Franciszek Łukasiewicz - biography
Franciszek Łukasiewicz, a Polish pianist and composer, was born on 25 June 1890 in Stanislawow, and died on 3 December 1950 in Poznan. His education in piano took place at the Lemberg Music Institute under Vilém Kurz. Around 1908 he left for further piano studies to Vienna, where he became a pupil of Theodor Leschetizky, and next a student at the Viennese Music Academy of Leopold Godowsky. Moreover, at the Viennese University he studied philosophy and musicology. After that, he took up master classes under Ferruccio Busoni in Basel. Between 1917 and 1919 he lived in Lemberg (later Lvov), where he taught at the conservatory and gave concert performances. In 1920 Łukasiewicz moved to Poznan, where he headed piano department at the State Academy and School of Music until 1922, and at Wielkopolska School of Music until 1926. In 1927 he became the head of music section at the Polish Radio in Poznan and held this position until the outbreak of World War II in 1939. Owing to his efforts, the Poznan section became the most active within the Polish national radio broadcasting Polish music programmes, recitals of renowned singers and instrumentalists, live concerts, theme and problem programs on opera, performing etc. He frequently performed on the radio in a duo with the pianist Gertruda Konatkowska, the violinist Irena Dubiska, the singer Jerzy Garda and others. He often performed in Berlin, Copenhagen, Prague, Vienna, Budapest, Dresden, Leipzig, Baden-Baden, Riga, Lvov, and Stockholm. His house in Poznan was open to Polish and foreign artists, for whom he hosted music salons on Sundays. He boasted an exceptional ability to sight read, and to transpose a piece of music to any key. His wide repertoire ranged from Bach, through all Chopin works, to contemporary composers. During the Second World War he lived in Krakow teaching privately and giving underground concerts of Polish music. He was taken hostage by the Gestapo in August 1944, but by some lucky coincidence he was later released. In the aftermath of the war he returned to Poznan and resumed working at the music section of the Polish Radio, while continuing his concert career. His artistic results very much depended on his mood and external factors. He was able to reach the highest artistry, where he had no peers, and yet at other times, his audiences remained unmoved by his playing.
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