Explore Poland's Musical Innovation And Heritage At Carnegie Hall, Today
By: BWW
News Desk Nov. 14, 2018
The Teatr Wielki - Polish National Opera presents the North American premiere of its heralded Voices of the Mountains program at Carnegie Hall in New York in a one-night-only performance on November 14, 2018. Voices of the Mountains is an interactive, multimedia concert featuring projections and inspired by the music of the Polish Highlands. The evening includes works by esteemed Polish composers Wojciech Kilar, Karol Szymanowski, Henryk Miko?aj Górecki, and Mieczys?aw Kar?owicz, in modern arrangements by the young Polish composer Jan Smoczy?ski.
The concert event melds Poland's cultural history with its future and coincides with the 100th anniversary of Poland's Independence which will be marked on November 11, 2018. Later in the season, in January 2019, Teatr Wielki's acclaimed double-bill production of Tchaikovsky's Iolanta and Bartók's Bluebeard's Castle will return to the Metropolitan Opera in a revival starring Sonya Yoncheva as Iolanta and Gerald Finley as Bluebeard.
Teatr Wielki first presented the popular Voices of the Mountains in Warsaw in 2011, and has brought it back every season since for sold-out performances. Conceived by Waldemar D?browski, General Director of Teatr Wielki - Polish National Opera, Voices of the Mountains is an interactive, multimedia concert experience that takes the audience on a musical journey of the Polish Highlands through chamber and vocal music by some of Poland's most revered composers, including Wojciech Kilar, Karol Szymanowski, Henryk Miko?aj Górecki, and Mieczys?aw Kar?owicz. With a mixture of folk-inspired music and arrangements of Polish folk music from the Polish Highlands, Voices of the Mountains draws on the folklore, atmosphere, and culture of the Tatra Mountains, the highest mountain range in the Carpathian Mountains located near the Polish border with Slovakia. The works of these four composers are performed in modern arrangements fusing folk, classical, and jazz music by young Polish composer Jan Smoczy?ski against the backdrop of projections depicting the majestic and awe-inspiring Tatra Mountains and adapted from photographs of the region by Kar?owicz.
Waldemar D?browski, General Director of Teatr Wielki - Polish National Opera, said: "Voices of the Mountains is a unique project in the repertoire of the Polish National Opera. Sitting in the auditorium, you get a primeval feeling of being a part of an extraordinary meeting between musicians belonging to different aesthetic universes. The concert fuses the organic sound of folk instruments and great creations by classical composers who were fascinated with the Tatra Mountains and the culture of the Podhale region. Presented at Teatr Wielki in Warsaw and several prestigious venues internationally, Voices of the Mountains has never failed to enchant its audience. The musical splendor, virtuosity of performers, and metaphysical climate transports the listener to a world of true beauty."
Voices of the Mountains joins together some of Poland's most extraordinary ensembles and musicians, including Sebastian Karpiel-Bu?ecka's Highlanders Quartet specializing in folk music of the Polish Highlands using traditional instruments, Atom String Quartet, an internationally-renowned Polish jazz quartet, and NEO String Quartet, Poland's premier ensemble specializing in contemporary classical music. In addition to composing the modern arrangements performed on the program, Jan Smoczy?ski will be featured on the keyboard joined by Jan M?ynarski on drums and Andrzej ?wi?s on double-bass. Polish pianist Janusz Olejniczak, who was featured on the soundtrack to Roman Pola?ski's Oscar-winning film The Pianist and as Chopin in ?u?awski's La note bleue, will also perform. The esteemed Polish composer and conductor Jerzy Maksymiuk will conduct.
Teatr Wielki will bring this unique and evocative program, which has traveled internationally with performances in Warsaw, Palermo, and Astana, Kazakhstan (September 2018), among others, to Carnegie Hall on November 14, 2018 at 8:00 p.m.
Following this one-night-only performance of Voices of the Mountains, Teatr Wielki will again be represented in New York when the Metropolitan Opera revives Teatr Wielki's acclaimed double-bill production of Tchaikovsky's Iolanta and Bartók's Bluebeard's Castle. The revival production - directed by Mariusz Treli?ski, Artistic Director of Teatr Wielki, and starring Sonya Yoncheva as Iolanta and Gerald Finley as Bluebeard - will run for six performances, January 24 through February 14, 2019.
