Stanisław Barszczak, “Człowiek z nadziei…”

To powiem, Państwo wiecie że przegraliśmy powstania w XIX stuleciu. Ale żyjemy w Polsce trzeciego tysiąclecia i trzeba pracować według reguł gry. Zarazem myślę jako człowiek nadziei. I powiem: jesteśmy normalnym krajem. ‘Prawie,’ dorzuciłby Daniel Olbrychski… Ale czy ja mam prawo mówienia za moich rodaków, za wszystkich sponiewieranych przez los, za wszystkich cierpiących w różnorakich sposób. Nie mnie o tym sądzić. Chciałbym jednak pokazywać zawsze tę szczególną intymność ludzi w stosunku do filmu, magii kina. Bo wszyscy jesteśmy aktorami jutra. Czy nam to się podoba czy nie, w to wierzę. Jak powiedziałem na innym miejscu, miasta teraz szybciej się rozwijają jak wieś. Nie jestem za bałaganem współczesnym. Ale w tej epoce mamy olbrzymie szanse wykształcenia dla chętnych z każdego zakątka ojczyzny. Jakkolwiek jednak przeważa społeczna bezmyślność, przebogata jest infrastruktura socjalna, wykształcenie, przemysł budowlany, postęp technologii, chemia. Ale istnieją rozliczne zagrożenia. To Polska nie jest mi obojętna, powiedziałby wnuk Marszałka Piłsudskiego, Pan Piotr Jaroszynski. Co będzie z ceną energii…nie wiem. System finansowy zdestabilizowany. Caritas, to mówiłem już przy innej okazji, bazuje wyłącznie na kapitalistycznym rachunku zysku i strat. Ja osobiście zdecydowanie jestem za każdą radykalną sprawiedliwością… Co służy rozwojowi osobowemu, to jest dla mnie kompasem działania. I tak tym razem wspomnę o roli kina w świadomości narodu. Kino stanowi część działalności społecznej. W miasteczku Ząbkowice, tam gdzie się ukształtowałem jako ‘człowiek z nadziei,’ stał okazały budynek w środku parku. Było tam kino Uciecha. A teraz są tylko ruiny. To Kino poszło w zapomnienie. Zniszczenie kina studyjnego to olbrzymia strata dla Ząbkowic. Nadeszła epoka kolorowego filmu. Wydawało się, że staniemy się wyznawcami naturalizmu już na wieki, że będziemy więcej naturalni…
Dla mnie Lenin był wówczas osobą nader aktualną. To ten, który nieustannie w swych wystąpieniach pwoływał się na Rząd rewolucyjny Francji. Wówczas nie miałem świadomości komunistycznej rzeczywistosci. Może z śmiercią ukochanej Matki ta świadomość urosła w moich oczach. Za to telewizja była czymś ważnym zawsze. Na meczach widziałem setki tysięcy rodaków. Pan Andrzej Wajda ostrzegał przed nacjonalizmem (sic). Pojawił się następnie papież Polak, który zbierał miliony… Przed laty na wiosnę 1979 roku napisałem opowiadanie pt. “Nie lubię poniedziałku.” W ten sposób przygotowywałem się do spotkania z Janem Pawłem II w mojej ojczyźnie. Wówczas tytuł mojego pierwszego, kiczowatego opowiadania o częstochowskich pielgrzymach do Ojca świętego, powstał z prozaicznej przyczyny- w poniedziałek witaliśmy Jana Pawła w Częstochowie. A były to piękne dni… W poniedziałki zawsze mogliśmy oglądać teatr telewizji. Magia kina otwierała się na naszych oczach, gdy patrzyliśmy na pierwszą wersję filmu Westerplatte (każdy nosi w sobie jakieś “Westerplatte”, zakres działań, od których nie można zdezerterować, mawiał Jan Paweł II), a później obejrzeliśmy wspólnie film “Polskie drogi,” o polskiej a okupacyjnej drodze do zniszczenia hitleryzmu. W teatrze telewizji widzieliśmy sztuki Wyspiańskiego, szczególnie pamiętam “Wyzwolenie”. Dzisiaj nie ma w poniedziałki teatru telewizji. Tydzień zaczynamy będąc z kulturą na bakier. Owszem, szukamy innego świata. Ale czy z pożytkiem dla Polski- tej którą nieustannie jeszcze oglądam na mapie Europy jako wielką i piękną zarazem. Amerykanie nakręcili film Apokalipsa. Tydzień juz skończył się w dziejach świata. Nastała wojna szybkiej cywilizacji jutra. Czy biedni zabiorą się na pokład statku ku takiej cywilizacji. To pytanie retoryczne, które jeszcze sobie stawiam czasami. Tak więc mieszkam w Polsce. Tutaj zawsze jestem, bo uczestniczyłem w tym świecie od dziecka. Ty też razem z innymi jestem głosem tych, którzy zginęli w wojnie. Żeby były sukcesy trzeba coś zrobić, na przykład filmy głęboko oryginalne. Pan Jerzy Stuhr chce mówić do widza na jego warunkach. To dobrze. W rezultacie powiedziałbym tak: powiedzmy co mamy do powiedzenia o przeszłości- ale zaraz idźmy ku przyszłości. Żebyśmy mieli prawo przed następnymi generacjami Polaków do nazywania się ojczyzną Mickiewicza. Społeczeństwo stanowi słabość prawną… Bo nikt nie zna swojej mocy i swojej słabości. Mamy nadto rynkowe społeczeństwo. Miałem zaszczyt być na sześciu kontynentach ziemskiego globu. I ujrzałem brutalność w muzeum świata. Teraźniejsza ‘zmiana klimatu’ dla świata- jak ludobójstwo Ormian czy hitlerowskie, mniemam tak. Moja penetracja świata nie opiera się bynajmniej na jakichś zaburzeniach psychicznych (ang. mental problems). Ale jest relacją z codziennych doświadczeń. Nigdy nie miałem planów zawojowania świata. Jutro Szef Unii Europejskiej Donald Tusk zawija do Warszawy i będzie na obchodach święta Niepodległości Polski. Myślę że pokażemy się w komplecie. Prezydentowi Tuskowi powiedziałbym teraz: gratuluję Panu stanowiska, Panie Tusk. Bo wiem, że to jest ciężkie. Jak “człowiek z nadziei” ( wszelka Solidarność w ojczyźnie mojej wyrastała przed czterdziestu laty właśnie z nadziei) muszę być aktorem najlepszym, myślę… Tutaj chciałbym coś wam powiedzieć. Jak wiecie Karol Wojtyła był aktorem. Wspomina Pan Daniel Olbrychski jego spotkania z ojcem świętym: zostaliśmy zaproszeni na poranną Mszę świętą. Weszli już do kaplicy Ojca świętego w Watykanie i czekamy na pojawienie się najważniejszej osoby. Rozglądamy się wokoło, Ja i Andrzej (Seweryn). Mogło być parę minut po godzinie szóstej rano. Naraz spojrzałem przed ołtarz, a On tam już był. Papież już leżał krzyżem na posadzce przed ołtarzem… A po skończonej projekcji filmu “Pan Tadeusz”, a siedzieli przy Ojcu świętym: reżyser filmu Andrzej Wajda z małżonką, Andrzej Seweryn i inni. Ojciec Święty zwrócił się do mnie i powiedział mi tylko: wielka kreacja (chodziło o mojego Gerwazego)… Myślę osobiście, że jak papież Franciszek szczyt mam za sobą. Ale chcę mieć prawo, zachować intymność z kościołem. Pragnę głębokich kontaktow z pasjonatami życia wewnętrznego. Po projekcji filmu
Jan Pawel II długą spowiedź Jacka Soplicy zacytował z pamięci… Uważam, że powinienem do końca życia być aktorem, i to najlepszym. A moje kapłaństwo tylko na tym zyska. Jestem jeszcze czasami monstrum, lwem ‘ryczącym’ za tym, że oto coś mi się należy od życia. A przecież nie umiałem spożytkować autorytetow. To jednak moim głębokim pragnieniem jest trwanie z pasjonatami sztuki na zawsze. Już nie mogę się doczekać gali aktorów i ich sponsorów podczas 90- tej hollywoodzkiej Gali wręczania Oscarów na wiosnę przyszłego roku. Ale jak umiem najlepiej
chciałbym wypełniać prawo miłości. “Miłość Domu Twego pożaru mnie,” modlił się Chrystus do Ojca. Kapłaństwo nie jest balastem, powtarzam, ale spełnieniem mojej drogi ku wiecznej prawdzie. I moje kapłaństwo chcę opisywać wam wciąż. Salman Rushdie, pisarz hinduski skazany na śmierć przed laty, uważa, iż nie pisze literatury a zapisuje historie (he makes story), że jest pisarzem historykiem. Jego historie są właśnie fikcją. Ja chcę być literatem kościoła. Bo nie jesteśmy bynajmniej jeszcze miastem Boga, niebieskim Jeruzalem. Ale już mamy być świątynią Boga. Tak więc otwieram was na moją świątynię. Ale świątynia świata jest inna. Mass media informują o teraźniejszym Spotkaniu ekonomicznym Przywódców Państw w Da NANG, centrum Wietnamu. Jakkolwiek Prezydent Trump nie reprezentuje Ameryki, i nie jest religijny, bynajmniej zachęca kraje świata do uczciwości i wzajemności w relacjach (ang. fairness and reciprocity). Życzę obradującym otwartych myśli podbudowanych piękną naturą, uratowania ludzkiej spontaniczności. Niech wolny rynek – stwórczy produkt jutra, najmadrzejsza ekonomia – do tej pory oparty na patriarchacie, niech będzie stwarzany już nie tyle w oparciu o prawo patriarchatu, lecz nie będzie alternatywny, nowy. W jednym pokoju zebrali się aktorzy świata, a oni są zawsze inni. Wtedy rola detali jest olbrzymia i ważna na całe życie. Zdrowa ekonomia, 25 spotkanie ekonomistów świata. Równe szanse, podstawy do rozwoju dla wszystkich państw. A mój kraj jako pierwszy w tych szansach rozwojowych. Solidarności trzeba między większymi i mniejszymi przedsiębiorstwami. Rynek ponad państwem najczęściej, trzeba by rynek stał się mniej imperialistyczny. Na drodze budowania wspaniałego budżetu życzę kochanym Czytelnikom wielkiego szczęścia.

Stanisław Barszczak, Przestrogi dla Polski.

Przepraszam bardzo, errare humanum est. Błądzić jest rzeczą ludzką. Proszę moją refleksję uznać za głos w dyskusji tylko… Istotnie to powinnna być uwertura do 21 stulecia albo conajmniej panorama epoki. Odnośnie mojej wizyty w Szwajcarii, powinien powstać album podróżnika… Tak, wiara nie zwyciężyła jeszcze w moim życiu. Bo nie byłem wyrafinowany i z kompleksami. A świat idzie naprzód. Co my na to jako społeczeństwo. Jak byśmy żyli o dwieście lat do przodu. W katastrofalnej demokracji żyjemy. Mamy niebezpieczny rozwój…Pchamy się drzwiami i oknami- byle mieć pracę, nie liczą się dobre maniery. Jesteśmy z kulturą na bakier.
Osobiście jestem zafascynowany wieczną pięknością Rzymu, włoską piazza, jak naszymi transparentami i flagą pokazywaną na calym globie. Istnieje tylko jeszcze jedna możliwość do do przedłużenia zycia: rozjarzenić ten totalny cały świat do kochania i sławie Rzymu przydać klientow. Tego mnie nauczył Rzym. Innym razem jakbym obserwował przy użyciu Helikoptera wulkany na Kamczatce. To znów buduję zamki z piasku zakochany w średniowieczu. Wieczorem patrzę jak para zakochanych pływa łódką w parku. Słucham Lacrimosa Mozarta, marsz turecki Mozarta, czekam na marzenia miłosne Liszta. Wpadam na sonate księzycowa Beethovena. A przede mna jeszcze błękitny walc Dunaju Straussa, sarabanda Handla, kompozycje Liszta, preludium, pogrom Hunow, Hamlet,Tasso Orfeusz, Prometeusz, Rapsodie wegierskie, Etiudy transcendentalne…
Czy jest świat do uratowania? Czy jesteśmy mądrzy? To nie są pytania ostateczne. Ale demokracja w pierwszej fazie jeszcze…Należało odciąć populację obywateli od demokracji zaledwie w pierwszej fazie jej rozwoju… Mamy
finansowy kryzys, olbrzymia negatywna energia teraz… Gdy zapłonął nagle świat, równym rytmem młodych serc w świat szli..Dziś wraca pamięć o tych, nie wszystkim pomógł los.. gdy kwitły bzy. I biały krzyż nie pamięta kto pod nim śpi…Miłość ojczyzny to konserwatywne myślenie. A gdzie zostają uczucia? Dzisiaj erozja emocji. Autorytet nie jest słyszalny. Vacuum – próżnia moralna. Jest mniej odwagi w tym kraju, niezdolność do konstruktywnej dyskusji. W takiej sytuacji rola wyobraźni jest olbrzymia…Media zniekształcają prawdę, ale też mamy wybuch fikcji, czysta informacja nie interesuje nas. Opowiadamy świat synapsami, organami. Wideo odsłania rolę kamery, krwawy obraz świata ludzi i nie tylko. A jeszcze mamy rezerwy w tym niespokojnym czasie. Niebezpieczny rozwój personalny, finansowy. Jakkolwiek uporządkowana gospodarka. Zawędrowałem tym razem do Siofok nad Balaton. Brzegi jeziora były osłonięte przez mgłę. Wydało mi się, że to olbrzymie jezioro w środku Europy jest wielkim morzem. Kolorowa jesień za nami. Wierzę, że przechowasz te muszelke…Skomplikowany nasz świat. Kto myśli o przyszłości? Mamy roszerzający się kriket społeczny… przymus niesienia Monarchii. Straszna grawitacyjna moc codzienności
To jest nie do zniesienia. Nie chciałbym być w skórze “Prezydenta Katalonii”. Społeczeństwo nie jest racjonalne. Potrzebujemy nowego ubrania, modnej kurtki, istniejemy w koniunktiwie, vocatiwie. Wspomnijmy Napoleońskie wojny, a zaraz kongres wiedeński…I Prezydent Polski nie jest stary, nie jest korupcyjny, jak wierzę.
Ale dzisiaj alternatywna polityka przeważa. A trzeba by wybrać “mniejsze zło” może.
Nazizm nie był prawicą. To była Lewica.
Jestem poważnie zatroskany o Polskę.Musieliśmy wyjść na ulicę. Cieszyły warszawskie pochody na most Poniatowskiego- ale one nie wystarczają już. Teraz ważny sąd o świecie (niem. Meinung). Społeczeństwo reaguje jakby było po pracy archeolgocznej w Pompejach. Zaledwie pod zerwaniem zewnętrznej skorupy możemy wreszcie coś w nim zauważyć. Ci się z nim dzieje.
Autostrady- algorytmy współczesne. Ten kraj w jądrze autorytatywny. To jest katastrofalne. To co widzimy to hipokryzja epoki…Hitlerowcy nie mipli żadnego pojęcia… (okrucieństwo z przemijania). To chemia. Fizyka nigdy nam się nie udała. Mamy biliony win. Jesteśmy zaledwie w pierwszej fazie demokracji. Sąd wolności jest ważny dla podstaw demokracji. Mamy codzienność, śliczny bezsens, coś prawie głupie. Partie żadnych problemów nie podstawiły…To moje podworko, mój dwór -a nie Julii Roberts na przykład. Ludzie zachowują traumatyczne wspomnienia, wojna jeszcze pamiętana. A trzeba wyzwolić ich z marazmu bycia. Powiem tak: nie ma zła teraz (niem.Bösen). Ale jest społeczeństwo. Reagujemy w strukturach społecznych. Jakie mechanizmy motywują ludzi? Zatem pokazuję tutaj nie rzeczywistość, a pewne elementy społeczne- i może ironizuję. Czy nie mieliśmy żadnych szans…by wziąć udział w życiu początku trzeciego tysiąclecia? I ja nie sądzę tak… Ale musielismy rozwiązać dylemat – bezpojeciowosc epoki (niem.Ahnunglos). Trzeba oddalić niektórych ( Portugalie, Italie) od prywatnych inwestycji, wielkich banków. O tak na przykład Niemcy, przy całej otwartości na uchodźców, boją się prywatnych banków. Tak więc jestem za najlepszą formą państwa- demokracją… Przeważyły inne sądy. Euro przyszło za wcześnie. W kinie spolecznym wciąż obligacja kamery… ja nigdy nie dałem sobie okazji, by myśleć o Polsce mojej ojczyźnie źle. W Siofok ujrzałem pewnie największy talent Europy… I napisałem opowieść pt. “Prosty walc albo loża Liszta”. Świat nie może żyć bez nadziei. Stąd trzeba wiary na nowo. Jakkolwiek Jakkolwiek istnieją granice mentalności sam sympatyzuję, osobiście wierzę w sens dziejow. Przedstawiając żaden sens i bezpojeciowosc epoki trzeba by opowiadać poprawnie o tym, co zawsze komiczne w życiu społeczeństwa a niemniej istotne. Jest coraz gorzej, mamy coraz słabsze partie. Euro kryzys. Tabu Polskie powstaje. Generacja Jana Pawla II zabrała duszę młodych. Pytam jeszcze raz jakie mechanizmy nami rządzą? Jakie fakty, struktury. Czy efektowny koniec. Cieszy czasami przy wyborach mobilizacja negatywna osób. Pokarzmy je… Jeszcze są nadzwyczajni ludzie. To pokazuje choćby harmonia w muzyce. Słucham zatem “Walca kwiatów” Czajkowskiego kiedy skreślam dla was te kilka słów. Następnie “Marsza niewolników” jeszcze też. A czytałem ballady Schillera i historię uczuć Katarzyny całych Rosji i Potiomkina. To jest moja panorama naszego czasu. Gdy wiara nie wygrywa. Ciągłe procesy o zniesławienie. Jakie przesłanie moje dla nas: musimy marzyć o lepszym świecie. I powiedziałbym nawet, do zobaczenia w przyszłym świecie. Ale już osobiście muszę wyjść… Niech żyje Rzeczpospolita. Niech żyje Polska. I jeszcze powiem: czas Narodów nadszedł ostatecznie.(fin)

