On January 10, 1993, Adam Aston (actually Adolf Loewinsohn), a Pole of Jewish origin, one of the most popular actors and singers in pre-war Poland, died in London. He sang in Polish, French, Hebrew, Yiddish and twice fought for the independence of Poland.
Adolf Loewinsohn was born in 1902 and spent his childhood in Warsaw. Interested in singing already at the beginning of his education, he could not continue his studies, due to the war between Poland and Soviet Russia in 1919. Loewinsohn had to stop his education and fight the Red Army, which wanted to conquer Poland. In 1920, the Poles miraculously managed to stop the Bolsheviks’ march and thus saved Europe from the felonious communist regime.
In search of the right path
Adolf Loewinsohn was looking for his professional path as a lawyer, dentist, as well as a sales manager. Being successful in the latter occupation, he was still attracted to music. He recorded music and took lessons from famous artists of the Polish scene: Jan Kiepura and Wacław Brzeziński. Soon he was invited to the Wars’s Choir which was extremely respected in pre-war Poland; he was given the nickname “Astoni” (the ace of the tone) and he adopted it as his own surname in 1935.
A great career
Having an absolute pitch Aston was also extraordinarily talented at playing the piano. He dreamed of becoming an opera singer. The artist was considered an extremely warm and gallant man.
He grabbed the Polish audience that could hear him not only on stage, but also on the radio or in the cinema, singing the tango. Aston performed with the most famous Polish actors of that time. He did not forget about his Jewish roots – he also sang in Hebrew and Yiddish.
After being saved from starvation, he fought for his homeland
Following the German invasion of Poland in 1939 and WWII began, he was evacuated to the East. He performed in the USSR and ended up in Soviet Kirghiziaб where he and his wife almost starved to death. They were rescued by a musician friend from the Kyrgyz Philharmonic Orchestra.
Later, he joined the 2nd Army Corps of General Władysław Anders, which is one of the formations of the Polish Armed Forces created outside the occupied Polish territories, on many battlefronts. They were made up of Poles living in different parts of the world that wanted to fight the German Nazis.
Singing and playing occasionally, Aston with this army crossed the Middle East and reached Italy. There, Polish troops took part in many battles against the Germans and their allies. Aniston with other Polish soldiers fought heroically in the Battle of Monte Cassino (1944). After the ferocious combat he performed a song, “Red Poppies at Monte Cassino”.
After the war, he emigrated to London, and later to South Africa, where he took a job at an alcohol factory and then worked in a paper mill. Retired, he returned to Great Britain. Adam Aniston visited Poland, but he rarely gave concerts anymore. He died in London on January 10, 1993.
Source: culture.pl, https://bibliotekapiosenki.pl/