Teatr Wielki's Voices of the Mountains at Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall
Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage
57th Street and Seventh Avenue
New York, NY
November 14, 2018
8:00 p.m.
Conducted by Jerzy Maksymiuk
Concept and script: Waldemar D?browski, Janusz Olejniczak, Jolanta Trykacz
Music director: Janusz Olejniczak
Music arranged by: Jan Smoczy?ski
Executive producer and project coordinator: 2T Vision Promotion sp. z o.o.
Jan Smoczy?ski, keyboard instruments
Sebastian Karpiel-Bu?ecka's Highlanders Quartet
Atom String Quartet
NEO String Quartet
Jan M?ynarski, drums
Andrzej ?wi?s, double bass
Krzysztof Kuzbik, sound support
Piotr Kamil Ponsko, animation support
PROGRAM
Traditional Highland Melodies
KILAR Piano Concerto
CHOPIN Lulaj
GÓRECKI Piano Concerto, Op. 40
Traditional Highland Melodies
SZYMANOWSKI Mazurka, Op. 50, No. 1
Mazurka, Op. 50, No. 2
MATEUSZ SMOCZY?SKI Zakopane
KILAR Orawa
For more information on Voices of the Mountains, click here.
For ticket information on Voices of the Mountains at Carnegie Hall, click here.
For tickets to Voices of the Mountains:
Carnegie Hall Box Office
57th Street and Seventh Avenue
Monday through Saturday, 11 AM-6 PM
Sunday, 12 PM-6 PM
CarnegieCharge: 212-247-7800
Monday through Sunday, 8 AM-8 PM
Teatr Wielki's Iolanta/Bluebeard's Castle at the Metropolitan Opera
Metropolitan Opera
Lincoln Center
New York, NY
January 24, 28; February 1, 4, 9, 14, 2019
Conductor Henrik Nánási
Production Mariusz Treli?ski
Set Designer Boris Kudlicka
Costume Designer Marek Adamski
Lighting Designer Marc Heinz
Video Projection Designer Bartek Macias
Sound Designer Mark Grey
Choreographer Tomasz Wygoda
Dramaturg Piotr Gruszczynski
Iolanta Sonya Yoncheva
Count Gottfried Vaudémont Matthew Polenzani
Robert Alexey Markov, Lucas Meachem
Ibn-Hakia Elchin Azizov
René Vitalij Kowaljow, Alexander Koslavets
Judith Angela Denoke
Bluebeard Gerald Finley
For more information on Iolanta/Bluebeard's Castle, click here.
ABOUT TEATR WIELKI
Warsaw's Teatr Wielki is Poland's leading opera, ballet, and concert venue, and one of the largest theatres in the world. First erected in the first half of the 19th century in the heart of Warsaw, it was almost completely destroyed during World War II. After extensive restoration, the theatre reopened in 1965 as one of the most opulent and best-equipped theatres in Europe.
The Polish National Opera is helmed by Waldemar D?browski, an award-winning arts administrator, former Polish Minister of Culture, and member of the Board of Opera Europa. Leading the Polish National Ballet is Krzysztof Pastor, formerly a resident choreographer of the Dutch National Ballet and the Washington Ballet, whose pieces have been staged by companies such as West Australian Ballet, Chicago's Joffrey Ballet, the Israel Ballet, the Hong Kong Ballet, and the Scottish Ballet.
The Polish National Opera's artistic director is Mariusz Treli?ski, a world-class opera director and winner of the 2018 International Opera Award. His production of Wagner's Tristan und Isolde opened the Metropolitan Opera's 2016-17 season, while his Iolanta/The Bluebeard's Castle returns to the Met in the 2018-19 season.
Each season, the Polish National Opera and the Polish National Ballet present first-rate performances, many developed in collaboration with international partners. Teatr Wielki's productions have travelled to nearly every continent, including such prestigious venues as the Metropolitan Opera, La Scala, English National Opera, and the Bregenz and Baden-Baden festivals.
Teatr Wielki houses Poland's first theatre museum, a contemporary art gallery showcasing 20th Century Polish painters, and an opera studio for emerging singers and répétiteurs. Every year, the venue hosts festivals, galas, concerts, special events, and official commemorations, such as the celebrations of the 100th anniversary of Poland's Independence in 2018.
