T he Living Composers Project

Knittel, Krzysztof (b. May 1, 1947, Warsaw). Polish composer of mostly stage, chamber and electroacoustic works that have been performed in the Americas, Asia and Europe; he is also active as a performer and writer.

Mr. Knittel is also active in other positions. He has worked at the Experimental Studio of Polish Radio since 1973 and worked at the Center for the Creative and Performing Arts at SUNY Buffalo in 1978. He co-founded with Wojciech Michniewski and Elzbieta Sikora KEW in 1973, a group of composers, which was most active from 1973-75, as well as the Cytula Tyfun da Bamba Orkiester, which was active in 1981. He co-founded the Independent Electroacoustic Music Studio, which existed from 1982-84, the ensemble Light from Poland, which was active from 1985-87, and the interdisciplinary group Freight Train in 1986, which remains active today. He also co-founded with Marek Choloniewski the CH&K Studio in 1989, with which he has since regularly performed, and co-founded the European Improvisation Orchestra, which was active from 1996-98. Most recently, he co-founded with Marek Choloniewski and Wlodzimierz Kiniorski the trio CH&K&K in 1999 and remains a performer with it.

As a music critic and writer, he contributed to the magazine Tygodnik Literacki in 1990-91 and worked as a free-lance contributor to the music department of Polish TV from 1992-94. He also served as vice-chairman of the Polish section of ISCM from 1989-92, director of the Warsaw Autumn festival from 1995-98 and vice-president of the Polish Composers Union from 1995-99 and president from 1999-2003. In addition, he has served as vice-president of the Polish Music Council since 2000 and has served on the board of supervisors of Polish Public TV and the board of programmers of the Zacheta National Gallery in Warsaw since 2003.

He has taught computer music at the Academy of Music in Lódz since 2001 and has served as director of its computer music studio since 2001. He has also lectured on new music throughout the Americas and Europe.

In addition to the works listed below, Mr. Knittel has composed music for stage and TV productions.

CONTACT INFORMATION

E-mail address: knittel@tlen.pl

SELECT LIST OF WORKS

STAGE: detour (instrumental theatre work, text by Theodor W. Adorno), speaker, cello, piano, percussion, 2 tapes, 1974; Glückspavillon for Cathy (instrumental theatre work, text by the composer), tuba, tape, 1978; Woman's Voice (ballet, scenario by the composer, after Rafal Wojaczek), 4 percussion, tape, 1980; Light (monologue, text by the composer), actress, 1981; Satan in Goray (ballet, scenario by the composer, after Isaac Bashevis Singer), flute, violin, cello, piano, tape, 1993; Der Erwählte (ballet, scenario by Marek Wortman, after Thomas Mann), bagpipes, soprano recorder (+ alto recorder, tenor recorder, bass recorder), baroque trombone, lute, violin, viola da gamba, harmonium, synthesizer, 2 percussion, 1995; Awakenings (ballet, scenario by Piotr Bikont, after Oliver Sachs), speaker, soprano saxophone (+ tenor saxophone, percussion), synthesizers (+ samplers) (1 player), interactive light-sound installation, 1998; The Heartpiece – Double Opera (opera, libretto by John King, the composer, after Heiner Müller), soprano, electric guitar, string quartet, synthesizer (+ sampler), drumkit, performance space (by Krzysztof Zarebski), 1999 (collaboration with John King); Spiegelverkehrte Reise (text by Piotr Bikont), soprano, actor, 2 CDs, 2000; The circus has come! (text by the composer), soprano, dancer, flute, cello, piano, prepared piano, 2 CDs, 2003

ORCHESTRAL: Lipps, tenor saxophone/trumpet, double bass, drumkit, large orchestra, 1974, revised 1978; 29 Staves, small orchestra (29 players), 1980-81; Nibiru, harpsichord, string orchestra, 1987

CHAMBER MUSIC: ~440, violin, piano, tape, 1973; form A, form E, flute, oboe, clarinet, French horn, bassoon, 5 spotlights, 1973; à la Santé, clarinet, trombone, cello, piano, 1974; dorikos, string quartet, tape, 1976-77; sketches for any performers, 1978; low sounds, tam-tam, tape, 1979 (version of tape work; also versions for synthesizer, tape, 1990; electric guitar, synthesizer, tape, 1991); Five Pieces, cello, piano, 1979-80; Man-Orchestra I, any number of players, tape, 1982; Starry Sky, 5 percussion, 1982; Black Water, White Water, Old Stream, any number of players, tape, 1983; It's time now, piano, any 5 players, 1983; Nora, harp/any keyboard instrument, 1983; String Quartet '84-'85, 1984-85; Three Cassettes, any 3 players, 3 tape players, 1986; Brother John's Struggle, flute, trombone, guitar, violin, percussion, 1987; Histoire II, clarinet, piano, synthesizer, tape, 1988; Homage to Charles Ives, flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, viola, double bass, piano, percussion, 1991-92; Negev, synthesizer (+ sampler, percussion), 1993; Sonata da camera No. 1 (for Tomasz Stanko), improvisational trumpet, live electronics, 1993; Sonata da camera No. 3 (for Wladyslaw Klosiewicz), improvisational harpsichord, live electronics, 1995

