Jan Krzywicki Concerto for Tuba and Orchestra
by Randy Harrison
I
n the late 1970’s, at the Philadelphia
M usical Academy, I was the
fortunate beneficiary of the expert
tutelage of two brothers, Paul and Jan
Krzywicki.
Paul Krzywicki is now the virtuoso
tubist of the Philadelphia Orchestra. He
has held the position under three world-
class maestros, Eugene Ormandy, Ricardo
M uti and W olfgang Saw allisch. His
principal teacher was the late William
Bell at Indiana University.
Jan Krzywicki
Jan Krzywicki, who was my theory and
ear-training instructor, is also an excellent
composer. Jan, a most encouraging and
inspiring teacher in his own right, studied
with a list of teachers that reads like
“Who’s Who in musical composition.”
His instructors include V incent
Persichetti, Nadia Boulanger and Darius
Milhaud. Jan is currently on the Faculty of
the Esther Boyer College of Music at
Temple University in Philadelphia. A
5 2 Winter, 1998
sampling of previous compositions from an increasingly impassioned role that
Jan Krzywicki’s pen that are of interest to climaxes in an intonation of the ‘Dies
players of the tuba and euphonium are as Irae’ chant, in modified form. The writing
follows: for solo tuba is extremely demanding,
D eploration for brass quintet (1988) ranging from its lowest notes to its very
Variations on a Hymn o f P ersich etti highest notes, with many dramatic leaps
for brass quintet (1989) as well. The second movement is a sort of
C o n v o c a r e for antiphonal brass pastoral aria or solo song in the woods. Its
(1977) conception dates from my experience of
B allade for tuba and piano (1968/83) listening to my brother practicing his
P a sto ra l for baritone horn and wind instrument near his summer cabin. The
ensemble (1970) finale is a tarantella, a fast Italian dance of
The latest composition to Jan Krzywicki’s
credit. Concerto f o r Tuba an d O rchestra, •i •
was premiered on Sunday, October 12,
1997, in Centennial Hall at the Haverford
School in the western suburbs of
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. This first
perform ance featured the Temple
University Symphony Orchestra under the
baton of Artistic Director, Luis Biava,
with Jan’s brother, Paul Krzywicki, as
soloist.
The concerto is in three movements, D e
Profundis, In the W oods and Tarantella.
The following is a description of the work
in Jan Krzywicki’s own words from his
program notes upon the occasion of the
premiere performance:
“C on certo f o r Tuba a n d O rch estra was
written for my brother Paul Krzywicki,
tubist of The Philadelphia Orchestra. The Paul Krzywicki
25-minute work comprises three con whirling intensity, that demonstrates some
trasting movements—a dramatic scene, an of the tu b a ’s agility. The movement
aria and a dance—that are performed develops material from D e Profundis, and
without pause. D e P rofun dis derives its includes an orchestral fugue with two
title from the traditional Latin text ‘Out of counter subjects. The work was composed
the depths I cry...’ and is meant to convey in 1996, and edited in 1997 at the
both literal and emotional meanings. At McDowell Colony.”
the outset, the tuba emerges from the The work is scored for a large orchestra
depths of the orchestra, gradually including two flutes (the second doubling
assum ing a dom inant role. As the piccolo), oboes, English horn, clarinets,
movement progresses, the soloist develops bassoons, contra bassoon, two horns.
 trumpets, trombones (two tenor and one
bass), tympani, percussion battery of three
players, harp, first and second violins,
violas, ’celli and basses. If I were forced
to categorize the style of the concerto, I
would probably call it Neo-Romantic. It is
a very emotionally expressive work that
runs the gamut from driving intensity to
sensitive lyricism. The range of the solo
mba part is from CC to g*. The intervalic
leaps to which Jan referred in the first
movement are exciting for the listener but
treacherous for the soloist. Paul said that
in one measure the solo part does several
leaps that leave the tuba about two and
one half octaves higher than the previous
measure. This concerto is not for the faint
of heart. The technique required of the
soloist in the first and third movements is
truly virtuosic. The contrasting pastoral,
second movement requires a musical
sensitivity that can only he accomplished
by a perform er who has com plete
command of the instrument. Many of the
tuba’s entrances in this lyrical section at
the lower dynamic levels are a challenge
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even to a true master of the tuha.
Paul Krzywicki met the aforementioned
challenges in grand style when he brought
the concerto to life for the first time. Paul
played the piece on a large Yamaha, five-
valved F tuha. He said that when he
initially got a copy of the concerto’s first
movement, he began preparing it on a CC
tuba. However, he opted for the F tuba to
achieve a more soloistic clarity.
The music depicts the description in the
program notes quite vividly. The first
m ovem ent is truly an em otional
outpouring. Jan Krzywicki’s use of the
orchestra to depict woodland sounds in the
pastoral movement is outstanding. The
quick, triple-meter theme in the Tarantella
movement is reminiscent, at first, of the
R o n d o a lia T e d e sc a movement of the
Vaughan W illiams’ C o n c e rto f o r B a ss
T u b a a n d O r c h e s tr a . However, as it
progresses, it develops a quality all its
own. The piece is very approachable for a
general audience and quite original in the
use of orchestral effects and thematic
material. Jan is quite sensitive to the solo
instrum ent and orchestrates
accompaniment such that the soloist can
be heard. Though one can occasionally
hear what sounds like an influence from
composers past, Jan Krzywicki’s concerto,
overall, has a unique character. I feel that
one of the highest com plim ents a
composer can be paid is that he or she
writes superb music that sounds like no
one else’s. Jan Krzywicki is a composer
deserving of such praise. The C o n certo
f o r Tuba an d O rchestra by Jan Krzywicki
is a landmark addition to the solo tuba
repertoire.
Notes and Acknowledgments:
Information on the C oncerto f o r Tuba and
O rchestra and any other compositions hy
Jan Krzywicki can be obtained from the
composer by writing him in care of the
Esther Boyer College of Music, Temple
U niversity, 2001 N. 13th Street,
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19122-6079.
The photo of Paul Krzywicki is by Alex
Lowy, 1966. Thanks to Jan Krzywicki for
permission to reprint his program notes. ■
TUBA Journal 5 3