official patronage

Polish Sinfonia Iuventus Orchestra together with the Centre for Artistic Education is proud to invite you to another concert from the “The young for the younger. Concert of the most talented young artists” series on 13 November 2021 at 7.00 p.m. at the Concert Hall of the Complex of State Music Schools No. 1 in Warsaw („Nowa Miodowa”). The idea behind the concerts is to educate the most talented students of 2nd level music schools by making music together and to provide them with an opportunity to gain stage experience by performing together with Sinfonia Iuventus, a professional symphony orchestra composed of the most talented graduates of music universities.

This time, Marek Wroniszewski will conduct performances by four talented virtuosos in an attractive programme of compositions from different periods for solo French horn, viola, saxophone and clarinet.

The concert will be opened by hornist Jan Dąbrowski (Grażyna Bacewicz Complex of State Music Schools No. 3 (1st and 2nd level). This young musician will present the most impressive piece by Franz Strauss – Concerto in C minor, op. 8. Viola Concerto in G minor is one of the most known pieces of a slightly forgotten British artist Cecil Forsyth. Its 1st part will be performed by Oliwia Stawicka (Chopin University of Music). Jacques Ibert’s neoclassical Concertino da camera for alto saxophone is one of many pieces inspired by the talent of famous virtuoso Sigurd Raschèr. At the concert, the composition will be performed by Kacper Puczko (Conservatoire Royal de Bruxelles). Karolina Bober (Karol Szymanowski Academy of Music in Katowice) will perform Claude Debussy’s Première rhapsodie (1910, orchestral version – 1911).

Free passes to the concert are available! The seats are numbered and the number of seats is limited. Please send your requests by 9 November 2021 with the number of seats (2 seats per 1 request), full names of participants and telephone numbers of all the persons willing to participate in the event.

Piotr Maculewicz

Media patronage: Polish Music Information Centre POLMIC.

More about artists: www.sinfoniaiuventus.pl 

On 11 November 2021 the Orchestra of the Royal Capital City of Krakow 'Sinfonietta Cracovia' will celebrate the 103rd anniversary of Poland regaining independence. A concert at the Gallery of 19th-Century Polish Art in the Kraków Cloth Hall at 7.00 p.m. will be conducted by the Finnish conductor Erkki Lasonpalo.

Since Poland and Finland shared similar struggles to regain independence, the concert on 11 November is an excellent occasion to celebrate one of the most important national holidays. The programme will feature the works of Ignacy Jan Paderewski, Jean Sibelius and Mieczysław Weinberg.

Finnish composer Jean Sibelius, a great patriot, creator of the Finnish national style in music, aroused patriotic feelings among Finns, just like Paderewski did among Poles at concerts all over the world. Ignacy Jan Paderewski was considered a man of many talents. He was not only a pianist and composer, but also a politician, polyglot, philanthropist, winegrower and film actor. The concert programme will include compositions for string orchestra by these two composers.

The evening will end with the work of Mieczysław Weinberg – a Polish composer of Jewish origin, whose life best reflects the complicated history of our part of Europe. Some of his works are inspired by the most beautiful Polish poetry. During the concert, however, we will hear Chamber Symphony No. 2 for string orchestra and timpani, Op. 147.

Media patronage: Polish Music Information Centre POLMIC.

Ticket Information: www.sinfonietta.pl 

The 3rd Wanda Wiłkomirska Violin Competition of Polish Music will be held in the auditorium of the Music School Complex in Częstochowa on 11-14 November 2021. The results will be announced and the awards will be officially presented at the Winners' Concert on 14 November. All concerts and auditions will be broadcast by the Film and Television Academy and will be available online to the general public.

Wanda Wiłkomirska, considered one of the leading violinists of the twentieth century, enjoying well-deserved fame and recognition around the world, also as a teacher, died on 1 May 2018. Her desire was to create a competition for young musicians that would develop their skills and promote Polish music. Before her death, she passed her idea on to Aleksandra Szwejkowska-Belica, one of her pupils, who has been teaching the violin at the Music School Complex in Częstochowa for many years. By initiating the Wanda Wiłkomirska Competition and by taking on its leadership, Aleksandra Szwejkowska-Belica remains convinced that Wanda Wiłkomirska's achievements will be a model for young violinists.

This year's competition was open to young musicians from all over Poland, studying in 1st and 2nd degree music schools as well as first year students of higher education institutions. A total of 104 signed up participants will present exclusively Polish music. In this way, the organizers want to encourage young people to discover the repertoire of native composers.

The participants will be judged by a Jury composed of internationally renowned violinists, including soloists, chamber musicians, teachers, and above all – persons associated with Wanda Wiłkomirska: Aleksandra Szwejkowska-Belica – competition director, Kazimierz Skowronek (K. Szymanowski Academy of Music in Katowice) – chairman of the Jury, Wojciech Rodek – artistic director of the Lublin Philharmonic, and Ewa Andruszkiewicz – concertmaster of the Opole Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra.

