Other collections

In 1994, the Centre expanded its collection by adding valuable source materials from the family archive of Paderewski's secretaries, Aniela and Sylwin Strakacz and Helena Lübke. The documents were donated to the Centre by Anna Strakacz-Appleton (1922-2015), the daughter of Paderewski's secretary. This collection contains photographs, letters, journals and other documents including biographical information on Paderewski and information about the pianist's activity in the last period of his life.

In 2001, documents that were previously unknown in Poland, such as the typescripts of Paderewski's speeches from World War II (as well as a considerable amount of his speeches from the period before the war), were donated to the Centre. The items came from the collection of the Polish Arts and Culture Foundation and were gifted by Wanda Tomczykowska, a Chairperson of the Foundation and a very distinguished activist on behalf of the Polish community abroad.

In the same year, the Centre received the most valuable donation, the collection of young Paderewski's letters to his father and to Helena Górska, who was the pianist's dearest friend and who later became his second wife. These letters are, first and foremost, a source of information about Paderewski's early years and about previously unknown aspects of his work and the development of the novice virtuoso's career as a pianist. The letters, which have been permanently deposited in the Jagiellonian Library, were analysed by Małgorzata Perkowska-Waszek, and will be published.