1963 Krzysztof Komeda “Ballet Etudes / The Music Of Komeda - A Jazz Message From Poland” on Metronome

Pressed out of Denmark, as I presume things were not so open-minded culturally in Warsaw at the time. Which makes this record all that more remarkable. I am a giddy schoolgirl fan of Komeda in every aspect, a status that began while screening the Polanski film “Knife In The Water” in college. And by screening I mean that my work/study job was as a projectionist at the campus theater. Yup, real (reel?) film back then, lightbulbs and leaders and sprockets. It wasn’t easy, with all the ancient, overheated equipment and switching reels seamlessly on the fly, which is to say, it was never seamless. Back then the audience could smoke cigs and swill beer in their seats, and people cursed and threw popcorn during any mishap, often threatening the projectionist for things beyond the projectionist’s control. Fortunately I am a large human being, and no pun intended, carried a knife on my belt for emergency splices. Also, the projection booth was locked, except for those who knew the special knock. In any case, “Knife In The Water” is one of the most beautifully photographed films I’ve ever seen, regardless of the fact that Polanski has been canceled, and so scoring the film, which has almost no dialog, must have been a truly Herculean task.

​I didn’t really even pay attention the movie (bad sight lines) the first time, because I was so enthralled with the music. (The theater had La Scalas bolted to the ceiling!) Hey, did you know Komeda’s real name is Krzysztof Trzciński? And that he does not believe in socialist encroachment, or short album titles? I was going to write a serious review because I love this record so much, but find I am unable to. Cowardly? Yes. But I’d need 10,000 words to do it justice. Also, I paid too much for it as it headlined my wantlist forever, just missing out on eBay or passing as WAY too expensive while the price doubled again and again until it disappeared from the market entirely. Hey, as my grandfather always said, “Son, it’s impossible to overpay for genius.”