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1

Apolinary Kątski as an Infant Prodigy

100%

Chamczyk E.

Kwartalnik Młodych Muzykologów UJ

|

2018

|

issue 1(36) Eng

53-76

EN

Infant prodigies were a common phenomenon in the 19th century. They astonished the audience not only through their impressive abilities, but also the innocent beauty and the youthful grace. The perfect example of this is Apolinary Kątski (1826–1879), a violin virtuoso and a composer, known mainly as the founder of the Institute of Music in Warsaw, who, since he was three, was recognizable in concert halls all over Europe. According to the author, the early stage of the violinist’s activity requires more attention. The presented article sketches the path of young Apolinary’s life from the moment of his first performance in 1829 to May 1838, when he was granted with the famous recommendation of Niccolò Paganini. It introduced him to numerous concert halls of Europe and positively influenced his further artistic activity. The hereby presented paper makes an attempt to find out the date and place of birth of Kątski in the context of the rich musical activity of his family members. It also shows the first artistic tours of the young virtuoso against the background of his artistically talented siblings: a violinist Karol, pianists Stanisław and Antoni, and a singer Eugenia. The crucial moment are reflections on the stay of the family in Paris and their first performances in the musical centre of Europe as well as contacts of the young violinist with Niccolò Paganini. The studies on the correspondence of the father of the virtuoso, Grzegorz Kątski, and research on the foreign newspapers let the author reconstruct the life of Apolinary Kątski in the very first stage of his musical activity and place him in the context of infant prodigies of the 18th and 19th centuries.

2

Apolinary Kątski jako cudowne dziecko

100%

Chamczyk E.

Kwartalnik Młodych Muzykologów UJ

|

2018

|

issue 1(36)

53-74

EN

Infant prodigies were a common phenomenon in the 19th century. They astonished the audience not only through their impressive abilities, but also the innocent beauty and the youthful grace. The perfect example of this is Apolinary Kątski (1826–1879), a violin virtuoso and a composer, known mainly as the founder of the Institute of Music in Warsaw, who, since he was three, was recognizable in concert halls all over Europe. According to the author, the early stage of the violinist’s activity requires more attention. The presented article sketches the path of young Apolinary’s life from the moment of his first performance in 1829 to May 1838, when he was granted with the famous recommendation of Niccolò Paganini. It introduced him to numerous concert halls of Europe and positively influenced his further artistic activity. The hereby presented paper makes an attempt to find out the date and place of birth of Kątski in the context of the rich musical activity of his family members. It also shows the first artistic tours of the young virtuoso against the background of his artistically talented siblings: a violinist Karol, pianists Stanisław and Antoni, and a singer Eugenia. The crucial moment are reflections on the stay of the family in Paris and their first performances in the musical centre of Europe as well as contacts of the young violinist with Niccolò Paganini. The studies on the correspondence of the father of the virtuoso, Grzegorz Kątski, and research on the foreign newspapers let the author reconstruct the life of Apolinary Kątski in the very first stage of his musical activity and place him in the context of infant prodigies of the 18th and 19th centuries.

3

Londyński epizod Apolinarego Kątskiego (1838)

86%

Chamczyk E.

Kwartalnik Młodych Muzykologów UJ

|

2019

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issue 1(40)

5-25

EN

The early artistic career of Apolinary Kątski (1824–1879) was that of an infant prodigy – one of the Wunderkinder who (especially in the 19th century) dazzled audiences with their exceptionally well-developed abilities. The Polish virtuoso, unlike many prodigies, did not disappoint the hopes placed in him, going down in history as a distinguished violinist, as well as the founder and longtime director of the Institute of Music in Warsaw. In the author’s opinion, the violinist’s early career requires more thorough discussion. The present article outlines the fortunes of the young Apolinary Kątski in the second half of 1838 – so, directly after his meeting with Niccolò Paganini. This event represented a certain turning point in the development of Kątski’s career. The letter – a peculiar sort of recommendation – drawn up by the Italian virtuoso to rate the young violinist’s playing opened the doors for him to many of Europe’s concert halls and had a favourable effect on his later artistic career. Kątski had the opportunity to see for himself the power of Paganini’s words during his first trip to London, the primary aim of which was to perform before the British Queen, Victoria. The present article describes Kątski’s activities in preparation for this event. It takes up the thread of the reception of the young Kątski’s first performances in the capital of England, as well as his reception by the Polish community resident in London. Beyond this, it discusses the relationship of the Kątski family with journalist and émigré activist Leonard Niedźwiecki, who served as their guide in the salons of the city upon the Thames. Studies of the correspondence of Leonard Niedźwiecki (with, among others, Eustachy Januszkiewicz, who was active in the Polish émigré community in Paris), as well as preliminary research of the foreign press, have permitted us to recreate Apolinary Kątski’s experiences during his first independent artistic journey to London.

