Marta Ptaszynska facts for kids

Marta Ptaszyńska (born on July 29, 1943) is a famous Polish composer, percussionist, and music professor at the University of Chicago. She is known as one of Poland's best female composers. She is also a very skilled percussionist who plays modern music.

Marta Ptaszyńska's Career

Marta Ptaszyńska was born in Warsaw, Poland. In 1998, she became a Professor of Music at the University of Chicago. Since 2005, she has held a special teaching position called the Helen B. & Frank L. Sulzberger Professor in Composition.

She has won many important awards and honors. These include the Simon J. Guggenheim Foundation Fellowship and the Danks Award. She also received the Fromm Music Foundation Award. The UNESCO in Paris gave her an award at the International Rostrum of Composers. She has also won several ASCAP Awards. In 1995, she received a high honor from Poland, the Officer Cross of Merit.

Her Music Works

Marta Ptaszyńska has written many different kinds of music. Her works include pieces for large orchestras, vocal music, and chamber music. She has also created solo pieces and special music for children.

Orchestral Music

Orchestral music is written for a large group of musicians called an orchestra. Marta Ptaszyńska has composed several pieces for orchestras.

• Spectri Sonori (1973) was first played by The Cleveland Orchestra.
• Her Concerto for Percussion Quartet and Orchestra (1974) was a special piece. It was written for four percussionists playing with an orchestra.
• La Novella D'Inverno (Winter's Tale) (1984) is a piece for string orchestra. It won a prize in Paris, France.
• She also wrote a Concerto for Marimba and Orchestra (1985). This piece was dedicated to a famous marimba player, Keiko Abe.
• Fanfare For Peace (1993) was commissioned by the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra.
• Concerto Grosso (1996) was written for two violins and a smaller orchestra. It was first performed with Lord Yehudi Menuhin.
• Drum of Orfeo – Concerto for Percussion (1999–2001) was written for the famous percussionist Evelyn Glennie.

Vocal and Instrumental Music

These works combine singing with musical instruments.

• Oscar of Alva (1971–72) is an opera. An opera is a play where the story is told mostly through singing. This opera was later shown on TV in Poland.
• Epigrams (1976–77) is for a women's choir and instruments. It uses ancient Greek poetry.
• Polish Letters (1988) is a cantata. A cantata is a piece for singers and instruments. This work celebrates Poland's independence.
• Holocaust Memorial Cantata (1992) is a powerful piece. It is for three solo singers, a choir, and an orchestra. It remembers the Holocaust.
• Cantiones Jubilationis (1995) was written for a women's choir and percussion.

Chamber Music

Chamber music is written for a small group of instruments.

• Jeu-Parti (1970) is a piece for harp and vibraphone.
• Siderals (1974) is for two groups of percussion instruments. It also uses light projections.
• Mobile (1976) is a piece for two percussionists. Marta Ptaszyńska herself performed this piece.
• Classical Variations (1976) is for timpani and a string quartet. It won an award from the Percussive Arts Society.
• Moon Flowers (1986) is for cello and piano. It was first played on the BBC in England.
• Four Portraits (1994) was written for a string quartet. It was first played at Lincoln Center in New York.
• Letter To The Sun (1998–2000) is for a frame drum, percussion, and a narrator.

Instrumental and Solo Works

These are pieces written for one instrument or a single performer.

• Space Model for percussion (1971–75) is a piece for percussion instruments.
• Arabesque for harp (1972) is a solo piece for the harp.
• Graffito for marimba (1988) was written for the marimba.
• Spider Walk for percussion (1993) is another piece for percussion.
• Elegia: in Memoriam John Paul II (2005) is a piece for viola. It remembers John Paul II.

Multimedia Works

Multimedia works combine music with other art forms, like visuals or theater.

• Soirée Snobe Chez La Princesse Instrumental Theatre (1979) is a unique piece. It uses two keyboard instruments, recorded sounds, mimes, and special lighting.

Music for Children

Marta Ptaszyńska has also written many pieces especially for young people.

• Little Mexican Fantasy (1971) is an arrangement of a Mexican folk tune. It is for percussion and piano.
• Journeys into Space for Piano (1978) is a collection of 19 short piano pieces.
• Music of Five Steps (1979) is for two flutes and a percussion group. Students from a music school in Warsaw first performed it.
• Musical Alphabet for two pianos (1985–86) is a set of 22 pieces. They are mostly dances from A to Z.
• Mister Marimba (1992–95) is a children's opera. It was written for the National Opera in Warsaw, Poland.
• Magic Doremik (2007) is another children's opera. It was also written for the National Opera in Warsaw.

Books

Marta Ptaszyńska has also written books about music.

• She co-wrote Colorful World of Percussion (1978). This book helps people learn about percussion instruments.
• A book about her, Muzyka to język najdoskonalszy. Rozmowy z Martą Ptaszyńską (Music is the Most Perfect Language. Conversations with Marta Ptaszyńska), was published in 2001.

See also

In Spanish: Marta Ptaszyńska para niños

• Poles in Chicago