The Lutoslawski Legacy

Abstract

The question of the place of Lutoslawski in the history of the 20th century is answered by placing him among the "great composers" with an argument for such a placement based on five themes which operate together in an elaborate counterpoint: musical integrity; moral integrity; search and struggle; consummate technique; and individual voice. These five themes encapsulate many aspects of the Lutoslawski Legacy, illustrated with examples from sketches of Les Espaces du Sommeil, and references to many other works. Eight research questions are posited, outlining the future directions in Lutoslawski research, concerning the comparison of his technique to that of his contemporaries, the antecedents to his use of melodic interval pairings, the reinterpretation of his technique by younger composers, the existence and publication of video recordings of the composer as conductor, and other issues.