Stanislaw Barszczak, A simple waltz or Franz Liszt’s compartment (part three)

V Rome, Weimar, Budapest (1861-1886)

The 1860s were a period of great sadness in Liszt’s private life. On December 13, 1859, he lost his 20-year-old son Daniel, and on September 11, 1862, his 26-year-old daughter Blandine also died. In letters to friends, Liszt afterwards announced that he would retreat to a solitary living. He found it at the monastery Madonna del Rosario, just outside Rome, where on June 20, 1863, he took up quarters in a small, Spartan apartment. He had on June 23, 1857, already joined the Third Order of Saint Francis. On April 25, 1865, he received the tonsure at the hands of Cardinal Hohenlohe. On July 31, 1865, he received the four minor orders of porter, lector, exorcist, and acolyte. After this ordination he was often called Abbé Liszt. On August 14, 1879, he was made an honorary canon of Albano. You can follow the footsteps of Franz Liszt in Rome. Going to Castel Gandolfo in the summer for an audience with the Pope, take offi one train station early. There you will meet Liszt’s friends. And there I was, honey and wine drunk, though in small quantities…
On some occasions, Liszt took part in Rome’s musical life. On March 26, 1863, at a concert at the Palazzo Altieri, he directed a programme of sacred music. The “Seligkeiten” of his Christus-Oratorio and his “Cantico del Sol di Francesco d’Assisi”, as well as Haydn’s Die Schöpfung and works by J. S. Bach, Beethoven, Jommelli, Mendelssohn and Palestrina were performed. On January 4, 1866, Liszt directed the “Stabat mater” of his Christus-Oratorio, and on February 26, 1866, his Dante Symphony. There were several further occasions of similar kind, but in comparison with the duration of Liszt’s stay in Rome, they were exceptions.The famous composer was fascinated by the eternal beauty of Rome. There is only one possibility more to extend life: glowing this whole world for a love, and the fame of Rome to give customers. This is what Rome taught me, he had been saying that.
In 1866, Liszt composed the Hungarian coronation ceremony for Franz Joseph and Elisabeth of Bavaria (Latin: Missa coronationalis). The Mass was first performed on June 8, 1867, at the coronation ceremony in the Matthias Church by Buda Castle in a six-section form. After the first performance the Offertory was added, and two years later the Gradual. Liszt was invited back to Weimar in 1869 to give master classes in piano playing. Two years later he was asked to do the same in Budapest at the Hungarian Music Academy. From then until the end of his life he made regular journeys between Rome, Weimar and Budapest, continuing what he called his “vie trifurquée” or threefold existence. It is estimated that Liszt travelled at least 4,000 miles a year during this period in his life – an exceptional figure given his advancing age and the rigors of road and rail in the 1870s. Gyula Andrássy made a new attempt writing on 4 June 1871, to the Hungarian King (the Austrian Emperor Franz Joseph I ), requesting an annual grant of 4,000 Gulden and the rank of a “Königlicher Rat” (“Crown Councillor”) for Liszt, who in return would permanently settle in Budapest, directing the orchestra of the National Theatre as well as musical institutions. The plan of the foundation of a Royal Academy was agreed by the Hungarian Parliament in 1872. In March 1875 Liszt was nominated as President. The Academy was officially opened on November 14, 1875 with Liszt’s colleague Ferenc Erkel as director, Kornél Ábrányi and Robert Volkmann. Liszt himself came in March 1876 to give some lessons and a charity concert. In spite of the conditions under which Liszt had been appointed as “Königlicher Rat”, he neither directed the orchestra of the National Theatre, nor did he permanently settle in Hungary. Typically, he would arrive in mid-winter in Budapest. After one or two concerts of his students by the beginning of spring he left. He never took part in the final examinations, which were in summer of every year. Some of the pupils joined the lessons which Liszt gave in summer in Weimar. In 1873, on the occasion of Liszt’s 50th anniversary as performing artist, the city of Budapest instituted a “Franz Liszt Stiftung” (“Franz Liszt Foundation”), to provide stipends of 200 Gulden for three students of the Academy who had shown excellent abilities with regard to Hungarian music. Liszt alone decided the allocation of these stipends. It was Liszt’s habit to declare all students who took part in his lessons as his private students. As consequence, almost none of them paid any fees to the Academy. A ministerial order of 13 February 1884 decreed that all those who took part in Liszt’s lessons had to pay an annual charge of 30 Gulden. In fact, the Academy was in any case a net gainer, since Liszt donated it revenue from his charity concerts. The first 12 symphonic poems were composed in the decade 1848–58. Liszt’s intent to display the traditional logic of symphonic thought. That logic, embodied in sonata form as musical development, was traditionally the unfolding of latent possibilities in given themes in rhythm, melody and harmony, either in part or in their entirety, as they were allowed to combine, separate and contrast with one another. To the resulting sense of struggle, Beethoven had added an intensity of feeling and the involvement of his audiences in that feeling, beginning from the Eroica Symphony to use the elements of the craft of music – melody, bass, counterpoint, rhythm and harmony -in a new synthesis of elements toward this end. Liszt attempted in the symphonic poem to extend this revitalisation of the nature of musical discourse and add to it the Romantic ideal of reconciling classical formal principles to external literary concepts. To this end, he combined elements of overture and symphony with descriptive elements, approaching symphonic first movements in form and scale. While showing extremely creative amendments to sonata form, Liszt used compositional devices such as cyclic form, motifs and thematic transformation to lend these works added coherence. Their composition proved daunting, requiring a continual process of creative experimentation that included many stages of composition, rehearsal and revision to reach a version where different parts of the musical form seemed balanced. With some works from the end of the Weimar years, Liszt drifted more and more away from the musical taste of his time. An early example is the melodrama “Der traurige Mönch” (“The sad monk”) after a poem by Nikolaus Lenau, composed in the beginning of October 1860. While in the 19th century harmonies were usually considered as major or minor triads to which dissonances could be added, Liszt took the augmented triad as central chord. More examples can be found in the third volume of Liszt’s Années de Pélerinage. “Les Jeux d’Eaux à la Villa d’Este” (“The Fountains of the Villa d’Este”), composed in September 1877, foreshadows the impressionism of pieces on similar subjects by Claude Debussy and Maurice Ravel. Other pieces such as the “Marche funèbre, En mémoire de Maximilian I, Empereur du Mexique” (“Funeral march, In memory of Maximilian I, Emperor of Mexico”), composed in 1867 are, however, without stylistic parallel in the 19th and 20th centuries. At a later stage, Liszt experimented with “forbidden” things such as parallel 5ths in the “Csárdás macabre” and atonality in the Bagatelle sans tonalité (“Bagatelle without Tonality”). Pieces like the “2nd Mephisto-Waltz” are unconventional because of their numerous repetitions of short motives. Also showing experimental characteristics are the Via crucis of 1878, as well as Unstern!, Nuages gris, and the two works entitled La lugubre gondola of the 1880s. Liszt taught his whole life to the students. He offered his students little technical advice, expecting them to “wash their dirty linen at home,” as he phrased it. Instead, he focused on musical interpretation with a combination of anecdote, metaphor and wit. He advised one student tapping out the opening chords of Beethoven’s Waldstein Sonata, “Do not chop beefsteak for us.” To another who blurred the rhythm in Liszt’s Gnomenreigen (usually done by playing the piece too fast in the composer’s presence): “There you go, mixing salad again.” Liszt also wanted to avoid creating carbon copies of himself; rather, he believed in preserving artistic individuality. Liszt did not charge for lessons. Liszt spoke very fondly of his former teacher- who gave lessons to Liszt free of charge- to whom Liszt dedicated his Transcendental Études.

Epilogue

Liszt fell down the stairs of a hotel in Weimar on July 2, 1881. Though friends and colleagues had noticed swelling in his feet and legs when he had arrived in Weimar the previous month (an indication of possible congestive heart failure), he had been in good health up to that point and was still fit and active. He was left immobilised for eight weeks after the accident and never fully recovered from it. A number of ailments manifested themselves – dropsy, asthma, insomnia, a cataract of the left eye and heart disease. The last-mentioned eventually contributed to Liszt’s death. He became increasingly plagued by feelings of desolation, despair and preoccupation with death – feelings that he expressed in his works from this period. As he told Lina Ramann, “I carry a deep sadness of the heart which must now and then break out in sound.” On January 13, 1886, while Claude Debussy was staying at the Villa Medici in Rome, Liszt met him there with Paul Vidal and Victor Herbert. Liszt played Au bord d’une source from his Années de pèlerinage, as well as his arrangement of Schubert’s Ave Maria for the musicians. Debussy in later years described Liszt’s pedalling as “like a form of breathing.” Debussy and Vidal performed their piano duet arrangement of Liszt’s Faust Symphony; allegedly, Liszt fell asleep during this. The composer Camille Saint-Saëns, an old friend, whom Liszt had once called “the greatest organist in the world”, dedicated his Symphony No. 3 “Organ Symphony” to Liszt; it had premiered in London only a few weeks before the death of its dedicatee. Liszt died in Bayreuth, Germany, on July 31, 1886, at the age of 74, officially as a result of pneumonia, which he may have contracted during the Bayreuth Festival hosted by his daughter Cosima. Questions have been posed as to whether medical malpractice played a part in his death. He was buried on August 3, 1886, in the municipal cemetery of Bayreuth against his wishes. I am looking on Franz Liszt now, portrait by Hungarian painter Miklós Barabás, 1847. Then Liszt in 1858 by Franz Hanfstaeng, Liszt, photo by Franz Hanfstaengl, June 1867. I still see in my dreams and sometimes I breathe the atmosphere of the castles from past centuries. I am fascinated by impressionism. So a couple in love floats in a boat across a park…Then I listen to with metronome counting the wedding music: Tchaikovsky flower waltz, march of slaves, Mozart’s Lacrimosa, then Turkish march, Liszt’s love dreams, Beethoven’s Moonlight sonata, the blue Danube waltz Strauss, Handel sarabanda, Liszt compositions,preludes, Hun’s massacre, Hamlet, Tasso, Orpheus, Promoteus, Hungarian rhapsodies, The transcendental study. And it seems to me already a new nation-time has finally come. (fin)

Stanislaw Barszczak, A simple waltz or Franz Liszt’s compartment (part two)

III With Countess Marie d’Agoult (1833-1842)

