violinist, b. 22th March, 1956 in Szczecin. She studied with Zygmunt Walter and Stefan Herman in Poland, Günter Pichler in Vienna and Arthur Grumiaux in Belgium. She made her debut with the National Philharmonic Warsaw in 1977 and a spectacular career followed, marked by formal recognition (Grand Prize as Poland’s best young artist in 1977, several competition prizes, including "Paganini-Genoa", "Wienawski-Lublin", "Concertino-Prague") and performances in all the leading concert halls in Poland. This came to an abrupt end in 1981 when she emigrated to Austria only months before the imposition of martial law. She made her Austrian debut in the Vienna "Konzerthaus" on 14 December 1981 to an enthusiastic reception. This was followed by engagements throughout Austria, appearances in major halls across Europe and overseas as well as collaborations with outstanding orchestras, conductors and pianists.
From them she has synthesized her own unique style in which virtuoso playing is not merely brilliant technique, but the basis for reconciling the apparent opposites of passionate emotion and rich poetic colour with the structures of chamber music. She also employs the legendary Bronsilaw Hubermann’s fascinating and characteristic techniques transmitted through Stefan Herman, one of Hubermann’s rare students. This style has enabled her to develop an enormously broad and growing repertoire. Thus, for instance, she made her debut at the Salzburg Festival in 1998 with the Vienna Philharmonic playing Kurt Weill’s Violin Concerto, an exceptional rarity in the concert hall.
In 1992 she began a series of programs which she calls "Dialogue" designed to use music as bridge towards intercultural understanding and bring Polish music to a wider world. A significant example was her dialogue with the musical richness of Judaism (one of her Dialogue programs was presented at the B’nai B’rith Festival in London). This activity on behalf of Polish music and international understanding aroused interest outside the music world and in 1994 led to Polish President Lech Walesa awarding her the Officer ’s Cross for Services to the Republic of Poland. Cultural understanding between Germany and Poland has also been consistent theme in her work. For instance, she performed for the German and Polish presidents during their goodwill meeting in Darmstadt in June 2005.
Joanna Madroszkiewicz’s commitment to Polish music is exemplified in several of her recordings. Her CD of the works of Henryk Wienawski ("Wienawski-Polonaise brillante" MDG 603 0863-2) remains today the "class act in violin virtuosity" (Klassik heute 6/99) and her 2005 CD is also devoted to a Polish theme: transcriptions for violin and piano of some of Chopin’s most beautiful compositions (Chopin arrangements by MDG 603 1296-2). They constitute another addition to her mosaic of unusual ideas in repertoire. But for all her love of the music of her native land, Joanna Madroszkiewicz has made the great classics of music and the discoveries of the moderns the core of her repertoire. Her 2005 live recording with pianist Barbara Moser "Hommage to Mozart" (Gramola 987 51) earned her the "Wiener Flötenuhr" and her newest live recording is devoted to the violin works of the Austrian composer Egon Wellesz.

Violinist's own internet site: www.madroszkiewicz.com