This new release features world premiere recordings of Pawl Lukaszewski’s Symphony of Providence Symphony of Providence was written between 1997 and 2008. It opens with a soprano, mixed choir and orchestra. The symphony has a clearly Christocentric and Christological message. As Lukaszewski writes on his website “The work communicates faith in the protection of Divine Providence and in the new Heave and new Earth...”

This release features a ballet in two scenes based on "The Captive Mind" by Czeslaw Milosz. The show features works from composers Philip Glass (with selected pieces including "Metamorphosis", "Symphony No. 3", "Glassworks", "Mad Rush", "String Quartet No. 2", " String Quartet No. 5") and Wojciech Kilar ("Mount Koscielec"). The costumes which were designed by Mariusz Napierala do not refer to any specific time period. Diana Marszalek created one piece of stage design, which is an almost collapsed pyramid, which features bricks, metal handles and cubbyhole windows. Sometimes multimedia projections are applied on this ambiguous structure. All of this combined makes for a genre-bending, multidimensional presentation.

The year 2019, declared the Year of Stanislaw Moniuszko (18191872) by the Sejm of the Republic of Poland and UNESCO, abounded in a series of events commemorating the work of the father of the Polish national opera. The Opera Nova in Bydgoszcz has also joined the celebrations of the 200th anniversary of the birth of Stanislaw Moniuszko, publishing DVDs with the performance of Halka in a star cast, directed by Natalia Babinska and under the baton of Piotr Wajrak. The producers of the Bydgoszcz show suggest a refreshed, reinterpreted view of Halka, finding a broader historical and social background therein, and looking for, also in the music that follows the truth about interpersonal relationships discovered between the lines in an extremely natural way, Moniuszkos phenomenon, which escapes an easy categorization.

Rusalka is one of the most beautiful Czech operatic works; extremely atmospheric, with an original fairy-tale libretto. It is characterized by the subtlety of the means of musical expression (especially the masterful instrumentation), perfection of the formal structure, as well as the nobility and originality of the melodic invention. Fascinated by the beauty of Antonin Dvorak's work, the Opera Nova in Bydgoszcz succeeded with a serious challenge - they conventionally integrated an entirely classical opera performance in a revitalized space of a modern city center, with it's difficult history, stretched out - what the replica of the Old Town Theatre Bridge suggests - between the two reluctant worlds, like the fairy-tale love of the title nymph and prince. The result is this breathtaking performance.

When drifting over the bridge connecting the 19th century with the 21st century, the chances are that we might be fulfilling Mickiewicz’s dreams. Hardly anyone knows that the poet dreamt of composing and that music played a remarkable role in his life. He had already got familiar with folk songs from the Novogrudok region as a child; later, he developed an interest both in the relations between the poetic word and sound and in the natural melodiousness of the Polish language. He also gained theoretical knowledge of music, as he attended lectures on that subject during his studies at the University of Vilnius, thus becoming knowledgeable about musical and theatrical genres. In addition, he knew numerous composers in person, such as Fryderyk Chopin in the first place, to whom he suggested the idea of writing a Slavic opera together. In 1840, the poet addressed the following words to his friend Józef Bohdan Zaleski: “You know that if I had money, I would give up literature and books, I would settle down in the countryside and compose music. This is my long-time dream – to compose.” On this release, Mickiewicz’s words have been set to music by Benjamin Baczewski.

REQUIEM

This new release from DUX presents selected works of Henryk Wieniawski and Andrezej Nikodemowicz for violin and piano; performed here by violinist Dominika Falger and pianist Gajusz Keska.Henryk Wieniawski was one of the most outstanding violinists of the second half of the 19th century. In the first years of his career, his works were mainly virtuoso pieces; compositions testifying to the technical efficiency of an excellent violinist (including the Polonaise in D Major, Op. 4, Caprices, Op. 10, the Concerto in F-sharp Minor, Op. 14). In later works, he clearly sought a compromise between the technical layer and the depth of musical expression. In the works recorded on this album, Wieniawski refers to the best traditions of salon music.

The Kujawiak in A Minor, Chanson polonaise Op. 12 No. 2, Obertas in G Major and The Piper in D Major Op. 19 Nos. 1 and 2 kept in a folk character, with melody of noble simplicity, went down in the 19th-century violin music as compositions of Polish pedigree.

The music of Andrzej Nikodemowicz bears traces of fascination with the works of Johann Sebastian Bach, Fryderyk Chopin, Alexander Scriabin, Karol Szymanowski as well as with elements of sonorism and dodecaphony.