Already as a mature composer, Liszt “rejected” his religious nature, and became interested in women – as a slender, tall and well-educated musician, with huge blue eyes, he was certainly attractive to the living-room ladies. Through the poet and playwright Alfred de Musset, he met George Sand and Marie d’Agoult – six years older than him, an intelligent and temperate Countess, who fell in love with him. They discussed matters of religion and art. Their love caused a scandal – one year passed before this union was consummated. At the end of April 1834 Liszt made the acquaintance of L’abbé de Lamennais. Under the influence of both, Liszt’s creative output exploded. In 1835 the countess left her husband and family to join Liszt in Geneva; Liszt’s daughter with the countess, Blandine, was born there on December 18. Liszt taught at the newly founded Geneva Conservatory, wrote a manual of piano technique and contributed essays for the Paris Revue et gazette musicale. In these essays, he argued for the raising of the artist from the status of a servant to a respected member of the community. For the next four years, Liszt and the countess lived together, mainly in Switzerland and Italy, where their daughter, Cosima, was born in Como, with occasional visits to Paris. On May 9, 1839, Liszt’s and the countess’s only son, Daniel, was born, but that autumn relations between them became strained. Liszt heard that plans for a Beethoven monument in Bonn were in danger of collapse for lack of funds, and pledged his support. Doing so meant returning to the life of a touring virtuoso. The countess returned to Paris with the children, while Liszt gave six concerts in Vienna, then toured Hungary. For the next eight years Liszt continued to tour Europe, spending holidays with the countess and their children on the island of Nonnenwerth on the Rhine in summers 1841 and 1843. In spring 1844 the couple finally separated. This was Liszt’s most brilliant period as a concert pianist. Honours were showered on him and he met with adulation wherever he went. Franz wrote his Three Concert Études between 1845 and 1849. Since he often appeared three or four times a week in concert, it could be safe to assume that he appeared in public well over a thousand times during this eight-year period. Moreover, his great fame as a pianist, which he would continue to enjoy long after he had officially retired from the concert stage, was based mainly on his accomplishments during this time. During his virtuoso heyday, Liszt was described by the writer Hans Christian Andersen as a “slim young man…[with] dark hair hung around his pale face”. He was seen as handsome by many, with the German poet Heinrich Heine writing concerning his showmanship during concerts: “How powerful, how shattering was his mere physical appearance”. In 1841, Franz Liszt was admitted to the Freemason’s lodge “Unity” “Zur Einigkeit”, in Frankfurt am Main. He was promoted to the second degree and elected master as member of the lodge “Zur Einigkeit”, in Berlin. From 1845 he was also honorary member of the lodge “Modestia cum Libertate” at Zurich and 1870 of the lodge in Pest (Budapest-Hungary). After 1842, “Lisztomania” – coined by 19th-century German poet and Liszt’s contemporary, Heinrich Heine – swept across Europe. The reception that Liszt enjoyed as a result can be described only as hysterical. Women fought over his silk handkerchiefs and velvet gloves, which they ripped to shreds as souvenirs. This atmosphere was fuelled in great part by the artist’s mesmeric personality and stage presence. Many witnesses later testified that Liszt’s playing raised the mood of audiences to a level of mystical ecstasy. On 14 March 1842 Liszt received an honorary doctorate from the University of Königsberg – an honour unprecedented at the time, and an especially important one from the perspective of the German tradition. Liszt never used ‘Dr. Liszt’ or ‘Dr. Franz Liszt’ publicly. Ferdinand Hiller, a rival of Liszt at the time, was allegedly highly jealous at the decision made by the university. Adding to his reputation was the fact that Liszt gave away much of his proceeds to charity and humanitarian causes. In fact, Liszt had made so much money by his mid-forties that virtually all his performing fees after 1857 went to charity. While his work for the Beethoven monument and the Hungarian National School of Music are well known, he also gave generously to the building fund of Cologne Cathedral, the establishment of a Gymnasium at Dortmund, and the construction of the Leopold Church in Pest. There were also private donations to hospitals, schools and charitable organizations such as the Leipzig Musicians Pension Fund. When he found out about the Great Fire of Hamburg, which raged for three days during May 1842 and destroyed much of the city, he gave concerts in aid of the thousands of homeless there. Besides his musical works, Liszt wrote essays about many subjects. Most important for an understanding of his development is the article series “De la situation des artistes” (“On the situation of artists”) which was published in the Parisian Gazette musicale in 1835. In winter 1835–36, during Liszt’s stay in Geneva, about half a dozen further essays followed. Then during the Weimar years, Liszt wrote a series of essays about operas, leading from Glück to Wagner. Liszt also wrote essays about Berlioz and the symphony Harold in Italy, Robert and Clara Schumann, John Field’s nocturnes, songs of Robert Franz, a planned Goethe foundation at Weimar, and other subjects. In addition to essays, Liszt wrote a biography of his fellow composer Frédéric Chopin, Life of Chopin, as well as a book about the Romanis (Gypsies) and their music in Hungary. While all of those literary works were published under Liszt’s name, it is not quite clear which parts of them he had written himself. It is known from his letters that during the time of his youth there had been collaboration with Marie d’Agoult. During the Weimar years it was the Princess Wittgenstein who helped him. In most cases the manuscripts have disappeared so that it is difficult to determine which of Liszt’s literary works were actually works of his own. Until the end of his life, however, it was Liszt’s point of view that it was he who was responsible for the contents of those literary works.
Liszt also worked until at least 1885 on a treatise for modern harmony. Pianist Arthur Friedheim, who also served as Liszt’s personal secretary, remembered seeing it among Liszt’s papers at Weimar. Liszt told Friedheim that the time was not yet ripe to publish the manuscript, titled Sketches for a Harmony of the Future. Unfortunately, this treatise has been lost.
Liszt was sometimes mocked in the press for facial expression and gestures at the piano. The spouses about that and their family spoke during on the island of Nonnenwerth on the Rhine in summers 1841. Countess Marie d’Agoult: Don’t worry, we will always be together.
Franz Liszt: That’s what Caroline de Saint- Cricq said… In spring 1844 the couple finally separated. There were the extravagant liberties Liszt could take with the text of a score at this time. Berlioz tells us how Liszt would add cadenzas, tremolos and trills when playing the first movement of Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata, and created a dramatic scene by changing the tempo between Largo and Presto. In his Baccalaureus letter to George Sand from the beginning of 1837, Liszt admitted that he had done so for the purpose of gaining applause, and promised to follow both the letter and the spirit of a score from then on. His performance commenced with Handel’s Fugue in E minor for exemple, which was played by Liszt with an avoidance of everything approaching to meretricious ornament, and indeed scarcely any additions, except a multitude of ingeniously contrived and appropriate harmonies, casting a glow of colour over the beauties of the composition, and infusing into it a spirit which from no other hand it ever before received. During his years as a travelling virtuoso, Liszt performed an enormous amount of music throughout Europe, but his core repertoire always centered around his own compositions, paraphrases and transcriptions. Of Liszt’s German concerts between 1840 and 1845, the five most frequently played pieces were the Grand galop chromatique, Schubert’s Erlkönig (in Liszt’s transcription), Réminiscences de Don Juan, Réminiscences de Robert le Diable, and Réminiscences de Lucia di Lammermoor. Among the works by other composers were Weber’s Invitation to the Dance, Chopin mazurkas, études by composers like Ignaz Moscheles, Chopin and Ferdinand Hiller, but also major works by Beethoven, Schumann, Weber and Hummel, and from time to time even selections from Bach, Handel and Scarlatti. Most of the concerts at this time were shared with other artists, and as a result Liszt also often accompanied singers, participated in chamber music, or performed works with an orchestra in addition to his own solo part. Frequently played works include Weber’s Konzertstück, Beethoven’s Emperor Concerto and Choral Fantasy, and Liszt’s reworking of the Hexameron for piano and orchestra. His chamber music repertoire included Johann Nepomuk Hummel’s Septet, Beethoven’s Archduke Trio and Kreutzer Sonata, and a large selection of songs by composers like Gioacchino Rossini, Gaetano Donizetti, Beethoven and especially Franz Schubert. At some concerts, Liszt could not find musicians to share the program with, and consequently was among the first to give solo piano recitals in the modern sense of the word. The term was coined by the publisher Frederick Beale, who suggested it for Liszt’s concert at the Hanover Square Rooms in London on June 9, 1840, even though Liszt had given concerts all by himself already by March 1839. Liszt’s piano works are usually divided into two categories. On the one hand, there are “original works”, and on the other hand “transcriptions”, “paraphrases” or “fantasies” on works by other composers. He preferred to play either on a Bösendorfer or C. Bechstein piano, since they were the only instruments capable of withstanding his tremendously powerful playing. In the mid-19th century, orchestral performances were much less common than they are today, and were not available at all outside major cities, so Liszt’s transcriptions played a major role in popularising a wide array of music such as the symphonies of Beethoven. Liszt wrote his two largest organ works between 1850 and 1855 while he was living in Weimar, a city with a long tradition of organ music, most notably that of J.S. Bach. Franz Liszt composed about six dozen original songs with piano accompaniment. In most cases the lyrics were in German or French, but there are also some songs in Italian and Hungarian and one song in English. Liszt, in some of his works, supported the relatively new idea of programme music – that is, music intended to evoke extra-musical ideas such as a depiction of a landscape, a poem, a particular character or personage. By contrast, absolute music stands for itself and is intended to be appreciated without any particular reference to the outside world.

IV Liszt in Weimar (1842-1861)

This is a song without end, Woronince, Ukraine (Feb 1847- Jan 1848). In February 1847, Liszt played in Kiev. There he met the Polish Princess Carolyne zu Sayn-Wittgenstein, who was to become one of the most significant people in the rest of his life. Carolyne zu Sayn-Wittgenstein has been in a relationship with Franz Liszt (Feb1847-Oct 1861). Carolyne zu Sayn-Wittgenstein and Franz Liszt have been engaged for 1 year. They started dating in Feb 1847 and after 13 years were engaged in Sep 1860.
Princess Carolyne zu Sayn-Wittgenstein (February 8, 1819 – March 9, 1887) was a Polish noblewoman who pursued a forty-year liaison/relationship with Franz Liszt. She was also an amateur journalist and essayist and it is conjectured that she did much of the actual writing of several of Liszt’s publications, especially his Life of Chopin. She pursued an enormous correspondence with Liszt and many others which is of vital historical interest. She admired and encouraged Hector Berlioz, as is clear from their extensive correspondence. Berlioz dedicated Les Troyens to Princess Carolyne. In February 1847, Liszt played in Kiev. There he met the Princess Carolyne zu Sayn-Wittgenstein, who was to become one of the most significant people in the rest of his life. She persuaded him to concentrate on composition, which meant giving up his career as a travelling virtuoso. After a tour of the Balkans, Turkey and Russia that summer, Liszt gave his final concert for pay at Elisavetgrad in September. He spent the winter with the princess at her estate in Woronince. Princess Carolyne lived with Liszt during his years in Weimar. She eventually wished to marry Liszt, but since she had been previously married and her husband, Russian military officer Prince Nikolaus zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Ludwigsburg (1812–1864), was still alive, she had to convince the Roman Catholic authorities that her marriage to him had been invalid. After huge efforts and a monstrously intricate process, she was temporarily successful (September 1860). It was planned that the couple would marry in Rome, on October 22, 1861, Liszt’s 50th birthday. Liszt having arrived in Rome on October 21, 1861, the Princess nevertheless declined, by the late evening, to marry him. It appears that both her husband and the Tsar of Russia had managed to quash permission for the marriage at the Vatican. The Russian government also impounded her several estates in the Polish Ukraine, which made her later marriage to anybody unfeasible. Subsequently, her relationship to Liszt became one of platonic companionship, especially after he had received minor orders in the Catholic Church and become an abbé. She was devastated by Liszt’s death and survived him only a very few months. She died in Rome on March 9, 1887. Franz Liszt turns into a composer’s bar, where you see one of the pianos from his apartment, I’m outta here, he said. Then in his apartment Liszt at night was still working on the suite of Podolia, Glanes de Woronince (Gleanings from Woronińce, or Harvest at Woronińce). This is a suite of three piano pieces by Franz Liszt, written in 1847 at Voronovycia, the Ukrainian estate of Princess Carolyne zu Sayn-Wittgenstein in Ukrainian Podolia. Liszt had first met the Princess when he played in Kiev on 14 February of that year (Valentine’s Day). She was recently separated from her husband, and she invited Liszt to spend some time on her estate in Podolia. In Woronince he stayed for 10 days, then left for a concert tour, promising to return in the autumn. He came back around 18 September, and stayed till early January 1848. It was during these three months that Liszt’s and Sayn-Wittgenstein’s relationship developed to the stage that she planned to petition the Tsar for divorce, and marry Liszt. During this time, Liszt also completed much of his Harmonies poétiques et religieuses. The three pieces of Gleanings from Woronince are: Ballade d’Ukraine, a dumka, Mélodies polonaises, two Polish folk songs, the second of which was previously used by Frédéric Chopin in his song The Maiden’s Wish, and Complainte, another dumka. They were dedicated to Princess Carolyne’s daughter, Princess Marie von Sayn-Wittgenstein. Liszt also wrote a transcription for piano solo of Chopin’s The Maiden’s Wish in his Six Chants polonais, but in conception it is quite a different piece from its appearance in Glanes de Woronince. So, during this September meeting Princess Carolyne zu Sayn-Wittgenstein persuaded him to concentrate on composition, which meant giving up his career as a travelling virtuoso. After a tour of the Balkans, Turkey and Russia that summer, Liszt gave his final concert for pay at Yelisavetgrad in September. He spent the winter with the princess at her estate in Woronince. By retiring from the concert platform at 35, while still at the height of his powers, Liszt succeeded in keeping the legend of his playing untarnished. The following year, Liszt took up a long-standing invitation of Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna of Russia to settle at Weimar, where he had been appointed Kapellmeister Extraordinaire in 1842, remaining there until 1861. During this period he acted as conductor at court concerts and on special occasions at the theatre. He gave lessons to a number of pianists, including the great virtuoso Hans von Bülow, who married Liszt’s daughter Cosima in 1857 (years later, she would marry Richard Wagner). He also wrote articles championing Berlioz and Wagner. Finally, Liszt had ample time to compose and during the next 12 years revised or produced those orchestral and choral pieces upon which his reputation as a composer mainly rested. So, during those twelve years, he also helped raise the profile of the exiled Wagner by conducting the overtures of his operas in concert, Liszt and Wagner would have a profound friendship that lasted until Wagner’s death in Venice in 1883. Wagner held strong value towards Liszt and his musicality, once rhetorically stating “Do you know a musician who is more musical than Liszt?”, and in 1856 stating “I feel thoroughly contemptible as a musician, whereas you, as I have now convinced myself, are the greatest musician of all times.” Princess Carolyne lived with Liszt during his years in Weimar. She eventually wished to marry Liszt, but since she had been previously married and her husband, Russian military officer Prince Nikolaus zu Sayn-Wittgenstein – Ludwigsburg (1812–1864), was still alive, she had to convince the Roman Catholic authorities that her marriage to him had been invalid. After huge efforts and a monstrously intricate process, she was temporarily successful (September 1860). It was planned that the couple would marry in Rome, on October 22, 1861, Liszt’s 50th birthday. Although Liszt arrived in Rome on October 21, the Princess declined to marry him that evening. It appears that both her husband and the Tsar of Russia had managed to quash permission for the marriage at the Vatican. The Russian government also impounded her several estates in the Polish Ukraine, which made her later marriage to anybody unfeasible. In July 1854 Liszt stated in his essay about Berlioz and Harold in Italy that not all music was programme music. If, in the heat of a debate, a person would go so far as to claim the contrary, it would be better to put all ideas of programme music aside. But it would be possible to take means like harmony, modulation, rhythm, instrumentation and others to let a musical motif endure a fate. In any case, a programme should be added to a piece of music only if it was necessarily needed for an adequate understanding of that piece.
In a letter to Marie d’Agoult of November 15, 1864, Liszt wrote: “Without any reserve I completely subscribe to the rule of which you so kindly want to remind me, that those musical works which are in a general sense following a programme must take effect on imagination and emotion, independent of any programme. In other words: All beautiful music must be first rate and always satisfy the absolute rules of music which are not to be violated or prescribed.” Die Hunnenschlacht, as painted by Wilhelm von Kaulbach, which in turn inspired one of Liszt’s symphonic poems. A symphonic poem or tone poem is a piece of orchestral music in one movement in which some extramusical program provides a narrative or illustrative element. This program may come from a poem, a story or novel, a painting, or another source. The term was first applied by Liszt to his 13 one-movement orchestral works in this vein. They were not pure symphonic movements in the classical sense because they dealt with descriptive subjects taken from mythology, Romantic literature, recent history or imaginative fantasy. In other words, these works were programmatic rather than abstract. The form was a direct product of Romanticism which encouraged literary, pictorial and dramatic associations in music. It developed into an important form of programme music in the second half of the 19th century…Still other women showed up in Liszt’s mature life. Marie Dolores, Eliza Rosanna Gilbert, Countess of Landsfeld (17 February 1821- 17 January 1861), better known by the stage name Lola Montez, was an Irish dancer and actress who became famous as a “Spanish dancer”, courtesan, and mistress of King Ludwig I of Bavaria, who made her Countess of Landsfeld. She used her influence to institute liberal reforms. At the start of the Revolutions of 1848 in the German states, she was forced to flee. She proceeded to the United States via Switzerland, France and London, returning to her work as an entertainer and lecturer. Lola Montez and Franz Liszt have been dating since 1844. In 1844, Lola made an unsuccessful Parisian stage debut as a dancer in Fromental Halévy’s opera, Le lazzarone. She met and had an affair with Franz Liszt, who introduced her to the circle of George Sand. From 1869 to 1871, the great and renowned composer Franz Liszt had a pupil called Olga Janina. She studied under him for almost three years and was one of his best pupils. Liszt held her in very high regard, and often complimented her piano skills. However, Olga was a bit weird for her time. Most notably, she was often seen with weird and then unknown substances, as well as babbling about “atheism” and “women’s rights”. What’s more, she was quickly revealed to be deeply depressed and suicidal, as well as having a very unsettling personal obsession with Liszt. There was correspondence between Liszt and his pupils Olga Janina. to be continued

Stanislaw Barszczak, A simple waltz or Franz Liszt’s compartment

Persons:
Anna Liszt, a mother
Adam Liszt, a father
Franz Liszt, virtuoso pianist
Antonio Salieri, the music director of the Viennese court,
the Abbé de Lamennais
Caroline de Saint-Cricq
Countess Marie d’Agoult
Carolyne zu Sayn-Wittgenstein
Lola Montez
Ludwig van Beethoven
Frédéric Chopin,
Richard Wagner,
Hector Berlioz,
Robert Schumann
Victor Hugo,
Heinrich Heine and others

Introduction

It should be an overture to the 21st century or at least a panorama of the epoch. From my travel to Geneva, journey to the world of people, and through Switzerland to Frankfurt, it should have set up a traveler’s album. But the faith did not win yet. We have closed windows, we also close doors sometimes.Do not count good manners. We are with the culture on the side. As if we were for the future only. As if would we live in 2223. In a catastrophic democracy we live. We have a dangerous development. Pope Francis is without character. However, I’m still eating organic food. At this point I would say, I should go, you make me sick (sic!). Though I watch using helikopter volcanoes on Kamchatka. I’m a writer and, therefore, automatically a suspicious character, but believe me. I also but occasionally watch in the circus for shows on the lines… acrobatic figures, brilliant work. As a result of social studies of the epoch, you have this story. And only the story of the great virtuosity of the piano could have been written, might born here. Although people live among us. Extraordinary people. Acrobatic so far so good. Perfection performing, good presentation, courage. My message for you – you have to dream too… Franz Liszt, the hero of this story, has spent his whole life dreaming. And he succeeded in a hundred percent. Mournful and yet grand is the destiny of the artist, I do not think so. Liszt was not sophisticated or complex.The investigation into his case has been repeated afresh, the process is being pursued, is going on. Listen to this story for your benefit and your children. Let also your dreams come true, I wish you well. Franz Liszt is very well known Hungarian priest from the nineteenth century. Few know that he was also a composer. Ferenc Liszt (1811-1886) was a prolific 19th-century Hungarian composer, virtuoso pianist, conductor, music teacher, arranger, organist, philanthropist, author, nationalist and a Franciscan tertiary. Liszt gained renown in Europe during the early nineteenth century for his prodigious virtuosic skill as a pianist. He was a friend, musical promoter and benefactor to many composers of his time, including Frédéric Chopin, Richard Wagner, Hector Berlioz, Robert Schumann, Camille Saint-Saëns, Edvard Grieg, Ole Bull, Joachim Raff, Mikhail Glinka, and Alexander Borodin. As a composer, Liszt was one of the most prominent representatives of the New German School. He left behind an extensive and diverse body of work in which he influenced his forward-looking contemporaries and anticipated many 20th-century ideas and trends. Some of his most notable musical contributions were the invention of the symphonic poem, developing the concept of thematic transformation as part of his experiments in musical form, and making radical departures in harmony.

