Mikołaj Majkusiak,
composer and accordionist; b. 29 July 1983 in Warsaw. He graduated from the Fryderyk Chopin University of Music in Warsaw, where he studied composition with Stanisław Moryto and accordion with Włodzimierz Lech Puchnowski. He has received numerous scholarships from the Minister of Culture and National Heritage of Poland (including the "Young Poland" scholarship). He received composition awards for Paura (Warsaw, 2001) and Toccata (Legnica, 2001), and won more than a dozen Polish and international accordion competitions, e.g. in Castelfidardo (Italy, 1996), Sanok (Poland, 1998), and Klingenthal (Germany, 2000).
As an accordionist he has performed in Austria, Croatia, France, Spain, the Netherlands, Japan, Canada, Lithuania, Germany, Norway, Russia, Slovakia, Sweden, Ukraine, the UK, and Italy. He was invited to perform at such events as the "Warsaw Autumn" Festival, Laboratory of Contemporary Music, Festival of World Premieres, Warsaw Guitar Festival, and appeared on stage of such venues as the Baltic Opera, Warsaw Philharmonic, Philharmonic in Częstochowa, Łódź, Wałbrzych, Szczecin, Olsztyn, Opole and Gdańsk. His works have been presented in these venues as well.
Majkusiak’s symphonic compositions constitute the most significant and most often performed part of his output. His Concerto Classico for accordion and symphony orchestra was interpreted by the Radio Symphony Orchestra Vienna, Symphonic Orchestra of Croatian Radio and TV, Philharmonisches Orchester des Staatstheaters Cottbus, Vogtland Philharmonie Greiz-Reichenbach, Saint Petersburg Polytechnic University, Kosice Philharmonic Orchestra, Lviv Philharmonic, and Warsaw Philharmonic; Road to the Unknown for female voice, violin, DJ and string orchestra was featured at the 2nd Festival of World Premieres in Katowice; Sailors’ Symphony for large symphony orchestra and male choir was played by the Philharmonic of Warmia and Mazury Orchestra; FisConcerto for accordion duo and orchestra - by the Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra; while Concerto in F for guitar and string orchestra was performed at the Warsaw Guitar Festival.
The artist composes also music to films, TV ads and radio programmes. He arranged over 200 compositions for orchestra, some of which were presented by BBC Symphony Orchestra, Chilly Gonzales, Cornelius Meister, Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra, Jules Buckley and Metropole Orchestra, Nicolas Krauze and Orchestre de Chambre Nouvelle Europe, AUKSO Chamber Orchestra under Marek Moś, and Paris Symphonic Orchestra. In 2012 he co-founded the Pulsaciones band with guitarist Andrzej Heimowski.
In 2007 he released an album titled Road to the Unknown (Polish Radio), featuring Urszula Dudziak, Jakub Jakowicz, Cezary Konrad, and Wojciech Pilichowski. His pieces were recorded on 19 albums of various artists.
updated: December 2016 (ab)
Artist’s official website: www.majkusiak.com
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