Pieces for violin and piano from the early creative period of Andrzej Nikodemowicz Nocturne, Op. 3 (1946), Romance, Op. 6 (1947) and Sonata, Op. 10 (19481949) are characterized by a romantic aura, distinct expression, and natural beauty of the sound of the concert instruments. Their melodies, provided with a broad phrase, are complemented by colourful harmony, sometimes slightly dissonant, but always alert to changing moods. In turn, Lullaby, Op. 86 (2nd version, 1993) and 5 Lullabies, Op. 94 (1991) are an expression of a longing for the past and the happiness of childhood.

There are few choirs in Poland that have as distinct repertoire as the Choir of Maritime University of Szczecin. An absolute hallmark and specialty of the choir, led by Sylwia Fabiańczyk-Makuch, is the performance of maritime themed pieces. However, obviously they do not exhaust their repertoire, which includes sacral and folk music as well as arrangements of popular music. Polish maritime-inspired choral music has a very long history. Feliks Nowowiejski is considered to be the father of the genre. However, it is an undoubtedly unexploited topic, demanding new, fresh and original ideas. The Choir of Maritime University of Szczecin regularly commissions works from Polish composers and is always met with great enthusiasm on the part of the authors. It is caused by the fact that it is very hard to find a better apparatus to mimic the spirit and sounds of the sea, as is an a cappella choir. The sound of the choir homogeneous like water, in which an infinite number of droplets merge into one, waves, flows, individual voices emerge from the sound mixture and plunge back into it, and sonoric vocal effects can suggestively transport the listener into the world of the noise of waves and screaming gulls. The composers, whose work can be found on the Sound of the Sea album, represent three different generations: there is the sage of Polish choral music, Marek Jasiński, recognized and experienced artists such as Miłosz Bembinow or Janusz Stalmierski, and promising composers of the younger generation, such as Zuzanna Koziej or Katarzyna Danel. The common stylistic denominator for the album is the maritime theme. But is the titular Sea defined in any way? Is it the Baltic Sea, the 8 Mediterranean Sea, the Red Sea, or maybe some general, undefined sea, the archetype of which lies somewhere in our subconscious?

Music for Culture Wars / Peszat

The work of Feliks Nowowiejski constitutes one of the most interesting testimonies to the stylistic evolution of Polish composers born in the late-19th century. Five years older than Karol Szymanowski, and a year younger than Mieczysław Karłowicz, Nowowiejski chronologically belonged to the Młoda Polska (Young Poland) period. However, he never became a member of the movement; what is more, his artistic path was so individualistic that it is diff icult to talk about the composer’s aff iliation to any group or style. Nowowiejski’s entire long and artistically unusually active life was marked by a series of stylistic shift s, of permanent quests and changes which did not result from a spurious desire to chase the evolution of trends current in the world, but from authentic openness to varied impulses and sources of inspiration. This way, Nowowiejski joins the group of artists who were no strangers to radical stylistic change (e.g. Igor Stravinsky, who was five years his junior, revealed a similar stylistic flexibility). A composer of thorough education, Feliks Nowowiejski followed a path to obtain it that was typical of late-19th-century talents born away from the main centres. He hailed from Barczewo, and the first years of his musical education were associated with his native Warmia i Mazury region: first, at the school of music in Święta Lipka, and later in Olsztyn, where he was a musician of the East Prussia Grenadier Regiment Orchestra. The school in Święta Lipka prepared students for the profession of organist and teacher. It also taught playing various instruments, with particular emphasis put on vocal music. Nowowiejski’s education resembles this of another Slavic composer of the breakthrough era, Leoš Janáček. Like Janáček, Nowowiejski, whose education revealed a particularly conservative trait, in a later stage of his artistic career awoke in himself a modernist talent. What’s more, it was (very unique!) Slavic modernism, which never lost sight of the composer’s origin, and his love for music of greatly varied sources (folk and traditional melodies, church and patriotic songs). Naturally, these were the later years in Berlin, the prestigious Meyerbeer Prize (which he won twice), the extensive studies with Max Bruch that were most important from the point of view of Nowowiejski’s career and renown. As a relatively young composer, he took a place among the most popular composers of his day by storm, while no work by any other Polish composer of the early-20th century could match the worldwide success of Nowowiejski’s oratorio Quo vadis. World War One thoroughly changed the situation. Involvement in the revival of independent Poland and his political engagement (active role in the preparations for the plebiscite in Warmia i Mazury, which Poland eventually lost) made the composer famous at home, but held back his international career (following his association with the plebiscite, the previously successful Quo vadis was no longer performed in Germany).

