The world-famous Polish pianist and composer active in France, Miłosz Magin (1929-1999), is buried at Père-Lachaise Cemetery, in section 13, near the tomb of Fryderyk Chopin. Together with his wife, Idylia, who is buried at his side, he initiated the Milosz Magin International Piano Competition in 1985, which is held every two years in Paris.

The story of Magin's tireless struggle

A pupil of the eminent pianist Margerita Trombini-Kazuro in piano and composition classes with Kazimierz Sikorski and Jan Maklakiewicz, Miłosz Magin rose to prominence as a pianist in the 1950s, succeeding in the Fifth Chopin Competition in Warsaw, the Marguerite Long - Jacques Thibaud Competition in Paris and the Vianna da Motta Competition in Lisbon. His recovery from a horrific car accident in 1963, during which, among other things, he broke his left wrist, was followed by crowds of admirers. After a five-year rehabilitation, Magin resumed his career, completely modifying his playing technique. In the decades that followed, he tirelessly divided his time between composition, interpreting Polish and French music and pedagogical work.

Gravestone description

The grave site is marked by a rectangular slab with a double mitre, at the head of which is a near-square stele with a single mitre. The slab is made in two textures - smooth and rough. On the front there is a slab with an engraved inscription in Polish 'honouring his memory'. The stele bears a rectangular bronze plaque with the image of the deceased in profile, with his hand supporting his chin, by the French contemporary sculptor, A. Bernard, and the engraved inscription below: MILOSZ MAGIN / PIANISTE COMPOSITEUR / 1929 - 1999 (MILOSZ MAGIN / PIANISTE COMPOSITOR / 1929 - 1999) and IDALIA MAGIN / 1931-2020.