Between 1891-1896 he studied composition under Zygmunt Noskowski and violin under Stanisław Barcewicz at the Musical Institute in Warsaw. He started his career as a violinist shortly after graduation. In 1896 he was involved in the Orchestra of the Grand Theater in Warsaw, where he worked until 1904, and from 1901 he was also the concertmaster of the Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra. During this period he also successfully worked as a composer. In 1898 he received the first prize of the Ignacy Jan Paderewski Composers Competition for his Sonata in A minor, Op. 2 for violin and piano (1894), and in 1901 he won in Warsaw the first prize of the Count M. Zamoyski Competition for his Trio in F minor, Op.10 for violin, cello and piano (1901). In the 1904-05 season he made his debut as a conductor at the Warsaw Philharmonic.
In 1905, together with Karol Szymanowski, Ludomir Różycki and Apolinary Szeluto, he founded the Młoda Polska (Young Poland) composer group and the Spółka Nakładowa Młodych Kompozytorów Polskich (Company of Young Polish Composers, sponsored by Prince Władysław Lubomirski, aimed at promoting contemporary Polish music. Fitelberg was a conductor of the first concerts organised by the group. In 1908-1911 he worked as a conductor of the Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra and then at the Hofoper in Vienna in the 1912/13 season.
He spent in Russia the years between 1914-1921 – initially in Petrograd (1914-19), later in Moscow. He conducted the orchestras of the Musical Theatre, Mariinsky Theatre, and Mikhailovsky Theatre in Petrograd, as well as the State Orchestra (from 1917) and the Grand Theater Orchestra in Moscow (1920/21 season). From 1921 to 1924 he was the conductor of Sergei Diaghilev's Ballets Russes, that he performed with, among others, in Paris, London, Brussels, and Monte Carlo. From 1923 to 1934 he was again the principal conductor of the Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra.
He was also engaged in pedagogical activities – between 1927 and 30 he lectured in conducting at the Warsaw Conservatory. In 1934 he founded the Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra in Warsaw, which he led until 1939. in 1837 he performed with the Orchestra at the World Exhibition in Paris in, where they won a gold medal.
After the outbreak of World War II, Grzegorz Fitelberg left Warsaw and moved to Paris in November 1939. A year later he went to Buenos Aires, where in the 1940/41 season he was a conductor at the Teatro Colón. He spent the next years of the war – 1942-45 – in the United States. He was mainly involved in instrumentation and conducting, but also gave concerts, e.g. in New York, as well as in Montreal and Toronto.
He returned to Europe in 1946, and in the following year he was the head of the Great Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra in Katowice. In 1950-51 he was also a professor at the State Higher School of Music in Katowice.
Grzegorz Fitelberg was awarded the Order of the Officer's Cross Polonia Restituta (1928), Order of the Golden Cross of Merit (1932), Order of the Commander Polonia Restituta (1947) and Order of the First Class Labour Medal (1950). In 1951 he received the First Degree State Prize.
Since 1980 the National Composers' Competition and the International Conducting Competition named after him have taken place in Katowice.
Fitelberg also studied the violin. His teacher at the Warsaw Music Institute was one of the most famous Polish violinists – Stanisław Barcewicz. He also graduated in composition studies under the direction of renowned Polish composer Zygmunt Noskowski. Barcewicz set up his pupil as a violinist in the opera’s orchestra, from where soon Fitelberg stepped into the post of the bandmaster of the second violin group of the Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra. But composition was more attractive to him, and in this field he became more successful.
He was even a promising composer, He won prizes in competitions, and Adolf Chybiński, a great Polish musicologist wrote about his most eminent piece, the symphonic poem Song of a Falcon, Op. 18 from 1905:
After listening to Falcon three times, an uncontrollable urge to listen to it constantly appears, all the more, as the work reveals its more uncommon beauty, the magnificent manifestation of the victory of the free spirit over slavery and humiliation. Fitelberg knows the orchestra well and knows how to get out of it the deep emotions that pierce the bone – everything he writes, testifies at every turn, that the composer does not illustrate Gorky's poem in an emotionless way, but he creates under the pressure of inner necessity: it is music written with cordial blood. The work of Fitelberg-artist is a marvellous instrumentation, an endlessly interesting subject (combining several motifs) and, in particular, highly sophisticated harmonisation, which nevertheless does not seem to be artificial.
