Konowalski, Benedykt (1928- )
Mini-Rondo (5:30) 1973 Publisher: PWM (c1975)
Allegro molto-Vivace-Allegro molto
Instrumentation: oboe, clarinet, bassoon
Very light in character, this short work explores rhythmic vitality, coloristic change, with clearly tonal harmonic idiom. The three instruments are evenly balanced in their musical interest and difficulty. The piece is dexterous in tempo and color changes. The running sextuplets and septuplets make this short piece sound brilliant.
The three parts go together easily, and the only concern can be in lining up sextuplets and septuplets.
Grade: IV
Recordings: none
Sheet music source: out of print
Benedykt Konowalsi
Born in Radom on March 21, 1928.
He is a composer, pedagogue, and conductor. In 1952 he graduated from the Warsaw University with a degree in Law, and consecutively in 1953 graduated from PWSM with a degree in education, followed by a degree in composition in 1960. His composition teachers were J. Maklakiewicz and T. Szeligowski. In 1964 he receive a degree in conducting. During the years of 1054-56 he was a manager and conductor of the Air Force Representational Song and Dance Group, and in the following years until 1972 he was a musical manager of the Polish Army Central Artistic Group in Warsaw. Between 1973-74 he was appointed to a vice-dean of the Department of Composition, Conducting and Music Theory at the PWSM. From 1978-87 he had various management roles at that institution and from 1987 he became a full-time professor. He also appeared as a conductor in many prestigious halls around Europe and beyond.
As a composer he concentrated on writing for large-scale instrumental ensembles, vocal-instrumental composition and good amount of a capella music. His compositional output can be divided to two parts. The first part is of contemporary technique writing and the second part is of writing for ballet, operetta and instrumental pieces of utilitarian and patriotic nature.