Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli in Warsaw 1955

A Polish "Kalendar" of 1956 reviewed the Chopin Competition of the previous year, from which this extract is taken.

'Each of these artists [the adjudicators in the competition] is a greatness in their own right, whether Kentner, Oborin, Levy, or others. But among them, the brilliant Italian pianist Benedetti Michelangeli, a true Michelangelo among pianists, shone with extraordinary brilliance. Polish reviewers simply lacked words to describe the greatness of this artist. Apart from his technique, which knows no difficulty (Michelangeli plays 26 piano concertos), reviewers unanimously praise his unique approach to performed masterpieces, where beauty takes centre stage and the evocativeness of his execution is something incredible. "It's about extracting the beauty enchanted in sounds, and this extraction manifests itself in an almost refined perfection."

Ale wśród nich zabłysnął blaskiem niecodziennym genialny artysta włoski, pianista Benedetto Michelangeli, który wśród pianistów jest prawdziwym Michałem Aniołem.

'As mentioned, approximately 140 young pianists from around the world entered the competition. A distinctive feature of last year's competition was the relatively large number of young artists of color, Chinese, Japanese, and even representatives of Ceylon. The 80 pianists who entered the first qualifying round were the culmination of students from the world's best music schools and with the best professors. They underwent a rigorous selection process in Poland before being admitted to the Polonia Hotel in Warsaw, where the competitors were accommodated. The six Soviet representatives were selected from among the 300 best pianists of the young Soviet generation. The Polish team was also chosen after several rounds of selection and after attending special training camps, where the young pianists were given the opportunity to prepare in ideal conditions under the best guidance to meet the extremely high demands of the competition.'

KAROL HŁAWICZKA

Wielkie święto Chopina ("The great celebration of Chopin')

Kalendarz Zwrotu 1956 (in Polish), p.93