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We recommend you another review from the European concert tour of Poznan Philharmonic Orchestra – this time from the concert in Staatstheater Darmstadt. The text appeared in the Allgemeine Zeitung newspaper.
Rafał Blechacz amazes the audience. He plays Chopin like a child prodigy opening a present.
Silvia Adler
DARMSTADT – Rafał Blechacz has been considered as a complete artist for a long time now. At the age of 19 he won the 15. International Chopin Competition in Warsaw, as the first Pole after Krystian Zimerman. Due to his superiority over the other competitors, the second prize was not granted, and Blechacz was also awarded all four special prizes.
15 years has gone since that moment, though it is hard to believe it when on Friday night Blechacz sits at the piano in Staatstheater Darmstadt to play Piano Concerto No. 1 in E minor by Chopin, along with the Poznan Philharmonic Orchestra. He still has this unique aura of an ingenious, wonder child. This impression stems not only from the artist’s slender figure, but also this dreamy and fanciful approach to Chopin’s music. He immerses himself into it with a peculiar intuition, up to the deepest structures, as if he was unwraping a finest gift.
Solo part in Allegro maestoso is very delicate and enticing. With great virtuosity and fingers, the mobility of which seem not to undergo any natural limits, the pianist joins the art of “brillante” style with the depth of spiritual expression which doesn’t need any external additives. Blechacz does not have the tendency to caricature emotions, though his analytically clear play seems to be fueled by emotionality found directly in the score. Infinitely gentle sounds of descant, as if woven from golden threads, along with the microscopically perfect, absolutely precise phrasing and the culture of playing piano which makes even the most tender tones burning bright – all these factors give his interpretation a form of highly concentrated distillate in which the condensed musical ideas of Chopin seem to be captured in the purest form.
Works of Roman Palester and Aleksander Tansman
Łukasz Borowicz conducts with caution: he lets the orchestra draw the vital forces from the available resources, though at some point he demands an essential discipline in dynamics, which enables the soloist to play even the most subtle pianissimo without the fear of being covered up by the orchestra. The final rondo was also intricately refined, and Blechacz – who received applause and standing ovation from the audience – drew it out from the keys in a playful and masterful way, like some sort of an elaborately carved engraving.
Besides the performance of the world-famous Polish pianist, the gala concert organized on the 20th anniversary of partnership between the region of Greater Poland and Hesse was filled with other attractions. Under the title “Composers Living Out Of The Suitcase” the works of Roman Palester and Aleksander Tansman were performed, who – just like Chopin – spent many years abroad.
Strongly outlining the contours and basing on the temperamental rhythm, the Orchestra played “Wedding Dances” from the ballet “The Song of the Earth” which fluctuates between an archaic folklore and vibrant reverie suspended in void. The piece was written by Palester, born in 1907, whose works were considered by the socialist artistic doctrine to be too “formalist” and weren’t performed in Poland until 1977.
In Tansman’s Symphonie Concertante there is a relaxation of an intense dialogue between the orchestra and the quartet of soloists: Marcin Suszycki (violin), Dominik Dębski (viola), Józef Czarnecki (cello) and Michał Francuz (piano). Exuberant American swing and melancholy-tinted jazz meets classical piano quartet and baroque craft of the fugue.
The concert of Poznan Philharmonic Orchestra with the participation of Rafał Blechacz, held on the 14th of February in the Berlin Konzerthaus, finished with a standing ovation. The repertoire included Wedding Dances from the ballet The Song of the Earth by Roman Palester, Symphonie Concertante No. 3 for Violin, Viola, Cello, Piano and Orchestra by Aleksander Tansman and Piano Concerto in E minor Op. 11 by Frédéric Chopin.
Those who couldn’t attend this artistic event (or would like to listen to it once more) will have that opportunity on the 28th of February. That day at 8:03 pm the Berlin concert entitled “Composers Living Out of a Suitcase” will be aired on the national German radio Deutschlandfunk Kultur (online: www.deutschlandfunkkultur.de).
On World Radio Day, the 13th of February, Polish Radio awarded its most important prizes – Golden Microphones. This year editor Róża Światczyńska from Polish Radio Program II, well-known to music lovers from Poznan, found herself among the seven laureates. We can listen to her vivid stories about music during some of the Poznan Philharmonic Orchestra’s concerts.
Golden Microphone is a prize of Polish Radio awarded to Maestros by Maestros for their commitment and outstanding artistic achievements. The candidates are chosen from different areas of the radio, including theatre, music, literature, reportage, journalism and sound production. The prize has been established and granted for the first time in 1969. Members of the Golden Microphone Chapter are appointed by the Polish Radio Board from the laureates of the previous editions of the contest.
This year’s award ceremony was held on the 13th of February in the Witold Lutosławski Concert Studio of Polish Radio in Warsaw.
