Londyński epizod Apolinarego Kątskiego (1838)

The early artistic career of Apolinary Kątski (1824–1879) was that of an infant prodigy – one of the Wunderkinder who (especially in the 19th century) dazzled audiences with their exceptionally well-developed abilities. The Polish virtuoso, unlike many prodigies, did not disappoint the hopes placed in him, going down in history as a distinguished violinist, as well as the founder and longtime director of the Institute of Music in Warsaw. In the author’s opinion, the violinist’s early career requires more thorough discussion. The present article outlines the fortunes of the young Apolinary Kątski in the second half of 1838 – so, directly after his meeting with Niccolò Paganini. This event represented a certain turning point in the development of Kątski’s career. The letter – a peculiar sort of recommendation – drawn up by the Italian virtuoso to rate the young violinist’s playing opened the doors for him to many of Europe’s concert halls and had a favourable effect on his later artistic career. Kątski had the opportunity to see for himself the power of Paganini’s words during his first trip to London, the primary aim of which was to perform before the British Queen, Victoria. The present article describes Kątski’s activities in preparation for this event. It takes up the thread of the reception of the young Kątski’s first performances in the capital of England, as well as his reception by the Polish community resident in London. Beyond this, it discusses the relationship of the Kątski family with journalist and émigré activist Leonard Niedźwiecki, who served as their guide in the salons of the city upon the Thames. Studies of the correspondence of Leonard Niedźwiecki (with, among others, Eustachy Januszkiewicz, who was active in the Polish émigré community in Paris), as well as preliminary research of the foreign press, have permitted us to recreate Apolinary Kątski’s experiences during his first independent artistic journey to London.