Archive

4rd International Music Festival of Central and Eastern Europe
Warsaw, 18–26 November 2021

Kordegarda. Gallery of the National Centre for Culture

„We are building new tone. Just another new tone…” Małe Instrumenty 

Exhibition dedicated to experimental instruments and Viennese ocarinas from the manufacture of Heinrich V. Fiehn

7:30 p.m., Warsaw Philharmonic, Concert Hall

Lisiecki / Wiener Symphoniker / Wellber

He knew the orchestra like no other. In his lifetime, he was appreciated as an outstanding conductor, composing only in the intervals between artistic seasons, calling himself a Ferienkomponist. Nowadays, Gustav Mahler is considered one of the most exceptional symphonists in history. In the Symphony No. 5 he wrote in the summer of 1901, the transition from a dark, mourning character to a triumphal atmosphere reflects changes in the composer’s personal life, in which the source of strong and turbulent emotions was the affection for the composer’s future wife, Alma Schindler (later Mahler), whom he met in winter.

Despite his short life, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart left a large and diverse legacy. In spite of his rich virtuoso activities, he started composing piano concertos relatively late. Completed just a few hours before its premiere, the Piano Concerto KV 467 – full of charm and virtuosity – is one of the audience favourites. We will also hear an echo of Mozart’s genius in the piece Dialoge mit Mozart – Da capo für Orchester, which was written by Peter Eötvös in 2016 and which will open the Festival.

Programme:

Peter Eötvös, Dialoge mit Mozart

Wolfgang Amadeusz Mozart, Piano concerto no. 21 KV 467

Gustav Mahler, Symphony no. 5

Artists:

Jan Lisiecki – piano

Wiener Symphoniker

Omer Meir Wellber – conductor

Recording of the Symphony no. 5 by Gustav Mahler is available on the YouTube chanel of National Centre for Culture.

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10:00 p.m., Palladium Theatre

„Composers” / „Compobirds” / Małe Instrumenty

Birds have been fascinating creators for centuries. Echoes of that enchantment can be heard in the 13^th-century canon Sumer is icumen in, in the scene by the stream from the Symphony No. 6 in F Major “Pastoral”, Op. 68 by Ludwig van Beethoven or in the output of Olivier Messiaen. They have also become an inspiration for the group Małe Instrumenty, which will present at the Eufonie compositions inspired by bird song as well as original interpretations of works from the region of Austria-Hungary. Composers

Programme: 

Composers / Compobirds *

*world premiere – commissioned by National Centre for Culture Poland

Artists:

Paweł Romańczuk

Iwona Sztucka

Justyna Skoczek

Tomasz Szczepaniak

Great Symphonics

“What is life but a series of preludes to that unknown hymn whose first solemn note is intoned by death?” wrote Franz Liszt in the text attached to the symphonic poemLes Préludes. The piece, full of passion, pathos and heroism, was originally intended to be an overture to the cycleLes quatre éléments. Ultimately, the work became an independent composition, obtaining a title referring to the poem by Alphonse de Lamartine.

Bedřich Smetana started working on Prague Carnival at the end of his life, but the idea of the piece accompanied him already in 1880. The composer managed to complete only the Introduction and the Polonaise; he did not attend the premiere, which took place on his birthday, due to poor health.

Missa glagolitica by Leoš Janáček,which crowns the concert, is considered a celebration of Slavic culture. Written to Old Church Slavonic texts, the Mass is a unique combination of chaotic energy with delicacy, of religiousness with a pagan spirit.

Programme:

 

Bedřich Smetana, Prague Carnival

Ferenc Liszt, Les Preludes

***intermission***

Leoš Janáček, Missa glagolitica

16:00, St. John’s Archcathedral, Warsaw, Warszawa

Fassang / organ recital

László Fassang — one of the most versatile organists of his generation — will take the listeners on a musical journey around Hungary with a slight Polish touch. On the organ of the Archcathedral Basilica of St. John the Baptist, one of the most recognizable motifs in the history of music will be performed, associated with the master of polyphony, Johann Sebastian Bach, as well as Hungarian organ compositions, preludes by Fryderyk Chopin and… a surprise prepared by the artist.

Programme:

Ferenc Liszt, Prelude and fugue on theme B-A-C-H

Fryderyk Chopin, Prelude e minor op. 28 no. 4

Fryderyk Chopin,  Prelude E major op. 28 no. 9

Zsigmond Szathmáry, B-A-C-H „Hommage à…”

Elek Huzella,  Epilogue. B-A-C-H

Ernő Dohnányi, Fantasy

Zoltán Kodály, Silent organ mass

Zoltán Gárdonyi, Meditatio in memoriam Zoltán Kodály

Dezső Antalffy-Zsiross, Scherzo (Sportive Fauns / Spielende Faunen)

Laszló Fassang, Improvisation on given theme

Artists:

Laszló Fassang – organy

Recording of the recital is available on the YouTube chanel of National Centre for Culture.

