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Kraków | International Conference "Freedom"

The "Freedom" International Conference, organized by the Department of Musical Work Theory and Interpretation at the Academy of Music in Kraków, will take place on 15-16 November 2019.

The conference is part of the international project DAINA 1. "Music of Change: Expression of Liberation in Polish and Lithuanian Music Before and After 1989" funded by The National Science Centre. Plenary lectures at the Krakow Academy of Music will be given by Prof. Justyna Miklaszewska (Jagiellonian University) and PhD Anthony Qualin (Texas Tech University).

The conference will be attended by such well-known musicologists and music theorists as Teresa Malecka, Małgorzata Janicka-Słysz, Iwona Sowińska-Fruhtrunk, Ewa Siemdaj, Kinga Kiwała, Dominika Micał, Andrzej Mądro (Academy of Music in Kraków), Rūta Stanevičiūtė and Vita Gruodytė (Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theater). As part of the conference there will be two concerts: on 15 November at 7 p.m. at the Piec Art Club and on 16 November at 6 p.m. in the Krystyna Moszumańska-Nazar Concert Hall. The programme will include compositions by Feliksas Bajoras, Andrzej Krzanowski, Piotr Kędzierski, Krystyna Moszumańska-Nazar, Onutė Narbutaitė, Bogdan Precz and Adam Walaciński.

Admission to the events is free!

Full programme available at: https://www.amuz.krakow.pl/event/freedom-wolnosc-international-conference-miedzynarodowa-konferencja/

X Międzynarodowy Festiwal Chóralny i Orkiestrowy w Poreč (Istria, Chorwacja)

W dniach 1-5 kwietnia 2020 roku odbędzie się Istra Music Festival. Ostateczny termin zgłoszenia udziału w wydarzeniu mija 15 lutego 2020 roku.

Największy półwysep Morza Adriatyckiego jest najpopularniejszym celem turystycznym Chorwacji. Mimo względnie małej powierzchni Istrii, na odwiedzających czeka tutaj niesamowita różnorodność imponujących krajobrazów. Połączenie piękna przyrody, mocy uzdrowicielskiej powietrza, słońca i morza, a także gościnności mieszkańców działają tu jak czar. Oprócz pięknych parków, malowniczych brzegów kamiennych i długich plaży riwiera chorwacka oferuje wiele wydarzeń kulturalnych pierwszej klasy, takich jak Istra Music Festival z zespołami chóralnymi i orkiestrami z całego świata. Warunkiem uczestnictwa w Festiwalu jest wykonanie dowolnego programu (30 – 45 min.).

Szczegółowe informacje znajdują się na stronie:

https://www.mrf-musicfestivals.com/miedzynarodowy-festiwal-choralny-i-orkiestrowy-w-istrii-chorwacja.phtml

Bydgoszcz | Music of Our Time "Comfort zone"

The proMODERN vocal sextet will present material from their latest album Comfort zone on 15 November 2019 at 7 p.m. at the Ignacy Jan Paderewski Pomeranian Philharmonic.

Passion, perfection, creativity ... these are the qualities that can be attributed to the singers of the proMODERN vocal sextet. The ensemble, formed in 2012 by eminent singers-soloists, performs the most demanding works by contemporary composers.The musicians won four "Fryderyk" awards of the Polish music industry, breaking the Spotify straming record. In 2018, they were nominated for the Coryphaeus Award of Polish Music in the "Discovery of the Year" category.

During the upcoming concert, the ensemble will present the beauty and richness of the early 21st-century art in the avant-garde compositions by Witold Lutosławski, Krzysztof Penderecki, Jagoda Szmytka and Wojtek Blecharz. The works will intertwine with Rafał Ryterski's extraordinary electronic interludes, created especially for this project. The project was co-financed by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage from the Culture Promotion Fund under the "Music" programme implemented by the Institute of Music and Dance.

More information at: http://www.filharmonia.bydgoszcz.pl/blog/wydarzenia/promodern-sekstet-wokalny-muzyki-wspolczesnej/

Opole | Camerata Quartet Anniversary Concert

One of the leading Polish string quartets – the Camerata Quartet – will celebrate its 35th anniversary on 15 November 2019 at 7 p.m. at the Józef Elsner Opole Philharmonic.

