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December 2005, Vol. 11, No. 12. ISSN 1098-9188. Published monthly. Los Angeles: Polish Music Center, University of Southern California
Anniversaries |
Awards |
Calendar of Events |
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Henry Vars, the evening was dedicated to Vars' music and the generosity of his family. This Gala event was co-sponsored by the Consulate General of the Republic of Poland in L.A. and the Polish Music Center USC and presented to a capacity crowd in the beautiful Bovard Auditorium on the USC campus at 8:00 p.m. on Friday, November 11th, 2005.
Dean Cutietta and Wanda Wilk
 
Marek Żebrowski & the honorable Krystyna Tokarska-Biernacik
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After Ms. Lourdes Saab, the L.A. Deputy Chief of Protocol of the Board of Supervisors, presented a Certificate of Commendation to the Polish Consulate on behalf of Los Angeles County in honor of Polish Independence Day, the Consul General again took the stage. She was joined by the honorable Paulina Kapuścińska, Polish Consul for Culture, Education & Media for Los Angeles. Together, they commended Mrs. Elizabeth Vars (pictured at right with the Consul General), the widow of the composer, for her gift of manuscripts and presented her with the Amicus Poloniae award. Mrs. Vars was touched by the recognition and by the fact that her husband was being honored that night, and responded with great emotion. Robert Vars, son of the composer, also spoke on behalf of their whole family, relating personal anecdotes about life with his brilliant father.
1-3 December 2005
 Sadovska has made her way across the remote, rural landscape of Ukraine, absorbing songs from women whom she met throughout her travels. In her hands, however, these folk songs are no sterile collection of ethnomusicology, but a thrilling, taut and slightly terrifying journey through village life in Ukraine. Each song is given to her by a specific person. She believes that songs are dialogues between the singer and the listener—first between that person and Mariana, and now a spellbinding dialogue between Mariana and her audience. From the desperation of a widow after her husband's death to a young girl speaking to doves at a well, Mariana sings of people half a world away, but through her strength and vitality delivers a universal experience.
FRIDAY | 9 DECEMBER 2005 | 8:30 pm
In 2003 in Radziejowice Palace, the reactivated Warsaw Quintet played their first concert. The ensemble that once included such greats as Szpilman, Gimpel, Wroński, Kamasa and Ciechański now includes only violist Stefan Kamasa from the old line up. New members are: Konstanty Andrzej Kulka and Krzysztof Bąkowski on violins, Rafał Kwiatkowski on cello and Krzysztof Jabłoński on piano. The Warsaw Quintet will be performing on the 13 December at the Warsaw National Philharmonic. Program: Kazimierz Wiłkomirski - Air for cello and piano; Juliusz Zarębski - Piano Quintet in G Minor op. 34; Johannes Brahms - Piano Quintet in F Minor op. 34.
Camerimage 2005: 27 November - 6 December 2005
Since its inception in 1993, the Camerimage Festival in Łódź has become one of Poland's premiere film festivals. During the final gala of the 2005 Festival on December 6th, the audience was treated to a presentation of the Charlie Chaplin movie Behind the Stage from 1916, with its new music score composed by Krzesimir Dębski. The youngest son of Charlie Chaplin, Eugene will attend the Gala, to experience the re-working of his father's classic.
 The Dębskis and Eugene Chaplin
"Good Night, sweet Prince,
Flights of Angels sing thee to thy rest" W. Shakespeare, Hamlet
THE MEWS 594 Valley Road Upper Montclair, NJ 07043 Tel: (973) 744 0111 Email: jk@jkkfinearts.com Web: www.jkkfinearts.com
On December 2, 2005, the day before the ceremony of the European Film Awards, the European Film Music Concert will take place in the Volksbühne Theater in Berlin. French film composer Maurice Jarre (Lawrence of Arabia, Dr. Zhivago, Gumbi, etc.) will be an honorary guest of the evening and the musical performers will be the Flemish Radio Orchestra. During the concert the audience will hear compositions by Brunon Coulais, Albert Iglesias and Stephen Warbeck. The music of Polish film composer, Zbigniew Preisner will also be featured, including music from Kieślowski's Trois couleurs.