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7:30 p.m., Warsaw Philharmonic, Concert Hall

Sałajczyk / „Orkiestra „Transylvania”/ Bebeşelea

The richness of traditional Romanian music has inspired many composers.

György Ligeti, growing up in Transylvania (still within the borders of Hungary back then), came into contact with the genuine folklore of that area. He improved his knowledge of traditional Romanian music at the Folklore Institute in Bucharest. The result of his fascination is the Romanian Concerto, which was created in 1951 and performed publicly for the first time only in 1971 — revealing a modern approach and folk verve.

Folklore inspirations were extremely important for the Romanian composer George Enescu. In his first orchestral work Poème roumain, the artist included a fragment of the musical landscape of Romania. Dedicated to Queen Elizabeth, the piece was banned from concert halls in 1948–49 due to the fact that the work ends with chords of the national anthem of Romania Trāiascā Regele from 1884–1948.

Among Romanian sonic landscapes, there will also be a Polish accent. Władysław Żeleński’s piano output is not often performed on Polish stages. Piotr Sałajczyk undertook to record all works of the artist; at the Eufonie, he will present the Piano Concerto in E-flat Major, Op. 60 from the composer’s catalogue

Programme:

György Ligeti, Concert Românesc

Władysław Żeleński, Piano concerto E flat major op. 60

**intermission**

Teodor Rogalski, Three Romanian Dances. Symphonic Suite

George Enescu, Pastorale-fantasy

Mieczysław Weinberg, Rhapsody on Moldavian Themes, op. 47 no. 1

Artists:

Piotr Sałajczyk – piano

Transylvania State Philharmonic Orchestra

Gabriel Bebeşelea – conductor

7:30 p.m., Royal Castle, the Great Assembly Hall (Ballroom)

Zagreb Soloists / Coppey

It seems almost impossible that such an excellent piece as Joseph Haydn’s Cello Concerto in C Major was… lost for 200 years. Today, it is one of the most popular concert works. It was first recorded  by outstanding cellist Mstislav Rostropovich, and during this year’s Eufonie we will hear it interpreted by Marc Coppey.
Croatian composer Ivo Malec is one of the most important 20^th-century musical figures. Performed at the Eufonie, Exercice de style was created already after the composer’s first visit to Paris in 1955, but before Malec joined the Groupe de Recherches Musicales (GRM).
Witold Lutosławski’s Overture for Strings, bearing hallmarks of neoclassicism, heralds the later transformation of the composer’s musical language. This short, only 5-minute piece clearly refers to the output of Béla Bartók. Moreover, it is considered by some to be the most interesting work of the artist before Musique funèbre.
The Divertimentoby Béla Bartók, created within two weeks, is undoubtedly one of the composer’s most important pieces. It combines dance rhythms and Baroque concerto grosso inspirations with folk themes and 20^th-century harmony.

Programme:

Ivo Malec, Exercice de style 

Joseph Haydn, Cello concerto C major no. 1

**intermission**

Witold Lutosławski, String ouverture

Béla Bartók, Divertimento for string orchestra

Artists:

Zagreb Soloists

Marc Coppey – cello, conductor

Recording of the concert is available on the YouTube chanel of National Centre for Culture.

7:30 p.m., Royal Castle, the Great Assembly Hall (Ballroom)

Ars antiqua / Letzbor

What music reigned at the Baroque courts within the territory of Tsarist Austria? Ars Antiqua Austria, which has been active since 1995, is trying to answer this question. Using period instruments, it wants to show the richness of music present in the Austrian territory. The vastness of the Empire in the Baroque period will be reflected in the programme, which, apart from the Austrian composer Georg Arnold, features the Czech Heinrich Ignaz Franz von Biber or the Italian Giovanni Buonaventura Viviani.

Programme:

Georg Arnold, Capriccio (no. 13) from Canzoni, ariae e sonatae op. 3

Giovanni Buonaventura Viviani, Sonata no. 90

Giovanni Antonio Pandolfi Mealli, La Vinciolina (Sonata sesta) from Sonate a Violino solo, per chiesa e camera, op. 4

Heinrich Ignaz Franz von Biber. Sonata no 6 from Sonatae a Violino Solo

**intermission**

Johann Heinrich Schmelzer, Ciacona

Heinrich Ignaz Franz von Biber, Sonata no 3 from Sonatae a Violino Solo

Artists:

Ars Antiqua Austria

Gunar Letzbor – conductor

Recording of the concert is available on the YouTube chanel of National Centre for Culture.

