On Tuesday September 10, Dr. Andrzej Ślązak returns to USC’s campus to present two lectures along with his colleague, Krystian Krauz. These two scholars are from the Music Institute at Jan Kochanowski University in Kielce, Poland, where Dr. Ślązak serves as Director of the Institute and a Fulbright Ambassador. They will discuss two leading Polish…Continue Reading Lecture: Modern Polish Piano Music
The 2024 Paderewski Festival in Paso Robles will be held October 31 – November 3. Tickets for this year’s history-making events and exciting artists, as well as exclusive “Patron” and “Friends of Paderewski” passes that include access to all concerts, are on sale now! Travelers to this popular destination are also encouraged to make their…Continue Reading Announcing the 2024 Paderewski Festival in Paso Robles
The USC Polish Music Center presents the Paderewski Lecture-Recital, an annual concert event commemorating pianist, composer and statesman Ignacy Jan Paderewski by spotlighting current achievements in Polish music. The USC Polish Music Center is home to the world-renowned archival collection of Henryk Wars (aka Henry Vars, 1902-1977), Poland’s foremost film composer of the inter-war era, whose hit tunes…Continue Reading Oct 2024: Celebrating Henryk Wars ~ UNESCO Honors & 40 Years of PMC
On June 26 at the Belweder—the Presidential Palace in Warsaw—the 2024 UNESCO Pamięć Świata/Memory of the World ceremony will take place. The palace’s elegant ballroom will be filled to capacity with distinguished guests, among them Marek Zebrowski, representing the USC Polish Music Center and Dennis Mitchell, grandson of Henryk Wars (1902-1977). Poland’s President, Andrzej Duda,…Continue Reading UNESCO Honors PMC Archives
A Review by Marek Zebrowski Sunday afternoon, April 21, marked the end of the 2023/2024 concert season organized jointly by the Holocaust Museum LA and USC Polish Music Center. The performers for this occasion were a dynamic duo of violinist Karolina Mikołajczyk and classical accordionist Iwo Jedynecki. They performed in the Childrens’ Memorial, an evocative…Continue Reading Sounds of a Bygone Era
A Review by Marek Zebrowski The Verona Quartet (Jonathan Ong and Dorothy Ro, violins, Abigail Rojansky, viola, and Jonathan Dormand, cello) visited the USC campus for a master class on March 20 and a concert on March 23. Their sojourn at USC elicited great interest from string students and faculty, culminating in a packed auditorium…Continue Reading Heartfelt Musicmaking at PMC’s Spring Concert
In another collaboration with the Holocaust Museum in Los Angeles, the Polish Music Center presents one of the brightest young stars of the Polish chamber music scene: Duo Karolina & Iwo. Both virtuosos in their own right, Karolina Mikołajczyk and Iwo Jedynecki bring great energy to the stage, highlighting not only existing repertoire for accordion…Continue Reading April 2024: Karolina & Iwo Duo at HMLA
On March 23, the USC Polish Music Center welcomes to campus the esteemed Verona Quartet, presenting the annual PMC Spring Concert in collaboration with guest pianist and USC Thornton faculty member Bernadene Blaha. Entitled “Celebrating Bacewicz & Szymanowski,” this concert features pioneering female composer and polymath, Grażyna Bacewicz, and the father of Polish modern music, Karol Szymanowski, highlighting how…Continue Reading 2024 PMC Spring Concert: Celebrating Bacewicz & Szymanowski
Beloved by Los Angeles audiences, the Cracow Duo returns to USC on March 10. Comprised of cellist Jan Kalinowski and pianist Marek Szlezer, the duo will perform an evocative collection of some of their favorite pieces, gathered from over 20 years of performing as an ensemble. Entitled “From Polonaise to Tango,” the program will range…Continue Reading Cracow Duo: ‘From Polonaise to Tango’ on March 10
The Zarębski Piano Duo, an ensemble formed a decade ago in Kraków and specializing in repertoire for piano four-hands, will be visiting the United States in the coming weeks. The ensemble’s pianists, Grzegorz Mania and Piotr Różański, are professors at the Bydgoszcz and Kraków Music Academies. Their anticipated return comes in connection with the annual…Continue Reading Zarębski Piano Duo Returns to the US