On September 22-28, in the Museum’s future Resource Center, visitors will be able to view and try out “LutoScratch” – a unique installation employing the composition technique of Witold Lutosławski.

Vernissage: September 21st, 5.00 pm.

The latest project of Paweł Janicki, an artist connected with the WRO Art Center, was inspired by the output of Witold Lutosławski, whose centenary is being celebrated this year.

Janicki’s installation is based on the idea of controlled aleatorism, a composition technique created by Witold Lutosławski. The method involves resignation from the common metric structure, binding for all performers. Consequently, the composer merely marks the pitch of consecutive sounds on the score, allowing the performers to freely assume the tempo of their rendition. This means that musicians perform their respective parts according to the precisely marked sounds, yet in a tempo of their own choosing.

The project of the Wrocław art center utilizes the audiovisual recording of the performance of a percussion piece created for the purposes of the installation. The recording begins with a short invocation – Lutosławski’s text on aleatorism and its governing principles. The registered audio material is played on three screens connected to gramophones, controlled by visitors. By moving the gramophone record, they can moderate the effects and tempo of the recording. Slowing, stopping or accelerating the rotation of the record, as well as touching it, scratching its surface or repositioning the arm of the gramophone – all these techniques enable the visitors to “perform” the piece on their own. At the same time, the possibility to experiment offered to any given number of people provides them with a sense of “collective” performance, encouraging interaction among the audience. Thus, the installation explicates the idea of controlled aleatorism in a very accessible way. Thanks to its interactive character, the visitors can also make use of the installation’s additional sound effects available via mobile devices (tablets, smartphones) by using a special online application.

Installation team:

Piotr Krajewski (WRO Art Center) curator
Paweł Janicki idea
Ania Ejsmont, Paweł Janicki visual idea
Tomasz Lewandowski cinematography
Bogusław Szetela photography
Bogusław Skiba sound recording
Ryszard Gawęda lighting
Paweł Janicki installation programming
Ania Ejsmont post-production

The Warsaw Autumn International Festival of Contemporary Music is the only Polish festival of international rank and renown dedicated to contemporary music, for many years the only festival of this kind in Central and Eastern Europe. The Museum of the History of Polish Jews is proud to host events that are part of the 56th edition of the festival.

Read about other festival events at the Museum:

21 September – Panel discussion “Polska. Music. NOW”

24 September – Concert of the For Tune® Publishing House

“LutoScratch” exhibition held as part of the 56^th “Warsaw Autumn” International Festival of Contemporary Music.

Installation coorganized in cooperation with the Adam Mickiewicz Institute.
Co-financed by the Polska Music Programme.
Audiovisual components recorded on April 15, 2013 at the ATM SA studio in Wrocław.
Instrument  lent by the Grażyna Bacewicz Music School in Wrocław.