The Instrumental Music of the Parish Church Band of St. Jadwiga Śląska in Grodzisk Wielkopolski

Abstract

The preserved musical pieces of 18th-century church music bands indicate that their repertoire included not only sacred works, but also instrumental pieces. A very popular genre were those called symphonies. One such resource for instrumental works are the notes from the music band of the parish of St. Jadwiga Śląska in Grodzisk Wielkopolski.

The authors of the extant symphonies were foreign composers from the Mannheim school, as well as “mature classical” circles. For native Polish composers, they were a model for the creation of instrumental pieces. Symphonies, as was the custom of the time, were also performed during the liturgy. Thus, we can talk of a phenomenon called the church symphony.