Cantabile

The set’s title can be interpreted in two ways. Firstly, in Cantabile, I provided guitarists with arrangements of songs by Polish composers, which secondly, allows them to grow their cantilena skills.

My arrangements don’t aim at mimicking the original, as I’d rather capture the character of each song. I also choose techniques which will allow for an effortless performance and smooth phrasing. To achieve that, I sometimes go for bolder choices, a practice described in more detail in the "Methodology" section. Some of the songs have roots in folk music. You will find a sorrowful kujawiak, energetic mazurkas, and a feisty oberek. There are also some lighter, salon-style choices, musical jokes, and also more nostalgic, unusually expressive compositions.

Miniatures are independent compositions. However, I strongly recommend to start working on them by learning the original: listen to the recording, read the lyrics, maybe even hum the song. This will trigger the imagination and suggest ideas for phrasing, as well as how to perform dynamics and agogic changes, including a typical rubato for romantic songs.

I am sure that the diverse character of the songs and the nature of arrangements will allow everybody to explore the wealth of possibilities open to a guitarist and push players to search for new expressive narratives. Let the guitar sing.

I would like to thank Jadwiga Wołek for inspiration, Jadwiga Kubieniec and Marcin Kowalczyk for their considerable support, and Maria Korzeniowska for performing the miniatures during the International Guitar Festival in Lanckorona in 2024.