Krzysztof Komeda (1931-1969) was born Krzysztof Trzciński in Częstochowa. He chose a stage name to distance his show business work from his career in medicine, where he earned a degree as a doctor specializing in otolaryngology. After the end of World War II, he became interested in jazz music and founded the Komeda Sextet, the first Polish ensemble to play modern jazz. He is best known for his work scoring Roman Polanski’s films such as Knife in the Water and Rosemary’s Baby. He was killed in Los Angeles as a result of being pushed off an escarpment during a drunken party.