After the Competition, further concerts of the best participants will be organised at Polish philharmonics, at the Fryderyk Chopin University of Music in Warsaw and at different festivals.

Media patronage: Polish Music Information Centre POLMIC.

More information: http://www.zsmuz.czest.pl/iii-konkurs-skrzypcowy-muzyki-polskiej-im-wandy-wilkomirskiej/ 

"The World of Master Beksinski” on 13 November 2021 at 6.00 and 8.30 p.m. at the National Forum of Music in Wrocław is a unique proposal for music lovers and admirers of painting. It is an event like no other, promoting one of the finest Polish painters, as well as contemporary music presented in a way that is engaging and thought-provoking.

Zdzisław Beksinski created his paintings while listening to music. Among the composers most often mentioned by him was Alfred Schnittke. Hence the idea to show Beksinski’s paintings in connection with music, which will be a hugely engaging and emotional experience. 

The concert consists of two parts. In the first part we will hear Sine Titulo – a contemporary piece, composed specially for this event by Szymon Sutor. Then the artists will play Alfred Schnittke's Requiem, and the music will be accompanied by a display of images, closely related to the dramaturgy of music. Additionally, in the foyer you will be able to see an exhibition of selected works by Zdzisław Beksiński.

Media patronage: Polish Music Information Centre POLMIC.

Ticket Information: https://www.nfm.wroclaw.pl 

The 3rd 'Eufonie' International Music Festival of Central-Eastern Europe, organised by the National Centre for Culture with funds of the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage, will take place on 19–27 November 2021. The unique features of the Eufonie Festival are, on the one hand, drawing from tradition and, on the other hand, presenting completely new, previously undiscovered sounds.

The idea of the festival is to popularize the cultural heritage of most countries known today as Central and Eastern Europe. This area is an extremely interesting melting pot whose complexity can be discovered through the variety of the presented compositions and artists. The Eufonie Festival features music of different eras and styles. The director of the festival is Prof. Rafał Wiśniewski, and the chairman of the Programme Council – Dr Mieczysław Kominek, president of the Polish Composers' Union.

This year’s edition of the festival will focus on the Romantic period, in which, in addition to new forms and genres, it was the composers’ interest in native folklore that was of utmost importance. The nine festival days will be filled with fourteen events, and the stage will be given to such outstanding performers as Veriko Tchumburidze, Janusz Wawrowski, Anastasia Kobekina, Olga Pasiecznik, Adam Bałdych, Urszula Kryger, Anu Tali, Zsolt Nagy, Olari Elts or Oval. The recital of Tomasz Konieczny will begin with Blessed Raspberry Songs, Op. 43 by Henryk Mikołaj Górecki to the words of the literary patron of the year 2021, Cyprian Norwid. Pianist Anna Górecka will join forces with the Bogdan Warchal Slovak Chamber Orchestra in performing her father's Concerto for harpsichord (or piano) and orchestra, Op. 40. The Festival will also featurethe world premiere of Adam Bałdych's Górecki Transformed – original interpretations and improvisations on Henryk Mikołaj Górecki’s string quartets commissioned by the National Centre for Culture, as well as Markus Popp and Jacek Sienkiewicz's interpretations of samples of the Polish Radio Experimental Studio.

The last festival concert will take place on 5 December at 7.30 p.m. at the Royal Castle. It will be a recital of Olga and Natalia Pasiecznik, which, due to the health condition of one of the artists, could not be held on the original date of 21 November. The programme includes songs by Mykola Łysenka, Wiktor Kosenko and Jean Sibelius.

Media patronage: Polish Music Information Centre POLMIC.

Programme: http://eufonie.pl/ 

A series of concerts devoted to the Creative Scholarship holders of the City of Krakow will be held between 15 October and 15 December 2021 at the Palace of Arts, the Church of St. Catherine of Alexandria (St. Dorothy Chapel) and the Bishop Erazm Ciołek Palace – department of the National Museum in Krakow.

The events will feature outstanding musicians from Krakow, winners of the Creative Scholarship of the City of Krakow: Maria Sławek, Piotr Lato, Maciej Zimka, Wiesław Ochwat, Bożena Boba-Dyga, and Marek Szlezer, who will perform alongside invited guests (Piotr Sałajczyk, Aleksandra Buczyńska, Magdalena Kulig). The programme will include works by renowned Krakow composers, laureates of the Creative Scholarship of the City of Krakow: Wojciech Widłak and Marcel Chyrzyński. In addition to contemporary compositions, the repertoire will include pieces of classical music from various eras (John Downland, Johann Sebastian Bach or Richard Strauss).

The event is organized by the Art Forum Foundation. The co-organizer of the project is the Witold Lutosławski Krakow Conservatory. The project is co-financed by the City of Krakow. Free admission!

Media patronage: Polish Music Information Centre POLMIC.

