Piotr Hertel as a Composer of Cartoons Soundtracks

Piotr Hertel (1936–2010)—a composer of film, theatrical and stage music (among others the hit Parasolka to words of Janusz Słowikowski). He is the author of music for numerous cartoons made in the animation studio Se-Ma-For in Łódź, including soundtracks for legendary TV series Miś Uszatek and Plastusiowy pamiętnik. The aim of the article is to characterize music composed by Hertel for the above-mentioned as well as several other movies in the context of his views on the role of music in cartoons and his compositional technique. The broader knowledge on this topic was gained thanks to the interview made with the members of Hertel’s family: his wife Jadwiga and son Michał.