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Krzysztof Komeda

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Krzysztof Komeda

Krzysztof Komeda (born Krzysztof Trzciński 8 April, 1931 in Poznań – 23 April 1969 in Warsaw) was a Polish film music composer and jazz pianist. He wrote the scores for Roman Polański’s films Rosemary’s Baby and Cul-de-sac.

Early life

He grew up in Częstochowa, Ostrów Wielkopolski where he earned his A-level certificate in 1950 at the Male Gymnasium, participated in the Music and Poetry Club, and did further studies in Poznań focusing on medicine.

Komeda took music lessons from the early childhood; to become a renowned virtuoso was his dream. He became the member of the Poznań conservatoire at the age of eight, but unfortunately, the war thwarted his plans. Komeda explored the theory of music, and learned to play piano, during this period and later, until 1950; however, he was aware of the loss of the past six years. After graduating from the Gymnasium, he had to decide upon further studies. As he wanted to have a fascinating profession, he decided to become a ear, nose and throat physician.

Komeda was interested in light and dance music. He met Witold Kujawski, the graduate of the same school and already a well-known swinging bass player, at the gymnasium (high school) in Gorzów Wielkopolski. It was Kujawski who acquainted Komeda-Trzciński with jazz, and took him to Cracow. The romantic period of Polish jazz, called the catacombs, had its day in the spotlight, concert publicity did not exist then. Jam-sessions, in which participated such famous musicians as Matuszkiewicz, Borowiec, Walasek and Kujawski himself, took place in the legendary, small Witold’s apartment in Cracow.

Some years later, it became clear why Komeda was fascinated with be-bop performed by Andrzej Trzaskowski. The fascination with jazz and the friendship with famous musicians strengthened the connections of Krzysztof Trzciński with music, even though he was a doctor by profession. He worked for some time with the first, postwar, pioneer Polish jazz band, a group called Melomani that was from Cracow and Łódź, and which mainstays were Matuszkiewicz, Trzaskowski and Kujawski.

Later on, he played with various pop groups from Poznań. One of them was Jerzy Grzewiński’s group, which soon transformed into dixieland band. Komeda appeared with Grzewiński on the I Jazz Festival in Sopot during August 1956, but he achieved success performing with saxophonist Jan Ptaszyn Wróblewski and vibraphonist Jerzy Milian. The reason for that was simple: dixieland did not meet Komeda’s expectations at the time. He was most fascinated with modern jazz. Thanks to this passion, the Komeda Sextet was created. Krzysztof Trzciński used the pseudonym 'Komeda' for the first time when he worked in a laryngological clinic, and wanted to hide his fascination with jazz from co-workers. Jazz was just beginning its struggle for Polish respectability with the communist authorities, and it was still seen as a cheap suspicious music from night clubs.

The Komeda Sextet became the first Polish jazz group playing modern jazz, and its pioneer performances formed the way for jazz in Poland. He played jazz that referred to European traditions and which was the synthesis of two most popular groups at those times: The Modern Jazz Quartet and the Gerry Mulligan Quartet.

During thirteen years that passed after the Sopot Festival, the personality of Krzysztof Trzciński remained unchanged. It only became more mature, crystallized and transformed into poetry. Because Krzysztof was, above all, constantly searching poet, he could find the ways of individual expression of jazz inside himself, in Slavic lyricism, and in the traditions of Polish music. He was a master of creating poetic atmosphere, and he knew better than others how to gain the audience. It is impossible not to recognize his music: it has its own, unique tone. The process of improvement and enrichment of artistic workshop lasted many years.

In years 1956 – 1962, Komeda with his group took part in other domestic festivals always preparing very ambitious programs. Those were also the years of first foreign successes: in Moscow, Grenoble and Paris. The interesting show was created at that time; it was called "Jazz and Poetry" and shown on Jazz Jamboree ’60, and later in Warsaw Philharmonic. Krzysztof Trzciński’s adventure with film music also begun. Songs to the movies of Polański such as Knife in the Water (1962), of Andrzej Wajda such as Innocent Sorcerers, and of Morgerstern Good Bye, Till Tomorrow were created. The period, which in Komeda’s artistic biography can be called the period of growing up and improving his own music language, was crowned with "Ballet Etudes" performed on Jazz Jamboree ’62. Although the reaction of domestic critics for the Etudes was rather cold, it opened the door of Europe for Krzysztof Komeda Trzciński.

1960s

For the first time, Komeda visited Scandinavia in Spring 1960, and he came back there since then every year. All of his performances at the ‘Gyllene Cirkeln’ (Golden Circle) in Stockholm and at the Montmartre Jazz Club in Copenhagen, where the most famous celebrities of American jazz performed, turned out to be a real success. Metronome, the Swedish record company recorded his music played by an international quintet: Allan Botschinsky (trumpet), Jan "Ptaszyn" Wróblewski (tenor saxophone), Krzysztof Komeda (piano), Roman Dyląg (stage name: Gucio; contrabass) and Rune Carlsson (percussion). The famous Danish director Hennig Carlsen ordered music to his movies: Hvad Med Os, Kattorna, and Sult (the movie based on Knut Hamsun’s novel Hunger). After successes in Scandinavia, came next successes: jazz festivals in Prague, Blend, Koenigsberg; toure of Bulgaria and both West and East Germany. The Komeda Quartet (Tomasz Stańko (trumpet), Roman Dyląg (bass), Rune Carlsson (percussion), and Zbigniew Namysłowski (saxophone)) recorded in May 1967 ‘Lirik und Jazz’ for the West Germany record company Electrola. Komeda stayed in Los Angeles in 1968 where he composed film music for Polański’s Rosemary’s Baby and Kulik’s The Riot.

In December, Komeda had a tragic accident. After having been transported to Poland, he died because of wrong treatment of haematoma. There are different reasons of haematoma: car accident in the Autumn of 1968, pushing off the escarpment by writer Marek Hłasko during a drinking party. Roman Polański mentions in his memories that as a result of friendly rough and tumble with Marek Hłasko, Komeda fell down and hurt himself in his head.

As a jazz musician, he exerted crucial influence on creating an original style, often described as the Polish school of jazz, which subsequently influenced the Polish jazz scene's development after his death.

Since 1995, on Leszek Kułakowski’s initiative, there is Komeda Jazz Festival, during which International Composer’s Competition takes place. The goal of the competition is to promote young artists. Leszek Kułakowski, who was the pianist and the composer, was also the first one who arranged Komeda’s music for symphonic orchestra.

Selected discography

  • I Sopot Jazz Festival 1956 (Muza)
  • Astigmatic (1965 - Muza)
  • Muzyka Krzysztofa Komedy vol. 1-4 (1974 - Muza)
  • The Complete Recordings of Krzysztof Komeda vol. 1-22 (Polonia Records)

Filmography

Composer

See also

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