ABOUT JANUSZ OLEJNICZAK
One of the most accomplished contemporary Polish pianists, Janusz Olejniczak has performed around the globe in venues including: Lincoln Center, New York; the Philharmonie, Berlin; Teatro Colón, Buenos Aires; Suntory Hall, Tokyo; Tonhalle, Du?sseldorf; Salle Pleyel, Paris; Concertgebouw, Amsterdam; and at the festivals in Aix-en-Provence and Montreal. He has performed with orchestras under the direction of Witold Rowicki, Stanis?aw Wis?ocki, Kazimierz Kord, Antoni Wit, Jerzy Maksymiuk, Wojciech Michniewski, Tadeusz Strua?y, Charles Dutoit, Andrzej Borejko, Grzegorz Nowak and Jacek Kaspszyk, among others.
Olejniczak was one of the first performers of Chopin's music on period instruments. He is a regular guest of the "Chopin and his Europe" Festival in Warsaw, where he performed with the 18th Century Frans Brüggen Orchestra and the Orchestre des Champs-Élysées conducted by Philippe Herreweghe. He has made multiple recordings for radio and television stations in Poland and abroad. His artistic output includes over forty albums for numerous record companies, including many recordings for the Fryderyk Chopin Institute, as well as film scores for Roman Polanski's The Pianist and Andrzej ?u?awski's La note bleue. Olejniczak was awarded the Officer's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta (2000), the Gloria Artis Gold Medal (2005) and has received Fryderyk Award eight times. As an educator, he taught piano at the Krakow Academy of Music. In 2015, he began his permanent cooperation with the Fryderyk Chopin University of Music in Warsaw.
ABOUT JERZY MAKSYMIUK
A renowned composer and world-class conductor, Jerzy Maksymiuk is the founder of the Polish Chamber Orchestra, internationally recognized as one of the leading ensembles in the world. With Maksymiuk at its helm, the Polish Chamber Orchestra has toured the globe, performing in such prestigious venues as the Carnegie Hall and the Wiener Musikverein. Maksymiuk is also Conductor Laureate of the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra.
In 1975 Maksymiuk became Principal Conductor of the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra. Between 1983 and 1991 he was Chief Conductor of the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra. Maksymiuk has been a guest conductor with the English National Opera, London Symphony Orchestra, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Philharmonia Orchestra, Orchestre National de France, Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra, and Sinfonia Varsovia.
Maksymiuk's discography includes over 100 albums, including recordings of works by Kar?owicz, Lutos?awski, and Górecki. A champion of contemporary music, Maksymiuk cofounded the Polish Contemporary Music Society, which has presented the world premieres of over 200 pieces by contemporary composers.
As a composer, Maksymiuk's work includes the score for the silent film Mania featuring Pola Negri, which was performed live in 2012 during screenings in London, Madrid, Paris, Kiev, Berlin, and Warsaw.
Jerzy Maksymiuk is a recipient of the Commander's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta and a Golden Gloria Artis Medal for Services to Culture. He was awarded a honorary doctorate by the Strathclyde University, Glasgow, the Elgar Society Medal, Polish Radio's conducting award Brylantowa Batuta, and a SuperWiktor, a lifetime achievement award for outstanding television personalities. Maksymiuk is a Honorary Citizen of Bia?ystok.
ABOUT SEBASTIAN KARPIEL-BU?ECKA
Specializing in the folk music of the Polish Highlands and the Padhole region, Sebastian Karpiel-Bu?ecka is a sensation of the Polish popular music scene. A true multi-instrumentalist, he sings, writes music, and plays the violin, highland bagpipes, and the shepherd's flute, fusing rock music with Polish Highland folk music. Karpiel-Bu?ecka is the co-founder of Voices of the Mountains with Janusz Olejniczak and Jerzy Maksymiuk which brings together the influence of Polish Highlands music and traditional music of outstanding Polish composers: Karol Szymanowski, Henryk Miko?aj Górecki, Wojciech Kilar, Mieczys?aw Kar?owicz.