7:30 p.m., Royal Castle, the Great Assembly Hall (Ballroom)

Zafra / Capella Cracoviensis / Adamus

Capella Cracoviensis is one of the most interesting early music ensembles. Working under the direction of Jan Tomasz Adamus, the orchestra plays on periods instruments and presents a repertoire ranging from Renaissance polyphony to early Romantic operas while adhering to period performance practices. During this year’s Eufonie, with the help of the bassoonist Javier Zafra, we will be transferred to a concert hall of the end of the 18^th century, in which we will hear the Bassoon Concerto No. 2 in F Major by Franz Ignaz Danzi or the Symphony No. 4 by Carl Ditters von Dittersdorf. The programme will be framed by two symphonies by Joseph Haydn from the early 1780s.

Programme:

Joseph Haydn, Symphony no 74 E flat major

Franz Ignaz Danzi, Basson concerto nr\o 2 F-dur

**intermission**

Carl Ditters von Dittersdorf, Symphony no 4 F major (The Rescuing of Andromeda by Perseuę) from 12 Symphonies after Ovid’s Metamorphoses

Joseph Haydn, Symphony no 75 D major

Artists:

Javier Zafra – basson

Capella Cracoviensis

Recording of the  concert is available on the YouTube chanel of National Centre for Culture.

7:30 p.m., Warsaw Philharmonic, Concert Hall

Baryshevskyi / NOSPR / Boreyko

Borys Lyatoshynsky is considered the father of the Ukrainian contemporary compositional school. In his Slavic Concerto for Piano and Orchestra in C minor, full of drama and dark tones, we can hear echoes of Rachmaninoff’s post-romantic concertos as well as Ukrainian and Russian folk songs.
Valentyn Sylvestrov — an outstanding composer, but also… a student of Borys Lyatoshynsky. Sylvestrov’s music, filled with reverie and melancholy, after a period of experiments and searching for new sounds in the 1960s, turned towards tonality. 

Programme:

Oleg Bezborodko, Carpe diem. If Beethoven lived in Odessa

Borys Latoszyński, Piano concerto c minor (Slavic)

**intermission**

Walentyn Sylwestrow, Symphony no. 8

Artists:

Antonii Baryshevskyi – piano

National Radio Symphony Orchestra

Andrzej Boreyko – conductor

19.30, Nowa Miodowa – Sala Koncertowa ZPSM nr 1 

V4 String Quartet

The V4 Quartet was founded by musicians from the Visegrad Group countries: Poland, Czechia, Slovakia and Hungary, who wish to introduce both past and present musical works of those four countries. It will be no different at this year’s Eufonie!

During the concert, they will present four pieces — each showing sounds from a different country of the V4 group. The opening quartet by Ernö Dohnányi will bring us closer to the sounds of Hungary, 5 Pieces by Erwin Schulhoff — Czechia, the quartet by Iris Szeghy — Slovakia and the work of Witold Lutosławski — Poland.

Programme: 

Ernő Dohnányi, String quartet no 2 D flat major op. 15 

Erwin Schulhoff, 5 pieces for string quartet

**intermission**

Iris Szeghy, 3. String quartet „Hommage à Mednyánszky”

Witold Lutoslawski, String quartet

Artists:

Miranda Liu – violin I

Daniel Rumler – violin II

Tomáš Krejbich – viola

Bartosz Koziak – cello

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22:00, Palladium Theatre, Warsaw

Stefan Wesołowski / „Mesjasz według Schulza”

During this year’s Eufonie, composer, violinist and music producer Stefan Wesołowski will present his latest piece inspired by the unpublished, lost novel by Bruno Schulz entitled The Messiah.

Stefan Wesołowski — graduate of the French Académie Musicale de Villecroze — currently works with the following record labels: Important Records (USA), Ici d’ailleurs (France) and Mute Song (UK). He has released three original albums: Kompleta (2008), Liebestod (2013), Rite of the End (2017). In 2017, he was nominated for the Polityka Passport Award.
During the world premiere, he will lead a twelve-member ensemble consisting of wind instruments, accordion, harpsichord, four vocalists and the Royal String Quartet.

Programme:

Stefan Wesołowski, Messiah after Schulz*

*prapremiere – comissioned by National Centre for Culture

Artists:

Royal String Quartet

Michał Górczyński – contrabassclarinet 

Grzegorz Palus – accordion

Piotr Wesołowski – harpsichord

Tomasz Wesołowski – bassoon/ contrabassoon

Aleksandra Łaska – soprano

Margarita Slepakova – mezzosoprano

Dionizy Wincenty Płaczkowski – tenor

Łukasz Konieczny – basso

Stefan Wesołowski – conducting

Recording of the concert is available on the YouTube chanel of National Centre for Culture.

5:00 p.m., Royal Castle, the Great Assembly Hall (Ballroom)

Breslik i Pechanec: Schubert Winterreise

The creator’s last statement is extremely valuable for listeners. No wonder, therefore, that the swan song of composers affects the human imagination. This is also the case of the cycle Winterreise developed by Franz Schubert in the last moments of his life.