I The lovely village of Raiding

Franz Liszt was born to Anna Liszt (née Maria Anna Lager) and Adam Liszt on October 22, 1811, in the village of Doborján (German: Raiding) in Sopron County, in the Kingdom of Hungary, Austrian Empire. Liszt’s father played the piano, violin, cello and guitar. He had been in the service of Prince Nikolaus II Esterházy and knew Haydn, Hummel and Beethoven personally. At age six, Franz began listening attentively to his father’s piano playing. Franz was “pale and sickly”, but despite this, he practiced for hours on the piano, and was soon recognized as a wonderful child. Liszt liked national Hungarian and Gypsy music. Adam contrabassist began teaching a son the piano at age seven, and Franz began composing in an elementary manner when he was eight. At the age of 9, his first concert took place, Chopin found himself at this concert. He appeared in concerts at Sopron and Pressburg (Hungarian: Pozsony, present-day Bratislava, Slovakia) in October and November 1820. The boy strives to live because he does not know another life. Liszt had imagination. In one room the actors of the world gathered, and they are always different. Then the role of detail is enormous and important for the whole life. After the concerts, a group of wealthy sponsors offered to finance Franz’s musical education in Vienna. There Liszt received piano lessons from Carl Czerny, who in his own youth had been a student of Beethoven and Hummel. He also received lessons in composition from Ferdinando Paer and Antonio Salieri, who was then the music director of the Viennese court. Liszt’s public debut in Vienna on December 1, 1822, at a concert at the “Landständischer Saal”, was a great success. He was greeted in Austrian and Hungarian aristocratic circles and also met Beethoven and Schubert. In spring 1823, when his one-year leave of absence came to an end, Adam Liszt asked Prince Esterházy in vain for two more years. Adam Liszt therefore took his leave of the Prince’s services. Towards the end of 1823 or early 1824, Liszt’s first composition to be published, his Variation on a Waltz by Diabelli. This anthology, commissioned by Anton Diabelli, includes 50 variations on his waltz by 50 different composers. “An 11 year old boy, born in Hungary” was almost certainly at the instigation of Czerny, his teacher and also a participant. Liszt was the only child composer in the anthology. The young virtuoso, however, exceeded his career-15-year-old Liszt survived a nervous breakdown. He was taken to Boulogne, where he was to take hot baths to calm himself – it was then 1826, and his father, at the age of 51, died of typhoid fever. The critics have opined: “Perhaps [Liszt] was not the most transcendent virtuoso who ever lived, but his audiences thought he was.” Performing style by Liszt. There are few, if any, good sources that give an impression of how Liszt really sounded from the 1820s. Carl Czerny claimed Liszt was a natural who played according to feeling, and reviews of his concerts especially praise the brilliance, strength and precision in his playing. At least one also mentions his ability to keep absolute tempo, which may be due to his father’s insistence that he practice with a metronome. His repertoire at this time consisted primarily of pieces in the style of the brilliant Viennese school, such as concertos by Hummel and works by his former teacher Czerny, and his concerts often included a chance for the boy to display his prowess in improvisation. Liszt possessed notable sight-reading skills.
I am looking at the picture on the wall, Franz Liszt Fantasizing at the Piano (1840), by Danhauser, commissioned by Conrad Graf. The imagined gathering shows seated Alfred de Musset or Alexandre Dumas, George Sand, Franz Liszt, Marie d’Agoult; standing Hector Berlioz or Victor Hugo, Niccolò Paganini, Gioachino Rossini; a bust of Beethoven on the grand piano (a “Graf”), a portrait of Lord Byron on the wall, a statue of Joan of Arc on the far left. I thought aloud. Following the death of Liszt’s father in 1827 and his hiatus from the life as a touring virtuoso, it is likely Liszt’s playing gradually developed a more personal style.
M. Liszt’s playing contains abandonment, a liberated feeling, but even when it becomes impetuous and energetic in his fortissimo, it is still without harshness and dryness. He draws from the piano tones that are purer, mellower and stronger than anyone has been able to do; his touch has an indescribable charm. He is the enemy of affected, stilted, contorted expressions. Most of all, he wants truth in musical sentiment, and so he makes a psychological study of his emotions to convey them as they are. Thus, a strong expression is often followed by a sense of fatigue and dejection, a kind of coldness, because this is the way nature works, a mother of one of Liszt’s pupils in Paris said.

II Adolescence in Paris (1827-1835)

You know, as far as he was concerned, he became interested in piano music and went on to study music. He learned to play by the most eminent composer of all time Antoni Salieri. Then he was not admitted to the conservatory in Paris. No one was able to get acquainted with his genius, even his father, and Liszt was forced to spoil one of his best pieces, transforming him into a boring Piano Concerto No. 1 in E flat major. Only after such an operation did the artistic community finally recognize him. So, after his father’s death in 1827, Liszt moved to Paris; for the next five years he was to live with his mother in a small apartment. He gave up touring. To earn money, Liszt gave lessons in piano playing and composition, often from early morning until late at night. His students were scattered across the city and he often had to cover long distances. Because of this, he kept uncertain hours and also took up smoking and drinking- all habits he would continue throughout his life. The following year he fell in love with one of his pupils, Caroline de Saint-Cricq, the daughter of Charles X’s minister of commerce, Pierre de Saint-Cricq. Caroline De Saint-Cricq has been in a relationship with Franz Liszt in 1828. If there was any shyness left in him from his days of teaching Countess Caroline de Saint- Cricq it was well disguised. Her father, however, insisted that the affair be broken off. Liszt fell very ill, to the extent that an obituary notice was printed in a Paris newspaper, and he underwent a long period of religious doubts and pessimism. He again stated a wish to join the Church but was dissuaded this time by his mother. He had many discussions with the Abbé de Lamennais, who acted as his spiritual father, and also with Chrétien Urhan, a German-born violinist who introduced him to the Saint-Simonists. Urhan also wrote music that was anti-classical and highly subjective, with titles such as Elle et moi, La Salvation angélique and Les Regrets, and may have whetted the young Liszt’s taste for musical romanticism. Equally important for Liszt was Urhan’s earnest championship of Schubert, which may have stimulated his own lifelong devotion to that composer’s music. During this period, Liszt read widely to overcome his lack of a general education, and he soon came into contact with many of the leading authors and artists of his day, including Victor Hugo, Alphonse de Lamartine and Heinrich Heine. He composed practically nothing in these years. Nevertheless, the July Revolution of 1830 inspired him to sketch a Revolutionary Symphony based on the events of the “three glorious days,” and he took a greater interest in events surrounding him. He met Hector Berlioz on December 4, 1830, the day before the premiere of the Symphonie fantastique. Berlioz’s music made a strong impression on Liszt, especially later when he was writing for orchestra. He also inherited from Berlioz the diabolic quality of many of his works. The July Revolution in France in 1830 inspired to present a little-known work, “The Revolutionary Symphony”. He believed that “while scientists can only point to the means leading to the goal, artists are committed to proclaiming the ideals to which society should strive”. In 1831 Liszt met Paganini, and was fascinated by his violin playing, he decided to become “Paganini of the piano.” After attending an April 20, 1832, charity concert, for the victims of a Parisian cholera epidemic, organised by Niccolò Paganini, Liszt became determined to become as great a virtuoso on the piano as Paganini was on the violin. Paris in the 1830s had become the nexus for pianistic activities, with dozens of pianists dedicated to perfection at the keyboard. This generation solved some of the most intractable problems of piano technique, raising the general level of performance to previously unimagined heights. Liszt’s strength and ability to stand out in this company was in mastering all the aspects of piano technique cultivated singly and assiduously by his rivals. In 1833 he made transcriptions of several works by Berlioz, including the Symphonie fantastique. His chief motive in doing so, especially with the Symphonie, was to help the poverty-stricken Berlioz, whose symphony remained unknown and unpublished. Liszt bore the expense of publishing the transcription himself and played it many times to help popularise the original score. He was also forming a friendship with a third composer who influenced him, Frédéric Chopin; under his influence Liszt’s poetic and romantic side began to develop. Liszt’s own point of view regarding programme music can for the time of his youth be taken from the preface of the Album d’un voyageur (1837). According to this, a landscape could evoke a certain kind of mood. Since a piece of music could also evoke a mood, a mysterious resemblance with the landscape could be imagined. In this sense the music would not paint the landscape, but it would match the landscape in a third category, the mood. (to be continued)

(Odchodzisz bezpretensjonalnie, wiedz nie jesteś sama)

-Wychodzisz…
-Ale w moim sercu nie ma nic,
Poza kilku tygodniami spodziewania się czegoś
-Wychodzisz…
-Moje radości, moje marzenia,
To niemożliwe, żeby były przez Ciebie mylone
-Wychodzisz…
-Nasza miłość jest naszą,
Nikt nie mógłby jej przejąć
-Wychodzisz…
-Czasami oddalenie pomaga,
Aby lepiej pokochać się, lepiej zrozumieć siebie
-Wychodzisz…
Jak słońce, które znika
Jak lato, jak niedziela
Obawiam się zimy i zimna,
Obawiam się braku, pustki nieobecności

-Wychodzisz…
-Jak mi się zdaje ptaki nie śpiewają już,
Świat to nic innego jak obojętność,
Obawiam się o ciebie, boję się mnie,
Obawiam się, że nadejdzie cisza
-Idziesz
W moim sercu nie ma nic,
po prostu wyjazd bez znaczenia
-Idziesz
-To moje serce, wiesz o tym,
To tylko kaprys egzystencji
-Idziesz
Czas, przestrzeń, są niczym,
Jeśli zachowasz dla mnie wierność
Idziesz,
Każdego ranka, o tym wiesz,
Jeszcze (wreszcie) wszystko zaczyna się od nowa
-Idziesz
Zostaję sam i zgubiony,
jak w najgorszych godzinach dzieciństwa.
Obawiam się zimy i zimna,
Obawiam się braku, pustki nieobecności
-Idziesz
Nagle dla mnie wszystko się przyciemnia,
Świat jest tylko niespójnością
-Obawiam się o Ciebie, boję się mnie,
Obawiam się, że nadejdzie cisza.

(Rozstanie, see Tu t’en vas, za Alain Barriere i Noelle Cordiere, tłum. Stanisław Barszczak)

Stanisław Barszczak, Pożegnanie z morzem,

(Głosy Nairobi. Zapiski po podróży.
Są to miniatury o ulotnych zjawiskach w pewnym wielkim orientalnym mieście. Autor krąży po kenijskich dzielnicach miasta, przejmuje się biedą slumsów Nairobi, oddycha jego osobliwymi zapachami, obserwuje targujących się sprzedających. Innym razem nadciąga
noc, pogrążone w mroku pustkowie, wyboista, niemal dzika droga. Angielskie małżeństwo, jadą na przyjęcie, organizowane przez znajomych w rezydencji położonej na środku marokańskiej pustyni…To znów napotkane przeze autora w hostelu polskie dziewczęta, wybierają się na safari w środku Afrykańskiej sawanny, w pobliżu Kilimandżaro. Jest tutaj też dialog autora z kobietą -Arabką, która z arabskiego miasta przenosi nas w świat trudności ekonomicznych współczesnego świata)

