Karol Kurpinski
Encyclopedia
Karol Kazimierz Kurpiński (March 6, 1785September 18, 1857, Warsaw
) was a Polish
composer, conductor and pedagogue.
Karol began his studies under his father, Marcin Kurpiński, an organist. At the age of 12, he became organist at a church in Sarnowa
near Rawicz
, where his uncle Karol Wański was a parish priest. In 1800 his other uncle, the cellist Roch Wański, took him to the estate of count
Feliks Polanowski near Lviv
, who had a private orchestra of which Wański was a member, and in which the young Kurpiński played violin.
There, around 1808, Kurpiński composed his first opera, Pygmalion. In 1810 settled in Warsaw. With the help of Józef Elsner
he became a conductor of the Warsaw Opera, a position he held until 1840. He taught music at several prominent schools including one he founded. In 1815 he became a member of many musical societies in Poland and abroad, including the Société des Enfants d'Apollon in Paris
. He became Kapellmeister of the Polish royal chapel in 1819 and in the same year received a lifetime achievement award for his services to music. In 1820 he founded and edited the first Polish music newsletter. He was decorated with the Order of Saint Stanislaw in 1823.
Kurpiński was one of the most revered composers before Frédéric Chopin
, and helped to lay the foundations of a national style and prepared the ground for Polish music of the Romantic
period. He contributed to the development of Polish opera, introducing new musical devices and achieving an a novel mode of expression.
He died on September 18, 1857 in Warsaw
, aged 72.
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
) was a Polish
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
composer, conductor and pedagogue.
Karol began his studies under his father, Marcin Kurpiński, an organist. At the age of 12, he became organist at a church in Sarnowa
Sarnowa
Sarnowa is a Polish place name of:* Sarnowa, Konin County, a village in the administrative district of Gmina Ślesin, Konin County* Sarnowa-Kolonia, a village in the administrative district of Gmina Ślesin...
near Rawicz
Rawicz
Rawicz is a town in central Poland with 21,398 inhabitants . It is situated in the Greater Poland Voivodeship ; previously it was in Leszno Voivodeship . It is the capital of Rawicz County.-History:...
, where his uncle Karol Wański was a parish priest. In 1800 his other uncle, the cellist Roch Wański, took him to the estate of count
Count
A count or countess is an aristocratic nobleman in European countries. The word count came into English from the French comte, itself from Latin comes—in its accusative comitem—meaning "companion", and later "companion of the emperor, delegate of the emperor". The adjective form of the word is...
Feliks Polanowski near Lviv
Lviv
Lviv is a city in western Ukraine. The city is regarded as one of the main cultural centres of today's Ukraine and historically has also been a major Polish and Jewish cultural center, as Poles and Jews were the two main ethnicities of the city until the outbreak of World War II and the following...
, who had a private orchestra of which Wański was a member, and in which the young Kurpiński played violin.
There, around 1808, Kurpiński composed his first opera, Pygmalion. In 1810 settled in Warsaw. With the help of Józef Elsner
Józef Elsner
Józef Antoni Franciszek was a composer, music teacher and music theoretician, active mainly in Warsaw...
he became a conductor of the Warsaw Opera, a position he held until 1840. He taught music at several prominent schools including one he founded. In 1815 he became a member of many musical societies in Poland and abroad, including the Société des Enfants d'Apollon in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
. He became Kapellmeister of the Polish royal chapel in 1819 and in the same year received a lifetime achievement award for his services to music. In 1820 he founded and edited the first Polish music newsletter. He was decorated with the Order of Saint Stanislaw in 1823.
Kurpiński was one of the most revered composers before Frédéric Chopin
Frédéric Chopin
Frédéric François Chopin was a Polish composer and virtuoso pianist. He is considered one of the great masters of Romantic music and has been called "the poet of the piano"....
, and helped to lay the foundations of a national style and prepared the ground for Polish music of the Romantic
Romantic music
Romantic music or music in the Romantic Period is a musicological and artistic term referring to a particular period, theory, compositional practice, and canon in Western music history, from 1810 to 1900....
period. He contributed to the development of Polish opera, introducing new musical devices and achieving an a novel mode of expression.
He died on September 18, 1857 in Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
, aged 72.