In Schubert’s arrangement, the melancholy story of a lovesick man — wounded and rejected, traversing the winter landscape — presented by Wilhelm Müller still delights music lovers.

It will be Pavol Breslik, a Slovak tenor named the “Most Promising Singer of the Year” by the Opernwelt magazine in 2005, who will take the audience on a winter journey during this year’s Eufonie. He will be accompanied by Slovak pianist Robert Pechanec.

Programme:

Franz Schubert, Winterreise

Artists:

Pavol Breslik- baritone

Robert Pechanec – piano

Recording of the recital is available on the YouTube chanel of National Centre for Culture.

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7:30 p.m., Warsaw Philharmonic, Concert Hall

„Fusionfonia” / „Muzyka ziemi ukraińskiej”

The ‘FusionFonia_Music of the Ukrainian Land’ project is a piece for a group of soloists, jazz ensemble, folk ensemble, computer trio and orchestra composed by Ivan Taranenko, a Ukrainian composer, and complemented by electronic interludes by Marcin Bortnowski, Stanisław Krupowicz and Marcin Rupociński. The main idea behind the composition is to present Ukrainian music using contemporary compositional techniques and to emphasize its hidden meanings in a unique combination of authentic folklore from different regions of Ukraine with jazz, classical and electronic music. These various, sometimes surprising stylistic contexts refer to the concept of fusion music, which appeared in jazz music in the 1960s.

Programme:

Ivan Taranenko, Marcin Bortnowski, Stanisław Krupowicz, Marcin Rupociński, Fusionfonia. Music from Ukrainian land.*

*prapremiera – comissioned by National Centre for Culture

Artists:

Ivan Taranenko MUSCLUB

Tonus Finalis Ensemble

National Philharmonic Orchestra

Robert Kurdybacha – conductor

Recording of the concert is available on the YouTube chanel of National Centre for Culture.

3rd International Music Festival of Central and Eastern Europe
Warsaw, 19–27 November 2021

Kordegarda. Gallery of the National Centre for Culture

 

What is Romanticism About. Instruments and Forms

Open-air educational exhibition

Kordegarda. Gallery of the National Centre for Culture

 

What is Romanticism About. Instruments and Forms

Open-air educational e

2:00 p.m.-8:00 p.m., Centrum Kreatywności Targowa (The Targowa Centre of Creativity)

 

Dialogue with Jewish Cantors

Exhibition of a sound and spatial installation by Alvin Curran Daven Mir Dos

The event was co-organized by the Adam Mickiewicz Institute and the National Centre for Culture Poland

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10:00 p.m., The Targowa Centre of Creativity

Dialogue with Jewish Cantors

Vernissage of a sound and spatial installation by Alvin Curran Daven Mir Dos*

The event is co-organized by the Adam Mickiewicz Institute and the National Centre for Culture Poland

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2:15 p.m., Archcathedral Basilica of St. John the Baptist

 

Vocal recital

Programme:

Henryk Mikołaj Górecki, Modest Mussorgsky, Mykola Lysenko

_____

Tomasz Konieczny – bass-baritone

Lech Napierała – piano

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4:00 p.m., The Holy Trinity Evangelical Church of the Augsburg Confession

 

Ēriks Ešenvalds: Stars

Henryk Mikołaj Górecki: Totus Tuus, Op. 60

Ēriks Ešenvalds: A Drop in the Ocean 

Gustav Mahler: Die zwei blauen Augen / arr. by Clytus Gottwald

Anton Bruckner: Ave Maria

Gustav Mahler: Adagietto / arr. by Gerard Pesson

Anders Hillborg: Mouyayoum

Pēteris Vasks: The Tomtit’s Message

_____

Latvian Radio Choir

Sigvards Klava – conductor

7:30 p.m., Warsaw Philharmonic, Chamber Hall

 

Cello recital

George Enescu: Sonata in F minor for cello and piano, Op. posth., I mov.

Franz Schubert: Sonata in A minor ‘Arpeggione’ for cello and piano

***intermission***

Mieczysław Karłowicz: Serenade in G major for cello and piano

Giya Kancheli: Herio Bichebo

Mieczysław Weinberg: Cello Sonata No. 2, Op. 63

_____           

Anastasia Kobekina – cello

Luka Okros – piano

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10:00 p.m., Akwarium Club

Polish Radio Experimental Studio – interpretations

_____

Markus Popp (Oval)

Jacek Sienkiewicz

7:30 pm, Warsaw Philharmonic, Concert Hall

Krzysztof Penderecki: Symphony No. 2 “Christmas”

***intermission***

Edvard Grieg: Piano Concerto in A minor, Op. 16

Giya Kancheli: Morning Prayers

_____

Lukáš Vondráček – piano

Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra

Andrzej Boreyko – conductor

The concert is co-organized by the Warsaw Philharmonic and the National Centre for Culture

