Fry reads Miłosz
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Date: 31 July 2011
Stephen Fry narrates a free new audiobook celebrating the extraordinary work of the legendary Polish poet Czesław Miłosz. Available with the Times Literary Supplement on 12th August 2011, and free streaming at www.culture.pl and www.polishculture.org.uk.
Celebrating the life and works of one of Poland’s foremost literary icons, Stephen Fry narrates a new audiobook of selected poems by Miłosz, marking the centenary of his birth.
Stephen Fry commented on his involvement in the project: “It
gave me enormous pleasure to read these poems, which I count as amongst the
best written in any language since the war. It would give me even more pleasure
if I thought that this recording might bring Miłosz and his dazzling mixture of
honesty, insight and pure poetic instinct to a wider, English-speaking
readership.”
The newly published
audiobook, alongside a series of talks and events on Miłosz’s life and work,
has been commissioned as part of I,
CULTURE, an international cultural
programme that celebrates Poland’s rich culture and unique creativity during
its EU Presidency, July – December 2011. Presenting over 400 events in 10
capital cities worldwide, I, CULTURE showcases a programme spanning art, design, music, literature, theatre,
film and more.
Miłosz is one of Poland’s
foremost literary icons, having won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1980
amongst many other prestigious literary prizes. Born in 1911 and bearing
witness to the most turbulent period of 20th Century western history, he has
bequeathed to his readers an abundant literary legacy. The engaging new
audiobook focuses on Miłosz’s work as a poet, from his early work in the 1930s
right through to his final years. From war-torn Poland to periods of exile in
France and the USA, it presents a fascinating perspective on Poland’s recent
past through one of Europe’s greatest writers.
During his lifetime, Miłosz
published 17 internationally celebrated collections of poetry. This new
audiobook features 28 poems spanning seven decades, offering a rare, poignant
insight into some of the western world’s most significant events and periods.
Conveying joy and horror, human existence finds a powerful voice in Miłosz’s
words.
Miłosz’s life and work will also be explored through a series of talks and events running between August and November. From a dynamic concert performed by leading Polish band The Poise Rite at London’s HMV Forum, to talks on his work and political life at the Edinburgh International Book Festival, and an international symposium at University College London, Miłosz’s work will be interpreted and discussed in hugely diverse ways.
“You whom I could not save
Listen to me.
Try to understand this simple speech as I would be ashamed of another.
I swear, there is in me no wizardry of words.
I speak to you with silence like a cloud or a tree.”
From Dedication, by Czesław Miłosz
The audiobook will feature 28 poems by Czesław Miłosz, divided chronologically into five thematic parts:
• Part One: Poetry
and Apocalypse
• Part Two: Relocations
• Part Three: Exercises
in Poetry
• Part Four: Earthly
Rituals
• Part Five: Recollections
The audiobook will also
feature an introduction to the poems by journalist and presenter Rosie Goldsmith.
Miłosz Day
On August 18th Miłosz Day, two events at the Edinburgh International Book Festival, will discuss
in depth particular elements of Czesław Miłosz’s poetry:
• Czesław Miłosz and Totalitarianism: philosopher and political scientist John
Gray and Polish literary critic
and academic Michal Pawel Markowski will discuss the political elements to Miłosz’s
work.
• Czesław Miłosz the Poet: Whitbread-winning poet and novelist John
Burnside will discuss Miłosz’s
poetry and translation work alongside Michal
Pawel Markowski and contemporary Polish
poet Adam Zagajewski.
Location: ScottishPower Studio Theatre, Charlotte Square, Edinburgh, EH2 4DR
To Book: visit www.edbookfest.co.uk
Czesław Miłosz: The Mind of a Great Poet
An evening of poetry,
politics and discussion inspired by the life and writings of Czesław Miłosz will be hosted by Poet in the City and the British
Library. Poet and translator David Constantine will chair the evening, which is supported by the Polish Cultural Institute
and the Lithuanian Embassy, London.
Location: British Library
Date: 3rd October 2011
Time: TBC
Admission: Free
To Book: www.bl.uk
Miłosz Hated Rock and Roll
A unique concert will be
performed by The Poise Rite, the first ever Polish band to play at Glastonbury Festival (2007).
The concert combines
fragments of Miłosz’s literature and poetry with fantastic lighting effects and
video projections to create for audiences a unique spectacle of light and sound.
This event will take place at London’s HMV Forum.
The day of the concert will
also see the launch of an extraordinary album inspired by Miłosz’s writing – a
collaborative project between The Poise Rite and rising British talent
Julian Tulk.
Location: HMV Forum, 9-17 Highgate Road, Kentish Town, London, NW5 1JY
Date: 8th October 2011
Time: 7pm
To Book: www.ticketmaster.co.uk
Continued from previous
page
Miłosz International
Symposium
As part of a major
international conference on Polish Literature
since 1989 taking place at University College London 9-11th November 2011, over 40 scholars and critics from Europe and the
US will gather to discuss key developments in Polish literature since the end
of Communism, including an exploration of the significant role Czesław Miłosz
played within that milieu. The symposium will also draw on gender and gay
studies, Jewish affairs, modern polish literature, theatre and translation.
The symposium is organised
by UCL School of Slavonic and East European
Studies, the Polish Institute in
London and the Polish Book Institute in Krakow.
Location: University College London
Date: 9th November 2011
Time: TBC
Admission: Free
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Issued by Idea Generation IG Contact Details
T. +44 (0)20 7749 6850 Emily Airton: emily.airton@ideageneration.co.uk
www.ideageneration.co.uk Tani Burns: tani.burns@ideageneration.co.uk
To Book: www.events.ucl.ac.uk
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