Nie wyrusza się w świat, pozostawiając za sobą ojczysty zagon, nie mówiąc do widzenia, bez powiedzenia adieu. Kochani Czytelnicy. Chciałbym wyrazić zatem wpierw pasję do podróżowania w nowy sposób, tym samym skreślić coś, kochanym Czytelnikom, o ostatniej podróży do Arabii Saudyjskiej i Kenii. A następnie powiedzieć do widzenia pierwszym miłościom autora, tym którzy już odeszli, zwłaszcza też polskim patriotom i polskiej młodzieży. Żegnajcie, adieu. Może kiedyś spotkamy się za Morzami. Ale po kolei. Tym razem samolotami linii Easy Jet a następnie Arabii Saudyjskiej, z lotniska w Krakowie, poprzez Genewę, Jeddah, Nairobi, przybyłem do Nairobi na kontynencie afrykańskim. Jak zwykle nie obyło się bez przygód związanych z moimi skromnym środkami finansowymi. Ale Wiza nie była droga. Kenya, Republika Kenii, (ang. Republic of Kenya, sua. Jamhuri ya Kenya) jest państwem położonym we wschodniej Afryce nad Oceanem Indyjskim. Graniczy od północy z Somalią (długość granicy 682 km), Etiopią (861 km) i Sudanem Południowym (232 km), od zachodu z Ugandą (933 km), a od południa z Tanzanią (769 km). Zajmuje powierzchnię wynoszącą 582,6 tys. km². W 2013 roku Kenia liczyła 44 mln mieszkańców. Stolicą Kenii jest Nairobi. Językami urzędowymi są: suahili i angielski. Kraj dzieli się na siedem prowincji oraz jeden okręg stołeczny. Walutą jest szyling kenijski (KES). Święto państwowe przypada 12 grudnia, na rocznicę proklamowania niepodległości (1963 rok). Kenia należy do Międzynarodowej Agencji Energii Atomowej, Międzynarodowej Organizacji Pracy, Międzynarodowego Banku Odbudowy i Rozwoju, Międzynarodowego Funduszu Walutowego,Międzynarodowego Trybunału Karnego, Organizacji Narodów Zjednoczonych, Światowej Organizacji Handlu i Unii Afrykańskiej… Początki osadnictwa sięgają paleolitu. Najdawniejszymi mieszkańcami Kenii są Buszmeni. Pod koniec XV w. do Kenii dotarli Portugalczycy, którzy w XVI i XVII w. zdominowali wybrzeże Kenii, zakładając bazy nadmorskie, administracyjnie podporządkowane Goa. W połowie XIX w. do Kenii przybyli pierwsi podróżnicy i misjonarze z Wielkiej Brytanii (Joseph Thomson) i Niemiec (Johann Ludwig Krapf, Johannes Rebmann). Od 1820 roku flota brytyjska walczyła z handlarzami niewolników u wybrzeży Kenii. W 1882 roku powstało Niemieckie Towarzystwo Kolonizacyjne oraz Brytyjskie Stowarzyszenie Afryki Wschodniej. Wykorzystując konflikty plemienne Brytyjczycy i Niemcy umacniali swoje wpływy w Kenii. 12 grudnia 1963 roku Kenia uzyskała niepodległość, przystępując do brytyjskiej Wspólnoty Narodów i Organizacji Narodów Zjednoczonych. W 1964 roku pierwszym premierem Kenii został Kenyatta. Kenia jest krajem chrześcijańskim, republiką i członkiem brytyjskiej Wspólnoty Narodów. Konstytucja została uchwalona w 1964 i była wielokrotnie modyfikowana, ostatnio w 2010 po referendum konstytucyjnym. Podróż apostolska papieża Franciszka do Afryki odbyła się w dniach 25 – 30 listopada 2015 roku. “Weźmy się wszyscy za ręce, jesteśmy jednym narodem” – mówił papież Franciszek w podzielonej przez korupcję Kenii. Kenia od 2013 roku podzielona jest na 47 hrabstw. Nowa konstytucja, która weszła w życie 27 sierpnia 2010 r., zlikwidowała dotychczasowy podział na prowincje, wprowadzając w zamian 47 hrabstw. Kenia jest krajem rolniczym z rozwijającym się przemysłem przetwórczym i usługami. Po recesji z przełomu lat 80. i 90. XX w. Kenia kontynuuje reformy i prywatyzację.
Uprawia się kawę, herbatę, sizal, tytoń, piretrum, pszenicę, kukurydzę, sorgo, proso, ziemniaki, bataty, maniok i trzcinę cukrową. W Nairobi jeździłem autobusami, minibusami (tzw. matatu), które są tanim sposobem na poruszanie się po kraju. Obowiązuje ruch lewostronny. Co warto zobaczyć w Kenii? Oprócz malowniczych plaż, niezwykle ciekawe jest miasto Lamu, archipelag na północnym wschodzie kraju
-esencja kultury suahili – z wąskimi uliczkami, serdecznymi ludźmi i wszechobecnymi osłami, które są jedynym środkiem transportu w tym miasteczku. Ominąć nie wolno oczywiście parku Masai Mara z milionami zwierząt w jednym miejscu. Podobno czwarte miejsce pod względem atrakcyjności turystycznej na świecie. W jednym miejscu można zobaczyć praktycznie wszystkie zwierzęta Afryki przemieszczające się z Serengeti w Tanzanii do Kenii (i z powrotem) w poszukiwaniu jedzenia. Lwy polujące by zapewnić byt swoim lwim rodzinom, walczące sępy, hieny, szakale…Dech w piersiach zapierają widoki nad jeziorem Turkana na północy Kenii. Zupełnie jakbym znalazł się na boliwijskim Altiplano czy gdzieś w Tybecie… I te kolory ziemi, wody i powietrza…Jezioro Bogoria – tania alternatywa Jeziora Nakuru. Gejzery, gorące źródła i mnóstwo flamingów. Malownicze miejsce Jezioro Baringo. Można tu widzieć hipopotamy, krokodyle i mnóstwo gatunków ptaków (z orłem rybim na czele). Kakamega Forest – jedyna pozostałość lasu deszczowego w Kenii. Warto wybrać się na poranny spacer, żeby zobaczyć wschód słońca. Obowiązkowo podróż nocnym Lunatic Express do Mombassy. Orient Express w Kenii. Ale jeśli ktoś chce zobaczyć Kenię prawdziwą – wtedy obowiązkowo pojechać do Machakos, Kitui, Malaba, Mbitini i Kisasi. Również do slumsów Nairobi (Dandora, Kibera) i do małych miasteczek i wsi, gdzie ludzie żyją ciągle bez internetu, bieżącej wody w kranie i prądu. Gdzie ludzie jakby życzliwsi.Nie można wyjechać z Kenii bez spróbowania ugali, matoke i mokimo.
Na wybrzeżu trzeba koniecznie zjeść ryż kokosowy i wypić sok z mango. W wielu miejscach na wybrzeżu (na przykład Watami lub Lamu) można spróbować snorklingu. Na Lamu można także spróbować wind surfingu, ale jest to rozrywka dla osób bogatych. Nie wolno przegapić wyprawy na Mount Kenia i widoku śniegu na równiku na wysokości około 5000 m n.p.m. Kluby i imprezy, dostępne jedynie w Nairobi i na wybrzeżu.
Odpoczynek. (dodaj swoje informacje)
Nairobi, stolica Kenii, położona w centrum kraju na wysokości 1700 m n.p.m. u podnóża gór Aberdare i źródeł rzeki Athi. Jedno z największych miast Afryki Wschodniej. Główne gałęzie przemysłu to spożywczy, włókienniczy, chemiczny, drzewny i papierniczy. Ważny węzeł drogowy, ma połączenie kolejowe z Mombasą i Kampalą w Ugandzie. Założone w 1899 roku przez Brytyjczyków na terenach Masajów w trakcie budowy linii kolejowej z Ugandy do Mombasy. W roku 1905 stało się stolicą brytyjskiego Protektoratu Afryki Wschodniej, a w roku 1963 niepodległej Kenii. Jest siedzibą szeregu szkół wyższych m.in. Uniwersytetu Strathmore.
W pobliżu miasta znajduje się port lotniczy Jomo Kenyatta International Airport. Tam lądowaliśmy i stamtąd udawałem się w drogę powrotną do Europy. Miasto jest jedną z czterech głównych siedzib ONZ na świecie (pozostałe to Nowy Jork, Genewa i Wiedeń), jedyną w kraju rozwijającym się. Gości Sekretariaty Programów Narodów Zjednoczonych ds. Środowiska (UNEP) i ds. Osiedli Ludzkich (UN-Habitat). W 1981 została tu uchwalona Afrykańska Karta Praw Człowieka i Ludów…Podczas podróży do Nairobi zawędrowałem do Ojców Kapucynów (Capuchin Friary, Bogani Road, Langata, Nairobi). Spotkanie z klerykami uważam za bardzo udane. Ale też bywałem u Salezjanów (Upper hill road, Nairobi). Od ponad 30 lat salezjanie zapewniają edukację zawodową i ludzką ludziom młodym w Kenii. Od 25 lat Salezjanie z Nairobi tworzą dom dla dzieci, których codziennością była ulica. Pomagają młodym ludziom. A ostatnio akcja charytatywna „Don Bosco Mission Korr” pomaga ludności dotkniętej głodem, dostarczając pomoc humanitarną. Przechodziłem w pobliżu Kibera w Nairobi. Jest to dzielnica slumsów. To największa dzielnica biedy w Afryce Wschodniej i drugie pod względem wielkości slumsy miejskie na kontynencie. Dzielnica znajduje się ok. 7 km na południowy wschód od centrum Nairobi, a jej szacowana powierzchnia to 2 km². Kibera ma ponad 800 tys. mieszkańców, w tym prawie połowę poniżej 15. roku życia. Szacuje się, że 20% ludności Kibery jest zakażona wirusem HIV. Domy w dzielnicy mają ok. 9 m² ze średnią 5 mieszkańców na budynek. W Kiberze panują bardzo złe warunki sanitarne. Kibera jest podzielona na 13 wiosek. Akcja na rzecz dzieci potrzebujących “Bosco Boys”, realizowany w Kuwinda i Langata, miała przed rokiem swój dzień wspólnotowy. Święto rozpoczęło się folklorystycznym powitaniem dyrektora dzieła, a potem było kontynuowane czasem modlitwy oraz różnymi grami i zajęciami sportowymi, w których uczestniczyły dzieci i młodzież. W ten sposób młodzież przygotowuje się do przyszłego życia w społeczeństwie. Wielka liczba dzieci i kenijskich rodzin, mieszka w skrajnej nędzy, potrzebują natychmiastowej pomocy… Przed kilkoma dniami czytałem współczesnych pisarzy francuskich, Jeana d’ Aillon i Huberta Mingarelli. Ten ostatni urodził się w Mont-Saint-Martin w Lorraine. Po trzech latach służby w marynarce, osiadł w mieście Grenoble. W 2003 roku wygrał Prix Medici za nową powieść ‘Czterech Żołnierzy’. Angielskie tłumaczenie jego powieści ‘Posiłek w zimie’ (fr. Un repas en hiver, ang. Meal in winter) zostało nominowane do Independent Independent Foreign Fiction Prize. Ponieważ szybkimi krokami zbliża się polska zima nie polecałbym jej kochanym Czytelnikom. Ale treść jest ciekawa. Pewnego ranka, zima akurat zbiera swoje najwyższe żniwo, na mroźną polskę wieś zostało wysłanych trzech niemieckich żołnierzy. Zostali zobowiązani przez ich dowódców do ścigania i sprowadzenia dla egzekucji “jednego z nich” – Żyda. Po wypuszczeniu młodego człowieka ukrywającego się w lesie, decydują się na odpoczynek w opuszczonym domu, zanim będą kontynuować podróż do obozu. Przygotowując jedzenie, dołączył do nich przechodzący tą samą drogą Polak, którego otwarty antysemityzm zwiększa jeszcze napięcie w podminowanej atmosferze. Wkrótce sympatie grupy zostają rozdzielone, bo oto rozważają moralne implikacje ich morderczej i zabójczej misji i skonfrontują własne sumienia, zadając sobie pytanie: czy powinien być ofiarowany Żydowi pokarm? I czy po podzieleniu się posiłkiem, gdyby on go wziął, czy powinien on być uwolniony? Wydaje mi się, iż miłość chrześcijańska nie jedno ma imię… Pewnego dnia na Krapanji w Chorwacji odkrywając ruiny kościółka zrozumiałem jak myślę bieg dziejów. Przeszedłem wzdłuż cmentarza ku tej starej zapomnianej wsi. Skądinąd wiem, że to miejsce tylko śpi. Odzyska skrzydła. A wieś jest starym kafelkiem. Dlatego przekazuję ją w ręce tkliwości. Odwołuję się do młodzieży. Z małej, zapomnianej wsi niech słyszą muzykę na całym świecie. To jest jak modlitwa. Jeśli kochasz kamień. Muzyka zaczyna żyć. I wieś jest zbawiona…A wracając do sceny z książki Huberta Mingarelli ego, w tej gospodzie wówczas mogliby znaleźć się również młodzi Polacy, choćby para nastolatków… Ich dialog byłby tutaj bardzo interesujący. – Jeszcze widzę, jak pociąg odjeżdża, a ty nie przestajesz ocierać łzy. Ale przecież ja wrócę, bo jak możliwy jest rok bez ciebie. Już ci napisałem, że czas oczekiwania szybko minie. Jeden rok nie jest stuleciem, powrócę, jak trudno być bez ciebie. Ty jesteś, jesteś moim życiem. Jaka tęsknota, nostalgia za tobą. Od kiedy wyjechałaś, zaczęła się dla mnie samotność. Powrót do siebie jest wspomnieniem pięknych dni naszej miłości. Róża, którą mi zostawiłaś już uschła. Ale trzymam ją w książce, której nigdy nie przestanę czytać.
Powtarzam ci raz jeszcze, że chcę tylko dobra dla ciebie. Kocham cię. Myśl o mnie, wiedz, że czas szybko mija, a ja powrócę, wrócę. Ty jesteś moim życiem, miłością, moją miłością. Jaka nostalgia być bez ciebie. Ale rok nie jest stuleciem. Powrócę, myśl o mnie, bądź pewna że wrócę, na pewno wrócę… ‘Ze świata czterech stron, z jarzębinowych dróg, gdzie las spalony, wiatr zmęczony, noc i front, gdzie nie zebrany plon, gdzie poczerniały głóg wstaje dzień. Słońce przytuli nas do swych rąk. I spójrz: ziemia ciężka od krwi, znowu urodzi nam zboża łan, złoty kurz. Przyjmą kobiety nas pod swój dach. I spójrz: będą śmiać się przez łzy. Znowu do tańca ktoś zagra nam. Może już za dzień, za dwa, za noc, za trzy, choć nie dziś. Chleby upieką się w piecach nam. I spójrz: tam gdzie tylko był dym, kwiatem zabliźni się wojny ślad, barwą róż. Dzieci urodzą się nowe nam. I spójrz: będą śmiać się, że my znów wspominamy ten podły czas, porę burz. Za dzień, za dwa, za noc, za trzy, choć nie dziś, za noc, za dzień, doczekasz się, wstanie świt,’ śpiewał tak przed laty Edmund Fetting… Znów Maj przyszedł, drzewa uwierzyły w piękno. Jaką przyjemność ma maj. Pozostawiłem moje troski w domu, jak chmury, które wędrują przez niebiański czas. Istotnie jest sens w szerokim świecie. Ojcze, matko, niech Bóg was chroni. Kto wie, gdzie w oddali moje szczęście wciąż rośnie. Jest tak wiele ulic, których nigdy nie przemaszerowałem. Jest tak wiele butelek wina, którego nigdy nawet nie spróbuję. Najczystszego, rozlewanego przy bębnie w jasnym promieniach słońca. Pełnia w górach, pełnia w głębokiej dolinie. Tam serce śpiewa i krzyczy do niebiańskiego namiotu: Jak piękny jesteś, szeroki świecie… Posłuchaj, jak wiatr śpiewa smutną, starą pieśń. On wie, że dzisiaj cię opuszczam.Proszę, nie płacz, bo serce mi pęknie, gdy wyruszę w drogę. Żegnaj, moja kochana, żegnaj, Żegnaj i do widzenia. Jak długo będziesz mnie pamiętać, Nie będę nigdy za daleko. Żegnaj, moja kochana, żegnaj, Zawsze będę ci wierny, Więc zachowaj mnie w swoich marzeniach, Dopóki do ciebie nie wrócę. Spójrz na gwiazdy na niebie ponad nami, Będą one świecić, dokądkolwiek bym zawędrował. Będę się modlił każdej samotnej nocy, aby wkrótce zaprowadziły mnie do domu. Żegnaj, moja kochana, żegnaj, Żegnaj i do widzenia. Jak długo będziesz mnie pamiętać, Nie będę nigdy za daleko. Żegnaj, moja kochana, żegnaj, Zawsze będę ci wierny, Więc zachowaj mnie w swoich marzeniach, Dopóki do ciebie nie wrócę… Tego wieczora wiatr wieje od morza, Jest wrzesień, lato przemija, A szczęście jest ulotne Jak kwiaty, które już umierają. Zważając za Tobą nawiedziłem bratnią Grecję. Akropolis – adieu, żegnaj, miłości!
Białe róże Ateneum zwiędły. Kochaliśmy się kilka dni: Akropolis – adieu! Tego wieczora jest nasz ostatni wieczór, Jutro rano odjadę. Zostaniesz w mojej pamięci jak szczęście, jak tęsknota.
Akropolis – adieu, żegnaj, miłości!
Białe róże Ateneum spłowiały. Kochaliśmy się kilka dni: Akropolis – adieu, Akropolis – adieu!… A ty długo nie dajesz znaku życia.
Wreszcie Cię posłyszałem, twój głos.
Zapomniałam twoje oczy, zapomniałam twoje usta. Nasza ścieżka pod sosnami stoi pusta ( por. słowa Urszula Sipińska) Mam tylko Ciebie… Byłam najładniejsza, kolorowa… krążymy różnymi drogami. Pokazałeś swoje twarze, krzywe lustra. Zapomniałam twoje ręce, pogubiłam twoje słowa…(mamo) A Pani Irena Jarocka wyśpiewywała: Wymyśliłam cię nocą przy blasku świec. Kocha się raz. Więc zostań jeśli chcesz – byś nareszcie się stał. Czy to mój łabędzi śpiew. Nie wiem. A pamiętasz. Przychodziłem codziennie do kościoła…Ale teraz powinno się odbyć spotkanie ostatnie, jeśli miłość ma sens. Za późno do tamtych dni, ty do mnie nie możesz przyjść. Przed kilkunastoma dniami odwiedziłem polskie morze koło Ustki. Pięknie tam, jakbym znalazł mały Gdańsk. Morze ma barwę zieloną. Hej chłopcy, którzy za pracą gonicie po świecie. W kraju drzewa w zieleni toną. Polskie morze ma barwę błękitną, hej chłopcy, w kraju chabry błękitne już kwitną. Patrzcie, morze złociste, a w kraju złoci się zboże na polach. Powróćcie w rodzinne strony. Hej chłopcy. Być może w tej piosence jest uśmiech i łza. Ale to śpiewa wam wędrowny ptak… Od tylu lat nie wracam. Tylko echo na wołanie odpowiada. A do świata jechałem swoją własną drogą. I dawno zgasnął już ogień. Tylko ty przychodzisz do mnie w snach, ukochana.
Coraz więcej w moim życiu nie tyle szóstek, ile dwunastek. I niewiele pamiętam z rodzinnych mych stron, najpierwej to pamiętam nasz ogród, skierowany ku cmentarzowi, ale też kościół w dolinie, wieżę i dzwon. I wzgórza tam były i rzeka i las i ktoś, kto powiedział, że kocha się raz. I wiara w to, iż odkryjemy miłość nieznaną.
“Dni w słońcu mijały, lecz dzisiaj już wiem, że przeszły, minęły jak podróż, jak sen.
O, gwiazdo miłości! Nie zagiń we mgle!
O, gwiazdo miłości! Czy poznajesz mnie?
Spoglądam na niebo, gdy wstajesz ze snu, i myślę o chłopcu, co kiedyś był mój.
Powędruj do niego i spytaj go, czy
Pamięta dziewczynę dawnych spotkań swych. Opowiedz mu, gwiazdo, gdy znajdziesz go gdzie, że mówię ci o nim, że samej mi źle. O, gwiazdo miłości! Nie zagiń we mgle! O, gwiazdo miłości! Czy poznajesz mnie? Z włosami w warkoczach od maja po śnieg. Biegałam po łące, radosna jak nikt (pewnie goniąc kormorany). Bo przy mnie był chłopiec w górze byłaś ty La la la la la la. . .
O, gwiazdo miłości! Nie zagiń we mgle!
O, gwiazdo miłości! Do snu kołysz mnie.
Kołysz mnie, kołysz mnie!,” śpiewała Halina Kunicka… Czas nas uczy pogody. Wiele dni, wiele lat. Przez te lata nauczyłem się tego, że nie ja mam siać wiatr, choć jeszcze często to robię… Każdy z nas wraca wspomnieniami do tych wyjątkowych dni, z udanej młodości…Gdzie się podziały tamte prywatki, śpiewał z zapałem Wojciech Gąssowski. To były dni, niezapomniane dni. Tak bardzo chciało się żyć. Uczyłaś mnie wymawiać imię twe. A nawet rzuciłaś dla mnie cały świat! To nieprawda, że nie było mnie tyle lat. Że pokochałem falbanki katalońskich koszul…I wierzę, że jeszcze nieraz spotkamy miłość. Zabije serce, które wie. Choć tych lat nie odda nikt. I gwiazd które spadły… A ty mówisz mi wciąż. Gdy zgubisz szczęście i poznasz życia smak. Powrócisz tu. Zawitasz, choćby na skarpie w Płocku, mój Hermanie. Gdzie twój dom. Zza siedmiu gór i rzek. Gdzie nadwiślański brzeg, by słuchać jak wiosną śpiewa las. Gdzie wierzby pośród pól, gdzie klucze białych chmur. Gdy zdobędziesz wszystko z dalekich stron powrócisz tu… Zatem serce me wyruszyło w krainę marzeń. A ja boję się ciebie, twoich wyznań, twoich spojrzeń. Jak uciec, nie wiem. Wraca tęsknota.Zachodni wiatr spienione goni fale. Gasnący dzień zachodem się rozpalił.
Stoimy tak bez słowa, ja i ty. Patrzę w Twoje błękitne oczy. I myślę o tym dokąd zaprowadzisz mnie…Daj dłoń tak bliską i drogą. Nie myśl o mnie źle. Zachodni wiatr rozstajnym naszym drogom, z okrzykiem mew swe pożegnanie śle. Zawisnął mewy krzyk… musimy się rozstać na dłużej. Ale daj mi tysiąc gołębi i milion jaskółek,daj mi moment w czasie. Papierowy księżyc z nieba spadł. Marzy mi się Jokohama, hotel ze szkła… Każdej nocy w moich snach widzę cię, czuję cię. Tak cię znam, z oddali i poprzez przestrzeń między nami, przyszedłeś pokazać się teraz, iść dalej, blisko, daleko. Gdziekolwiek jesteś wierzę, że serce trwa, bije dalej. Ponownie otwórz drzwi, jesteś tutaj w moim sercu, a moje serce będzie trwać i bić dla Ciebie. Miłość może nas dotknąć raz, czy też po raz ostatni, na całe życie. Ale nigdy nie pozwól, żeby ona odeszła. Bo Miłość była, kiedy cię kochałem. Gdy pewnego prawdziwego czasu objąłem cię. W moim życiu zawsze będziemy szli naprzód. Blisko, daleko, gdziekolwiek jesteś, wierzę, że serce trwa i bije dalej. Przez ten jeden jeszcze raz…Posłuchaj jak wiatr śpiewa smutną, starą piosenkę. Wie, że zostawiam cię dzisiaj. Proszę nie płacz, moje serce pęknie.
Kiedy idę po mojej drodze. Żegnaj moja miłość, do widzenia, Żegnaj i au revoir. Tak długo, jak mnie będziesz pamiętać, nigdy nie będę za daleko. Żegnaj moja miłość, do widzenia. Zawsze będę wierny. Więc trzymaj mnie w swoich snach
Aż wrócę do ciebie. Zobacz gwiazdki na niebie powyżej będą jaśnieć wszędzie, gdzie się powłóczę. Będę modlić się każdej nocy samotnej. A one wkrótce wskażą mi drogę do domu. Żegnaj moja miłość, do widzenia. Żegnaj i au revoir
Tak długo, jak mnie pamiętasz nigdy nie będę za daleko, Żegnaj moja miłość, do widzenia. Zawsze będę wierny. Więc trzymaj mnie w swoich snach
Aż wrócę do ciebie. Żegnaj moja miłość, do widzenia. Żegnaj i au revoir. Tak długo, jak mnie będziesz pamiętać nigdy nie będę za daleko. Żegnaj moja miłość, do widzenia. Zawsze będę wierny. Więc trzymaj mnie w swoich snach aż wrócę do ciebie… Oceany rosną z dnia na dzień, a ja powoli odchodzę szalony. Wtem słyszę twój głos na linii…ale to nie powstrzymuje bólu, gdy nigdy nie widzę cię obok siebie. Jak możemy mówić ‘na wieki’, gdziekolwiek pójdziesz, cokolwiek zrobisz, będę tu czekał na ciebie. Cokolwiek się stanie, albo jak moje serce to złamie, Będę czekał na ciebie. Wziąłem to za pewnik, cały czas tak myślałem, że jakoś to będzie. Naraz słyszę śmiech, smakuję łzy. I nie mogę się zbliżać teraz do ciebie. Och, nie widzisz tego dziecka. Uczyniłaś mnie szalonym. Ale gdziekolwiek pójdziesz, cokolwiek zrobisz, będę tu czekał na ciebie. Cokolwiek to się stanie, Albo jak to moje serce złamie, będę tu czekał na ciebie. Zastanawiam się, jak możemy przetrwać ten romans. Ale skoro w końcu jestem z tobą, skorzystam z okazji. Och, nie widzisz tego dziecka. Uczyniłaś mnie szalonym. Ale gdziekolwiek pójdziesz, cokolwiek zrobisz, będę tu czekał na ciebie. Cokolwiek to się stanie, albo jak moje serce to złamie, będę tu czekał na ciebie. Czekam na ciebie… Mówisz: -Okłamałeś mnie tysiąc razy. A chcesz mieć uczucie wolności. Nikt, jak mówisz, nie złapie cię. Ale to była czysta miłość. Czasami zastanawiam się, dlaczego ty okłamałeś mnie tysiąc razy.
Boli mnie to tysiąc razy. Ale poszybowaliśmy tak wysoko. Choć niebo było zajęte. Ty byłeś wiatrem w moich skrzydłach. Śmialiśmy się tak często z tobą. Zrobię to jeszcze raz. Z tobą, dziś wieczorem. Szukam ręki. Szukam ciebie. Czasem w nocy brakuje mi ciebie. Kto obejmie mnie swym ramieniem. Z kim mogę mówić? Moje marzenie. Okłamałeś mnie tysiąc razy. Boli mnie to tysiąc razy. Ale poszybowaliśmy tak wysoko.
Choć niebo było zajęte. Ty byłeś wiatrem w moich skrzydłach… Ale zrobię to jeszcze raz z tobą, dziś wieczorem…Chcę tylko Ciebie. Więcej niż kiedykolwiek. Aniżeli mogłabyś o tym wiedzieć. Dlatego spraw, aby moje życzenie się spełniło. Wszystko co chcę na Boże Narodzenie- żebyś w tym czasie była tym kimś, na kogo zawsze czekam… Wierzę, że dzieci są naszą przyszłością. Ucz je dobrze. I niech idą swą drogą. Pokaż im wszelkie piękno. Obdarz je wnętrzem. Daj im poczucie dumy. Wszyscy szukają bohatera. Ludzie potrzebują kogoś, aby podziwiać. Nigdy nie znalazłem nikogo, kto by spełnił moje potrzeby. Samotne miejsce. Więc nauczyłem się polegać na sobie. Zdecydowałem dawno temu nigdy nie chodzić w cieniu nikogo. Zarówno wtedy gdy to się okazałoby porażką lub powodzeniem. Przynajmniej żyłem, jak sądzę niezależnie od tego, co ode mnie zależało. Nie mogą zabrać mojej godności.
Bo największa miłość dzieje się we mnie.
Znalazłem największą miłość wewnątrz mnie. Największa miłość wydarza się we mnie. Dlatego największą miłością z wszystkich- jest uczyć się kochać siebie! I to jest łatwe do osiągnięcia. Nawet jeśli przez przypadek to specjalne miejsce
prowadzi do samotnego miejsca… Zawsze będę cię kochać, Każdego dnia żyję, chcę być. Wydarza się dzień, aby dać wszystko co najlepsze. Jestem tylko jeden. Ale nie sam. Mój najlepszy dzień
Jeszcze nie wiem czy nadszedł. Złamałem serce dla każdego zysku, aby spróbować słodkich borowek. Stoję w bólu. Wstawam i upadam. Jednak przez to wszystko pozostaje wiele do zrobienia. Dlatego chcę jednej chwili w czasie! Kiedy byłbym większy od myśli o tym, że będę. Kiedy wszystkie moje sny biją serce. I odpowiedzi są dla mnie wszystkim. Daj mi chwilę czasu, żebym wyruszył z przeznaczeniem. W tym momencie
będę się czuł, poczuję wieczność. Jakbym
żył. Najlepiej chcę to wszystko. Nie ma czasu. Zrobiłem plany. Teraz stwórz mi szansę, bycia w moich rękach. Daj mi chwilę czasu, śpiewała już Whitney Houston. A Poczuję wieczność. Jesteś zwycięzcą przez całe życie. Jeśli znajdziesz tę chwilę w czasie. Daj mi chwilę czasu…W tym momencie będę wolny…Nie żyjemy bez pożegnania, nie żyjemy bez umierania po trochu. Bez pozostawienia czegoś lub kogoś aby iść dalej… Przyszedłem pożegnać cię. Pamięć, zawsze umiera trochę, chciałem wiedzieć, co mi pozostało z jedynej miłości, która mogła się liczyć. Przyszedłem by pożegnać się z tobą, albo jeśli chcesz, pożegnać się z nami oboma. Jak w dniu, w którym sprawiłaś, że płakałem. Bo powiedziałaś żegnaj na zawsze. Och, to nie twoja wina, wiem o tym. Wiem wszystko, co się wydarzyło, jak poszłaś do twojego ojca i o wszystkim, co mógł ci powiedzieć. Masz skończyć twoje studia, przed tobą twoja praca, twoja przyszłość. Że ta dziewczyna nie jest dla ciebie. Dzisiaj jesteś inną. A wszystko kończy się dobrze. Ale jak mogłem cię kochać? Miałem szesnaście, szesnaście lat. Nie żyjemy bez pożegnania, nie żyjemy bez umierania po trochu. Chciałem zatrzymać czas. Zatrzymać czas, by powiedzieć do widzenia, żegnajcie moje szesnaście lat. Chciałem powiedzieć, żegnajcie moje szesnaście lat. Zanim pójdę, do tego, co mnie jeszcze czeka…
I teraz, gdy koniec już bliski i zaczyna się ostatni akt, mój kochany Czytelniku, powiem to jasno. Pokazuję swą sprawę, której jestem pewny. Żyłem pełnią życia, podróżowałem każdą jedną drogą. Ale co najważniejsze robiłem to po swojemu. Żale, miałem ich kilka; lecz znowu, zbyt mało by je pamiętać. Zrobiłem to, co musiałem zrobić. I patrzyłem na to bez pobłażliwości. Planowałem każdy bieg zdarzeń,
każdy ostrożny krok wzdłuż powykręcanych dróg także. Ale co najważniejsze robiłem to po swojemu. Tak, były czasy, jestem pewny, że wiedziałaś o tym, gdy brałem więcej kawałków niż mogłem ich przeżuć. Ale mimo to, gdy nadchodziło zwątpienie, pożerałem to wszystko i wypluwałem.
Stawiałem wszystkiemu czoła stojąc prosto i robiłem to po swojemu. Kochałem, śmiałem się i płakałem. Miałem swoje spełnienie, dzieliłem się stratą. I teraz, gdy łzy opadły, patrzę na to z rozbawieniem, i pomyśleć: zrobiłem to wszystko. I mogę powiedzieć – nie w nieśmiały sposób.
Nie, to nie ja. Ja zrobiłem to po swojemu.
Bo czym jest człowiek i co posiada?
Jeśli nie jest samym sobą, jest nikim.
Mówić rzeczy, które prawdziwie czuję, a nie słowa pełne bojaźni. Elaborat ten
pokazuje: przyjąłem ciosy. I robiłem to po swojemu…Gwiazda na którą patrzę, skała, na której stoję, Lider, któremu ufam, Personel, ku któremu idę, Chleb, w którym żyję, Źródło, w którym odpoczywam, Cel, do którego zmierzam. Wszystkim, Panie, ty jesteś! Poza Tobą nie znajduję mocy i odwagi. Bez ciebie, kto by podjął mój ciężar, kto? Czym byłaby dla mnie chwila bez Ciebie. Wiara, nadzieja, miłość. Wszystkim, Panie,ty jesteś! Dlatego będę się zastanawiać nad moją drogą, dopóki dzwonki słyszą i w domu jestem. Raduję się na nowe gongi. Że nic nie mam do przeprowadzenia. Że wszystkim, Panie, ty jesteś! Tego wieczora wiatr wieje od morza, Jest październik, lato przeminęło. A szczęście znów jest ulotne. Jak kwiaty, które umierają. Akropolis – adieu, żegnaj, miłości! Białe róże Ateneum zwiędły. Kochaliśmy się kilka dni: Akropolis – adieu! Tego wieczora jest nasz ostatni wieczór, Jutro rano odjadę. Za morza. Zostaniesz w mojej pamięci jak szczęście, jak tęsknota. Akropolis – adieu, żegnaj, miłości! Białe róże Ateneum spłowiały przecież. Kochaliśmy się kilka dni zaledwie. Akropolis – adieu.

