"Nanodźwięki" (Nanotones) is an original music education program created by Emilia Karolina Sitarz – a pianist specializing in contemporary music, curator of musical events, and recipient of numerous awards, including Fryderyk Awards, the Polityka Passport, and the Coryphaeus of Polish Music.
The program of music and educational events, running from August 31 to December 3, 2025, is aimed at people with disabilities and includes concerts with introductory talks, educational workshops, individual sessions, and communal listening to the Chopin Competition broadcasts. All events are open to the public, but priority is given to people with disabilities.
All events are tailored to the needs of people with disabilities, and the choice of venues and repertoire has been made to allow participation by the widest possible audience. The goal of the concerts is to create a safe space for experiencing music, especially for those for whom new sounds, sensory overload, or unpredictable changes in dynamics or timbre can be challenging and often prevent participation in musical events. The organizers aim to work together with participants to overcome fears, explore ways of listening to sound, and learn how to cope with the emotions music evokes.
The program opens on August 31 at Galeria Arteneum with a performance by Dorota Miśkiewicz and Marek Napiórkowski – one of the most important voices in Polish jazz, a composer, lyricist, and multiple award winner, and a versatile guitarist with a unique musical language. The duo will present a repertoire prepared especially for "Nanotones".
On September 27, also at Galeria Arteneum, the Royal String Quartet – a globally recognized ensemble – will perform. What will they bring this time? We’ll find out in the fall.
Surprises also await at the Halloween concert by Bartek Wąsik on November 2, where the virtuoso pianist, composer, and arranger will present a program inspired by the last night of October. He will take the audience into a dark, emotional soundscape based on Wojciech Kilar’s soundtrack for Francis Ford Coppola’s Dracula. A multiple award-winner, Wąsik will reinterpret Kilar’s compositions with his own unique style and sensitivity. The concert will also feature the Lutosławski Piano Duo – together with Emilia Karolina Sitarz, performing Dance Macabre by C. Saint-Saëns.
Next, on November 15, participants will move to the Inclusive Arts Center – Theatre 21, where Magdalena Kordylasińska-Pękala – a percussionist specializing in solo and chamber music of the 20th and 21st centuries – will introduce them to the world of drums, snares, sticks, cymbals, gongs, and plates. Her solo concert, held at Plac Hallera, will fill the space with an extraordinary atmosphere – the abundance of sounds from her hands will create the impression of an entire symphony orchestra.
The grand finale of the program will be a performance by Hanka Rybka and her band on December 3 at the Terminal Kultury, a modern concert hall in Warsaw’s Gocław district. The versatile highlander singer will present her distinctive fusion of folk and jazz in new arrangements of Fryderyk Chopin’s songs.
In the year of the Chopin Competition, the organizers have not forgotten about the most Polish of composers. "Nanotones" will adapt the competition finals broadcasts to participants' needs, offering not only communal listening to young virtuosos from around the world, but also a special experience for the d/Deaf community. By combining the energy of sports-style broadcasts with the focus required for competition listening, the organizers hope to convey the emotions of musical reception.
Additional events include:
- Workshops for children aged 6–12
- A three-day workshop for teenagers on the autism spectrum (in collaboration with the "Mary and Max" Association)
- And for the first time, workshops outside Warsaw: creating graphic scores during the "Sonikalia" Festival in Olsztyn this October.
Event partners include: Akacja Foundation, Giganci Foundation, and the "Mary and Max" Association for Social Innovation, which introduces participants to the world of augmentative and alternative communication, as well as the Sonokinetic Event Factory.
The program is co-financed by the City of Warsaw and the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage under the "Accessible Culture" and "Cultural Education" programs. Additional support is provided by the Forward Foundation for People with Disabilities and Chronic Illnesses.
Media patronage: Polish Music Information Centre POLMIC
Project website: https://www.facebook.com/p/Nanod%C5%BAwi%C4%99ki-61577028509743/