7:30 p.m., Royal Castle, the Great Assembly Hall (Ballroom)

 

Vocal recital

Programme:

Mykola Lysenko, Viktor Kosenko, Jean Sibelius

_____

Olga Pasiecznik – soprano

Natalia Pasiecznik – piano

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10.00 p.m.,  Warsaw Philharmonic, Chamber Music Hall foyer

                                                                      

The concert-spectacle Incantati ons is a treat for all those who feel

uneasy watching a usually unimpressive classical concert, where

there is litt le is to be seen, especially from the back rows of a large

concert hall. In a performance show, the performati ve element is

crucial, and music is not only to be heard, but also to determine stage

movement and other, frequently improvised visual eff ects. The dancers

have notably been prepared by the famous Jacek Przybyłowicz,

the singer is vocalist-ethnographer Weronika Grozdew-Kołacińska,

and electronics is the work of Aleksandra Bilińska. The whole,

as the composer explains, is about women…

Incantations** (2019) –

Aleksandra Bilińska – electronics

Weronika Grozdew-Kołacińska – vocals

Jacek Przybyłowicz – choreography

5.00 p.m., Archcathedral Basilica of St John the Baptist

 

Contemporary music is usually associated with the search for new,

surprising types of sound and sonic combinati ons, frequently rather

diffi cult for the unaccustomed ear. A new piece may often prove a whole

brave new world, to be painstakingly explored as if it were a previously

unknown people with its own culture, language and customs.

The composers featured in this concert are likewise explorers, but –

a notable point – they explore traditi on not less than modernity, studying

prayer, meditati on, and… silence. Those who have ever looked for such

elements in music should feel at home in this repertoire, presented by real

experts in the fi eld: Collegium Musicale under conductor Endrik Üksvärav.

 

Paweł Łukaszewski: Popule meus* for mixed unaccompanied choir (2019)

Erkki-Sven Tüür (ur. 1959): The Wanderer’s Evening Song (Rändaja õhtulaul)

for mixed choir to a text by Ernst Enno (2001)

Paweł Łukaszewski (ur. 1968): Corpus Christi responsoria for unaccompanied choir (2018)

Arvo Pärt (ur. 1935): Virgencita* for mixed unaccompanied choir (2012)

Arvo Pärt: Kleine Litanei* for mixed unaccompanied choir (2015)

Arvo Pärt: I usłyszałem głos…* (Ja ma kuulsinhääle…) for mixed unaccompanied choir (2017)

Collegium Musicale

Endrik Üksvärav – conductor

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7.30 p.m., Palladium Theatre

Many a regime has sentenced it to annihilati on and oblivion in this land,

where it fl ourished in the past. In Poland it is now being revived by

such centres as Pogranicze – Borderland of Arts, Cultures and Nati ons,

with Sejny Theatre and its orchestra. It also has its world-famous

ambassadors such as David Krakauer, whose versati le virtuosity brings

klezmer music back to life and creati vely confronts it with other

styles to create new musical worlds. Krakauer’s concert with the

Sejny Theatre Klezmer Orchestra presents klezmer music in its full

splendour and capti vati ng power.

Concert programme:

David Krakauer’s compositions and traditional songs arranged by David Krakauer and Sejny Theatre Klezmer Orchestra

David Krakauer – clarinet

Sejny Theatre Klezmer Orchestra

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10.00 p.m., Hybrydy Club

New electronic music from Ukraine

Fans of electronic music will welcome the performance by three

Ukrainian DJs as a highlight of this autumn. Vakula, Voin Oruwu

and Zavoloka are acclaimed arti sts in their own country, and they are

scoring ever greater successes in the internati onal scene. Their sets

fuse many genres in surprising and innovati ve ways, which is quite a feat

in this much exploited fi eld. Their performances frequently combine music

with multi media shows, and our concert will be no excepti on.

Vakula

Voin Oruwu

Zavoloka

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7.30 p.m., Warsaw Philharmonic, Concert Hall

The five composers featured in this programme, representing five

different countries, were all strongly aff ected by living under

20th-century totalitarian regimes. Three of those states – Ukraine

(Sylvestrov), Georgia (Kancheli) and Latvia (Vasks) – were part

of the USSR unti l 1991. The other two artists were émigrés: Bartók,

who fled Hungary and fascism in 1940 to settle in the United States,

and Panufnik, who defected to Great Britain in 1954. Are traces of their life experience also present in any form in their music?                                                          

Valentin Silvestrov (ur. 1937): Hymn – 2001 for string orchestra (2001)

Giya Kancheli (ur. 1935): A Little Daneliade for violin, piano and strings (2000)

Andrzej Panufnik (1914–1991): Cello Concerto (1991)

Pēteris Vasks (ur. 1946): Musica dolorosa for string orchestra (1983)

Béla Bartók (1881–1945): Divertimento for string orchestra (1939)

 

Narek Hakhnazaryan – cello

AUKSO – Chamber Orchestra of the City of Tychy

Marek Moś – conductor

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10.00 p.m., Palladium Theatre

Highly regarded by connoisseurs, loved by audiences, much liked by

film fans; inspiring not only for the ear, but also for the imagination;

very Polish, but known throughout the world – all this can be said about

the music of Wojciech Kilar.