The variety of styles, forms, and colours has fascinated and inspired Polish composers for many years. From Baroque to contemporary music, in the time of the First Polish Republic, during the partitions, and during the most tragic 20th century. It was Chopin that made Polish music famous in the world. However, there are still many other composers who are very interesting and deserve to be remembered and sometimes even discovered. Polish composers created music regardless of unfavourable circumstances, and in their music we find, above all, the Polish spirit that tied them to their country forever, even when it was impossible to find it on maps, but nevertheless it existed in the inalienable identity. It was that output and those biographies that inspired the creation of the International Competition of Polish Music, whose first edition was held in 2019; therefore, it is one of the youngest performance competitions in Poland.

Its programme differs from the one of typical performance competitions, as it consists solely of music by Polish composers. Moreover, the emphasis is on the quest for new repertoire, constantly rediscovered by researchers, but also by the performers themselves. One could ask whether such a competition makes sense. Similar questions arose when the Chopin Competition was founded less than 100 years ago. Very few people believed in the success of Jerzy Żurawlew’s initiative. 26 pianists came to the first Chopin Competition in 1927. Later, the list of participants grew steadily to reach over 500 in 2021. We are convinced that the International Competition of Polish Music will follow the same path. It was Poles that dominated the second edition of the event that ended in 2021, but – despite 6 the pandemic turmoil – there were also guests from far away. Among the pianists, the first two places were taken by foreigners, i.e. American Canadian pianist Carter Johnson and Ivan Shemchuk from Ukraine. A Pole – Michał Karol Szymanowski – won the third place.

The above proves the importance of the Competition, which attracts interesting and ambitious artists from different countries. The presented album is a selection of particularly interesting artistic creations. The first CD features excerpts from the performances of the winners of the first three prizes in both categories (piano and chamber music), while the second includes the interpretations awarded with special prizes and honourable mentions. Thus, an extraordinary panorama of Polish music emerges, from Karol Mikuli to Witold Lutosławski, which allows us to show the paths of Polish 19thand 20th-century music in an unconventional way. Our album features recording premieres of works by Henryk Pachulski and Miłosz Magin, but also charming piano Waltzes by Stanisław Moniuszko, a fragment of an exotic suite by Leopold Godowsky, impressive compositions for two pianos by Roman Maciejewski, or Grażyna Bacewicz’s Piano Sonata No. 2, full of virtuoso splendour.

We present you with an album that is a great exploratory adventure; it will satisfy every experienced seeker of new artistic discoveries. It includes works by as many as 20 composers active over the course of over 100 years. Thus, we close the second chapter of the International Competition of Polish Music and launch the next one, which will be completed in 2023. It is already now that we invite you to this extraordinary meeting with outstanding performers and wonderful output of Polish composers.

Aleksandra Kaca was born in 1991 in Radom. Composer and Italian language specialist. She is a graduate of the Fryderyk Chopin University of Music in Warsaw, where she studied composition with professor Marcin Błażewicz. She also completed a postgraduate course “Menedżer Artysty” (‘The Artist’s Manager’), carried out in cooperation with SGH Warsaw School of Economics. She is currently pursuing a degree in composition at the Royal Academy of Music in Aarhus, where she is working with Simon Steen-Andersen and Niels Rønsholdt. Kaca also holds a degree in Italian Language and Literature from the University of Warsaw, which she obtained whilst following a part-time course in cultural production, journalism and multimedia at the LUMSA University in Rome. She is a laureate of many national and international composer competitions, such as the first prize at the 56th Tadeusz Baird Competition for Young Composers (2015) and the Call for scores competition, organised by the American ensemble E4TT (2016). Her works were performed during the 59th and 60th editions of ‘The Warsaw Autumn International Festival of Contemporary Music’, at many different venues, such as the Krzysztof Penderecki European Centre for Music, the Pomeranian Philharmonic Hall, the Fryderyk Chopin University, The Masovia Institute of Culture, The Baltic Sea Cultural Centre, as well as the Music Academies in Cracow, Katowice, Poznań and Łódź. Aleksandra Kaca is an active participant in her country’s music scene. She is a co-founder of a group called gen~.rate, which focuses on promoting works written by the young generation of composers. She also works with Delirium-Edition, co-organising important music events – e.g. the performance of Patterns in a Chromatic Field by Morton Feldman as part of the KODY Festival (2017), as well as Dark Matter(s): The Artist’s way Mykietyn / Balka / Peszat / Kociuban at Teatr Wielki – Polish National Opera (2017). As a translator, she co-operates with the Fryderyk Chopin Institute, Cinema Italia Oggi Festival (Cinema Muranów / Cinecittà LUCE) and the directing duo Manetti Bros. In her composing work, Kaca focuses mostly upon colours and how to combine them in order to achieve a multidimensional, yet a coherent image. She often reaches for non-obvious orchestration, such as combining the harp with the piano (Smugi cienia) or the soprano and barithone saxophones with electronics (Argument snu). Aleksandra Kaca persists in exploring her interest in many different music genres. She is the leader and founder of the ensemble called FJORS (composition, voice, keyboard, electronics), specialising in alternative and electronic music, as well as trip-hop.

