Wanda Małolepsza (28 April 1930 – 6 July 2019), known professionally as Wanda Warska, was a

Polish jazz Polish jazz has a history that spans periods of both acceptance and political repression. Before communism (1930–39) The beginning of jazz in Poland is difficult to determine. As early as the 1930s, clubs in Warsaw, Kraków, Rzeszów or Poznań ...

singer and composer who worked with her husband

Andrzej Kurylewicz Andrzej Roman Kurylewicz (Polish pronunciation: ; 24 November 1932 – 12 April 2007), was a Polish composer, pianist, trombonist, trumpet player and conductor. His works range from serious music, including both chamber and orchestral music, to ...

and was nicknamed the "First Lady of Polish Jazz".

Biography

Early life and career

Wanda Warska was born Wanda Małolepsza on 28 April 1930 in

Poznań Poznań () is a city on the River Warta in west-central Poland, within the Greater Poland region. The city is an important cultural and business centre, and one of Poland's most populous regions with many regional customs such as Saint John ...

Poznań Voivodeship Poznań Voivodeship was the name of several former administrative regions (''województwo'', rendered as ''voivodeship'' and usually translated as "province") in Poland, centered on the city of Poznań, although the exact boundaries changed over t ...

, Poland. After singing at the at the age of five, Warska studied piano as a young child and was educated at a music and ballet school and in the Faculty of Philosophy of the

University of Warsaw The University of Warsaw ( pl, Uniwersytet Warszawski, la, Universitas Varsoviensis) is a public university in Warsaw, Poland. Established in 1816, it is the largest institution of higher learning in the country offering 37 different fields of ...

. She and her husband

started working together in the 1950s, performing for the latter's bands for her first recording, the 1956 Sopot Jazz Festival, and the

Jazz Jamboree The Jazz Jamboree Festival, one of the largest and oldest jazz festivals in Europe, takes place in Warsaw. Organized bJazz Jamboree Foundation History The first Jazz Jamboree was organised by Hot-Club Hybrydy. It was three days long (18 to 21 Sept ...

, and serving as his repertoire's primary performer. She was the vocalist of Kurylewicz's Organ Sextet, and her 1971 album ''Muzyka teatralna i telewizyjna'' was a collaboration with him and

Czesław Niemen Czesław Niemen (; February 16, 1939 – January 17, 2004), born Czesław Juliusz Wydrzycki, and often credited as just Niemen, was one of the most important and original Polish singer-songwriters and rock balladeers of the 20th century, singing ...

. , a manager commercially involved with Kurylewicz at the time, conceived Warska's pseudonym. She was a performer of

sung poetry Sung poetry is a broad and imprecise music genre widespread in European countries, such as Poland and the Baltic States, to describe songs consisting of a poem (most often a ballad) and music written specially for that text. The compositions usu ...

and also performed her own lyrics. She also worked in cinema, providing vocals for '' Night Train'' (1959) and ''Cyrograf Dojrzałości'' (1967) and being the composer for

Jan Batory Jan Batory (23 August 1921 - 1 August 1981) was a Polish film director and screenwriter.http://guide_to_cinema.enacademic.com/15/Batory,_Jan Selected filmography References External links * 1921 births 1981 deaths People from Kalisz ...

's films ''Jezioro osobliwości'' and ''Karino''. She made live appearances not only in Europe, but also in

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

and

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

. She also performed at Piwnica pod Baranami (a cabaret in

Kraków Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...

), where she sang poetry from other poets (particularly

Bolesław Leśmian Bolesław Leśmian (born Bolesław Lesman; January 22, 1877The exact date of his birth is disputed: the act of birth mentions 1877, Leśmian himself used 1878, while the date mentioned on his tombstone is 1879. – November 5, 1937) was a Pol ...

, Cyprian Kamil Norwid, Agnieszka Osiecka,

Juliusz Słowacki Juliusz Słowacki (; french: Jules Slowacki; 4 September 1809 – 3 April 1849) was a Polish Romantic poet. He is considered one of the "Three Bards" of Polish literature — a major figure in the Polish Romantic period, and the father of mode ...

, and

Julian Tuwim Julian Tuwim (13 September 1894 – 27 December 1953), known also under the pseudonym "Oldlen" as a lyricist, was a Polish poet, born in Łódź, then part of the Russian Partition. He was educated in Łódź and in Warsaw where he studied la ...

) and even wrote her own music and lyrics. In his book ''Historii jazzu w Polsce'', Krystian Brodacki said that, as part of the carabet, "she was jazz's first swallow." In 1964, she and Kurylewicz, after Piwnica pod Baranami banned them, opened a nightclub in

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...

(where they had moved a year earlier), Piwnica Wandy Warskiej. She turned to arts patronage in the 1970s, and the place later became an art gallery in 1985 and was renamed the Piwnica Artystyczna Kurylewiczów in 1987.

