Eight Star-Studded Concerts and Paradise-Inspired Music for a Jubilant Edition!
The 10th edition of the Katowice Culture Nature Festival will take place at the home of the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra (NOSPR) in Katowice from May 8–16, 2025. Guided by this year’s theme, “Echoes of Arcadia,” the festival will invite audiences on a journey to a mythical land of bliss and paradise. The stage will be taken over by artists who need no introduction.
A dazzling lineup of world-renowned soloists will perform, including Joshua Bell, Ian Bostridge, Joyce DiDonato, Adam Ben Ezra, Sasha Cooke, Seong-Jin Cho, and Michael Spyres. Prestigious ensembles such as Accademia di Santa Cecilia, Il Pomo d’Oro, and the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra will be led by acclaimed conductors Marin Alsop, Francesco Corti, Carolyn Kuan, and Daniel Harding.
The program features masterpieces by Antonín Dvořák, Gustav Mahler, George Frideric Handel, Franz Schubert, and Ludwig van Beethoven. The festival will culminate in a performance of Symphony No. 3 "From Spring to Spring" by Zygmunt Noskowski, the composer’s final symphony. Intended to “express the moods of the seasons through sound,” it captures the Polish landscape with folk rhythms and melodies from four traditional songs. As musicologist Wojciech Stępień notes, the symphony “pays homage to the tradition of German pastoral symphonies in the spirit of Beethoven, through finely drawn themes, the pastoral key of F major, and illustrative titles for each movement.”
The festival also offers a range of accompanying events, such as the “Nap-Time Concert” for parents and infants (up to 12 months old) and “A Garden Full of Sounds” for children aged 2–4 with their parents. Artist Marcin Dymiter presents a site-specific installation, Sound in Motion, which comes alive through audience interaction—the moving participants will co-create the soundscape in real time. On May 11, “Bio-journeys with Michał Książek” offers a nature-based musical experience. The writer, ornithologist, and poet will guide audiences into the world of natural soundscapes.
One of the most unusual highlights is a mystery concert, also on May 11, whose program will remain a complete secret until the first note is played.
To top it off, during the Night of Museums (May 17), a special organ concert featuring a computer as the soloist will take place. Exceptional German artists have crafted unconventional sound effects tailored specifically for the NOSPR concert hall’s organ, performed live via computer, with synchronized light simulations adding to the experience.
Media patronage: Polish Music Information Centre POLMIC
Detailed programme: https://nospr.org.pl/pl/aktualnosci/oglaszamy-program-festiwalu-katowice-kultura-natura-echa-ark