CHAMBER MUSIC: Sonata da camera No. 4 (for László Melis and Albert Márkos), improvisational violin, improvisational cello, live electronics, 1997; Homage to Barbara Zbrozyna, synthesizer (+ sampler), 1997; Sonata da camera No. 5 (for Ivan Monighetti), improvisational cello, live electronics, 1997; Sonata da camera No. 6 (for Kazimierz Pyzik and Marek Mietelski), improvisational viola da gamba, improvisational prepared piano, live electronics, 1998; Sonata da camera No. 7 (for Ed Bogaard), improvisational tenor saxophone, live electronics, 1999; Sonata da camera No. 9 (for Wlodzimierz Kiniorski), improvisational soprano saxophone (+ tenor saxophone), live electronics, 2000; Sonata da camera No. 10 (for Andrei Smirnov), improvisational theremin, live electronics, 2000; Trio, any 3 melody instruments, 2001; Sonata da camera No. 11 (for Aleksander Gabrys), improvisational double bass, live electronics, 2002; V2R Trio (Grand River Trio), clarinet, violin, piano, CD, 2003

CHORAL: Out of the Depths Have I Cried unto Thee, O Lord... (texts from Psalms 23, 51, 102-03, 117, 130, 150), mixed chorus, tape, 2000; El maale rahamim... – O God, Full of Mercy (text from a Hebrew prayer), mixed chorus, large orchestra, 2001

VOCAL: low sounds (text by the composer), 2 speakers, tam-tam, tape, 1980 (version of tape work); 14 Variations by Piotr Bikont and Krzysztof Knittel on 14 Variations by Edwin Morgan on 14 Words by John Cage, voice, electric guitar, 2 synthesizers (both + sampler, any one + voice), 1986, revised 1992; Three Songs without Words, soprano, tape, 1987; Etwas aus Leben (text by the composer), voice, piano, live electronics, 1988; Jingle-Jangle (text by Piotr Bikont), 2 voices (both + synthesizer), 1989; Instant reactions (text by Charles Baudelaire), soprano, trumpet, guitar, synthesizer, percussion, 1992; Sonata da camera No. 8 (for Andrzej Chlopecki) (texts by Andrzej Chlopecki, random sources), improvisational speaker, live electronics, 2000; Norwid Songs (text by Cyprian Kamil Norwid), soprano, piano, 2001

PIANO: Three Studies, 1980; Four Preludes, 1983; Between, piano, tape, 1993

HARPSICHORD: Histoire III, harpsichord, tape, 1989

ELECTROACOUSTIC: The Conqueror Worm, tape, 1976; low sounds, tape, 1978 (also versions for tam-tam, tape; 2 speakers, tam-tam, tape; synthesizer, tape; electric guitar, synthesizer, tape); odds and ends, tape, 1978; three studies for tape, 1979; polygamy, tape, 1979 (collaboration with Andrzej Biezan); norcet 1, tape, 1980; norcet 2, tape, 1980; Old Style Pieces, tape, 1985; Lapis, tape, 1985; Poko, tape, 1986; Histoire I, tape, 1988; Man-Orchestra II, synthesizer (+ kitchen objects), computer, 1988; Borders of nothing, synthesizer, computer, 1990; Man-Nature, computer, 1991; legs (sound installation), 1993; passage (sound installation), 1994; radio sculpture (sound installation), 1994; Sonata da camera No. 2 (for Marek Choloniewski), improvisational live electronics, 1995; Surface en rotation, tape, 1997; to touch a snake from the inside (sound installation), 2003

FILM SCORES (DIRECTOR): Camera Buff, 1979 (Krzysztof Kieslowski); The Phantom, 1984 (Marek Nowicki); Bird of Paradise (Marek Nowicki); Bird Science (Jerzy Kalina); Double Stumble (Piotr Bikont); Fingers on Fire (animation, Daniel Szczechura); Flying Hair (animation, Piotr Dumala); Tie (Krzysztof Lang)

FILM SCORES (FOR SILENT MOVIES) (DIRECTOR) (collaborations with Freight Train): Schatten – Eine nächtliche Halluzination, 1993 (Arthur Robison); Orlacs Hände, 1996 (Robert Wiene); Faust, 1998 (Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau); Aelita, 2000 (Yakov Protazanov); Eden, 2001 (animation, Andrzej Czeczot)

(Last updated on November 21, 2004)