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"Woodwind Conversations" Musical Evening in Łódź

A dialogue between classical and contemporary music, a conversation between woodwinds and the piano, a chat between students and pedagogues – music conversations will be conducted by artists associated with the Academy of Music in Łódź. During the online concert broadcast live on 25 January 2021 on the YouTube channel of the Academy of Music in Łódź we will hear music for woodwinds and piano.

The programme will include classical and romantic compositions, such as: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Clarinet Concerto in A major, KV 622, Jules Demersseman's Grande Fantaisie de Concert sur "Oberon" de Weber, Op. 52 and Carl Maria von Weber's Bassoon Concerto in F major, Op. 75, as well as music by 20th-century and contemporary artists: Jerzy Bauer's Dualistyl for oboe and piano, Roger Boutry's Divertimenta for alto saxophone and piano, Karl Goepfart's Woodwind Quartett, Op. 93 and Theo Loevendi's Tre Pezzi per tre clarnetti.

The concert will be performed by students of the Department of Wind Instruments: flautists Emilia Reske and Przemysław Szczygielski, clarinetists Wiktoria Jancz, Diana Śliwińska, Adrian Malicki and Mateusz Żak, oboist Julia Jurkiewicz, saxophonist Justyna Sołtysik and bassoon player Maciej Wijata. They will be accompanied on the piano by: Bogna Dulińska, Kinga Firlej-Kubica, Joanna Morycińska and Agnieszka Sucheniak-Wójcicka.

More information at: http://www.amuz.lodz.pl/pl/

Polish National Competition "Ignacy Jan Paderewski – virtuoso pianist, composer, politician, diplomat, statesman, patron of art and architecture"

The Greater Poland Chief Education Officer Robert Gaweł together with the Roman Dmowski and Ignacy Jan Paderewski National Thought Heritage Institute in Warsaw, represented by its Director Prof. Jan Żaryna, initiated the organisation of the National Competition "Ignacy Jan Paderewski – virtuoso pianist, composer, politician, diplomat, statesman, patron of art and architecture". The deadline for applications is 31 January 2021.

The competition is open to students of primary, secondary and artistic schools in Poland as well as Polish schools abroad. The aim of the competition is to promote and familiarize students with the figure of Ignacy Jan Paderewski, to honor his memory and arouse interest in the beauty of the composer's work, extraordinary life, exemplary attitude, aesthetic sensitivity, awareness of the importance of sacrifice and permanent determination in the pursuit of Poland's independence, as well as shaping such values as freedom and patriotism.

The competition is co-organised by the Academy of Music in Poznań, Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, University of Arts in Poznań and University of Economics in Poznań, whose representatives will, among others, evaluate the participants in specific categories. The competition is also supported by the Ignacy Jan Paderewski Musical Society in Bydgoszcz, Fryderyk Chopin Institute in Warsaw and Jagiellonian University in Krakow.

The Artistic Council and the Competition Jury in category I (pianist, virtuoso) are made up of such outstanding artists as Karol Radziwonowicz, Piotr Paleczny, Katarzyna Popowa-Zydroń, Wojciech Świtała, Waldemar Andrzejewski, Joanna Marcinkowska.

The prize pool is PLN 25,000. The organisers will also provide awards for the best students' teachers.

More information at: http://ko.poznan.pl/kuratorium/aktualnosci_kurator/2020/12/ogolnopolski-konkurs-ignacy-jan-paderewski/

Application Form: http://wre.ko.poznan.pl/paderewski/

Stefan Jarociński Archive in the Special Collections Department of the Institute of Art of the Polish Academy of Sciences

The Special Collections Department of the Institute of Art of the Polish Academy of Sciences acquired the archive of Stefan Jarociński, an outstanding musicologist, long-time head of the Institute of Music History at the Polish Academy of Sciences.

The Institute received invaluable materials for research into the history of 20th-century musicology and music courtesy of the wife of the scholar who died in 1980. An important part of the archive pertains to Witold Lutosławski (1913-1994), a friend of Jarociński from his junior high school days. It includes not only letters addressed to the musicologist, but also autographs of works by the eminent composer. The Institute of Art of the Polish Academy of Sciences has now manuscripts of "children's songs" to the words of Julian Tuwim – this is a rarity, as most of Lutosławski's legacy is kept at the Paul Sacher Stiftung in Basel.

The archive of Stefan Jarociński is the subject of research by Małgorzata Sieradz, PhD from the Department of Musicology at the Institute of Art of the Polish Academy of Sciences. One can read more about the history of Jarociński's friendship with Lutosławski and the entire collection of "Lutosławskians" at the Institute of Polish Academy of Sciences in the latest issue of the quarterly "Muzyka" (2020, No. 4).

