Franciszek Brzeziński

Franciszek Ksawery Brzeziński (Warsaw, 1867 – Warsaw, 1944) was a Polish composer and music critic whose significance lies chiefly as a witness to the musical life of his country at the close of the nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth. Although his own compositions have largely fallen into oblivion today, his writings retain historical value as a source on Polish musical culture of his era.

His training was initially in law: he graduated in law in 1890 from the University of Dorpat, today Tartu, and practised as a lawyer in Warsaw until around 1903. At the same time he studied piano with Jan Kleczyński. He later refined his knowledge of composition at the Leipzig Conservatory, under Max Reger, and also worked with Nikisch. From 1916 to 1921 he was music critic of the Kurier Warszawski. Afterwards he entered the diplomatic service as Polish consul in Breslau, today Wrocław, and then in Berlin, where from around 1928 he served as music correspondent for the Warsaw monthly Muzyka. He returned to Poland in 1931 and contributed to numerous publications, both musical and from other fields. In 1929 he sat on the board of directors of the Association of Writers and Music Critics.

His music belongs to the tradition of late Romanticism, with some traits of a restrained modernism. He is recognised for expressive coherence, a sound command of counterpoint and a inclination towards folk melodies, at times with a touch of humour. As a critic, he showed considerable breadth of interests and an open attitude towards new music by composers such as Szymanowski and Stravinsky. Nevertheless, his predilection lay in the Romantic repertoire: he admired Brahms, Smetana and the French and Italian composers, especially Verdi, and was highly critical of Liszt and Mahler. His writings covered concert criticism, religious, school and radio music, as well as opera and choreography, with attention to Polish dances.

His legacy is remembered mainly through his texts. He defined the criteria of good music criticism in a 1935 article for Muzyka polska and published a study of Smetana in 1933.