Władysław Kędra

(Łódź, Poland, 1918 – Warsaw, Poland, 1968)

Władysław Kędra was a Polish pianist and music educator. He achieved excellent results in many international competitions, including winning fifth prize at the 4th International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition held in 1949.

In addition to receiving his musical education at the Helena Kijeńska Conservatory in Łódź (now the Grażyna and Kiejstut Bacewicz Academy of Music), he also studied under Ignacy Jan Paderewski at the Conservatoire de Paris. Achieving excellent results, such as winning prizes at competitions in Geneva in 1946 and Warsaw in 1949, he began an international career as a soloist, performing dozens of concerts annually in Europe and America. In 1957, he moved to Vienna and taught at the Academy of Music there.

While his preferred repertoire centered on Chopin's works, he also explored pieces by Liszt, Mendelssohn, and Debussy. With exceptionally high piano technique and outstanding musicality, he could easily perform even the most virtuosic works, and his repertoire comprised over 300 pieces. He was also known for his effortless improvisation on any theme and in any style. In the 1960s, he made numerous recordings of Romantic piano works, primarily by Chopin and Liszt, for record companies in Poland, Germany, and France.

Władysław Kędra passed away at the age of 50 from cancer. In honor of this renowned pianist, the Academy of Music in Łódź regularly hosts the "Władysław Kędra National Piano Competition for Secondary Music Schools."