A press conference was held today at the Akademia Sztuk Pięknych (Academy of Fine Arts) in Warsaw. It was dedicated to the upcoming Third International Competition of Polish Music that will take place from 2 to 9 July at the Artur Malawski Podkarpacka Philharmonic Hall in Rzeszów. The event promotes, amongst the international musicians and the audiences alike, the lesser-known Polish repertoire from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Apart from the cash prizes of more than one hundred thousand euros in total, the winners of the third edition are going to receive a plethora of interesting concert prizes.

The conference was attended by Wanda Zwinogrodzka – Under Secretary of State in the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage, Paula Lis-Sołoducha – Director of the National Institute of Music and Dance, Prof. Marta Wierzbieniec – Director of the Podkarpacka Philharmonic in Rzeszów and Lech Dzierżanowski – Deputy Director of the National Institute of Music and Dance in charge of the music department, in addition to the invited media representatives.

The principle of the Competition is to not only popularise the music itself, but also to promote talented musicians who include lesser-known Polish compositions in their concert programmes. The previous editions have shown that the international standing of the event has increased while its winners successfully present Polish music in concert halls around the world.

The 3rd International Competition of Polish Music will open a series of important competition events whose organisation is possible thanks to the financial support from the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage: in September the city of Katowice will host the Karol Szymanowski Competition (divided into no fewer than 5 categories), in October we will have the Chopin Competition performed on early instruments in Warsaw and November, again in Katowice, will greet us with the Grzegorz Fitelberg Competition for Conductors. All of these events are part of the promotion of Polish music in a variety of forms – Wanda Zwinogrodzka, Under Secretary of State in the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage, affirmed during the conference

The uniqueness of the International Competition of Polish Music, organised since 2019, lies in the fact that the candidates submit their own, specially prepared programmes consisting of works written solely by Polish composers. This year, the artists can create their programmes out of works written by more than 60 Polish composers. This repertoire is normally not known to the wider audience nor is it frequently performed in concert.

Even though the International Competition of Polish Music in Rzeszów is a comparatively very young event on the map of music competitions, the fruit of its long-term mission can already be seen. The competition recordings garner excellent reviews and the winners complement the programmes of their concerts and recitals with the works they specially prepared for the competition. The event has contributed to several world premiere recordings (violin duets Op. 10 and 16 by Joachim Kaczkowski, Bajka and Burlesque by Artur Malawski, as well as the first sonata from Op. 10 and Phantastiche Märchen Op. 12 by Henryk Pachulski). One of the highlights of the second edition of the competition was the world premiere performance of a string quartet (1957) by Miłosz Magin, an early composition that had so far only remained in the family archives – says Paula Lis Sołoducha, Director of the National Institute of Music and Dance.

The previous editions have shown that the international standing of the event has increased while its winners successfully present Polish music in concert halls around the world.

The Competition is divided into two categories: one addressed to the pianists and the other to the chamber ensembles. Here is a list of all the participants of this year’s edition:

The attractiveness and performance of the presentations will be adjudicated by the jury members of both categories. The jury is composed of eminent Polish and foreign musicians. Link to the list.

ORGANISERS, PARTNERS, MEDIA PATRONS

The Third International Competition of Polish Music is organised by the National Institute of Music and Dance.

The event is co-organised by the Artur Malawski Podkarpacka Philharmonic in Rzeszów.

The third edition of the Competition has received the Honorary Patronage of the President of the Republic of Poland Andrzej Duda.

The Competition is financed by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage and the Marshal of Podkarpackie Voivodeship.

Partners of the Competition:

Dwójka Polskie Radio, YAMAHA, PLL LOT / LOT Polish Airlines, Polskie Wydawnictwo Muzyczne / PWM Edition, Ruch Muzyczny, magazine STOART – sponsor of the fifth prize Society of Authors, ZAiKS – sponsor of the fifth prize and 2 special prizes for the best performance of works written after 1945, Akademia Sztuk Pięknych / Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw, Karol Szymanowski Combined School of Music No. 1 in Rzeszów, Wojciech Kilar Combined School of Music No. 2 in Rzeszów.

Media Patrons:

Polskie Radio, Culture.pl, Polmic.pl, Rzeczpospolita, TVP Kultura, ONET, Zwierciadło, Gość Niedzielny, Nowiny, Nowiny 24.pl, Podkarpacki Informator Kulturalny.

The Competition is a member of the piano competition network Alink-Argerich Foundation.