Krzysztof Komeda - 1960s

1960s

The years 1956–1962 saw Komeda with his group taking part in domestic festivals and preparing ambitious programs. These were also the years of his first foreign successes: Moscow, Grenoble and Paris. The interesting show was created at that time; it was called "Jazz and Poetry" and shown on Jazz Jamboree ’60, and later in Warsaw Philharmonic. Komeda's adventure with film music also begun. Scores for the films of Roman Polanski such as Knife in the Water (1962), of Andrzej Wajda such as Innocent Sorcerers (1960), and of Janusz Morgerstern Good Bye, Till Tomorrow (also 1960) were created. The period, which in Komeda’s artistic biography can be called the period of growing up and improving his own music language, was crowned with "Ballet Etudes" performed on Jazz Jamboree ’62. Although the reaction of domestic critics for the Etudes was rather cold, it opened the door of Europe for Krzysztof Komeda Trzciński.

Komeda visited Scandinavia for the first time in spring 1960, and he came back there since then every year. All of his performances at the ‘Gyllene Cirkeln’ (Golden Circle) in Stockholm and at the Montmartre Jazz Club in Copenhagen, where the most famous celebrities of American jazz performed, turned out to be a real success. Metronome, the Swedish record company recorded his music played by an international quintet: Allan Botschinsky (trumpet), Jan "Ptaszyn" Wróblewski (tenor saxophone), Krzysztof Komeda (piano), Roman Dyląg (stage name: Gucio; contrabass) and Rune Carlsson (percussion). The famous Danish director Hennig Carlsen ordered music to his movies: Hvad Med Os, and Sult (the movie based on Knut Hamsun’s novel Hunger). Komeda also wrote the music to Tom Segerberg's movie Kattorna and several Polański scores. Overall Komeda wrote more than 70 soundtracks. After successes in Scandinavia, came next successes: jazz festivals in Prague, Blend, Koenigsberg; toure of Bulgaria and both West and East Germany. The Komeda Quartet (Tomasz Stańko (trumpet), Roman Dyląg (bass), Rune Carlsson (percussion), and Zbigniew Namysłowski (saxophone)) recorded in May 1967 ‘Lirik und Jazz’ for the West Germany record company Electrola. Komeda stayed in Los Angeles in 1968 where he composed film music for Roman Polanski’s Rosemary’s Baby and Kulik’s The Riot.

In December 1968, in Los Angeles, Komeda had a tragic accident which led to a haematoma of the brain. There are several accounts of what happened: a car accident in the autumn of 1968, or that he was pushed off an escarpment by writer Marek Hłasko during a drinking party. After having been transported home to Poland, he died as a result of wrong treatment of the haematoma. Roman Polański mentioned in his memoirs that as a result of friendly rough-and-tumble with Marek Hłasko, Komeda fell down and suffered head injuries. It is believed that one of the main reasons Krzysztof was transported back to Poland after the accident, is that he did not have US medical insurance. Though the dubious cause of the accident and subsequent travel back to Poland may explain why US medical treatment was not pursued.

As a jazz musician, he exerted crucial influence on creating an original style, often described as the Polish school of jazz, which subsequently influenced the Polish jazz scene's development after his death. Since 1995, the Komeda Jazz Festival has been held on a regular basis, including an International Composers' Competition. The goal of the competition is to promote young artists.