The Buckingham Hotel on West 57th Street next to Steinway Hall and across from Carnegie Hall is one of the great hotels of musical lore in America. The great Ignacy Jan Paderewski, once Prime Minister of Poland as well as well as one of the greatest pianists of his age, had a suite there. When he died, his personal memorabilia as well a the furnishings, including his Steinway practice piano were donated to the Polish American museum in Chicago which has recreated his living room, bedroom and dining area complete with Buckingham branded china, silver and table linens.

Conductors, opera stars and soloists continue to call the Buckingham their first choice hotel when visiting Manhattan. Guiseppe De Luca, the lead baritone at the Metropolitan Opera stayed there for years. As did Albertina Rasch, international choreographer and her husband Academy Award winning film composer Dimitri Tiomkin (“High Noon,” “The High and the Mighty”), and Regina Resnik, to name only a few.

One day last month on “Paderewski Day,” the Buckingham installed paintings of Artur Rubinstein and Mstislav Rostropovich by renowned artist Arbit Blatas, and held a reception celebrating the paintings and the memory of Paderewski, the hotel’s most famous guest. More than 300 VIPs from the worlds of art and music were on hand for the unveiling.

Mme Resnik, wife of the artist Blatas, shared some of her personal stories of her husband as well as insights into the famous Carnegie Hall performers he painted. Other notables on hand were pianist Cipa Dichter, sculptor and philanthropist Dina Recanati, Marek Skulimowski, vice-consul of the Polish Consulate in New York City, and Djordge Stefanovic, fashion director for Ermengildo Zegna.

The Buckingham is a family owned hotel and Saul Shapiro, senior partner, along with Stephen Shapiro, managing partner, were present at the reception. Guests at the event were also invited to one of the hotel’s all-suites accommodations where Henry Z. Steinway, patriarch of Steinway & Sons, shared his memories of Paderewski’s stays at the Buckingham, along with other experiences Steinway had with the man.

The event was one of a series of programs designed by the Buckingham to promote and support the arts. They recently announced the creation of the Buckingham Prize for the Expression of Music Through Art, a juried art competition providing $17,000 of prize money.

The competition is open to art students and faculty in seven major art schools in New York and offers a top prize of $10,000. Information about the competition is available by contacting the hotel at 212-246-1500, ext. 3207, or by email: BuckinghamPrize@Buckinghamhotel.com.