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Poet, singer, composer Leszek Długosz dies at 82

23.03.2024 20:35
Leszek Długosz, an acclaimed poet, singer and composer, died on Saturday at his home in Kraków, aged 82. He was suffering from cancer.
Leszek Długosz in the Radio 2 studio.
Leszek Długosz in the Radio 2 studio. Photo: Grzegorz Śledź/Polish Radio 2

A man of many talents, Długosz was also an actor, pianist, author of scripts to documentary films and television programmes, contributor to several periodicals and broadcaster.

Born in Zaklików, southern Poland, in 1941, Długosz moved to Kraków to study at the Polish Studies Department of the Jagiellonian University and has since lived there, becoming an inseparable part of the city’s artistic life. He was a co-founder and one of the legendary figures of Kraków's famous ‘Cellar under the Rams’ literary cabaret.


In the late 1970s, he embarked on a solo career giving song recitals across Poland as well as in Austria, France, Sweden, Canada and the United States. His songs were settings to his own verse and to poems by such prominent writers as Krzysztof Kamil Baczyński, Julian Tuwim, Stanisław Baliński, Jerzy Liebert and Andrzej Bursa.

Since making his debut as a poet in 1973, Długosz published over a dozen volumes of poetry. His discography comprises ten LPs and CDs.

His numerous honours included the Commander’s Cross of the Order of Reborn Poland, the Silver Gloria Artis Medal of Merit for Culture and the Polish Radio’s Honorary Golden Microphone.

Two years ago, on his 80th birthday, Długosz received the Order of the White Eagle, the highest Polish state distinction:

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