Concert marks historic first session of Polish parliament
PR dla Zagranicy
Paweł Kononczuk
19.02.2019 12:00
A gala concert is to be held on Tuesday evening at Warsaw’s National Opera to mark the centenary of the inaugural session of Poland’s first parliament after the country regained independence in 1918.
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The concert is to be attended by top politicians and parliamentarians, including President Andrzej Duda and Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki.
The concert, by the National Opera Orchestra under José Maria Florêncio, will include works by Polish composers Henryk Mikołaj Górecki, Henryk Wieniawski, Karol Szymanowski and Stanisław Moniuszko, as well as several works by foreign composers inspired by Polish themes.
These include Edward Elgar’s Polonia, with references to the Polish national anthem and motifs from Paderewski’s music; Franz Liszt’s Oratorio about St. Stanislaus, which contains themes from Polish patriotic songs; and Richard Addinsell’s Warsaw Concerto, which was written for the 1941 film Dangerous Moonlight set during the German invasion of Poland in September 1939.
Poland’s so-called Legislative Sejm convened on February 10, 1919, following elections on January 26.
Poland regained its independence on November 11, 1918, after 123 years of foreign rule.
(mk/pk)