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| Walter and Danuta Buczynski |
When Walter met Danuta in Warsaw in 1960 there was a kind of curiosity, but not it seems, love at first sight. Within three months, however, the young couple — he a Canadian scholarship student in music and she a multilingual representative of the state assigned to look after such foreigners — found that they liked each other quite well enough to get married. Time being the test of such things, we may assume that it was the real McCoy. Speaking this week in the charming home on Belsize Drive they have owned for 43 years, Walter and Danuta Buczynski reflected on their productive life together. Walter Buczynski’s distinguished career as a composer, academic and musician is part of Canada’s music history. Until his retirement, Mr. Buczynski was the head of the music department at the University of Toronto. In recent weeks he has turned 80. It is a busy and productive time for the active piano artist as colleagues and friends organize concerts to celebrate the landmark. The next one, for those who care to drop in, is Sunday, April 13, 2014 at the Heliconian Hall at 35 Hazelton Ave. At home, Mr. Buczynski continues to compose. As her family matured, Danuta Buczynski volunteered at the Royal Ontario Museum. Her social, artistic and language skills were useful to the organization and now, 27 years later, she spends engaging hours in the service of the ROM as a trustee of the museum. William Littler has written an entertaining article about Walter Buczynski in the Toronto Star.
