composer and conductor; b. 27th May 1971 in Warsaw. He studied violin at the Fryderyk Chopin and Józef Elsner Music Schools in Warsaw. He graduated from the Fryderyk Chopin Academy of Music in Warsaw, where he studied composition with Marian Borkowski (MA with honours in 1996) and conducting with Ryszard Dudka (MA with honours in 1997). He has participated in numerous master classes with notable artists, including Yuri Simonov, Zoltán Pesko, Lászlo Tihanyi, and Gianluigi Gelmetti.
For the artistic achievements, he received twice the Polish Ministry of Culture scholarship (1993, 1994), Tadeusz Baird scholarship (1995), Scholarship for Young Conductors of the Japanese Music Foundation JESC (2000), and Creativity Support Fund of the Polish Ministry of Culture (2002). In 1997, he was awarded the fellowship of the German Stiftung Kulturfonds in Künstlerhaus Schloss Wiepersdorf.
In 1995 he won the 2nd prize at the "Musica Sacra" Young Composers Competition for Victimae paschali laudes for mixed choir (1994). He is also a finalist of the "Next Millenium" Toru Takemitsu International Composition Competition in Tokyo (1999), where he presented his Four Pieces for orchestra (1994), and semi-finalist of the 10th János Ferencsik International Conductor Competition of the Hungarian Television (2002).
He is well known for his devotion to music of the 20th and 21st centuries. He collaborates with many Polish symphony orchestras including the National Symphony Orchestra of the Polish Radio in Katowice, Polish Radio Orchestra in Warsaw, Polish Orchestra Jeunesses Musicales, Beethoven Academy Orchestra and Poznań Philharmonic. International audiences could see Maciej Zoltowski conducting in plenty of concert halls in Europe, Asia and both Americas. His most recent engagements included: Orquesta Sinfónica de Cuenca (Ecuador), Orquesta Sinfónica de Salta (Argentina), Sinfonia Toronto (Canada), Wuhan Philharmonic Orchestra (China), Las Colinas Symphony Orchestra, Symphony Arlington, Garland Symphony Orchestra (USA), Voronezh Philharmonic Orchestra (Russia), Shumen State Symphony (Bulgaria), Orchestra Filarmonica Nino Rota (Italy), Cyprus Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra da Camera del Trasimeno (Italy), Orquesta de Cámara de Bellas Artes (Mexico), Orquesta Sinfónica del Estado de México , Orquesta Sinfónica de la Universidad de Guanajuato (Mexico), Orquesta Sinfónica de la Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León (Mexico), Orquesta Sinfónica de Yucatán (Mexico), Krasnoyarsk Symphony Orchestra (Russia), Çukurova State Symphony Orchestra (Turkey), the Pilsen Philharmonic (Czech Republic), the Wuhan Symphony Orchestra (China), Sinfonia Finlandia Jyväskylä (Finland), Vogtland Philharmonie (Germany), and Mikkeli City Orchestra (Finland).
In 2002-2005, he was the artistic director and conductor of the Cyprus State Orchestra, with which he toured Europe, visiting London, Copenhagen, Paris and Athens. In Cyprus alone, he led over 80 concert, opera and ballet productions. In 2007-2017, he was the managing and artistic director of the Radom Chamber Orchestra in Poland. In 2020, he was appointed Music Director of the Catskill Symphony Orchestra (USA).
As a composer, he draws inspiration from non-European music cultures and oriental instruments. His works have been performed during numerous festivals in Poland and abroad, among others: "Alkagran" in Czechowice-Dziedzice, "Laboratory of Contemporary Music” in Białystok, "Musica Polonica Nova" in Wrocław, "Jeunesses Musicales" in Kielce, Two Days and Two Nights in Odessa, Past and Future in Odessa (Ukraine), Europe-Asia Festival in Kazan (Tatarstan-Russia), Rheinsberger Musiktage zu Pfingsten in Rheinsberg (Germany), Roaring Hooves (Mongolia), Composium 1999 in Tokyo (Japan), Sound Ways in St. Petersburg (Russia), and World Music Days 2002 in Hong Kong (China). His works were released by various labels, including Acte Préalable, CordAria, DUX, Falconia Records, and ZFR Records.
His discography as a conductor includes recordings for The Steinway Club Cyprus: Rachmaninov’s Piano Concertos Nos. 2 and 3 with Dimitris Sgouros and world premiere recording of Concerto for 10 Pianos and Orchestra by Savvas Savva. Other albums feature the Radom Chamber Orchestra: Grazyna Bacewicz – Works for Chamber Orchestra vol. I and II, enthusiastically received by the international press: Five Diapasons from the French magazine “Diapason”, Excepcional by the Spanish “Scherzo”, nominated to the International Classical Music Awards 2011. His most recent album Krzysztof Penderecki – Works for String Orchestra has been released by DUX on the occasion of the composer’s 80th birthday and included in the prestigious Penderecki Special Edition.
Maciej Żółtowski has also extensive pedagogical experience. In 1996-2004, he lectured at the Fryderyk Chopin Academy of Music in Warsaw. In 2005-2006, he lectured at Cyprus College in Nicosia. In 2008-2017, he organised the International Academy of Conductors in Radom.
He collaborates with many Polish music institutions. He was the chairperson of the Polish Composers’ Union Youth Circle (1994-96), member of the Music Council of Polish Radio (1996-97), secretary of the Warsaw Branch of the Polish Composers’ Union (2001-2003), secretary and subsequently president of the Jeunesses Musicales Poland (1995-2000, 2001-2003). Since 2010, he has been the president of the ISCM (International Society for Contemporary Music) Polish Section.
For his distinguished contributions to Polish culture and national heritage, he was awarded the Silver Cross of Merit of the Republic of Poland in 2002, and the Bronze Medal for Merit to Culture – Gloria Artis in 2017.
updated: 2020 (ac)
Artist’s webstie: www.zoltowski.instantencore.com
Gow’, symphonic poem for choir and grand symphony orchestra (1990)
Affecti for violin and tenor recorder (1991)
Quincunx for flute, clarinet, trombone and double bass (1992)
Quartetto per strumenti da corde for quartet of Mongolian instruments (1993)
Tantra for vocal quintet and organ (1993)
Anagoge per sarangi, percussione ed organo (1994)
Beg-tse for percussion solo (1994)
Thang-ka for tape (1994)
Victimae paschali laudes for mixed choir a cappella (1994)
Four Pieces for orchestra (1994)
EMET for violin and electronics (1995)
Beg-tse II for percussion quartet (1995)
Harpsichord Concerto (1995)
De libertate humana – Parts I per due cori misti, complesso di musica antica, complesso di musica moderna ed orchestra grande (1996)
Frühlingswinter, song for baritone, clarinet and piano (1997)
Wiepers Dorf, song for baritone, clarinet and piano (1997)
Intermezzi I for piano (1997)
Intermezzi II for piano (1998)
Intermezzi III for piano (1999)
Praeludium I for violin (1999)
Zwischen Zeiten, audiovisual project to texts by Plotyn and light installation for 4 percussions, 4 oboes, 4 clarinets and tape (1999)
Passacaglia for piano (2000)
Praeludium II for violin (2000)
Overture for percussion ensemble (2001)
Ballade Sakegura for piano (2002)
Madrigal for mixed choir and string quartet (2007)
Cadenza I and II for flute solo (2009)
Cadenza I and II for oboe solo (2009)
Ku Muzom for female choir a cappella to words by Jan Kochanowski (2015)
Rhymes for female choir and orchestra to words by Jan Kochanowski (2017)
3 x 9 for two flutes and organ (2018)