Since its founding in 1984, the Camerata Quartet has won acclaim and recognition among international audiences and critics. The ensemble has performed in renowned concert halls in Europe, America and Asia, has taken part in many international festivals, including the "Warsaw Autumn", and has won a number of international music competitions. The Camerata Quartet has produced 28 records with such companies as DUX, Koch International, Ricercar and Thorofon. In 1991 the Quartet received the Stanisław Wyspiański Award for its achievements, and in March 2009 the Bronze Medal for Merit to Culture – Gloria Artis, both awarded by the Minister of Culture. In 2003 the Camerata Quartet founded the Polish Society of Chamber Music.

The programme of the anniversary concert will include String Quartet No. 5 in C minor, Op. 40 by Roman Statkowski and String Quartet No. 1 'From my life' by Bedřich Smetana.

More information at: https://filharmonia.opole.pl/wydarzenia/68-sezon-artystyczny-kwartet-camerata/

Łódź | Symphony Concert on the Independence Day

On 15 November 2019 at 7 p.m. the Artur Rubinstein Łódź Philharmonic will host a symphony concert to celebrate the Independence Day.

The programme will be filled with excerpts from the operas by Józef Michał Poniatowski, the great grandson of the last Polish king. He was not only a composer, but also a singer and a diplomat, whose operas were staged even at Milan's La Scala. Thanks to Joanna Woś, after many years of oblivion, Poniatowski's work returns to the stages. Last year, the opera Don Desiderio was staged by the Silesian Opera in Bytom.

The upcoming concert will also feature the Symphony in E minor "Rebirth" by Mieczysław Karłowicz, an outstanding composer of the "Young Poland" period. The work evokes the soul’s spiritual struggle against fate from tragedy to triumph, allegedly referring to the contemporary geopolitical situation of Poland. The Łódź Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra will be led by Bassem Akiki, a Lebanese conductor of the young generation who develops his career in Poland.

The concert will be preceded by a meeting with Marcin Majchrowski who will discuss the evening's programme.

More information at: https://filharmonia.lodz.pl/pl/wydarzenia/koncert-symfoniczny-z-okazji-swieta-niepodleglosci

Wrocław | The Past and the Future

The latest works by Krzysztof Baculewski and Grażyna Pstrokońska-Nawratil will be performed on 14 November 2019 at 7 p.m. at the National Forum of Music in Wroclaw.

The concert will present works of those who have gone down in the history of music as well as those who create a new history today. The past and the future will meet in the programme prepared by a superb trio: Łukasz Długosz, Agata Kielar-Długosz and Marek Toporowski. We will listen to the Italian Concerto by Johann Sebastian Bach, two sonatas by Georg Philipp Telemann and Concerto for flute, oboe and bassoon in G minor (arranged for two flutes and harpsichord) by Antonio Vivaldi.

The programme will also include the works by contemporary Polish composers: Frisium for two flutes and harpsichord by Krzysztof Baculewski, premiered less than a month ago at the NFM, and Landmannalaugur for two flutes and harpsichord by Grażyna Pstrokońska-Nawratil, excellent Wrocław composer and teacher, known for her tendency to paint with sounds. The works were co-financed by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage from the Culture Promotion Fund as part of the 'Composing Commissions' programme implemented by the Institute of Music and Dance.

More information at: https://www.nfm.wroclaw.pl/component/nfmcalendar/event/7273

New York City | 2nd Paderewski Days Festival

As part of the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Poland and the USA, on 16-24 November 2019, the second edition of the Paderewski Days Festival will be presented in New York City. The festival, through various activities addressed to the New York audience, presents, promotes and reminds Ignacy Jan Paderewski and his great merits in the field of music and Polish-American diplomatic cooperation for Polish independence.

The festival is supported by the Honorary Patronage of Consul General of the Republic of Poland in New York Maciej Golubiewski, and co-financed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Poland as part of the competition "Cooperation in the field of public diplomacy 2019”. The programme of Paderewski Days includes a series of cultural events: concerts, recitals, exhibitions, art-shows, lectures and meetings with artists from Poland.

During "Paderewski Days 2019" the music of Maestro Paderewski will be heard in various districts of New York City. On 16 November, during the concert "Keys to Freedom" in Lincoln Center internationally acclaimed pianist Radosław Sobczak will perform two epic, romantic sonatas by revolutionary Polish composers: Paderewski and Szymanowski. After that, on 24 November, during the concert "Paderewski & Chopin" at the Polish & Slavic Center, pianist Radosław Sobczak will perform together with soprano Anna Koźlakiewicz. Both concerts will be hosted by Adam Wibrowski – artistic director and originator of festival.