Stanisław Barszczak, Visit of a Young Lady (part two)

Act III

In 1635, Rembrandt and Saskia moved into their own house, renting in fashionable Nieuwe Doelenstraat. In 1639 they moved to a prominent newly built house (now the Rembrandt House Museum) in the upscale ‘Breestraat’ (eng.: ‘Broadway’), today known as Jodenbreestraat (Jodenbreestraat 4,1011 NK Amsterdam-now) in what was becoming the Jewish quarter; then a young upcoming neighborhood. The mortgage to finance the 13,000 guilder purchase would be a primary cause for later financial difficulties. Rembrandt should easily have been able to pay the house off with his large income, but it appears his spending always kept pace with his income, and he may have made some unsuccessful investments. It was there that Rembrandt frequently sought his Jewish neighbors to model for his Old Testament scenes. Although they were by now affluent, the couple suffered several personal setbacks; their son Rumbartus died two months after his birth in 1635 and their daughter Cornelia died at just three weeks of age in 1638. In 1640, they had a second daughter, also named Cornelia, who died after living barely over a month. Only their fourth child, Titus, who was born in 1641, survived into adulthood. Saskia died in 1642 soon after Titus’s birth, probably from tuberculosis. Rembrandt’s drawings of her on her sick and death bed are among his most moving works.

