Never in the history of Polish music has there been a period like the one that followed World War II. No other era has given the world so many outstanding composers and so many talented works in all kinds of musical genres. Polish music asserted itself on the world scene as independent, distinct, and creatively important phenomenon.

First published in English in 1991, Musical Life in Poland outlines the general trends of the evolution of postwar music in Poland by periods. The author discusses in detail the specifics of national traditions of Polish culture and art, beginning with the purely Polish romantic and expressive tradition and ending with the powerful influence of Catholicism on art. She introduces a large group of talented composers and their artistically valuable works to the English-speaking reader and comprehensively covers musical culture in Poland.