Polonaise for Poland’s independence centenary
PR dla Zagranicy
Grzegorz Siwicki
25.09.2017 10:00
Poland’s Sinfonia Varsovia orchestra has announced a competition for composers to write a polonaise to grace the centenary of the country’s independence next year.
![Autographed score by the Polish composer Frédéric Chopin of his Polonaise Op. 53 in A flat major for piano, 1842. Image: [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons](http://external.polskieradio.pl/files/8642fccc-3521-40c3-b143-daa1d743d877.file "Autographed score by the Polish composer Frédéric Chopin of his Polonaise Op. 53 in A flat major for piano, 1842. Image: [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons")
Autographed score by the Polish composer Frédéric Chopin of his Polonaise Op. 53 in A flat major for piano, 1842. Image: [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons
The orchestra’s managing director, Janusz Marynowski, has told a press conference in Warsaw that the idea is to mobilise composers, particularly young Polish talent, to draw on the tradition of one of Poland’s national dances.
Submitted works can be scored for various types of performances, including by a large symphony orchestra, and should last up to 10 minutes.
The deadline for submissions is 1 March 2018, and the results of the competition will be announced on 4 June, the anniversary of the 1989 semi-democratic parliamentary elections that marked the beginning of the end of communism in Poland.
The competition jury is chaired by internationally acclaimed composer Krzysztof Penderecki and includes several other leading Polish composers and conductors.
Sinfonia Varsovia will record compositions that will be awarded first, second and third prizes.
Many sources describe the polonaise as a stately ceremonial procession rather than a dance. It originated among Polish aristocracy in the 16th century. Many composers, including Bach, Handel, Mozart, Beethoven and Schubert, have written polonaises. Chopin’s 13 polonaises are among the most outstanding examples of the genre. (mk/gs/pk)