Phonographic Academy has just announced the nominations for Fryderyki Music Awards 2020 presented to the leading publications of classical music released in 2019.
Poznan Philharmonic Orchestra is among the leaders of the nominated symphonic orchestras.
In the Best Choral and Oratorias Music Album category there are two albums recorded by Poznan Philharmonic Orchestra led by Łukasz Borowicz: one with mythological cantatas “Milda” and “Nijoła” by Stanisław Moniuszko, as well as the composer’s “Paria”. Both of them are world phonographic premieres published by DUX in the Year of Stanisław Moniuszko.
Nominations in the Most Outstanding Polish Music Recording and the Best Symphonic and Concerto Music Album categories were also given to “100 for 100. Musical Decades of Freedom” album. It was released in cooperation with Poznan Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Łukasz Borowicz which performed “Kaziuki” by Tadeusz Szeligowski. The album with “Milda” and “Nijoła” cantatas was recorded by Poznan Philharmonic Orchestra along with the soloists: Wioletta Chodowicz (soprano), Maria Jaskulska-Chrenowicz (soprano), Ewa Wolak (alto), Sylwester Smulczyński (tenor), Robert Gierlach (baritone), Szymon Kobyliński (basso), as well as the Podlasie Opera and Philharmonic Choir prepared by Violetta Bielecka.
Whereas the album featuring the concert version of “Paria” opera was recorded by the Poznan Philharmonics with the cooperation with such soloists as Katarzyna Hołysz (soprano), Robert Jezierski (basso), Yuri Gorodetski (tenor), Szymon Komasa (baritone), Tomasz Warmijak (tenor) and National Philharmonic Choir prepared by Bartosz Michałowski.
We are happy to add that yet another album under the leadership of the Chief Guest Conductor of Poznan Philharmonic Orchestra, Łukasz Borowicz, was nominated to Fryderyki Awards. This time he conducted the Polish National Radio Symphonic Orchestra in Katowice and Karol Szymanowski Philharmonic Choir in Cracow. They recorded, along with the soloists Claudia Barainsky, the album with Krzysztof Meyer’s Symphony No. 8 (DUX), which was nominated in the Best Contemporary Music Album category.
To find out who receives the Fryderyki statues we have to wait till the 8th of March, when the award ceremony for the best publishing of classical music of 2019 is held. It is organized in the headquarters of the Polish National Radio Symphonic Orchestra in Katowice.
We recommend you to read the review of the concert entitled “Halka on Stage and on Screen” by Piotr Nędzyński which appeared on the Maestro website.
We would like to inform you that the box office will be closed on the 24 th of December. We encourage you to purchase tickets online.
… VALUABLE AWARDS. Four recently announced nominations to International Classical Music Awards for Polish artists should not pass unnoticed. One of the most valued is for Łukasz Borowicz and Poznań Philharmonic Orchestra for the recording of two Feliks Nowowiejski’s symphonies, as he is another composer of the last century, whose music is worth remembering…
The excerpt derives from an article by Jacek Marczyński, the reviewer of Rzeczpospolita newspaper, in which he pays tribute to the album recorded by Poznań Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Łukasz Borowicz and released by DUX label. The album is the world phonographic premiere of both of Feliks Nowowiejski’s works.
For the whole article – see here:
Rzeczpospolita, 19.12.2018, Jacek Marczyński – Scores Recovered or Rewritten
The unusual idea of presenting the priceless relic of Polish cinematography with music by Stanisław Moniuszko performed live falls within the Poznan Philharmonic tradition of merging film and music. This time during the concert entitled “Halka on Stage and on Screen” (held on Friday, 20th December at 7 pm in AMU Concert Hall) the pre-war silent film Halka directed by Konstantyn Meglicki will be accompanied by live music performed by Poznan Philharmonic Orchestra led by Adam Banaszak. The concert takes place within the “Polish Music is the Most Beautiful” cycle, the patron of which is Polish Bank PKO BP.
This event completes the celebrations of Stanisław Moniuszko bicentenary in Poznan Philharmonic. An extra feature closing the Moniuszko Year will be the sale of „The Pariah” albums released by DUX label. The concert version of the opera by Stanisław Moniuszko was recorded during the 23rd Ludwig van Beethoven Easter Festival, when performed by soloists, National Philharmonic Choir and Poznan Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Łukasz Borowicz.
Another excellent review of the album recorded by Poznan Philharmonic Orchestra One of the latest CD albums of Poznan Philharmonic Orchestra – the world phonographic premiere of „Milda” and „Nijoła” cantatas by Stanisław Moniuszko – is gaining popularity among music lovers and receiving critical acclaim. We encourage you to read another review which appeared in the prestigious Pizzicato website dedicated to classical music.
13/12/2019, Opernhafte Kantaten von Stanislaw Moniuszko
We kindly inform that on Thursday the 12th of December the box office of Poznan Philharmonic is closed at 4:45 pm.