During Saskia’s illness, Geertje Dircx was hired as Titus’ caretaker and nurse and also became Rembrandt’s lover. She would later charge Rembrandt with breach of promise (a euphemism for seduction under promise to marry) and was awarded alimony of 200 guilders a year. Rembrandt worked to have her committed for twelve years to an asylum or poorhouse (called a “bridewell”) at Gouda, after learning she had pawned jewelry he had given her that once belonged to Saskia.

By the late 1630s Rembrandt had produced a few paintings and many etchings of landscapes. Often these landscapes highlighted natural drama, featuring uprooted trees and ominous skies (‘Cottages before a Stormy Sky’, 1641; ‘The Three Trees’, 1643). From 1640 his work became less exuberant and more sober in tone, possibly reflecting personal tragedy. Biblical scenes were now derived more often from the New Testament than the Old Testament, as had been the case before. In 1642 he painted ‘The Night Watch’, the most substantial of the important group portrait commissions which he received in this period, and through which he sought to find solutions to compositional and narrative problems that had been attempted in previous works.

Rembrandt was more ready to improvise on the plate and large prints typically survive in several states, up to eleven, often radically changed. He now uses hatching to create his dark areas, which often take up much of the plate. He also experimented with the effects of printing on different kinds of paper, including Japanese paper, which he used frequently, and on vellum. He began to use “surface tone,” leaving a thin ink on parts of the plate instead of wiping it completely clean to print each impression. He made more use of drypoint, exploiting, especially in landscapes, the rich fuzzy burr that this technique gives to the first few impressions.

Rembrandt is at home now with his wife Saskie, no longer with her mother. Luxury house in Nieuwe Doelenstraat on the river Amstel. On the walls you can see pictures of the Polish nobleman and the Holy Family.

-(Rembrandt to his wife) I have admired the quest for absoluteness in religion for centuries. It is a fact that God can demand everything from his followers. In another way, the heresies lead to the result … The first fascist movement took place when Abraham wanted to kill his own child Isaac. Heresies are directed only at the end of the matter, not the people. But let them be like heresies. I also do not oppose the folklorization of religion. Because it will not be later. My painting sensitivity is not fully
like knowledge, scientific thing, you know. For example, the physicist is religious because he has a confidence, trust (german Verzeiung) to the ambiguity of processes in space for millennia, here I would say, there is a life and there is religion. This latter is my last risk. You have to do not give up. If you do not learn to strive for the future, then you have to take the resignation that I try to show in my pictures. A resignation as adequate display of the climate of the city lived from the inside. I learn my students to be sensitive. For this reason I love to wright story. I love to make people excited. My religiousness is based not on the beautification of human life, but on washing that, making it clean. In my opinion, a religion is like a young lady who enters a human life.

After a moment he commented on this sentence.
– Learn to paint it to learn strength. So, we are scared if we are not in harmony with each other. But save God, let’s pretend to be normal, since we can not be normal, otherwise we will not get out of here.

Saskia van Uylenburgh was strangely under her emotions. And with her innate power she replied:
– Racial prejudice has deteriorated prejudices and superstition faculties. It is necessary to talk about the slavery of the world, we need this, wandering as if in the fog! For life is loneliness. Nobody knows the other, everyone is alone. The only way to know how far we got into the dark is to save ourselves. You know that one, you can not be forever in the absurd state of passion. If one loves only beauty and purity, he loves only half of the being. That is why you can love me, because if I want that, I can exhaust any situation internally to the last end. You’d probably already convinced about it.

Then Saskia looked at Rembrandt’s emerging image. There was The Night Watch or The Militia Company of Captain Frans Banning Cocq, Rembrandt painted that large painting between 1640 and 1642. This picture was called De Nachtwacht by the Dutch and The Night Watch by Sir Joshua Reynolds because till the 18th century the picture was so dimmed and defaced that it was almost indistinguishable, and it looked quite like a night scene. After it was cleaned, it was discovered to represent broad day -a party of musketeers stepping from a gloomy courtyard into the blinding sunlight. The piece was commissioned for the new hall of the Kloveniersdoelen, the musketeer branch of the civic militia. Rembrandt departed from convention, which ordered that such genre pieces should be stately and formal, rather a line-up than an action scene. Instead he showed the militia readying themselves to embark on a mission. What kind of mission, an ordinary patrol or some special event, is a matter of debate.

Rembrandt’s wife Saskia van Uylenburgh died on June 14, 1642, aged 30 (probably tuberculosis).

Act IV

In 1647 Van Uylenburgh had to move to a new location on Dam square, because Nicolaes Eliaszoon Pickenoy sold the house. When his house on Dam square was appropriated to build a new city hall (now the Royal Palace), Van Uylenburgh relocated to Westermarkt square.

Luxurious house in Nieuwe Doelenstraat. In the corridor, images of ‘the Night Watch’, ‘Susan surprised by the Elders’, and the picture of ‘the Polish rider’. Rembrandt just finished it. In the late 1640s Rembrandt began a relationship with the much younger Hendrickje Stoffels, who had initially been his maid. In 1654 they had a daughter, Cornelia, bringing Hendrickje a summons from the Reformed Church to answer the charge “that she had committed the acts of a whore with Rembrandt the painter”. She admitted this and was banned from receiving communion. Rembrandt was not summoned to appear for the Church council because he was not a member of the Reformed Church. The two were considered legally wed under common law, but Rembrandt had not married Hendrickje. Had he remarried he would have lost access to a trust set up for Titus in Saskia’s will.

Rembrandt named Hendrickje Arusha. In love with Amsterdam, she is also attached to Rembrandt’s new home. The latter one day brought an ax to the house … she cut off head cock. There was a rooster, though he was not guilty of anything. It was only after that, she saw the men hanging from the trees and the woman cut to the bone outside the window. Live and dead bodies burned and fried over fire. Feet cut off to prevent escape and hands cut off to prevent theft. She saw boys and girls beaten, though they did nothing. That night the only feeling was her heart. And it penetrated deeply into her. Suddenly her slave part seemed to touch her human part. At this time she bent over Titus’s body. He was different, some colored by the light of a burning candle. At once she understood this bright truth … Over the years, Arusha noticed that racial violence became more violent in her expression. The ‘stolen’ bodies are working on a stolen country. You swallow hard when you discover that the old inn is a pharmacy right now that the place where you kissed the boy for the first time is now a discounted optical shop. Where you bought a jacket, now it’s rubble behind the blue plywood of the fence and an outline
of the Hanseatic League building. The enormous destruction has been made to your city. You say, “It happened overnight.”

Suddenly Rembrandt entered his house and immediately headed for his silver room. But from there he came back. So she would entered her mind. At first he looked at the unfinished portrait of Cornelia, Arusha then heard his words:
-Slavery is a sin that whites have turned into ballast but not african. Because all men are equal – unless we decide we are not human. If Niggers were going to have their freedom, they would not be in chains. If a red man would stick to his land, it would always be his. If a white man would not be destined for the reception of this new world, ‘conquer it’, he would not have had it to this day … This is the true Great Spirit, the divine fear that unites all human endeavors – if you can keep it, he is yours.

-(Arusha) My own pain is not as severe as the pain of someone’s feelings, pain for someone, multiplied by imagination … Love is not expressed in the desire to have sex but in the desire to have a common dream …. If a man was responsible only for that, what he is aware about, fools people would be exonerated from every fault. Only that, my dear, the man has a duty to know. Man is responsible for his ignorance too. Ignorance is his guilt … To serve God it means to serve heaven. In heaven we will worship God. We will be happy forever there. There is a place in heaven where you will find us. It will be community of individuals (full), they perform tasks. The new body after the resurrection of ours, it will not be material, the new body will not pass, will not be limited as temporal. It will receive the form of what we have made of it in the earthly life … In heaven we will build profound visible relations. Sexology will not be necessary. Maximum growth. Our self, in heaven we would find it.

At that time someone changed the fate of Rembrandt. He lived beyond his means, buying art (including bidding up his own work), prints (often used in his paintings) and rarities, which probably caused a court arrangement to avoid his bankruptcy in 1656, by selling most of his paintings and large collection of antiquities. The sale list survives and gives us a good insight into Rembrandt’s collections, which, apart from Old Master paintings and drawings, included busts of the Roman Emperors, suits of Japanese armor among many objects from Asia, and collections of natural history and minerals. But the prices realized in the sales in 1657 and 1658 were disappointing. Rembrandt was forced to sell his house and his printing-press and move to more modest accommodation on the Rozengracht in 1660. The authorities and his creditors were generally accommodating to him, except for the Amsterdam painters’ guild, which introduced a new rule that no one in Rembrandt’s circumstances could trade as a painter. To get around this, Hendrickje and Titus set up a business as art dealers in 1660, with Rembrandt as an employee.

Act V

We are in a small cottage in the Rozengracht district, 1663. Rembrandt ‘stinks poverty’. He just sold Saskie’s grave. But with him there is still Hendrickje Stoffels and ‘Christ at Emmaus’, his picture he just painted. A moment ago he came back from town. Arusha looked out of the pots with a sneaky glare at Rembrandt’s painting, ‘Self-portrait with two wheels’. And then she said:
– Is not it great when you are a kid and the world is full of anonymous things? Everything is bright and mysterious until you know what it is called, and then everything is scattered. Freedom was a community working for something beautiful and invisible. But here we have come to know everything, how could we love them now? Once upon a time, things had the real nature they were hiding behind the formal names beneath the skin that we later added to them. So, I would still like to see in my life a Victorian epoch as not yet a British but Irish legend. Simultaneously open up to the Word in full. For the Bible is like a map. You believe that is right, but you know it only through personal pursuit the same way. At the beginning of this road I meet Jesus, he later becomes the way, the truth and the life. It was at the command of Jesus to dry up the fig-tree … For many years I was unable to read the Bible. The latter was like to a forbidden word. It was like a forbidden fruit. But in the last few days I have learned to read it like a slave, this forbidden word in the time just given to me. And now according to the Bible I would like to keep faithfulness and goodness to others – because that is what I am to do about.

In 1661 Rembrandt was contracted to complete work for the newly built city hall, but only after Govert Flinck, the artist previously commissioned, died without beginning to paint. The resulting work, The Conspiracy of Claudius Civilis, was rejected and returned to the painter; the surviving fragment is only a fraction of the whole work. It was around this time that Rembrandt took on his last apprentice, Aert de Gelder. In 1662 he was still fulfilling major commissions for portraits and other works. When Cosimo III de’ Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany, great Catholic, House of Florence, came to Amsterdam in 1667, he visited Rembrandt at his house. At a sunny day at Rembrandt’s house came 25-year-old Cosimo III de’ Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany, susceptible to the suggestions and requests of the bourgeoisie of Amsterdam. The meeting was inspirational. Rembrandt asked him in puzzles that this a wonderful and pleasant man did not have to answer them.

Earlier 20th century connoisseurs claimed Rembrandt had produced well over 600 paintings, nearly 400 etchings and 2,000 drawings. Among the more prominent characteristics of Rembrandt’s work are his use of chiaroscuro, the theatrical employment of light and shadow derived from Caravaggio, or, more likely, from the Dutch Caravaggisti, but adapted for very personal means. Also notable are his dramatic and lively presentation of subjects, devoid of the rigid formality that his contemporaries often displayed, and a deeply felt compassion for mankind, irrespective of wealth and age. His immediate family- his wife Saskia, his son Titus and his common-law wife Hendrickje- often figured prominently in his paintings, many of which had mythical, biblical or historical themes.

Drawings by Rembrandt and his pupils have been extensively studied by many artists and scholars through the centuries. His original draughtsmanship has been described as an individualistic art style that was very similar to East Asian old masters, most notably Chinese masters.

Throughout his career Rembrandt took as his primary subjects the themes of portraiture, landscape and narrative painting. For the last, he was especially praised by his contemporaries, who extolled him as a masterly interpreter of biblical stories for his skill in representing emotions and attention to detail. Stylistically, his paintings progressed from the early “smooth” manner, characterized by fine technique in the portrayal of illusionistic form, to the late “rough” treatment of richly variegated paint surfaces, which allowed for an illusionism of form suggested by the tactile quality of the paint itself.

A parallel development may be seen in Rembrandt’s skill as a printmaker. In the etchings of his maturity, particularly from the late 1640s onward, the freedom and breadth of his drawings and paintings found expression in the print medium as well. The works encompass a wide range of subject matter and technique, sometimes leaving large areas of white paper to suggest space, at other times employing complex webs of line to produce rich dark tones…

Every day around five o’clock old Cornelis Anslo, a once-famous preacher of the whole Holland, was present, a silent old man with grayish beard, rare beard and eternally wiped eyes. He was sitting close to the Rembrandt’s bed; they smiled at each other. Their dialogue went beyond words and time. The sick man had a great need to confide in his own sureties and adopted patterns in his life. Sick anyway
he could not understand how to live without a home, without creaking stairs and handrails, without curtains and candlesticks. And also without canvas, the textiles, among which he spent his whole life.

Conclusion

Contrary to what is often said, the work was hailed as a success from the beginning. Parts of the canvas were cut off (approximately 20% from the left hand side was removed) to make the painting fit its new position when it was moved to Amsterdam town hall in 1715; the Rijksmuseum has a smaller copy of what is thought to be the full original composition; the four figures in the front are at the centre of the canvas. The painting is now in the Rijksmuseum.

In 1968 the Rembrandt Research Project began under the sponsorship of the Netherlands Organization for the Advancement of Scientific Research; it was initially expected to last a highly optimistic ten years. Art historians teamed up with experts from other fields to reassess the authenticity of works attributed to Rembrandt, using all methods available, including state-of-the-art technical diagnostics, and to compile a complete new catalogue raisonné of his paintings. As a result of their findings, many paintings that were previously attributed to Rembrandt have been removed from their list, although others have been added back. Many of those removed are now thought to be the work of his students.

Rembrandt’s own studio practice is a major factor in the difficulty of attribution, since, like many masters before him, he encouraged his students to copy his paintings, sometimes finishing or retouching them to be sold as originals, and sometimes selling them as authorized copies. Additionally, his style proved easy enough for his most talented students to emulate. Further complicating matters is the uneven quality of some of Rembrandt’s own work, and his frequent stylistic evolutions and experiments. As well, there were later imitations of his work, and restorations which so seriously damaged the original works that they are no longer recognizable. It is highly likely that there will never be universal agreement as to what does and what does not constitute a genuine Rembrandt…

Rembrandt outlived both Hendrickje, who died in 1663, and Titus, who died in 1668, leaving a baby daughter. He died within a year of his son, on 4 October 1669 in Amsterdam, and was buried as a poor man. Because of his empathy for the human condition, he has been called “one of the great prophets of civilization”.The French sculptor Auguste Rodin said, “Compare me with Rembrandt! What sacrilege! With Rembrandt, the colossus of Art! We should prostrate ourselves before Rembrandt and never compare anyone with him!” Francisco Goya, often considered to be among the last of the Old Masters, said “I have had three masters: Nature, Velázquez, and Rembrandt.” Vincent van Gogh wrote, “Rembrandt goes so deep into the mysterious that he says things for which there are no words in any language. It is with justice that they call Rembrandt ‘magician’ that’s no easy occupation.”