Francesco Tristano listens to and interprets this music through the prism of the piano and of his own avant-garde electronic music. After his reading of Bach, now there comes the time for our Kilar, creatively reworked in contact with the mastery

and artistic sensitivity of the Luxembourgian artist.

Francesco Tristano: Conversations with Wojciech Kilar**

 

Film themes from:

Bram Stoker’s Dracula, The Portrait of a Lady, The Pianist. Leper,

Pan Tadeusz: The Last Foray in Lithuania, The Ninth Gate

excerpts from:

Orawa, Exodus

and other compositions     

Francesco Tristano – piano and electronics

7.30 p.m.,  The Royal Castle in Warsaw – Museum, The Great Assembly Hall (Ballroom)

 

When praising the Jagiellon era as the true golden age of Polish

culture, the best perspective is that of the Italian opera. Admittedly,

it is not going to be a lesson in actual political history. Rather, we will see

Poland in the context of what was long considered as the ideal of music

(both composers and performers) and of its social reception. Outstanding

soloists accompanied by {oh!} Orkiestra Historyczna under Martyna

Pastuszka have already won the hearts of many demanding music

enthusiasts for Vinci’s Gismondo. The splendid, stylish setting

of Warsaw’s Royal Castle seems wonderfully to suit this truly royal,

18th-century music.

Leonardo Vinci (ok. 1696–1730): Gismondo, re di Polonia (ok. 1726–1727) – Opera in three acts, concert version

Max Emanuel Cenčić – Gismondo / Sigismund

Nian Wang – Ottone / Otto

Suzanne Jerosme – Cunegunda / Cunigunde

Aleksandra Kubas-Kruk – Primislao / Premislaus

Jake Arditti – Ernesto / Ernest

Dilyara Idrisowa – Giuditta / Judith

Vasily Khoroshev – Ermanno / Hermann

{oh!} Orkiestra Historyczna

Martyna Pastuszka – music directiohn

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10.00 p.m., Hybrydy Club

In the wake of last year’s riveti ng performance by VOŁOSI and Félix

Lajkó, this year we present another concert of best class folk music, this

time by bands from Poland and Slovakia. Sokół Orchestra will play Polish

music under the dedicated performer of such repertoire, Przemek Sokół.

Their programme includes the earliest traces of Polish (or perhaps still

pan-Slavic) culture, much respected by musicologists and ethnographers,

though unfortunately poorly documented.  The repertoire of the Slovak

Pacora Trio, mostly composed by the band members, draws on folk

cultures close to those musicians.

PaCoRa Trio

 

Sokół Orchestra

We want the history of the region and its present day to be reflected by the new festival, hence the cultural events within the project will present music of different eras and styles: from classical music, through musical experiments, to ambitious popular music. The performers will be renowned artists from Central and Eastern Europe, but the festival concert venues will also feature soloists and ensembles from other parts of the world.

During this year’s edition of the Festival – organized in the special year of the 100th anniversary of Poland regaining its independence – we will hear, among others, works by Karol Szymanowski, Béla Bartók, Henryk Mikołaj Górecki, Antonín Dvořák or Arvo Pärt. The extensive programme will provide the opportunity to present a comprehensive overview of the region of Central and Eastern Europe, to discover new cultural contexts and to search for musical inspiration.

The patron of the 1st International Music Festival of Central-Eastern Europe is PKN ORLEN S.A. Note: the link will open in a new tab

Financed from the funds of the Minister of Culture and National Heritage under the Multiannual Programme NIEPODLEGŁA 2017–2022.

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The Dawning of Independence

24 November, Saturday) 7.30 p.m. , Warsaw Philharmonic Concert Hall

A concert presenting the works of four composers who led the music of their respective countries into the era of national independence. Enescu in Romania, Szymanowski in Poland, Sibelius in Finland and Bartók in Hungary are nowadays considered national composers. After 1918, in the new sovereign states, they laid the foundations for national styles in the music of their countries. At the same time they took care to incorporate the national ingredients into the wider current of European art. Today, their compositions belong to the canon of 20th-century music.

George Enescu (1881–1955): Romanian Rhapsody in D major, Op. 11 No. 2 for orchestra (1901)

Karol Szymanowski (1882–1937): Violin Concerto No. 1, Op. 35 (1916)

*** INTERMISSION ***

Jean Sibelius (1865–1957): Finlandia – symphonic poem, Op. 26 (1899)

Bela Bartók (1881–1945): Concerto for Orchestra (1943)

Akiko Suwanai – violin

Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra in Katowice

Lawrence Foster – conductor

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Nordheim and His Warsaw

25 November, Sunday,  5.00 p.m. , Teatr WARSawy

A re-interpretation of works by Arne Nordheim, a Norwegian composer associated with the Warsaw Autumn Festival and the Polish Radio Experimental Studio. Scandinavian sounds combined with Polish inspirations, in versions for live electronics.

