The Krakow International Festival of Composers has long been a vital platform for showcasing contemporary music, both from Poland and abroad. As it enters its 37th edition this May, the festival continues its legacy of commissioning, supporting, and celebrating new music with an impressive lineup of thirty-one world premieres.
Held annually since 1989, this Festival has become one of Poland’s key platforms for showcasing contemporary classical music, especially by Polish composers. Under the leadership of Marcel Chyrzyński, who serves as both the Festival’s General and Artistic Director, the event continues to evolve as a vibrant space for premieres, experimentation, and international collaboration.
Below is a complete guide to all of the brand-new works featured throughout the festival, organized by date and concert:
World Premieres:
Saturday, May 10 – Opening Concert
Orkiestra Muzyki Nowej, conductor: Szymon Bywalec
- Michał Dorman – From the ground for chamber orchestra
- Paweł Malinowski – floating:disappearance for chamber orchestra (2025) **
- Maciej Jabłoński – Epizody i refreny. Symfonia kameralna for chamber orchestra
Sunday, May 11 – Mindscape
Silesian String Quartet
- Wojciech Widłak – Ostinato (Quartetto d’archi no. 2)
Monday, May 12 – Music from the Depths
Duo Mastruzzo-Núñez
- Marcelo González – Felina for flute and guitar with amplification
- Pedro Castillo Lara – Pirekua for flute, guitar, and electronics
- Gonzalo Bifarella – LB y los espejos for flute, guitar, and electronics
- Federico Núñez – Il canto di Fausto for flute and guitar with amplification
- Leszek Wojtal – From the depths of an empty valley III for flute and guitar
Tuesday, May 13 – Krakow Composers’ School
Various performers
- Ewa Zuchowicz – Lo Stesso for solo cello
- Grzegorz Majka – Wizje melsztyńskie for clarinet, bassoon, and cello
- Krzysztof Kostrzewa – Hommage à Pierre Boulez for clarinet, bassoon, cello, and piano
- Jacek Sajka – From out to in for clarinet, bassoon, cello, and piano
- Anna Zawadzka-Gołosz – Strofy otwarte for clarinet, bassoon, cello, and piano
Wednesday, May 14 – Musical Memory
Warsaw Trio
- Andrea Mastropasqua – Silver Chimes for clarinet, cello, and piano (Prizewinner of Penderecki Competition)
- Xing Yu – Die Kunst des Teufels Nr. 2 for clarinet, cello, and piano
- Seonjin Yun – Memoria for clarinet, cello, and piano
Thursday, May 15 – Electronic Cocktail
Electroacoustic Music Studio & Ensembles
- SEx Ensemble – cyberShaman for unspecified sound sources
- Tytus Sikorski – Study I for fixed media
- Maciej Bieniawski – słowa wypowiedziane szeptem wybrzmiewają w mojej głowie najdłużej for guitar and live-electronics
- Aleksandra Merwart – (Nie)usłyszane for piano and light
- Hania Derej – Where it ends and begins for audio playback and video
- Julia Piasecka & Matteo Gurrieri – Textures for analog synthesizer and live-electronics
- Matteo Gurrieri et al. – Rotator – Was it a car or a cat I saw? for voices
- Katarina Gryvul – Zemlya for voice and electronics
- GrupLab – Plejrek 465 for voices, instruments, objects, and electronics
Friday, May 16 – Musical Affects
Yui Iwata-Skweres, violin & Tomasz Skweres, cello
- Katarzyna Kwiecień-Długosz – Sub sol(e) for solo violin
- Jarosław Płonka – scent of grey, Jan ’25 for violin and cello
Saturday, May 17 – Krakow Composers and Guests
Fluda-Lato Duo
- Szczepan Tesarowicz – Musica straziante e ho’oponopono per il lontano per clarinetto e pianoforte
- Bogdan Kryvopust – …i wiosna przyjdzie do krainy Scytów for clarinet and piano
- Michał Pawełek – Preludium chorałowe for clarinet and piano
- Peter Machajdík – Ask the Water for clarinet and piano
** Project co-financed by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage of the Republic of Poland within the “Composers’ Commissions” program, implemented by the National Institute of Music and Dance
*** Main Prize in the 7th Krzysztof Penderecki International Competition for Young Composers.
[Source: festiwal.zkp.krakow.pl]