The Wratislavia Cantans International Festival has a new artistic director: British conductor Paul McCreesh (pictured at left). Paul McCreesh, founder and Artistic Director of the Gabrieli Consort and Players, has established himself at the highest level in the period instrument field and is recognized for his authoritative and innovative performances on the concert platform and the opera house. Maestro McCreesh plans to refresh the Festival, which is sometimes considered a bit too "old fashioned" in certain circles. He has given assurance, though, that his changes will be more of an evolution, not a revolution. The first festival completely under his control will be the 2007 edition. To streamline the event, the Festival will take place in a set time (between September 8 - 16) and only in the city of Wrocław.
McCreesh is 45 years old and is a graduate of Manchester University. Currently he lives in London and collaborates with such groups as the Ensemble Orchestral de Paris and San Francisco Symphony.
The Paderewski Trio will perform in concert on Sunday, December 11 at 3 PM at the Kosciuszko Foundation House. The program includes trios of Beethoven and Mendelssohn and, with guest violist Toby Appel, the Piano Quartet in G minor of Mozart. Winners of the 32nd Artists International Annual Debut Prize in 2003, they have performed regularly in the Foundation's highly regarded Chamber Music Series, broadcast over WQXR-FM. There will be a reception and discussion with the artists after the concert. You can reserve your place by calling (212) 734-2130.
 Toby Appel has appeared in recital and concerto performances throughout North and South America, Europe, and the Far East. He has been a member of such renowned ensembles as "Tashi", and has appeared with jazz artists Chick Corea and Gary Burton. In 1975, Mr. Appel was featured in a CBS television special performing works commissioned by him for three violas, all played by Toby Appel. In 1980, Mr. Appel was the winner of Young Concert Artists International Award. A most versatile artist, Mr. Appel has appeared as a narrator and is a frequent commentator for National Public Radio's Performance Today. Mr. Appel is currently teaching on the viola and chamber music faculties at the Juilliard School in New York City and is Artist Lecturer at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh. The Paderewski Trio will appear in two additional concerts at the Kosciuszko Foundation on February 5 and March 26, 2006. The Foundation's Chamber Music Series continues with the New York State Baroque Orchestra in a special holiday concert on Sunday, December 18.
On December 1st and 2nd, young talented pianists will have a chance to perform on the stage of the F. Chopin School of Music in Sochaczew, which is located very near to Chopin's birthplace in Żelazowa Wola. The jury, chaired by Prof. Jan Kadłubiski and consisting of distinguished pedagogues from various music academies, will single out the most interesting performances. All participants will receive diplomas. Laureates will receive awards, perform in the winner's concert at 5:00 pm on December 2nd and perform for the Warsaw Musical Society at 11:00 am on Sunday Dec. 4th.
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By unanimous agreement of the jury, 22 year old Ryszard Groblewski, a viola student from the Warsaw Music Academy, is the Grand Prix winner of this year's edition of the prestigious International Music Competition in Geneva, Switzerland. He was one of only two Polish violists to participate in the competition, among the 66 other violists from around the world. Every year the Geneva competition invites players from two different categories of instruments - this year it was viola and piano. Groblewski has already garnered international acclaim with awards from competitions in Munich (Germany), Portschach (Austria), Essen (Germany) and Bled (Slovenia).
The choir was established in 1971 by the Gdańsk University. To date the ensemble has performed few hundred concerts in Poland and abroad.
Edward Pałłasz is a long time contributor to the Polish Radio, for which he has written many compositions. He points out that in the radio shows, music plays a huge role. According to the composer, music, "can either support, or be in opposition to, the words". The Grand Splendor was awarded for 18th time and the Honorary Grand Splendor for the 6th time. |
Vincent P. Skowronski, violin; Saori Chiba, Donald Isaak and Neil Penesis, pianists
The DVD, set to be released on the December 9, 2005 was recorded live at the Wrocław Philharmonic in November 2004. The first part of the concert consists of traditional American jazz standards and the second of their arrangements of compositions by Chopin.
DEC 4: The Chopin Foundation Annual Chopin Christmas Concert. Performances by the Winners of the 10th Annual San Francisco Chopin
Competition and special guests at the Queen Ann Hotel, 1590 Sutter Street (at Octavia), San Francisco, CA. 4:00 pm.
Admission is free (donations welcome). Reservations suggested due to limited seating. For more information call 1-925-944-5733 or email: 
Featuring the 49-piece Lira Chamber Orchestra, and the Lira Dancers performing with guest artists, the Lechici Dancers, and the Lira Singers (pictured at right). Ford Performing Arts Center, 15801 Michigan Avenue, Dearborn, Michigan. 8:00 pm. 
