Born: 1897, Lodz, Poland
Died: 1986, Paris, France

“It is obvious that I owe much to France, but anyone who has ever heard my compositions cannot have doubt that I have been, am, and forever will be a Polish composer.”

A virtuoso pianist as well as a composer, Alexandre Tansman settled in Paris in 1920, where he became a prominent musical figure. He toured around the world as a pianist, including performances of his two piano concertos with Serge Koussevitzky and the Boston Symphony Orchestra. He composed prolifically in most genres—including seven operas, nine symphonies, and eight string quartets—in a generally neoclassical style much influenced by Stravinsky and Ravel, while drawing on his Polish and Jewish heritage. His guitar music was inspired by Segovia, and conductors who championed his music include Toscanini, Mengelberg, Stokowski, and Monteux.

Further listening: Symphony No. 4 (1939) performed by the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra and conductor Oleg Caetani (Chandos); Suite in Modo Polonico (1962) performed by guitarist Andrés Segovia (Deutsche Grammophon)