i taught 10- and 11-year-olds at a school suburb of Rydułtowy, in southern Poland.

[18] In 1952, he
began a teacher training course at the Intermediate School of Music in Rybnik, where he studied
clarinet, violin, piano, and music theory. Through intensive studying Górecki finished the four-year
course in just under three years. During this time he began to compose his own pieces, mostly songs
and piano miniatures. Occasionally he attempted more ambitious projects—in 1952 he adapted the
Adam Mickiewicz ballad Świtezianka, though his work was left unfinished.[22] However, life for
the composer during this time was often difficult. Teaching posts were generally badly paid, while
the shortage economy made manuscript paper at times difficult and expensive to acquire. With no
access to radio, Górecki kept up to date with music by weekly purchases of such periodicals as
Ruch muzyczny