More information at: https://czasopisma.ispan.pl/index.php/m/announcement/view/16

Karol Szymanowski's "Kurpie Songs" Op. 58 arranged for soprano and symphony orchestra

On 23 January 2020 at 7.00 p.m. soprano Milena Lange and the Warsaw Impressione Orchestra under the direction Piotr Wijatkowski will perform Karol Szymanowski's 12 Kurpie Songs, Op. 58. The concert was recorded in the Church of the Savior of the World in Ostrołęka, the capital of Kurpie.

Kurpie Songs, Op. 58 were originally written for voice and piano. Numerous transcriptions are a solid testimony of the popularity and artistic rank of the work. During the upcoming concert Milena Lange will perform the entire series in a rarely presented arrangement for soprano and symphony orchestra.

Karol Szymanowski composed Kurpie Songs in the years 1930-1932. In his last vocal cycle, the composer reached out for Rev. Władysław Skierkowski's collection Puszcza kurpiowska w pieśni. The well-known musicologist Tadeusz A. Zieliński aptly summed up the great artistic value of the composition: "One of the most valuable and original of all Szymanowski's works, the Kurpie Songs are a worthy culmination of his rich and evolving song production. A masterful combination of genuine folk with profundity and expressiveness of 'high' art, they are an unsurpassed phenomenon; a similar work is not easy to find in the 20th century music".

The concert will be broadcast on the website: https://www.mspromotion.net/karolszymanowskipiesnikurpiowskie and on the YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/mspromotion7

"House Party with Dwójka" – Rappé, Kryger, Rutkowski in tribute to Żeleński

The 100th anniversary of the death of Władysław Żeleński falls on 23 January 2021. On this day songs by the outstanding composer, called the successor of Stanisław Moniuszko, will be performed by Jadwiga Rappé (alto) and Urszula Kryger (mezzo-soprano) with the accompaniment of pianist Mariusz Rutkowski. The next episode of "House Party with Dwójka" will be broadcast on Saturday at 7.00 p.m. on the Polish Radio Channel 2 (Dwójka), its website, Facebook and YouTube.

"Władysław Żeleński is the author of numerous songs, which he began to compose when he was nearly twenty, fascinated at the time by the poetry of Adam Mickiewicz, Zygmunt Krasiński, as well as Antoni Odyniec and Bohdan Zaleski," emphasizes Jadwiga Rappé, who celebrated the 40th anniversary of her artistic work last year. The artist has over half a hundred records with various repertoire and has collaborated with many renowned composers, soloists and conductors.

In the "House Party with Dwójka" Jadwiga Rappé will sing Władysław Żeleński's songs together with Urszula Kryger. "We decided to record our performance in the concert hall of the Fryderyk Chopin State Music School in Skierniewice. This is where our paths crossed; a place that is always favorable to us, artists" – says the singer and pianist, winner of prestigious vocal competitions in Poland and Germany. In 2006, Urszula Kryger received the Karol Szymanowski Foundation Award for thoughtful and highly artistic interpretations of Władysław Żeleński's songs, and in 2012 the Fryderyk Award for the album Żeleński – Songs. The singers will be accompanied by Mariusz Rutkowski – winner of the Polish Radio Award for the best pianist-chamber musician at the 1st and 3rd Ignacy Jan Paderewski Vocal Competitions in Bydgoszcz and the award for the best pianist at the 4th International Stanisław Moniuszko Vocal Competition in Warsaw. He has recorded, among others, two albums with songs by Władysław Żeleński.

More information at: https://www.polskieradio.pl/8/8741/Artykul/2661793,Rapp%C3%A9-Kryger-Rutkowski-w-holdzie-Zelenskiemu

The Lower Silesian Philharmonic: Concert in the "Conductor-in-residence" Programme of the Institute of Music and Dance

An online concert as part of the "Conductor-in-residence" programme of the Institute of Music and Dancen will be held on 22 January 2021 at 7.00 p.m. at the Lower Silesian Philharmonic in Jelenia Góra. The Philharmonic Orchestra will perform under the baton of Szymon Makowski.

The "Conductor-in-residence" in the 2020/2021 artistic season at the Lower Silesian Philharmonic is Anna Sułkowska-Migoń, who prepared the programme of the January concert. She graduated from the Fryderyk Chopin University of Music in Warsaw, where she studied viola with Piotr Reichert and Katarzyna Budnik (2019). In 2019 she completed her BA studies in symphony and opera conducting in the class of Piotr Sułkowski at the Academy of Music in Bydgoszcz. Currently, she is a graduate student of the Academy of Music in Krakow. She made her debut on the stage of the Warmian-Masurian Philharmonic conducting the diploma concert (2019). A year later, she conducted the orchestra during the 7th Krakow Cello Spring at the Academy of Music in Krakow. She is conductor of the Ars Cameralis choir in Krakow and the female choir of the Ignatianum Academy in Krakow as well as choir teacher at the W. Kilar Primary Music School in Olkusz.

