Poland’s historic 1791 Constitution was celebrated with a gala event on Monday May 4 at the
Broad Stage Auditorium in Santa Monica. Paulina Kapuścińska, Consul General of Poland in Los Angeles, began the evening by decorating a number of Polish veterans and delivering remarks on Poland’s political past and the present. Following the official part, the Polish Constitution Day Celebration continued with a piano recital by
Marek Tomaszewski, who was specially invited for the occasion from Paris, France, where he has lived for several decades...
... In his Santa Monica appearance, Mr. Tomaszewski displayed a sure-footed approach to the two large-scale orchestral works on the program, coaxing out of the piano rich orchestral textures and a considerable degree of nuance. Under his hands, Carmina burana and the Rite of Spring proved to be fascinating virtuoso piano pieces, holding their own even when compared with the highly imaginative scoring of their original orchestral versions.
The rousing finale of Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring catapulted the audience to a standing ovation and led to several curtain calls for the artist. Willing to lend an additional patriotic accent to the evening, Mr. Tomaszewski performed his own version of Chopin—a jazzed-up C minor Nocturne and a tango-like take on the Revolutionary Etude. A few most famous snippets of Mussorgsky’s Night on the Bald Mountain served as bridge material between the two variations on Chopin’s standards, conveying a degree of impish amusement for the pianist in blending various styles and composers into his own inventive vision. Two additional encores—this time original compositions by Tomaszewski—added a degree of intimacy and mystery with their delicate textures and sweetly romantic melodic material, and provided an agreeable conclusion to the festive evening.
From Polish Music - by MZ