Later life and death

In 2000, she was awarded the Officer's Cross of the

Order of Polonia Restituta The Order of Polonia Restituta ( pl, Order Odrodzenia Polski, en, Order of Restored Poland) is a Polish state decoration, state Order (decoration), order established 4 February 1921. It is conferred on both military and civilians as well as on al ...

. She also received the Officer's Cross of the

Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany The Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (german: Verdienstorden der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, or , BVO) is the only federal decoration of Germany. It is awarded for special achievements in political, economic, cultural, intellect ...

. Her 2005 album ''Piosenki z piwnicy Wandy Warskiej'' was a

ZPAV The Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry ( pl, Związek Producentów Audio-Video, ZPAV) is the trade organization that represents the interests of the music industry in Poland, and the Polish chapter of the International Federation of the ...

platinum album. In 2011, Warska was awarded the Gold

Medal for Merit to Culture – Gloria Artis A medal or medallion is a small portable artistic object, a thin disc, normally of metal, carrying a design, usually on both sides. They typically have a commemorative purpose of some kind, and many are presented as awards. They may be int ...

for "her contribution to Polish culture". '' Polskie Radio'' described her 2016 album ''Domowe piosenki'', composed of her recordings from over the past six centuries, as a "phonographic rarity", noting that her work rarely appeared on albums. In April 2016, Warska was incapacitated by a paralyzing stroke. In December 2018, a memorial concert named "Mount Jazz" was held in Warska's honour, with performances by such musicians as

Grażyna Auguścik Grażyna Auguścik (born 17 August 1955) is a Polish jazz vocalist, composer, and arranger.''River'' CD. 2001 Grażyna Auguścik/GMA RecordsGrażyna Auguścik's web site http://www.grazynaauguscik.com/ She frequently uses Polish folk music, Latin ...

Krzesimir Dębski Krzesimir Marcin Dębski (; born 26 October 1953 in Wałbrzych) is a Polish composer, conductor and jazz violinist. His music career as a musician has been that of a performer as well as composer of classical music, opera, television and feature ...

, Urszula Dudziak, and

Zbigniew Namysłowski Zbigniew Jacek Namysłowski (9 September 1939 – 7 February 2022) was a Polish jazz alto saxophonist, flautist, cellist, trombonist, pianist and composer. Life and career Namysłowski was born in Warsaw, Poland, on 9 September 1939. He perform ...

and a poster designed by

Andrzej Pągowski Andrzej Pągowski (born 1953 in Warsaw)Czestochowski, J.S. (ed.) ''Contemporary Polish Posters in Full Color: 46 Plates.'' New York: Dover, 1979. v. is a Polish artist who specializes in graphic design and poster art. Pągowski graduated from The ...

. However, the concert was made without the involvement of her daughter , who turned down the concert's profits, and none of Warska's compositions (or those of his husband) were performed due to concerns about offense towards the younger Kurylewicz. She won the 2020 Fryderyk in Jazz Music, which her daughter accepted on her behalf while she was recovering. In addition to her painting hobby, she became involved in sketching after recovering from her stroke. Warska died on 6 July 2019 in

Laski, Warsaw West County Laski () is a village in Poland, in the Masovian Voivodship, to the west of Warsaw, in the commune of Izabelin. It is located at the southern border of the Kampinos Forest and is a notable resort, with 1,600 permanent inhabitants (1998). The vi ...

, aged 89. Her state funeral took place on 11 July 2019 in Laski, where , the Undersecretary of the

Ministry of Culture and National Heritage Ministry of Culture and National Heritage of the Republic of Poland ( pl, Ministerstwo Kultury i Dziedzictwa Narodowego) is a governmental administration office concerned with various aspects of Polish culture. It was formed on 31 October 200 ...

, read a letter from

Deputy Prime Minister A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to that of a vice president, ...

Piotr Gliński. In the letter, Gliński described Warska as a "great lady of Polish jazz" and "one of the great figures of Polish culture based on the implementation of the idea of beauty in all its forms." Warska was cremated and interred at the Powązki Cemetery. Warska is nicknamed the "First Lady of Polish Jazz". Muzeum Jazzu described her as "a legend, an icon of poetic song and jazz, ndan uncompromising animator of countless artistic projects", and also credited her with "introducing the Brazilian bossa nova to Poland".

Discography

*''Muzyka teatralna i telewizyjna'' (1971) *''Piosenki z piwnicy Wandy Warskiej'' (2005) *''Domowe piosenki'' (2016)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Warska, Wanda 1930 births 2019 deaths Polish jazz singers Women jazz singers Polish jazz composers 20th-century jazz composers 20th-century Polish singers 20th-century Polish women singers Musicians from Poznań University of Warsaw alumni Recipients of the Gold Medal for Merit to Culture – Gloria Artis Officers of the Order of Polonia Restituta Officers Crosses of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Polish film score composers Women film score composers