Rembrandt van Rijn, one of the greatest prophets of our civilization, died on 4 October 1669 in a small house in the Rozengracht district, one year after his son, where he lived with his 15-year-old daughter Cornelia. “Painter of the Soul” was buried on October 8 next to Saskia, Titus and Hendrickje at Westerkerk in Amsterdam as a poor man.

(My story is the author’s poetica license)

Stanislaw Barszczak, Visit of a Young Lady (part first)

Characters of the story:

Neeltge Willemsdochter van Zuitbroeck, Rembrandt’s mother;
15-year-old Cornelia, painter’s daughter;
21-year-old Saskia van Uylenburgh, wife of Rembrandt, daughter of the mayor;
23-year-old Hendrickje Stoffels;
Magdalena van Loo, wife of Titus;
Harmen Gerritszoon van Rijn, miller, father of Rembrandt;
Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn;
Constantijn Huygens, diplomat, traveler and poet;
18-year-old Jan Lievens, friend of Rembrandt;
25-year-old Cosimo III de’ Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany;
42-year-old Hendrick van Uylenburgh, an art buyer;
57-year old Nicolas Ruts, a fur merchant in Amsterdam;
Cornelis Anslo, Dutch preacher;
Governess, childless widow Geertje Dircx;
Gerrit Dou, student;

Introduction

One of the greatest European artists, Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn, is a Dutch draughtsman, painter, and printmaker. An innovative and prolific master in three media, he is generally considered one of the greatest visual artists in the history of art and the most important in Dutch art history. Unlike most Dutch masters of the 17th century, Rembrandt’s works depict a wide range of style and subject matter, from portraits and self-portraits to landscapes, genre scenes, allegorical and historical scenes, biblical and mythological themes as well as animal studies. His contributions to art came in a period of great wealth and cultural achievement that historians call the Dutch Golden Age, when Dutch art (especially Dutch painting), was extremely prolific and innovative, and gave rise to important new genres. Rembrandt van Rijn never went abroad, but he was considerably influenced by the work of the Italian masters and Netherlandish artists who had studied in Italy. Having achieved youthful success as a portrait painter, Rembrandt’s later years were marked by personal tragedy and financial hardships. Yet his etchings and paintings were popular throughout his lifetime, his reputation as an artist remained high, and for twenty years he taught many important Dutch painters. Rembrandt’s portraits of his contemporaries, self-portraits and illustrations of scenes from the Bible are regarded as his greatest creative triumphs. His self-portraits form a unique and intimate biography, in which the artist surveyed himself without vanity and with the utmost sincerity. Rembrandt’s foremost contribution in the history of printmaking was his transformation of the etching process from a relatively new reproductive technique into a true art form. His reputation as the greatest etcher in the history of the medium was established in his lifetime and never questioned since. Few of his paintings left the Dutch Republic whilst he lived, but his prints were circulated throughout Europe, and his wider reputation was initially based on them alone.

One third of his etchings are of religious subjects, many treated with a homely simplicity, whilst others are his most monumental prints… His prints have similar subjects to his paintings, although the twenty-seven self-portraits are relatively more common, and portraits of other people less so. There are forty-six landscapes, mostly small, which largely set the course for the graphic treatment of landscape until the end of the 19th century.

In 1634, Rembrandt married Saskia van Uylenburgh. Rembrandt’s wife Saskia came from a good family: her father had been a lawyer and the burgemeester (mayor). Rembrandt and Saskia were married in the local church of St. Annaparochie without the presence of Rembrandt’s relatives. In the same year, Rembrandt became a burgess of Amsterdam and a member of the local guild of painters. He also acquired a number of students. So, Rembrandt’s appearance and his work is a wonderful story about human life. I invite my dear Readers to know better the story of my hero as the story of a single life.

I

Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn was born on 15 July 1606 in Leiden, in the Dutch Republic, now the Netherlands. He was the ninth child born to Harmen Gerritszoon van Rijn and Neeltgen Willemsdochter van Zuijtbrouck. His father was a miller and his mother was a baker’s daughter. Religion is a central theme in Rembrandt’s paintings and the religiously fraught period in which he lived makes his faith a matter of interest. His mother was Roman Catholic, and his father belonged to the Dutch Reformed Church. While his work reveals deep Christian faith, there is no evidence that Rembrandt formally belonged to any church, although he had five of his children christened in Dutch Reformed churches in Amsterdam: four in the Oude Kerk (Old Church) and one, Titus, in the Zuiderkerk (Southern Church).

As a boy he attended Latin school and was enrolled at the University of Leiden, although according to a contemporary he had a greater inclination towards painting; he was soon apprenticed to a Leiden history painter, Jacob van Swanenburgh, with whom he spent three years. After a brief but important apprenticeship of six months with the painter Pieter Lastman in Amsterdam, Rembrandt stayed a few months with Jacob Pynas and then started his own workshop. Unlike many of his contemporaries who traveled to Italy as part of their artistic training, Rembrandt never left the Dutch Republic during his lifetime. He opened a studio in Leiden in 1625, which he shared with friend and colleague Jan Lievens.

In 1627 Rembrandt began to accept students. In 1629, Rembrandt was discovered by the statesman Constantijn Huygens (father of the Dutch mathematician and physicist Christiaan Huygens), who procured for Rembrandt important commissions from the court of The Hague. As a result of this connection, Prince Frederik Hendrik continued to purchase paintings from Rembrandt until 1646. Early in his career Rembrandt got acquainted with Hendrick van Uylenburgh,a marchand of paintings, who lived in the Commonwealth of Poland and Lithuania Nations for many years, offered him to open a rich studio at his home. Hendrick van Uylenburgh was an influential Dutch Golden Age art dealer who helped launch the careers of Rembrandt. Van Uylenburgh came from a Frisian family and emigrated with this family to Kraków (Poland) when he was a boy. He was trained as a painter and also worked as an art buyer for the Polish king. Around 1612 he moved to Danzig (now Gdańsk) and in 1625 returned to the Netherlands, settling in the bustling capital of Amsterdam. Van Uylenburgh took over the business of Cornelis van der Voort and became an art dealer, employing painters in his own studio. In 1631 Rembrandt moved into van Uylenburgh’s house (adjacent to Rembrandt’s later home, now the Rembrandt House Museum) to work in Van Uylenburgh’s studio. Rembrandt became chief painter of the studio and in 1634 married Van Uylenburgh’s niece Saskia van Uylenburgh.

At this time there are already self-portraits.
At one time about ninety paintings were counted as Rembrandt self-portraits, but it is now known that he had his students copy his own self-portraits as part of their training. Modern scholarship has reduced the autograph count to over forty paintings, as well as a few drawings and thirty-one etchings, which include many of the most remarkable images of the group. Some show him posing in quasi-historical fancy dress, or pulling faces at himself. His oil paintings trace the progress from an uncertain young man, through the dapper and very successful portrait-painter to the troubled but massively powerful portraits of his old age. Together they give a remarkably clear picture of the man, his appearance and his psychological make-up, as revealed by his richly weathered face. In his portraits and self-portraits, he angles the sitter’s face in such a way that the ridge of the nose nearly always forms the line of demarcation between brightly illuminated and shadowy areas. A Rembrandt face is a face partially eclipsed; and the nose, bright and obvious, thrusting into the riddle of halftones, serves to focus the viewer’s attention upon, and to dramatize, the division between a flood of light -an overwhelming clarity- and a brooding duskiness. In a number of biblical works, including ‘The Raising of the Cross’, ‘Joseph Telling His Dreams’ and ‘The Stoning of Saint Stephen’, Rembrandt painted himself as a character in the crowd.

September at noon. You hear the bells of the Church of Leiden from 1628. On the walls of the yellow studio hanging images marked with the acronym “RHL” Rembrandus Hermanii Leidensia … ‘The parable of the rich man’ and ‘The pilgrims in Emaus’, self-portraits and portraits of relatives. One year ago Rembrandt began to accept students. At that time Rembrandt was discovered by the statesman Constantijn Huygens (father of the Dutch mathematician and physicist Christiaan Huygens), who procured for Rembrandt important commissions from the court of The Hague. As a result of this connection, Prince Frederik Hendrik continued to purchase paintings from Rembrandt until 1646.

When we look at him Rembrandt is a low growth. His face is full, cheeks flushed with blush. He is expected to attend a special guest in his blue studio.
September is getting better and better. You may have the impression that the he events have slowed down, and that new responsibilities do not bring life. There is a time to be calmly and do on his own, and not bother too much humor family members. Rembrandt as he is extremely warm, family and caring, finally plans to catch things up and watch over his affairs. He enjoys stability, security and confidence, so he attaches himself not only to his loved ones but also to the place where they live, the environment, the certain state of things around them. It is a great value for him and his family, and everything connected with it, but it is a little over-protective. In his letter to Huygens, Rembrandt offered the only surviving explanation of what he sought to achieve through his art: the greatest and most natural movement, it meens “de meeste en de natuurlijkste beweegelijkheid.” The word “beweegelijkheid” is also argued to mean “emotion” or “motive”.

It was during Rembrandt’s Leiden period (1625–1631) that Lastman’s influence was most prominent. It is also likely that at this time Lievens had a strong impact on his work as well. Paintings were rather small, but rich in details (for example, in costumes and jewelry). Religious and allegorical themes were favored, as were tronies. In 1626 Rembrandt produced his first etchings, the wide dissemination of which would largely account for his international fame. In 1629 he completed ‘Judas Repentant’, ‘Returning the Pieces of Silver’ and ‘The Artist in His Studio’, works that evidence his interest in the handling of light and variety of paint application, and constitute the first major progress in his development as a painter.
‘The Blinding of Samson’, 1636, ‘Belshazzar’s Feast’, 1635, seeking to emulate the baroque style of Rubens. With the occasional help of assistants in Uylenburgh’s workshop, he painted numerous portrait commissions both small (Jacob de Gheyn III) and large (Portrait of the Shipbuilder Jan Rijcksen and his Wife, 1633, Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Nicolaes Tulp, 1632).

At the attic studio comes 30-year-old Constantijn Huygens beautifully dressed
and welcomes Rembrandt and Jan Lievens. Constantijn Huygens is a Dutch writer, poet, scholar, translator, diplomat, traveler, father of Christian Huygens, famous physicist and astronomer. He is the secretary of the governor of Frederick Henry Orakeski, Prince of the United Republics. Rembrandt’s conversation began with encouraging him to take up mythological and religious themes. Rembrandt remains somewhat thoughtful. For he remains a memory of Pieter Lastman, a recognized painter of historical paintings, characterized by strong realism and great dramatic tension. At the friendly meeting Huygens ordered a portrait at Jan Lievens, while Rembrandt was about to paint his brother’s portrait.

II

Let us now look at Amsterdam’s Rembrandt times, the “largest commodity in the world”, which has become a leading financial institution in Europe. In the 17th century the Netherlands achieved a very high level of prosperity, becoming a trading power. Real power was in the hands of wealthy bourgeois, joined by a powerful trading company. In the Netherlands, not the aristocracy and court, but bourgeois as the dominant social group, shaping and imposing fashion, hence the specific nature of the Dutch fashion – it is one of the reasons for its distinctness from the court of French fashion. Characteristic for the lifestyle of the “regent” environment – bourgeois patrician, was the temperance and simplicity, even the severity of customs and clothing. The wives of the most powerful merchants, influencing the fate of the country, went shopping and supervised the house. There were no butlers in the house.

Think of the clothes in Dutch 17th-century portraits and you tend to think of black. Sober, conservative black, with sometimes (daringly) a hint of white. Your classic monochrome, in other words. But look at these paintings closely and you soon begin to realise that sober is the last thing these frocks are. Admittedly, in portraits such as Rembrandt’s astonishing Margaretha de Geer, what shines out is the inner life of the marvellously geriatric, formidable subject, not the outer trappings – a plain loose-fitting gown (in black, naturally) that blurs modestly into the murky background.

Black was predominant, partly because it implied “sobriety and modesty. But at least as important was the fact that it was fashionable. These days, when you go out somewhere special, the chances are that you reach for black. Well, for much of the 17th century it was like that in the Netherlands.”

Amsterdam in 1631, Rembrandt still thinks about his father. Hendrick van Uylenburgh, who lived in the Commonwealth of Nations (Poland) for many years, offered him to open a rich studio at his home. Rembrandt visits Van Uylenburgh because he has made the final decision to accept his offer. Through him, Rembrandt will receive prestigious orders. He is mainly painting portraits ordered by the richest families of Amsterdam.

– (Hendrick van Uylenburgh says) We never see people differently, just as monsters we do from them.

At Van Uylenburgh’s house, Rembrandt meets Venice merchant Nicolaes Ruts, who is dressed in rich clothes, indicating his social status: a coat of noble fabric lined with fur, covering leather hides, decorated with an elegant finish. The fur cap is in Russian style. This man in fact trades with Russia. Presumably holds a business letter in the left hand when it comes to talking to.

-(Merchants Nicolaes Ruts says) The church is a mill, that teaches its eternal truth, at the same time Christian the rites, liturgy of the Church, I never would forget that. But otherwise we also have to be, we should be more sensitive at the time. And it’s not about the absolute truth …but much more about understanding yourself fully. I would tell here I like the history of human feelings, and more I love to make people excited. You probably know who the saint Andrzej Bobola was, a martyr from distant Poland, he died as a martyr. The heretics
took his skin off. For he loved people. But his life reveals the extraordinary graces of heaven. My relative in the dream saw him. So, you should live with God fully! And this should be done.

-( Van Uylenburgh interrupted him)
At the same time you can become tolerant like the Poles. Are we like Poles? Yes, becoming ‘strangers’. In the German Länder it was about extending the strangeness to the furthest borders – this has caused many wars. To become strangers, in this age of humanity would mean: less interested in the countrymen themselves, and leave their lives for heaven. After all, God saves them finally. We therefore have to fulfill our daily duties as fully as possible. This is the basic task. There is a need to address the problem of integration in refugee issues, but it is still necessary to solve the problem of civilization of ours.. I would say, I too am guilty of the present situation in the world, and I am lost too… I learned that being with those I like is already enough. But in the Christian world a testimony is necessary. For I am as bad as the worst scoundrel, but thank God I am as good as the best angel. So I try things that have become in this era, keep them rich creatively, both for me and for people I deal with. We are not here just to make a living. We are here for this purpose; to enable the world to live more fervently, with a deeper vision, with a more beautiful spirit of hope and fulfillment. We are here to enrich the world, otherwise we would impoverish ourselves if we forget about this task. Success is the ability to move from one failure to another without losing enthusiasm. So, you can not survive the day without doing something for a person who will never be able to pay back. This is even more successful task. You need the courage to rise and speak. You also need to sit down and listen to. And there are few advantages that Poles do not have yet, and few mistakes they can avoid, Van Uylenburgh said. Nothing is eternal in this world, even our problems. And always happens what man does not expect. Great friends are engaged in pursuit of some ideal, in defense of a cause, in the quest for a job, Van Uylenburgh noticed that.

In house of Van Uylenburgh Rembrandt met Niklaes Ruts, he was in his mid-20s when he painted a striking picture of this fur merchant in Amsterdam.

-(Nicolaes Ruts) We do not want the Church who, as they say, it changes with the world. We want a church that will change the world. I’ve heard the last few words: There’s just enough of an imperceptible breeze to make matters go away, and what a man was prepared to give up, it suddenly appears as a contentless nonsense.

-(Rembrandt) But the Polish and Lithuanian Commonwealth is also an illusion, the biggest of all. The white race believes with all his heart – that it is their right to conquer the earth. To kill Ukrainians. Make war, kill our brother. The Cossacks killed Bobola, took his skin off him. Such a nation should not exist if there is any justice in the world, because its foundations are murder, theft and cruelty. On the other hand, with the interest we live on earth yet. Still on the ground we are.