Engaging Cultural Ideologies offers a recontextualization of the effects of Poland's cultural practices, especially those concerning issues such as nationalism, elitism, and race, on the genesis and performance of contemporary Polish compositions from 1918 to 1956. Based on extensive archival research that includes the first comprehensive examination of concert programs in Poland as well as a series of case studies focused on composers' challenges in the midst of nearly constant turmoil, Bylander brings fresh insights into the public and private power struggles concerning artistic freedom that were animated by similar points of contention across seemingly diverse historical eras.