A composition, as a phenomenon or an act of creation, can be understood as a reflection of the time in which it was written. An improvisation, in some sense, is also an act of creation, a kind of composition, and it also reflects its time. Performing transcriptions, “borrowings” (even of whole pieces), remakes, and quotations was a common thing at the time of George Frideric Handel (1685–1759). Handel himself, as the first cosmopolitical composer in the world, was open to various styles and cultures and would quote and remake his own works. He was a Great Master, undoubtfully equal to Johann Sebastian Bach, but he was not a purist, which may explain some of the solutions we used on this album. Handel was a star and a celebrity of his times. He would compose, understand, and love the genre of opera, which, out of all kinds of art, is closest to the man (with his issues, traumas, and challenges); a genre that is full of life and “venous” like a human body. He was perfectly at ease in the world of theatre, stage, and entertainment. All the above can be easily heard in the harmony and melodies of his sonatas. In some way, we are following this way of thinking – being fascinated by the music of the Great Master, we allow ourselves some surprising (in our opinion) differentiations and modifications. We are doing this here and now, drawing on the past eras (classicism and especially romanticism [sic!]). We are also not afraid to refer to different forms of popular music such as jazz or even pop music. We are doing it, because the music of our time, i.e. popular music, is all around us and sneaks into our minds. We are being impregnated with it beyond our conscience and will, since it is “everywhere we listen”, i.e. in restaurants, shops, on our way to work. Although this aspect of entertainment stands out a bit on our recording, we decided not to remove it. The sonatas presented on this CD are not one-dimensional – there are many parenthesis, interrupted thoughts, and surprising endings. However, the listener will quickly find the beauty, charm, elegance, logic, and depth of this music, always combined with masterful harmony and melodies. The audience can notice perfect, but natural and sincere melodies, in which Handel vents his feelings in a bit uncontrolled and improvised way; feelings that are “poignant in their poetry.” It is especially the slow movements that sound like elegies, epitaphs, or odes, full of pain, longing, mysticism, and wisdom. “Our art, weary of post-Beethovenesque and post-Wagneresque art, can find in Handel’s music (similarly to chamber music by Mozart) a poetic refuge, to heal its futile anxiety and to experience again silence and wellbeing.” Paweł Losakiewicz & Robert Morawski

This new release from DUX presents the second volume in the series of albums featuring the compositional oeuvre of Piotr Maszyński (1855-1934). Out of the composer's rich vocal works, further songs were selected, many of which receive their world premiere recordings on this disc.

Maszyński was particularly associated with the artistic life of Warsaw? it was there that he created, worked in institutions promoting culture (he was, among others, director of the Opera) and founded the "Lutnia" Singing Society. He preferred songs accompanied by the piano, most often solo, but also duets, which can be heard on the album.

Song is a special artistic medium; it combines music and poetry, sensitivity to words with a sense of melody. The times in which Maszyński composed were exceptionally conducive to such an expression, still embedded in the spirit of neo-romantic sensitivity.

Composer Mark Nowakowski returns with a powerful and compelling sophomore effort in "Metanoia." His 2017 NAXOS premiere album, Blood Forgotten, saw Nowakowski praised by Gramophone magazine for his "bold and empathetic art." Metanoia certainly continues this theme, containing chamber, vocal, and choral works which tell the story of deep personal struggle and transformation, a fitting commentary on our tumultuous times. Featuring a rich international cast of performers, it begins with the searing title track (scored for cello octet), proceeds through a selection of recordings representing highlights from the composer's career up to this point, and concludes with the hauntingly meditative Bogurodzica: Meditation for cello duo and electronics.