"Polish Music Experience - Georgia 2024"

PARTICIPANTS: Cracow Duo Jan Kalinowski (Cello), Marek Szlezer (Piano) Tbilisi State Conservatoire Student Orchestra Conductor Pavel Kotla     PROGRAM: Karol Kurpiński - Overture "Two Cottages" Piotr Moss - "Sombres Lumières" Concerto for Cello, Piano, and Orchestra Wojciech Kilar - "Krzesany" Symphonic Poem   Jan Kalinowski is a world-renowned chamber musician and soloist. His venues include some of the most prestigious stages worldwide, such as the Seoul Arts Center in Seoul, Alfred Newman Hall in Los Angeles, Carnegie Hall in New York, Palacio de Bellas Artes in Mexico City, Salle Cortot in Paris, St. Martin-in-the-Fields in London, and Concertgebouw in Amsterdam. He has undertaken tours promoting Polish music in countries and regions such as the Middle East (2006), the Caucasus (2013), Georgia (2014), the USA and South Korea (2015), Mexico (2015, 2016), Brazil and Argentina (2016, 2017), the USA (2017, 2022, 2023), China (2018) and Brazil (2023). Since 2001, together with pianist Marek Szlezer, he has formed the Cracow Duo. In 2022, he was honored with the title of Professor of Musical Arts and currently teaches at the Krzysztof Penderecki Academy of Music in Krakow. Recognized for his significant contributions to Polish music, he was awarded the honorary badge Meritorious for Polish Culture by the Minister of Culture and National Heritage. --------------- Marek Szlezer is one of the most renowned Polish pianists. He has appeared in venues such as Carnegie Hall, Concertgebouw, Palais des Beaux-Arts, Wigmore Hall, St. Martin-in-the-Fields, Salle Cortot, Seoul Arts Center, NCPA in Mumbai, and Palacio de Bellas Artes in Mexico. Marek has released numerous compact discs for Warner, DUX, and EMI featuring solo and chamber music, getting favorable reviews in prestigious magazines and journals. He has received many prestigious awards for them, including twice the French music critics award La Clef de ResMusica, Gramophone Editor’s Choice, 5 du Diapason, Selection ClicMag, Prix de la SACD, Global Music Awards Outstanding Achievement, Musicweb International's Album of the Month, and Hi-fi Magazine's "Album of the Year 2017. He has been repeatedly nominated for the Polish Fryderyk Phonographic Awards and the International Classical Music Awards. In 2022, he became head of piano department at the Krzysztof Penderecki Academy of Music in Krakow. For his contributions to Polish music, he has been honored with „Gloria Artis” medal by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage. Marek Szlezer is Steinway Sons Artist. --------------- Paweł Kotla has performed in numerous countries including Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belgium, Brazil, Czech Republic, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Moldova, Monaco, Poland, Russia, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, Ukraine, and the United Kingdom, in such famous concert halls as the Royal Albert Hall, Royal Festival Hall, and Barbican Hall in London; Megaron in Athens; National Opera of Ukraine in Kiev; the Berlin Philharmonic; the Royal Opera in Madrid; the Berwaldhallen in Stockholm; the Opera in Sao Paulo; and the Grand Hall of the St. Petersburg Philharmonic, among others. Since 2011, he has been actively engaged in concert activities and cultural diplomacy in the Eastern Partnership countries. Notably, he was the founder and the first artistic director of the most spectacular success of the cultural programme of the Polish Presidency of the European Union in 2011 - I, CULTURE Orchestra. Additionally, he is the director of the Beskid Classics Festival, one of the largest classical music festivals in southern Poland. --------------- Established in 1920, the Vano Sarajishvili Tbilisi State Conservatoire Student Orchestra chronicles the musical life of this esteemed educational institution. The concert posters of the orchestra have preserved the names of well-known musicians such as V. Gorovitz, M. Poliyakin, E. Petri, and others, thus revitalizing the musical heritage and history of the Tbilisi State Conservatoire. Among the esteemed conductors of the Student Orchestra were E. Mikeladze, O. Dimitriadi, D. Mirtskhulava, J. Gokieli, Z. Khurodze, V. Paliashvili, O. Saparishvili, R. Takidze, and G. Azmaiparashvili,A. Mamatsashvili. The great role in formation and rising of the professional level of the Tbilisi Conservatoire Student Orchestra belongs to the outstanding musician and conductor Lev Markiz. For several decades, the Student Orchestra has been performing concerts in Georgia and participating in various events and festivals across European cities. Among the achievements of the orchestra, it is worth noting the gold medal awarded at the 5th International Contest of Youth Orchestras organized by the Herbert von Karajan Fund. Currently, the student orchestra unites approximately 80 students.