Programme: https://fundacjaartforum.pl/ 

The first concert in the series "Generation '51 on their 70th birthday" will be held on 13 November 2021 at 6.00 p.m. at the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra Chamber Hall. We will hear the '51 Generation's 40-year acquaintance with the Silesian String Quartet.

Andrzej Krzanowski wrote Salve Regina for choir in 1981, but it was only in 2020, after Grażyna Krzanowska had arranged it for string quartet, that Silesian Quartet played it in the „Silesian misterioso” series, dedicated to the 100th anniversary of St John Paul II’s birth.

Relief for Andrzej is Aleksander Lasoń’s tribute to his friend taken away by premature death. Silesian Quartet first played it in 1995 to celebrate the Chamber Hall of the M. Karłowicz Music School in Katowice being named after Andrzej Krzanowski. A short piece, yet one most moving in its message...

Eugeniusz Knapik’s String Quartet No. 1 of 1980 is today considered a classic of 20th-century music, but in the year of its creation it was a challenge for the musicians to perform and it forced them to get over their habits. Working with the most demanding composer was a true test for them. The form of the piece is twofold, as in Lutosławski’s work, only put together in reverse order. It is dense, dynamic, stormy, to the point of virtuosity, at first. Then, there comes the calm of the song arising from and aiming for the chorale chords. In his author’s commentary, Knapik mentions a reference to the gravity of Beethoven’s masterpieces.

The concert will close with a second performance of Aleksander Lasoń’s Ananda for piano and string quartet commissioned for the 44th Karol Szymanowski’s Music Days in Zakopane.

The first and the last piece of this evening are proof that the ‘51 generation is not an ideology, but wonderful active composers.

Media patronage: Polish Music Information Centre POLMIC.

Ticket Information: https://nospr.org.pl/pl/kalendarz/kwartet-slaski-tymoteusz-bies-pokolenie-51-na-70-lecie-urodz 

The Cracow Golden Quintet – 2nd prize winners of the Stanisław Moniuszko International Competition of Polish Music in Rzeszów, organised by the National Institute of Music and Dance – will perform on 15 November 2021 at 7.30 p.m. in the NOSPR series "Youth's Stage".

The "Youth's Stage" pulsates with energy and enthusiasm of debutants, for whom the performance at the NOSPR is an important moment on their way to a great career – these are concerts for everyone who prefer musical discoveries and sprouting talents to established names.

The Cracow Golden Quintet's repertoire covers both classical and popular music ranging from the classical era all the way to the contemporary. The group specialise in performing and promoting the musical output of Poland. That particular repertoire consists of pieces by Grażyna Bacewicz, Wojciech Kilar, Michał Spisak, and Tadeusz Szeligowski, among others, and is continually extended, especially to include music which has been forgotten and rarely performed onstage. Another field of Cracow Golden Quintet’s activity is premiering and recording 20th and 21st-century works. Acclaimed both domestically and internationally, the group have earned several awards and has performed at prestigious concert halls all over the world. In 2020, DUX released the ensemble’s first album, featuring works by Polish composers which was nominated for the 'Fryderyk' 2021 phonographic awards in the 'Chamber Music Album of the Year' category.

The programme of the upcoming concert will include Wojciech Kilar's Quintet for wind instruments, Józef Świder's Mini-Quintetto, as well as Jacques Ibert's Trois pièces brèves, Malcolm Arnold's Three Shanties and Júlia Medaglia's Belle epoque en Sud-America.

Media patronage: Polish Music Information Centre POLMIC.

Ticket Information: https://nospr.org.pl/pl/kalendarz/scena-mlodych-cracow-golden-quintet-2 

The winners of the 11th edition of the Coryphaeus of Polish Music Award, organised by the National Institute of Music and Dance from the funds of the Minister of Culture and National Heritage, were announced on 14 November 2021 at the Awards Gala on TVP Kultura. The ceremony was broadcast live on TVP Kultura and on the Internet.

The awards went to:

• in the "Honorary Award" category: Lidia Grychtołówna – for lifetime artistic activity;
• in the "Discovery of the Year" category: Kinga Głyk – bass guitarist, for virtuosity in playing the bass guitar, achieving success on European stages and continuing the tradition of outstanding jazz bassists;
• in the "Personality of the Year" category: Aleksander Nowak – composer, for a number of world premieres in the 2020/2021 season, with particular emphasis on the premiere of lo firgai. Mask by Klangforum Wien and Agata Zubel in Vienna;
• in the "Event of the Year" category: publication of Danuta Gwizdalanka's book The Seducer. A Thing About Karol Szymanowski – for an intriguing and insightful monograph of Karol Szymanowski, which analyzes the composer's personality.

The winners selected by the Polish music community were awarded with statuettes designed by Professor Adam Myjak. The awards in the "Personality of the Year" category and the Honorary Award were accompanied by financial awards sponsored by the STOART Union of Performing Artists and the ZAiKS Association of Authors.

Media patronage: Polish Music Information Centre POLMIC.

More information: www.koryfeusz.org.pl