- Józef Turczyński
Jozéf Turczyński (b. 1884,
Zytomierz ; d.Lausanne , 1953) was a Polishpianist ,pedagogue andmusicologist who exercised a powerful influence over the development ofpiano teaching and performance, especially in the works ofChopin , during the first half of the 20th century. He was in a large part responsible for a performing edition of the Complete Pianoforte Works of Chopin which is still considered definitive.Born in a part of
Volhynia which is now in theUkraine , Turczyński was first a pupil of his father. In 1907-1908 he studied withFerruccio Busoni inVienna , and made his debut in 1908. He then made further studies with Annette Essipov inRussia , and took first prize at the pianoforte competition inSt Petersburg in 1911. He played in all the European capitals, and from 1915 to 1919 was a professor at theKiev Conservatory . Then he returned to Poland to take over the concert-pianists' class at theWarsaw State Conservatory .Among the pianists who received instruction from him were
Halina Czerny-Stefańska ,Witold Małcużyński ,Henryk Sztompka ,Stanisław Szpinalski andRyszard Bakst . Czerny-Stefańska studied with him between 1935 and 1939.The Edition of the Complete Works of Chopin, the most widely accepted edition since the Second World War, was begun under the editorial chairmanship of
Ignacy Jan Paderewski in 1937. It was prepared for theFrederic Chopin Institute in Warsaw (Instytut Fryderyka Chopina, Polskie Wydawnictwo Muzyczne). On Paderewski's death in 1941, when it was only just begun, Turczyński took on the task withLudwik Bronarski , and brought the work to completion in 1949 in 27 volumes. Each volume carries a bar-by-bar commentary upon variant texts as a supplement, and the edition was based primarily on comparison of autograph manuscripts, approved copies and first editions, with special attention to original dynamic markings and fingerings, etc.In his later years Turczyński lived in
Brazil , but he died inLausanne .References
*A. Eaglefield-Hull, "A Dictionary of Modern Music and Musicians" (Dent, London 1924).
*J. Methuen-Campbell, "Chopin Playing from the Composer to the Present Day" (Gollancz, London 1981).
*I.J. Paderewski "et al." (ed), "Chopin Complete Works: VII Nocturnes", (Instytut Fryderyka Chopina, Warsaw 1951), (10th Edition 1970), 107-125.External links
*pl icon [http://www.bn.org.pl/chopin/index.php/pl/pianists/bio/24 Józef Turczyński - biografia] (with a small photo); see also [http://www.bn.org.pl/chopin/index.php/pl/pianists/dysk/24 list of works]
* [http://www.nifc.pl/chopin/persons/bibliography/id/1235/lang/en The Fryderyk Chopin Institute - Persons related to Chopin: Józef Turczyński]
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