On September 5, 2024, in Warsaw, Władysław Słowiński (1930-2024), a composer and conductor, passed away at the age of 94. He had been a member of the Polish Composers' Union since 1957, serving as its General Secretary from 1973 to 1985, and as the President of the Warsaw Branch from 1985 to 2001. He was the founder and for 30 years the director of the Warsaw Music Encounters, most recently holding the title of Honorary Director of the festival. His funeral will take place on September 11 at 12:00 p.m. at the Powązki Military Cemetery.

His compositional output includes solo, chamber, and symphonic works, which were performed at concerts and festivals both in Poland and abroad.

He was honored with numerous awards and distinctions, including the Gold Cross of Merit, the Knight's, Officer's, and Commander's Crosses of the Order of Polonia Restituta, the Prime Minister's Award for Children's and Youth Music, the Gold Badge of Honor "For Merits to Warsaw," the Silver Gloria Artis Medal for Cultural Merit, the Cyprian Kamil Norwid Award for Music from the Mazovian Voivodeship Government, the Annual Award of the Polish Composers' Union, and the ZAiKS 100th Anniversary Award.

He was a kind and friendly colleague, a friend to many of us, and that is how he will remain in our memory!

Marta Skotnicka-Karska

The Director of the Office of the Polish Composers' Union