Biosphere (Geir Jenssen) & Deathprod (Helge Sten): Nordheim Transformed (1998

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Arvo Pärt – A New Face of Contemporary Spirituality

25 November, Sunday,  7.30 p.m. , Museum of John Paul II Collection, Rotunda Hall

Arvo Pärt is Estonia’s most eminent composer. Having emigrated from the USSR in 1980, he lived in Vienna and Berlin. His unique works, drawing on medieval music but at the same time profoundly modern and spiritual, have conquered the commercialised world of the West. Today, he is a household name for nearly every music lover. A concert of his music is a veritable feast of sublime musical spirituality.

Arvo Pärta (b. 1935)

Fratres for violin, string orchestra and percussion (1977)

Cantus in Memory of Benjamin Britten for string orchestra and bell (1977)

Adam’s Lament for mixed choir and string orchestra (2010)

*** INTERMISSION ***

Salve Regina for mixed choir, celesta and string orchestra (2001/2011)

Te Deum for three choirs, string orchestra, prepared piano and wind harp (1985)

Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir

Tallinn Chamber Orchestra

Tõnu Kaljuste – conductor

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Ceremony of the Bestowal of Honorary Doctorate of the Fryderyk Chopin University of Music on Arvo Pärt

26 November, Monday 12 noon, Fryderyk Chopin University of Music Concert Hall

Organiser: Fryderyk Chopin University of Music in Warsaw

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Music of the Carpathians 1: A Concert of Folk Music

26 November, Monday, 7.30 p.m. , Arnold Szyfman Polish Theatre in Warsaw, Kameralna Stage

The Polish folk group VOŁOSI and the acclaimed Hungarian violinist Félix Lajkó in a programme of Polish and Hungarian folk music. Joint music-making and the joy of improvisation based on folk elements.

Improvised music

Félix Lajkó – violin

VOŁOSI ensemble

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Polish-Ukrainian Inspiration

27 November, Tuesday,  7.30 p.m. , Warsaw Philharmonic, Concert Hall

The Lviv National Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra presents a programme of music steeped in the Polish and Ukrainian traditions: a symphonic poem by Boris Lyatoshinsky, based on the themes of Adam Mickiewicz’s Grazhyna, Myrosław Skoryk’s folk-sounding Carpathian Concerto, and the dances of Karol Szymanowski, who was born in Timoshovka near Kiev. The most recent face of Polish music is represented by Hanna Kulenty’s energetic double concerto, performed jointly by Polish cellists and the Ukrainian orchestra.

Karol Szymanowski (1882–1937): Four Polish Dances (1926)

transkrypcja na orkiestrę: Grzegorz Fitelberg

Hanna Kulenty (ur. 1961): DoubleCelloConcerto (2018)*

*** INTERMISSION ***

Borys Latoszyński (1895–1968): Grażyna – ballada symfoniczna wg Adama Mickiewicza op. 58 (1955)

Myrosław Skoryk (ur. 1938): Koncert karpacki na orkiestrę (1972)

Magdalena Bojanowicz, Bartosz Koziak – wiolonczele

Orkiestra Lwowskiej Obwodowej Filharmonii Narodowej

Wolodymyr Sywochip – dyrygent

* World premiere; co-financed from the Fund for the Promotion of Culture provided by the Minister of Culture and National Heritage, as part of the ‘Composing Commissions’ programme implemented by the Institute of Music and Dance

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Music of the Carpathians 2: The Visegrád Group Concert

28 November, Wednesday,  7.30 p.m. , Arnold Szyfman Polish Theatre in Warsaw, Kameralna Stage

Four works by young composers from the Visegrád Group countries performed by the excellent  Orkiestra Muzyki Nowej (New Music Orchestra), juxtaposed with authentic Carpathian folklore in the vivid interpretations of the VOŁOSI group. Musical colours and shades of the Carpathians in modern and folk versions.

Jana Kmiťová (ur. 1976): Gesichtsstudien (2017)

Martin Wiesner (ur. 1985): Raindrops on Plastic Rooftops for Orkiestry Muzyki Nowej (2017)

András Gábor Virágh (ur. 1984): Metamorphosis for 14 players (2017)

Jakub Szafrański (ur. 1988): The Carpathians

Orkiestra Muzyki Nowej (New Music Orchestra)

Szymon Bywalec – conudctor

Zespół VOŁOSI – improvised music

Concert under the honorary patronage of His Excellency Dušan Krištofík, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Slovak Republic to Poland

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The Power of Combined Quartets

29 November (Thursday) 7.30 p.m. , Arnold Szyfman Polish Theatre in Warsaw, Kameralna Stage

Two Czech string quartets play pieces by Slovak, Austrian and Polish composers. They combine their forces in the end to perform the very demanding and extremely ear-catching 40-minute-long String Octet by the Romanian composer George Enescu.

