Witold Maliszewski: Symphony No. 3 in C minor, Op. 14

 

Witold Maliszewski before 1927, Warsaw

 

Witold Maliszewski (Russian: Витольд Осипович Малишевский, Ukrainian: Вітольд Йосифович Малишевський), (20 July 1873, Mohyliv-Podilskyi – 18 July 1939, Zalesie), was a Polish composer, founder and first Rector of Odessa Conservatory, and a professor of Warsaw Conservatory.

 

Symphony No. 3 in C minor, Op. 14

I. Allegro non troppo
II. Adagio misterioso 12:30
III. Theme with Variations: Allegretto 23:35
IV. Finale: Allegro giocoso 33:35

Polish Radio National Symphony Orchestra
Antoni Wit, conductor

 

Maliszewski was born on 20 July 1873 in the city of Mohyliv-Podilskyi, Russian Empire, now Ukraine. Maliszewski graduated from Saint Petersburg Conservatory, in the class of Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov. He was a member of the composer group known as M. Belyayev's Circle. Maliszewski was a founder and the first Rector of Odessa Conservatory (1913), which gave the world a number of outstanding musicians, such as David Oistrakh, Emil Gilels and Yakov Zak.

After the Russian revolution, because of the imminent threat of Bolshevik persecution Maliszewski immigrated to Poland in 1921. In 1925-1927 he was teaching at the Chopin Music School and was the Director of the Warsaw Music Society. In 1927 he was the Chairman of the First International Frederic Chopin Piano Competition. From 1931 to 1934 Maliszewski was the Director of the Music Department at the Polish Ministry of Education. From 1931 to 1939 he was a Professor at the Warsaw Conservatory.

In the Soviet Union Maliszewski's name was prohibited and in 1950 his conservatory in Odessa was named after Antonina Nezhdanova, who had no links with the institution.