jerzy Waldorff, General Edward Równy, President Kennedy, Cardinal Glemp, and several others.

The concert portion of the evening performed by pianist Piotr Kosiński, winner of the Paderewski International Piano Competition in Los Angeles (2010), began with a fiery and tempestuous Rachmaninoff sonata. The sound this young pianist produced was breathtaking, bold and appropriately dark and sinister. Truly a tour de force of a piece and Mr. Kosiński not only did it justice, but brought it to life. Bravo!

After a short intermission the concert portion of the evening continued and as the night went on, the music got better and better, like a good bottle of wine, it became better with time. The first two pieces following intermission, both Chopin pieces, the famous G Minor Ballade and one of a lesser played nocturnes, Nocturne in G Major were exquisite. The ballade, a piece that nearly everyone has heard, easily could have been trite, and yet it wasn’t. In fact it was anything but. Having heard the piece a multitude of times I was expecting a nice performance of a beautiful piece, instead I got an emotional experience rivaling that of some of the best Chopin masters. Mr. Kosiński’s playing has the perfect balance of romanticism and originality that really sets him apart from most of his contemporaries. His precision and clarity are of an elite status.

The four Szymanowski Mazurkas transported the audience to the mountains of Southern Poland with their elements of traditional Polish folk music. The contemporary in nature pieces were so interesting that I became entirely lost in their beauty. Another trait of a fantastic pianist, not to mention the “Polishness” brought out in these pieces was so natural that had I not known that the pianist is Polish I would have staked my life that he was.

Ending the program was Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsody No. 6, the most playful piece of the night. It was perfect. Sublime. Mr. Kosiński played it with a certain dose of spontaneity and effortlessness that made it sound as if a slight inebriated Hungarian had just sat down at the piano and started improvising; exactly as Liszt should sound, virtuosic and impulsive. Mr. Kosiński’s performance leaned more toward that of the effervescent naturalness of Gyorgy Cziffra rather than the controlled perfection of Martha Argerich. Liszt should never sound controlled. Mr. Kosiński deserves an A++.

And of course with a pianist of such class, what is a concert without an encore or two?

To the delight of the audience, the true end of the program came in the form of a Rachmaninoff Prelude and Paderewski’s famous Cracovienne Fantastique.    At a post-concert reception many people voiced the opinion that The Legacy of Paderewski, half concert, half commemorative/celebratory event with great music, inspiration, and sense of history, made them feel a profound pride in being Polish.