Abstract

The elements of Ukrainian folk music have appeared in Polish guitar music at the early 19th century, both in music The elements of Ukrainian folk music have appeared in Polish guitar music at the early 19th century, both in music for English guitar tuned in G major (sources for this instrument appeared chronologically first) and for 6-string Spanish guitar. Composers have used stylized dances, mainly kozachok, for composing simple technical arrangements intended for domestic parlour music. Apart from four anonymous manuscripts for English guitar there are two anonymous kozachoks in manuscripts from the National Library of Poland in Warsaw and the Princes Czartoryski Library in Krakow and one kozachok in manuscripts from the National Library of Poland in Warsaw and the Princes Czartoryski Library in Krakow and one kozachok by Eduard Salle neuve. Also another form – duma / dumka – is popular among the19th century Polish guitarists; it has appeared both in the solo and in the original version, intended for vocal with accompaniment. The authors of dumki are, among others Jan Rywacki, and anonymous dumas are preserved in the Jasna Góra Monastery (Library of the Pauline Fathers in Częstochowa), the Jagiellonian Library in Krakow and in mentioned Princes Czartoryski Library. Solo improvised dumkas have been performed by the greatest Polish 19th century virtuosos – Stanisław Szczepanowski and Marek Konrad Sokołowski, as evidenced by extensive press coverage. Three composers – Jan Nepomucen Bobrowicz, Felix Horetzky and the less known Cyprian Leonowicz – also used the Ukrainian folk melodies, mainly as a basis for virtuoso sets of variations. Leonowicz’s piece, which is a kind of written improvisation, is based on the famous song Ikhav Kozak za Dunaj. The melody used by Bobrowicz is more difficult to identify, although the title of the piece indicates the Ukrainian element – Air d’Ukraine varié. Horecki arranged two melodies, including the song Ikhav Kozak za Dunaj, in technically simple arrangements. The Ukrainian thread also appears in the biographies of some 19th century Polish guitarists, including Sokołowski,Numa Łepkowski and Karol de Wyhowski. This article shows that Ukrainian folklore was the strongest foreign element in Polish guitar music of the 19th century. Areas requiring further research are also indicated – related to little-known sources(such as guitar manuscripts from Jasna Góra, the Jagiellonian Library or from the collection of Oskar Kolberg), as well as those concerning Ukrainian guitar music from the 19th century, practically unknown outside Ukraine.

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