This is the first studio recording of an excellent work by Karol Szymanowski in the history of phonography, recorded on behalf of Polish Radio 2 by the National Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra in Katowice in 2011.

The recording featured outstanding soloists, including: Wiesław Ochman, Marcin Bronikowski, Rafał Bartmiński, Ewa Biegas, Urszula Kryger, Adam Kruszewski, Piotr Kusiewicz, Anna Lubańska, Camerata Silesia and the National Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra in Katowice conducted by Michał Klauza.

Karol Szymanowski created the operetta in 1908-1909. He began composing it after completing the two-movement Symphony No. 1 in F minor, which he self-ironically called a contrapuntal-harmonic-orchestral monster. This “monstrosity” showed the struggle of the brilliant author with thoughtless critics, which was also partly due to the “jagged” expositions of the Viennese waltz appearing in the second part, whose various incarnations were about to fill the score of Husband Lottery to the brim. The Lottery score also provides excellent examples of musical parody and pastiche. Szymanowski, as a melodist, presenting an absolutely exquisite form in Lottery, would not be himself, however, if he did not organize his score a bit too much for an operetta, overloaded in terms of instrumentation and casting (as many as 14 solo parts, not counting the choir!) in a symphonic way, somewhat reminiscent of his the modernist First Symphony. Certainly, the librettist's father, Piotr Maszyński, was right when, after studying the piano reduction of Szymanowski's operetta, he wrote in a private letter to his son: "(...) the whole partition (...) is full of new effects, worthy of the most serious music in some of its parts. Beautiful, original melodies are covered with an intricate lace of polyphony and counterpoint. Returning to the symphonic idiom after completing the Lottery (and Szymanowski later began working on Symphony No. 2, even more complicated than the First) was not difficult in his case, although writing a seemingly problem-free operetta took him well over a year.

Lottery for Husbands or Fiancé No. 69 - operetta in 3 acts

Libretto: Julian Krzewiński (aka by Julian Maszyński)