4

Wokół narodzin Apolinarego Kątskiego – nowe źródła

81%

Chamczyk E.

Muzyka

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2019

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vol. 64

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issue 1

135-143

EN

It is frequently difficult to establish the date and place of birth of artists from the past. In the case of Apolinary Kątski – a 19th-century Polish virtuoso violinist, pupil of Niccolo Paganini and founder-director of the Warsaw Music Institute – his birth date has also remained unknown until recently. For many years, several possible dates and places were quoted in the literature of the subject. Researchers pointed to three cities in the territory of Poland under the Partitions: Cracow, Poznań or Warsaw, while the date was given variously as 26 June 1825 / 1826, 2 July 1825 / 1826 or 23 October 1825 / 1826. These claims were not supported by any sources from the period. The present paper presents the story of the eventually successful search for Apolinary Kątski’s birth certificate.

PL

Komunikat stanowi prezentację najnowszych wyników badań nad życiem Apolinarego Kątskiego. Dotyczy daty urodzenia skrzypka, która dotychczas nie została w sposób jednoznaczny określona. Już za życia Kątskiego, zarówno w prasie, jak i literaturze przedmiotu funkcjonowało kilka dat i miejsc, w których wirtuoz mógł przyjść na świat. Autorka wskazuje wszelkie znane terminy, kreśląc tym samym obszar poszukiwań metryki chrztu świętego Kątskiego. Ponadto omawia proces dotarcia do nieznanych dotąd dokumentów – metryk Apolinarego i Władysława Kątskiego, którego nazwisko nie pojawiało się w badaniach nad losami muzycznej rodziny Kątskich.

5

Podbijając muzyczne centrum Europy: paryska dekada Apolinarego Kątskiego (1838–1848)

81%

Chamczyk E.

Muzyka

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2018

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vol. 63

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issue 4

65-87

EN

Apolinary Kątski (1826–79) was an unusual and controversial figure. He is remembered in history as an eminent virtuoso violinist who took great care to promote himself; also as the founder and long-time director of the Music Institute in Warsaw. He held the post of soloist to His Imperial Highness in Petersburg and scored successes during his numerous tours of Russia, France’s departments, the provinces of the Kingdom of Poland (then part of Russia), and Greater Poland (first in Prussia, later in Germany), with concerts in such cities as Warsaw, London, Paris, Brussels and Vilnius. Despite all this, his work as a concert virtuoso and composer seems to be largely forgotten today. The current state of research, however, allows us to reconstruct his biography in more and more detail. Apolinary Kątski – one of the five prodigy children born to Grzegorz Kątski and Anna née Różycka, winning the hearts of audiences throughout Europe – arrived in Paris at the tender age of 10. This period of his artistic activity has remained the least known so far. We only knew the dates of his stay in France (1836–48), the date of his first public concert in Paris (1st February 1837), as well as the details of his visit to London (1838) and the list of French cities he may potentially have given performances in. The least documented was the time following his return from England in 1838, for which we only have very limited coverage in the French press. The study of the virtuoso’s scantily preserved correspondence and research in foreign press titles has made it possible to reconstruct Apolinary Kątski’s previously unknown biography from the years 1838–48, and complement the list of his compositions known to us thus far. This article presents the results of my research into the life and work of Apolinary Kątski and is an attempt to define his place in the musical panorama of 19th-century France.

PL

Apolinary Kątski (1826-1879) to postać nietuzinkowa i budząca spore kontrowersje. Na kartach historii zapisał się jako wybitny skrzypek-wirtuoz, niezwykle dbający o własną promocję, a także jako założyciel i wieloletni dyrektor Instytutu Muzycznego. Piastował on również posadę Skrzypka Solisty Jego Imperatorskiej Mości w Petersburgu oraz odnosił sukcesy artystyczne podczas wielokrotnych podróży, m.in. po Rosji, departamentach Francji, prowincji Królestwa Polskiego i Wielkopolsce, a także podczas koncertów w takich miastach jak Warszawa, Londyn, Paryż, Bruksela czy Wilno. Pomimo to, jego działalność w charakterze wirtuoza i kompozytora dzisiaj wydaje się być zapomniana. Obecny stan badań pozwala jednak na coraz pełniejsze odtworzenie biogramu artysty. Apolinary Kątski - jedno z pięciorga cudownych dzieci Grzegorza Kątskiego i Anny z Różyckich, podbijający muzyczne sceny Europy, przybył do Paryża w 1836 roku, mając zaledwie 10 lat. Ten okres działalności artystycznej skrzypka wymagał dotychczas największego wyjaśnienia. Znane były zaledwie graniczne daty jego pobytu we Francji (1836-1848), termin pierwszej publicznej prezentacji w Paryżu 1 lutego 1837 roku, a także szczegóły wizyty w Londynie w 1838 roku oraz lista potencjalnych miast francuskich, w których mógł on koncertować. Najwięcej niewiadomych pozostawiał jednak czas po powrocie Kątskiego z Anglii w 1838 roku, w niewielki tylko sposób udokumentowany na łamach prasy francuskiej. Badania nielicznie zachowanej korespondencji wirtuoza, a także kwerenda prasy zagranicznej pozwoliły odtworzyć nieznane losy Apolinarego Kątskiego w latach 1838-1848 oraz umożliwiły uzupełnienie listy jego dotychczas znanych kompozycji. Niniejszy artykuł stanowi prezentację wyników moich badań dotyczących życia i twórczości Apolinarego Kątskiego oraz próbę umiejscowienia jego osoby w panoramie muzycznej Francji XIX stulecia.