Together with his band Zakopower, Karpiel-Bu?ecka collaborates with jazz and pop musicians, extending their style beyond folk music, and is featured on albums with other artists including Kayah and Bregovic, T.Love, Zbigniew Preisner, Zbigniew Namys?owski, Mateusz Pospieszalski and Micha? Nesterowicz.
ABOUT NEO STRING QUARTET
The Neo String Quartet is the Polish string quartet focused on performing contemporary classical music and dedicated to bring contemporary music to a wider audience.
NeoQuartet is one of the most active European ensembles specializing in new music performance. In 2010, NeoQuartet recorded their debut album released by DUX. In 2012, NeoQuartet was nominated to the Sztorm Roku Award, the Pomeran Artistic Award, and the Fryderyk Award (Polish Grammy Award) for the debut recording. In 2014, NeoQuartet recorded three CD albums with music of: Dosia McKay (USA - Gavia Music), Aleksander Ko?ciów (Poland - DUX Records) and Joanna Bruzdowicz (Poland - Acte Prealable).
NeoQuartet is the organizer of the NeoArte Festival named the New Music Spectrum, which aims to popularize contemporary classical music. For this festival, renowned composers, artists and young talented musicians meet together to provide a new musical perspective of our times. The first edition of the New Music Spectrum took place in October 2012 in Gda?sk. Poland. Since 2013, the festival has expanded to include workshops for composers and contemporary improvisation and workshops for children.
NeoArte, established by NeoQuartet, regularly commissions works by Polish and foreign composers, including Slawomir Kupczak, Jakub Polaczyk, Bohdan Sehin, Maxim Kolomiiets, Aleksander Kosciow, Oleksij Shmurak, Jerzy Kornowicz, Agnieszka Stulginska, Marek Czerniewicz, Dariusz Przybylski, Dai Bo, Gabriel Paiuk, Grzegorz Pieniek, Kamil Kosecki, Piotr Peszat, Rafa? Zapa?a.
ABOUT ATOM STRING QUARTET
The Polish jazz ensemble Atom String Quartet is one of the most intriguing string ensembles in the world, combining the worlds of jazz, Polish folk music, and contemporary and classical music.
The Atom String Quartet was founded in 2010 by Dawid Lubowicz, Mateusz Smoczy?ski, Micha? Zaborski, Krzysztof Lenczowski. Since winning the Grand Prix of the 13th Bielska Zadymka Jazz Festival in 2011, the quartet has performed at some of the most prestigious jazz festivals including: Berliner Jazztage, Jazz Baltica, Leipziger Jazztage, and Cairo Jazz Festival, among many others. Atom String Quartet is the only Polish group to have performed twice at the European jazz fair jazzahead! in 2015 and 2017. The quartet has collaborated with a wide range of artists and ensembles including Branford Marsalis, Bobby McFerrin, Gil Goldstein, Vladislav "Adzik" Sendecki, Mino Cinelu, AUKSO Tychy Chamber Orchestra, Leopoldinum Orchestra, Sinfonia Varsovia Orchestra, Sinfonietta Cracovia, and Sebastian Karpiel- Bu?ecka Highlanders Band, among others.
The group has released four critically acclaimed albums. Their latest album, released in 2017, features compositions by the renowned Polish jazz violinist, Zbigniew Seifert, and was nominated for "Fryderyk 2017" Award for Jazz Album of the Year.
Atom String Quartet received many awards, such as the "Grand Prix of Music Lovers Society" in the category New Hope of Music Lovers (2010) and Band of the Year (2016), "Gold Fiddle" at the 15th Polish Radio Folk Festival New Tradition (2012) and "Mateusz Trójki" (2015) in the category Jazz Music - Event.
In 2017-18 season Atom String Quartet was the artist-in-residence in Mieczys?aw Kar?owicz Philharmonic in Szczecin.
Sponsors and Partners
Voices of the Mountains is financed from the funds by the Polish Ministry of Culture and National Heritage, within the scope of the Multiannual Program INDEPENDENT 2017-2021, as part of the "Cultural Bridges" subsidy program of the Adam Mickiewicz Institute.
The concert's North American premiere is sponsored by The Kosciuszko Foundation.
The concert's North American premiere sponsor is Ms. Krystyna Piórkowska.
The official travel partner is LOT Polish Airlines.
The concert's North American premiere is organized by the Opera Foundation/Fundacja Opera.
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