However, when Fitelberg performed as conductor at the Warsaw Philharmonic in the 1904/1905 season, leading the world premiere of his 1st Symphony in E minor, Op. 16, he was bitten by the conducting bug. He continued his compositional work until 1914, but won international fame as conductor. And as a conductor he would serve Polish music in an unprecedented way. Witold Lutoslawski, shorty after Fitelberg’s death, described his attitude towards the new Polish art:
With curiosity, sometimes enthusiasm, he refers to every new score in which he sees the manifestations of talent. The great majority of Polish premiere performances are under Fitelberg's conduct. It is possible that many of his works have been performed at all thanks to him, taking into consideration the other conductors’ reluctance, and often incompetence in relation to new Polish works. Fitelberg’s talent, his great knowledge of contemporary musical language, his enthusiasm for new works, for a truly creative attempt, was a huge encouragement for young composers. In relation to the young Polish music Fitelberg acted as a true propaganda institution, without which it would be difficult for the creators to develop their talents at that time and gain the necessary experience. Without any exaggeration it can be said that Fitelberg has a huge share in the Polish composer's achievements of that time. (…) It is important to realize that it was only through the activity of Fitelberg that Polish contemporary music began to be known in the world. One could even doubt that the work of Karol Szymanowski would pave the way for the world concert stage by the fact that it was printed by Universal Edition, if not so frequent, full of artistry, and suggestiveness of its performance by Fitelberg on dozens of stages in Europe and America.
In 1948, Fitelberg, together with the Great Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra in Katowice, premiered Symphony No. 1 by Lutosławski. In 1975 the composer recalled:
With the proper fervour, [Fitelberg] prepares the premiere of my first symphony, which is also my first symphony of the larger size, the piece – a sum of many previous years – and as such has been of prime importance to me at the time. This is the time when, for the majority of the orchestra members playing cadence 3/4 followed by 5/8 is an unnecessary quirk, and a chord with more than 5 different sounds (and – God forbid – more than one small second) – an unbearable annoyance for the player's hearing. It is easy to imagine how my orchestra meets my symphony during the first rehearsals. I had a vague feeling that instead of long-awaited satisfaction there was an unknown and painful affliction. And yet … The orchestra, perhaps having followed Fitelberg's unwavering convictions, comes in countless attempts to perform the score with great precision, performs the piece repeatedly in Poland and abroad, and, to me, the most precious of all, expresses the appreciation through their corypheuses.
Selected compositions:
- Romans bez słów D-dur op. 11" / Romance without Words in D major, Op. 11 for violin and piano (1892)
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Sonata No. 1 in A minor for violin and piano, Op. 2 (1894)
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Berceuse for violin and piano (1897)
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Chanson triste for piano (before 1900)
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Mazurek for violin and piano (1900)
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Romans bez słów A-dur op. 11" / Romance without Words in A major, Op.11 for violin and piano (1900)
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Trio F minor for violin, viola and piano, Op. 10 (1901)
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Sonata No. 2 in F major for violin and piano, Op. 12 (1901)
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Concert in D minor for violin and orchestra, Op. 13 (1903)
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Canzoneta for symphonic orchestra (1903)
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Symphony No. 1 in E minor, Op. 16 for symphonic orchestra (1904)
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Four Songs for Voice and Piano, Op. 23 (1905-07)
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Song of a Falcon, Op. 18, a symphonic poem for major orchestra (1905)
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Prelude and Song 'Swan' Op. 19 for voice and piano (1906)
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Kennst du das Land, a song for voice and piano (1906)
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Wiosną op. 17 / In Spring, Op. 17", overture for orchestra (1906)
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Vor meinem Fenster… for voice and piano (1907)
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Abend for voice and piano (1907)
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Schlafend trägt man mich… for voice and piano (1907)
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Six Songs for voice and piano, Op. 22 (1907)
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Five Songs for voice and piano, Op. 21 (1907)
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Symphony No. 2 in A major, Op. 20 for symphonic orchestra (1907)
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Meine Lippen… for voice and piano (1907)
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Über die Welt hin… for voice and piano (1907)
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Melancholies for voice and piano (1907)
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Protesilas and Laodamia, Op. 24 for voice and orchestra (1908)
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Polish Rhapsody, Op. 25 for major orchestra (1913)
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Songs, Op. 27 and Op. 28 (1914)
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Rhapsody No. 2 for orchestra (1914)
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W Głębi Morza op. 26 / Deep Down the Sea, Op. 26, a musical image in the form of overture for major orchestra (1914)
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Recitativ for clarinet and piano (1918)
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Marsz Radosny / Joyful March for symphonic orchestra (1953)
Polish Music Information Center, Polish Composers' Union, July 2002.