A guide to the songs of Poldowski (Lady Dean Paul) 1879-1932

Poldowski (Irène Dean Paul née Wieniawska) 1879-1932 was the youngest daughter of the celebrated violinist/composer, Henryk Wieniawski. The only member of her family to follow her father into the music profession, she developed from a child prodigy into one of the most important and successful female composers in the United Kingdom. Like so many of her sister composers, her legacy has suffered the fate of neglect until a recent revival in interest. Poldowski's most successful composition genre is the solo art song, comprising mostly settings of texts by the French poet, Paul Verlaine. She displays an innate ability to realize the text within her own distinctive style with echoes of influence of her French counterparts, namely Fauré and Debussy. This book includes the most complete biography to date of this highly individual, colourful (and sometimes controversial) musician. A study of her relationship with the poetry of Verlaine precedes a discussion of each of the published songs, concentrating mainly on a description of the structure, the role of the piano and most importantly, a commentary on the musico-poetic relationship with details of reception/reaction where known.