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Hommage a Aleksander Tansman is a suite in five movements which I composed in 2006, commissioned by Polish guitarist Anna Pietrzak. Though this piece is largely a tribute to Aleksander Tansman, I have drawn inspiration from Polish folklore more broadly, as well as from other Polish composers who have been greatly influenced by Polish folklore, and had in turn influenced Tansman himself.

The treatment of folk materials in classical works comes often down to quotation or stylization. Quoting occurs commonly in works for practical purposes, putting together schematic accompaniment, introduction, and ending to the approximate melody of the original folk tune. For composers turning to folk music for inspiration, however, simply quoting is often not enough. It is more important to be able to express the spirit of the music, which stylization represents. The linking to folklore is not as direct as quoting. Beyond the regard for melodic and rhythmical features, there is also a need to represent the sound, dynamic, and harmonic aspects of folk music. It is about the "sensation of the music" as Fryderyk Chopin puts it. Through the technique of stylization, the composer's skills can be refreshed by bringing to it a novel set of rhythmical, harmonic, and melodic expression. This is the case of my Hommage a Tansman.

The first movement, Nocturne funèbre, is inspired by Chopin’s original approach to harmony and is written very idiomatically to Chopin’s beloved instrument - the piano. Tansman himself was very much inspired and greatly influenced by Chopin’s music. His Hommage a Chopin is one of many examples of that.

The second movement, Scherzando à la cracovienne, is probably the closest tribute to Tansman’s music. His highly recognizable harmonic patterns and progressions, drawn from his guitar works, are sewn together in a pastiche-like way.

In Mazurka Romanesque, the third movement, I decided to write a very distinguished Polish (almost patriotic) melody. I was very much inspired by the works of Stanislaw Moniuszko, who was ‘the face of Polish opera’ that lived at the same time as Chopin and has also been an influence for Tansman.

In Impromptu Goualante, the fourth movement, I decided to use a popular, traditional and religious melody from Poland - ‘Cichy Zapada Zmrok’, similar to how Tansman used Polish melodies in his Suite ‘in Modo Polonico’.

The first four movements were written and structured according to the principle of contrast. Every movement is in opposition to each other. However in the fifth and final movement entitled Fugato Pathétique, all the movements appear briefly in reminiscence after the presentation of the theme and fugato. The final movement takes on an energy akin to that of Tansman’s energetic Danza Pomposa.

Marek Pasieczny

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