Roman Berger (ur. 1930): Songs from Zaolzie for string quartet (2004)

Alexander von Zemlinsky (1871–1942): String Quartet No. 1 in A major, Op. 4 (1896)

Stanisław Moniuszko (1819–1872): String Quartet No. 1 in D Minor (1839)

Kwartet Smyczkowy im. A. Zemlinsky’ego (Zemlinsky Quartet)

*** INTERMISSION ***

George Enescu (1881–1955): Octet for Strings in C Major, Op. 7

Zemlinsky Quartet

Pražák Quartet

Concert under the honorary patronage of:

His Excellency Ivan Jestřáb, PhD, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Czech Republic to Poland and His Exellency Ovidiu Dranga, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Romania to the Republic of Poland

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International Conference in Musicology – Part 1

National Identities – European Universality: Music and Musical Life in Central Europe (1918–2018)

30 November (Friday), 10.30 a.m. – 6.00 p.m. , Institute of Musicology, University of Warsaw

Ball Room of the Tyszkiewicz-Potocki Palace

Organisers: Polish Composers’ Union, Institute of Musicology, University of Warsaw, National Centre for Culture Poland

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Lunchtime concert – Piano Recital

30 November (Friday),  1.00 p.m. Institute of Musicology, University of Warsaw, Ball Room of the Tyszkiewicz-Potocki Palace

Béla Bartók (1881–1945): Suite, Op. 14 for piano (1916)

Leoš Janáček (1854–1928): On an Overgrown Path – little pieces for piano (1902–1911)

Béla Bartók (1881–1945): 15 Hungarian Peasant Songs for piano (1914-1918)

Zoltán Kodály (1882–1967): Dances of Marosszék for piano (1923–1927)

Zoltán Fejérvári – piano

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The Symphony of Sorrowful Songs

30 November (Friday) 7.30 p.m. , Warsaw Philharmonic, Concert Hall

The most known Polish symphony, a masterpiece of 20th-century music – Górecki’s deeply moving Symphony of Sorrowful Songs will leave no one indifferent.

Henryk Mikołaj Górecki (1933–2010): Symphony No. 3 – Symphony of Sorrowful Songs, Op. 36

for solo soprano and orchestra (1976)

Aleksandra Kurzak – soprano

Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra

Jacek Kaspszyk – conductor

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Catalogue of Trees: Sounds and Gestures of Nature

30 November (Friday), 10.00 p.m. , Teatr WARSawy

Jacaszek/Pahkinen/Strønen is an international performative trio consisting of Polish composer Michał Jacaszek, Finnish/Swedish dancer and choreographer Virpi Pahknen and Norwegian drummer Thomas Strønen. This special premiere performance project, prepared for the Eufonie Festival, is a fusion of live music and dance inspired by the phenomenon of trees: their shapes, movement, changes and sound.

Catalogue of Trees (2018)*

Michał Jacaszek – electronics

Virpi Pahkinen – choreography, dance

Thomas Strønen – percussion

* World premiere – commissioned by the National Centre for Culture Poland

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International Conference in Musicology – Part 2

National Identities – European Universality: Music and Musical Life in Central Europe (1918–2018)

1 December (Saturday), 9.30 a.m. – 5.00 p.m. , Institute of Musicology, University of Warsaw

Ball Room of the Tyszkiewicz-Potocki Palace

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In the World of the Great Romantics

1 December (Saturday),  7.30 p.m.  Warsaw Philharmonic, Concert Hall

An excellent Hungarian orchestra in a programme of symphonic music by the Czech Romantic master Antonín Dvořak and by the artist who set the trends for Romantic composers all over Europe, Ludwig van Beethoven. His Piano Concerto No. 1 will serve here as a point of reference, providing a valuable musical context.

Antonín Dvořák (1841–1904)

Legends, Op. 59, version for orchestra ( (1881)

Slavonic Dances, Op. 46, version for orchestra (1878)

4 Choruses, Op. 29 (1878), version for orchestra – No. 4 – Opuštěný (The Forsaken One) (1878)

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770–1827): Piano Concerto No. 1 in C Major, Op. 15 (1798–1780)

***INTERMISSION***

Antonín Dvořák: Symphony No. 6 in D Major, Op. 60 (1880)

Zoltán Fejérvári – piano

Budapest Festival Orchestra

Iván Fischer – conductor

Concert under the honorary patronage of Her Excellency Orsolya Zsuzsanna Kovács, PhD, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Hungary to Poland