The Paderewski Days Festival is co-organized and supported by: RenesArt Foundation, Consulate General of the Republic of Poland in New York, New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, Polish & Slavic Center, Polish Museum of America. Participation in the events is free.

Full programme available at: http://www.polishslaviccenter.org/m,6759,a,8896,druga-edycja-festiwalu-dni-paderewskiego-w-centrum-polsko-slowianskim.html

Warsaw | Kevin Kenner's concert for the 2nd birthday of Polish Radio Copin

Polish Radio Chopin is celebrating its second birthday. On this occasion, on 13 November 2019 at 7 p.m. in the Witold Lutosławski Polish Radio Concert Studio in Warsaw, the excellent American pianist Kevin Kenner, finalist of the Chopin Competition will present compositions by Fryderyk Chopin and Ignacy Jan Paderewski.

Kevin Kenner is the winner of the Second Prize in the International Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw in 1990 (the first prize was not awarded at the time). The pianist specializes in performing music of the classical and romantic period, interpreting it with equal success on modern and historical pianos. The upcoming concert will feature a selection of the earliest mazurkas, two nocturnes, Andante spianato and Grand Polonaise in E flat major, Op. 22 and Scherzo in E major, Op. 54 by Fryderyk Chopin. Kevin Kenner will also perform a series of Six Humoresques de Concert, Op. 14, which includes the famous Menuet in G major, the spectacular Cracovienne Fantastique, the thought-provoking Sarabanda in B minor and Caprice in G major – a brilliant imitation of Domenico Scarlatti's style.

The concert will be hosted by Klaudia Baranowska, a journalist well known from both Polish Radio Programme 2 and Polish Radio Chopin. The entire event will be broadcast on the main page of Polish Radio, as well as on the Polish Radio Chopin website and Facebook page. Tickets are available at the Witold Lutosławski Concert Studio and on the polskieradio.bilety24.pl website.

More information at: https://www.polskieradio.pl/326,Radio-Chopin

14th International Grzegorz Gerwazy Gorczycki Festival

The 14th International Festival of G. G. Gorczycki includes sixteen concerts in twelve cities with the participation of world-renowned artists from Poland and abroad. This year's edition will last from 14 November to 8 December 2019 under the slogan "Up and reach the places out of sight". The audience will have a unique opportunity to participate in the "Concerts in the dark". The Festival will also celebrate the 200th anniversary of the birth of Stanisław Moniuszko.

International Festival of Grzegorz Gerwazy Gorczycki is an event that has permanently entered the artistic calendar of Silesia. For many years, it has been consistently building its image through a unique repertoire, the participation of excellent artists and the interest of several thousand listeners. This year's edition will be inaugurated on 14 November at the Zagłębie Palace of Culture in Dąbrowa Górnicza and will last until 8 December 2019. The list of performers includes such artists as: Vivica Genaux, Steven Mead, Paul Esswood, Waldemar Malicki, Piotr Pławner, Łukasz Długosz, Andrzej Lampert, Olga Bończyk, Elżbieta Stefańska, Hanna Balcerzak, Francesco Bottigliero, Diego Godoy-Gutiérrez, and such ensembles as: Czech Baroque Ensemble, Polish Royal Opera, Capella Cracoviensis, LutosAir Quintet, Katowice City Singers' Camerata Silesia, Cracow Royal Singers, 'Śląsk' Song and Dance Ensemble and all ensembles of the Silesian Philharmonic – Symphony Orchestra, Choir and the Silesian Chamber Orchestra.

Many foreign guests will present Polish music, including works by Grzegorz Gerwazy Gorczycki, Stanisław Moniuszko, Mieczysław Karłowicz, Fryderyk Chopin, as well as Andrzej Panufnik, Adam Wesołowski and Nikola Kołodziejczyk. The programme will also include masterpieces of world literature. In line with the motto, "Up and reach the places out of sight", the 14th edition of the Festival will offer many events that will emphasize the work of composers with sight and hearing impairment, such as Johann Sebastian Bach, Georg Friedrich Händel, Joaquín Rodrigo, or Ludwig van Beethoven. The festival concerts will also feature blind musicians.

Co-financed by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage from the Culture Promotion Fund under the "Music" programme implemented by the Institute of Music and Dance.

Full programme of the Festival available at: www.gorczycki.pl.