The programme of the upcoming concert will include Piotr Klimek's Omdlenia for guitar and strings, Astor Piazzolla's Concerto for clarinet and strings and Double Concerto for clarinet and guitar, as well as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Symphony No. 35 in D major KV 385 ("Haffner"). Clarinetist Jan Jakub Bokun and guitarist Jakub Kościuszko will perform as soloists.

More information at: https://filharmonia.jgora.pl/koncert-symfoniczny,47/dyrygent-rezydent,3039?did=5338

World premiere of the album "Karol Rathaus. Piano Trios" (DUX)

An album that is unique for many reasons will be added to the DUX catalog on 21 January 2021. It includes the premiere recording of two chamber works by Karol Rathaus, the composer hailed by German critics in the 1920s as "the hope of new music".

The official consent to take the composer's name was given to the ensemble by Karol Rathaus' granddaughter. Karol Rathaus Ensemble, made up of Marcin Hałat (violin), Marcin Mączyński (cello), Piotr Lato (clarinet) and Aleksandra Hałat (piano), recorded for the DUX label Trio, Op. 53 and Trio Serenade, Op. 69, thus enlarging the collection of Rathaus' chamber music recordings with works for three instruments. The recorded works have been very rarely performed and have probably never been presented in the composer's homeland.

The album Karol Rathaus. Piano Trios restores outstanding chamber works to the repertoire and gives listeners an unprecedented opportunity to discover music that has remained forgotten for several decades. "The intimate meeting with Karol Rathaus’ top quality art of composing allowed us, performers, to get to know him as a person – a brilliant, forgotten artist, an emigrant whose works combine Polish, European and American elements", wrote Dr Aleksandra Hałat, the initiator of the project.

The album is available for sale in the official DUX store from 21 January. Soon it will be available in physical and digital international distribution.

Media patronage: Polish Music Information Centre POLMIC.

WATCH: Official Music Video

Open call for UN/MUTE virtual residency

Polish musicians, composers and performance artists, who have never been to New York before and who are interested in an international artistic, cross-discipline cooperation project with European and New York City based artists are invited to apply for a virtual residency. Apply by sending a bio and short cover letter (max. 1,000 words) to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. by 22 January 2021.

This paid virtual residency will take place online in the spring of 2021, over a period of three months. The ideal candidate is either a Polish citizen residing anywhere in the world, but in New York/New York City, or is an artist who permanently resides in Poland and has any or no citizenship. It is a requirement for the residency that the candidate has never been to New York before.

Covid-19 has shuttered artists from residencies, travel, and exhibitions. This project dives into our digitalized world connecting EU and New York City based artists from various disciplines and gives them an opportunity to work on a collaborative artistic project. The project explores what it means for a European artist to virtually meet a transatlantic counterpart based in NYC, of different age, race, culture and artistic medium in order to create a new and unique work of art together.

During the residency, the process of creative collaboration is put under a magnifying glass and presented via edited Zoom recordings on a website giving the viewers the unique opportunity to monitor it. The collaborative three-month long virtual residency is facilitated and hosted by Undercurrent gallery in Brooklyn, New York. A presentation of the art works is scheduled to take place on Europe Day, 9 May 2021.

More information at: https://instytutpolski.pl/newyork/2021/01/07/open-call-un-mute-residency/

Harpsichord Without Borders: 4th Seminar of Contemporary Harpsichord Music

The 4th Seminar of Contemporary Harpsichord Music "Harpsichord Without Borders" will be held on Wednesday, 20 January 2021 and broadcast online on the YouTube channel of the G. and K. Bacewicz Academy of Music in Łódź.

The seminar will be opened at 10 a.m. by the head of the Department of Organ, Church Music, Harpsichord and Early Music – dr hab. Krzysztof Urbaniak, prof. AM, and dr hab. Ewa Rzetecka-Niewiadomska. We will listen to four papers. Adam Wesołowski, director of the H. M. Górecki Silesian Philharmonic, will talk about symbolism and multimedia in his composition Silver concerto. Aleksandra Gajecka-Antosiewicz from the E. Chojnacka Centre for Contemporary Harpsichord Music will present information on collections of harpsichord pieces. Urszula Jasiecka-Bury from the Academy of Music in Łódź will discuss the contemporary harpsichord as a partner in the performance of early music. Ewelina Zawiślak from the Academy of Music in Łódź will describe the work of a contemporary harpsichordist.

The seminar will be followed by a concert performed by harpsichordists Ewa Rzetecka-Niewiadomska and Urszula Jasiecka-Bury, violinist Paulina Wielgosińska and students of harpsichord classes: Lena Nowakowska, Agnieszka Wegner, Emilia Walasik, Agnieszka Wilk, Kamil Szymczakowski, Emilia Mamińska, Karolina Dróżdż, Przemysław Janczewski. The programme will include works by Marian Sawa, Bronisław Kazimierz Przybylski, Krzysztof Grzeszczak, Barbara Strzelecka, Krystyna Kijani and Victor Frost.

More information at: http://www.amuz.lodz.pl/