6

Petersburska teka osobowa skrzypka Apolinarego Kątskiego jako źródło do badań nad jego biografią

81%

Antonczyk W., Chamczyk E.

Muzyka

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2021

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vol. 66

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issue 2

73-95

EN

St Petersburg, as one of nineteenth-century Europe’s main cultural centres, attracted world-famous artists, invited not only for guest performances. They also signed contracts with the Russian Empire’s major musical institutions. Despite the considerable damage which the city suffered during the Second World War, its precious archive collections, including the rich documentation of the Directorate of Imperial Theatres, were rescued in dramatic circumstances. These documents represent an extremely valuable source for musicologists, as they allow us to reconstruct the St Petersburg period in many artists’ work with a high degree of accuracy. The documents from the Directorate of Imperial Theatres also constitute a key source for research into the biography of Polish virtuoso violinist Apolinary Kątski, who was Soloist to His Imperial Highness from 1852 to 1866. That he held this title has been known to musicologists for a long time, but his obligations resulting from that status have remained virtually unknown. Kątski’s personal file not only confirms the authorities’ special treatment of this eminent Polish musician, but also reveals his unusual terms of employment. What, then, do we learn about Kątski’s life from the St Petersburg documents? What questions do they enable us to answer? What image of the Polish violinist emerges from this source? This article presents the contents of Apolinary Kątski’s personal file within the context of research into his biography.

PL

Petersburg, jako jeden z głównych ośrodków kulturalnych XIX-wiecznej Europy, przyciągał światowej sławy artystów, zapraszanych nie tylko na występy gościnne. Podpisali też kontrakty z najważniejszymi instytucjami muzycznymi Imperium Rosyjskiego. Mimo znacznych zniszczeń, jakie miasto doznało w czasie II wojny światowej, w dramatycznych okolicznościach uratowano jego cenne zbiory archiwalne, w tym bogatą dokumentację Dyrekcji Teatrów Imperatorskich. Dokumenty te stanowią niezwykle cenne źródło dla muzykologów, pozwalają bowiem z dużą dokładnością zrekonstruować okres petersburski w twórczości wielu artystów. Dokumenty Dyrekcji Teatrów Imperatorskich stanowią również kluczowe źródło do badań nad biografią polskiego skrzypka-wirtuoza Apolinarego Kątskiego, który w latach 1852-1866 był solistą Jego Imperatorskiej Mości. Fakt ten był dobrze znany, jednak obowiązki wynikające z tego statusu pozostają praktycznie niepoznane. Akta osobowe Kątskiego nie tylko potwierdzają szczególne traktowanie przez władze tego wybitnego polskiego muzyka, ale też ujawniają jego niezwykłe warunki zatrudnienia. Czego zatem dowiadujemy się o życiu Kątskiego z petersburskich dokumentów? Na jakie pytania pozwalają nam odpowiedzieć? Jaki obraz polskiego skrzypka wyłania się z tego źródła? Artykuł przedstawia zawartość akt osobowych Apolinarego Kątskiego w kontekście badań nad jego biografią.

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3 Kwartalnik Młodych Muzykologów UJ

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Apolinary Kątski as an Infant Prodigy

Apolinary Kątski jako cudowne dziecko

Londyński epizod Apolinarego Kątskiego (1838)

Wokół narodzin Apolinarego Kątskiego – nowe źródła

Podbijając muzyczne centrum Europy: paryska dekada Apolinarego Kątskiego (1838–1848)

Petersburska teka osobowa skrzypka Apolinarego Kątskiego jako źródło do badań nad jego biografią