Tadeusz Sygietyński

(1896 Warsaw [Poland] – 1955 Warsaw [Poland])

Tadeusz Sygietyński was a Polish composer, conductor, and educator. He was the founder of the "Mazowsze" National Folk Song and Dance Ensemble, Poland's most renowned dance company.

Sygietyński studied music theory and composition at the music school attached to the Galician Music Society in Lviv (now Lviv, Ukraine). At a young age, he also served as a choir répétiteur at the Lviv Opera House. In 1911, he returned to his birthplace, Warsaw, and continued his studies at the Music College (later the Warsaw Conservatory), where he was taught by Henryk Melcer, Zygmunt Noskowski, and others. He further honed his skills in Vienna and Leipzig under the tutelage of Max Reger, Hugo Riemann, and Arnold Schoenberg. In 1913, his Cantata for the 100th Anniversary of the Death of Prince Józef Poniatowski was performed publicly for the first time.

Tadeusz Sygietyński was active as a conductor of vocal ensembles in many countries across Europe. He was also the founder of the Philharmonic in Dubrovnik (now Croatia). Upon returning to Warsaw in 1926, he secured a position at Polish Radio, where he was involved in the production and direction of radio dramas and musical plays.

During World War II, Sygietyński spent his time as a piano accompanist for his wife, who was a singer. During the occupation, he began to work on his greatest dream: the establishment of a folk dance ensemble. After years of preparation and countless visits to Polish villages, he founded the "Mazowsze" ensemble in 1948. For this ensemble, Sygietyński composed dozens of songs and dance pieces featuring characteristics of folk songs and dances, and also arranged well-known Polish folk songs.

During the founder's lifetime, the "Mazowsze" National Folk Song and Dance Ensemble performed extensively in various countries in Central and Western Europe, including the Soviet Union, East Germany, and Czechoslovakia. Although Tadeusz Sygietyński passed away in 1955, "Mazowsze" has continued to perform on stages worldwide without interruption.