He is the Bach of our age... The composer of deep, serene music that makes you feel like something is stuck in your throat and a deep sadness covers your heart when you listen to his music...
Zbigniew Preisner (born 20 May 1955 in Bielsko-Biała Poland) is a Polish composer.
Preisner became known for the compositions he composed for the films of his compatriot, the master director Krzysztof Kieslowski. In addition to his compositions for the short film series Dekalog, prepared for Polish state television, The Double Life of Veronika, Three Colours: Blue, Three Colours: White, and Three Colours: Red, he composed music for many films and documentaries. He composed music for Louis Malle's Damage, Luis Mandoki's When A Man Loves A Woman, Agnieszka Holland's Secret Garden, and Charles Sturridge's Fairytale: A True Story. Requiem For My Friend, which he composed for his colleague and close friend Krzysztof Kieslowski, is an elegy. Zbigniew Preisner, who received awards at many festivals, lives in Warsaw, the capital of Poland.
Life story
The real name of Polish composer Zbigniew Preisner, who lives in Warsaw, is Zbigniew Antoni Kowalski. The artist, who used the pseudonym 'Van Den Budenmayer' in many films, started music when he was in his twenties. Preisner, who studied philosophy and history at the University of Krakow, was influenced by his country's 19th-century composers and became one of the doyens of our age in film music, focusing on melody rather than words.
PREISNER AND KIESLOWSKI
Zbigniew Preisner is a name well known not only by music lovers but also by cinema lovers. He is the close friend of his compatriot, the master director Krzysztof Kieslowski, and the composer of the music for his 17 films. These include the ten-part 'Dekalog' short film series for Polish public television; 'The Double Life of Veronique (1991)', 'Three Colours: Blue (1993)', 'Three Colours: White (1994)' and 'Three Colours: Red (1994)'. 'Requiem For My Friend', which the artist composed in memory of his friend Kieslowski, who died as a result of heart surgery in 1996 and whose pain he still feels in his heart, is a real elegy as its name suggests. There is hardly a single sentence that goes by without mentioning Preisner's friend; “It wasn't about working with him. What was important was our sincere friendship and our mutual frequency. “We enjoyed coming together and worked to realize the same dreams.”
Zbigniew Preisner (born 20 May 1955 as Zbigniew Antoni Kowalski) is a Polish film score composer, best known for his work with film director Krzysztof Kieślowski. He is the recipient of the Gold Medal for Merit to Culture – Gloria Artis as well as the Knight's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta. He is a member of the French Film Academy.
Diaries of Hope is the first music Preisner composed in memory of the Holocaust; “Diaries of Hope is not a soundtrack; In this work, I brought together different types of music, including elegy, and I like working this way. Years ago, I went to the Jerusalem Film Festival with my friend Kieslowski. An exhibition at the Yad Vashem Museum that we visited there impressed us greatly. The diaries of two Polish children, Dawid Rubinowicz and Rutka Laskier, and the poems of Polish Abram Koplowicz and Abram Cytryn, which we saw in this exhibition dedicated to the 1.5 million Jewish children who died during the Second World War, made us feel sad. While one of them was talking about their dreams, the other was saying that only death awaited them, but they were still full of hope. Then Kieslowski said to me, 'These events should not be forgotten, make music for this.' Here, 'Diaries of Hope' is a reflection of what I felt there... I was only able to write this music two years ago. To become stronger and more hopeful... No matter how much time passes, such pains are not forgotten. We must understand history well and learn lessons.
The premiere of the album was held in London in 2013. It will be an unforgettable, different, and theatrical concert, almost like a movie that has not been shot...
THE MUSIC I WRITE IS THE MUSIC I WANT TO LISTEN TO
Zbigniew Preisner started making film music about 40 years ago. The first starting point was political cabarets. Sometimes he also composes non-film music. He shows the Requiem he made for Kieslowski as the first example of this. He explains that he can only compose for whatever reason if he is motivated and feels like it. He does not use any musical instruments while working. He hears his incredible music with his heart, not with his ears. A pen and a piece of paper are enough for him. His biggest source of inspiration is literature, life, and emotions... He likes to listen to Adele and Radiohead. He explains his motto in life with the sentence "Existing is enough".
Preisner stated that not being able to control technology regarding the future scares him; “We believe in technology rather than God; We don't write letters, we don't talk, we don't look into each other's eyes anymore. We are always in such a hurry. One day, someone will turn off the satellites and everything will collapse. I expect the bankruptcy of technology. "I bought an eight-acre plot of land, I will plant potatoes and raise goats," he says.
In my opinion, sadness is another name for Preisner's music; When it's my turn, I first ask this to the famous Jewish composer; “Some people are born pessimists and some are born optimists. I am one of those born pessimistic. This is not something I can control. "I believe that optimists spend this life better," he answers.
Poland is a country that was most affected by the Second World War and where many death camps were established. These places still exist today. My question: How did this situation affect your music? “Of course, it had a great impact, especially literary works about that period are my starting point… I have only been to Auschwitz twice in my life. "After seeing that place, a person somehow vomits out the ugliest and deepest feelings of hatred that are hidden inside him," he said.