Winners of the 2025 Penderecki Competition for Young Composers

On March 24, 2025, the winners of the 8th International Krzysztof Penderecki Competition for Young Composers, organized by the Kraków Branch of the Polish Composers’ Union (ZKP), were revealed. The competition jury—comprised of Marcel Chyrzyński (chairman), Zbigniew Bargielski, Ivan Buffa (Slovakia), Federico Gardella (Italy), Jeajoon Ryu (South Korea), and Wojciech Widłak, with competition secretary Aleksandra…Continue Reading Winners of the 2025 Penderecki Competition for Young Composers

Wołek Awarded 2025 Guggenheim Fellowship & Other Honors

Krzysztof Wolek and Michael Matsuno 2011 New Generations concert, USC Newman Hall, Los Angeles. Photo: Brian King

Krzysztof Wołek—Polish composer, pedagogue, improviser, and installation artist—has been named a recipient of the 100th edition of the Guggenheim Fellowship. Currently a professor of composition and director of electronic music studies at the University of Louisville, Wołek is one of 198 distinguished individuals selected in various categories of science and contemporary art for this prestigious…Continue Reading Wołek Awarded 2025 Guggenheim Fellowship & Other Honors

Fryderyk Awards 2025 – Classical Music Winners Announced

On Sunday, March 30, the winners of Poland’s most prestigious phonographic awards in classical music were revealed at the hall of NOSPR [National Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra] in Katowice, renowned for its exceptional acoustics. The awards were presented across twelve categories, celebrating outstanding achievements in classical music recording. The winners of the in classical music…Continue Reading Fryderyk Awards 2025 – Classical Music Winners Announced

PMC Dir. Zebrowski Honored with W. Celichowski Medal

We are proud to announce that the Director USC Polish Music Center, Marek Zebrowski, has been awarded the prestigious Witold Celichowski Medal in recognition of his outstanding contributions to the promotion of Polish culture abroad, as well as his artistic and scholarly achievements. The medal was awarded by the decision of Agata Sobczyk, Governor of…Continue Reading PMC Dir. Zebrowski Honored with W. Celichowski Medal

2024 Muzyczne Orły Awards

The Muzyczne Orły (Musical Eagles) Awards, organized by the Muzyka do Potęgi Foundation, have become a new celebration of excellence in classical music. This international competition recognizes outstanding achievements across a wide array of musical disciplines, from performance to education, honoring both Polish and international artists. The competition is judged by a distinguished panel of…Continue Reading 2024 Muzyczne Orły Awards

Honors for Chyrzyński & Colleagues

Eminent composer and longtime friend of the Polish Music Center, Marcel Chyrzyński, has had a busy academic year. Honored as the PMC’s Paderewski Lecturer in 2017, his career has been on a non-stop rise ever since. Below are just some of the honors that have been bestowed upon him in recognition of his work as…Continue Reading Honors for Chyrzyński & Colleagues

PMC/Henryk Wars Collection on “Polskie Radio dla Zagranicy”

We are excited to share that Marek Zebrowski, Director of the USC Polish Music Center, recently appeared in a series of interviews on the Polish Radio program “Polskie Radio dla Zagranicy” [Polish Radio for Abroad]. Conducted in Polish, these interviews offer a rich exploration of some of the PMC’s most recent activities and significant milestones….Continue Reading PMC/Henryk Wars Collection on “Polskie Radio dla Zagranicy”

PMC, Wars & UNESCO: Finis Coronat Opus

UNESCO honors PMC Wars Collection. Dr. Paweł Pietrzyk, prof. Alicja Jagielska-Burduk, and dir. Marek Zebrowski

From left: Dr. Paweł Pietrzyk, prof. Alicja Jagielska-Burduk, and dir. Marek Zebrowski By Marek Zebrowski Those readers who have frequented the PMC Newsletter lately will know that we have been celebrating an important honor recently bestowed by the Polish UNESCO Committee upon the PMC’s Henryk Wars/Henry Vars Manuscript Collection—these articles can be found at “UNESCO…Continue Reading PMC, Wars & UNESCO: Finis Coronat Opus

Exhibition: “Memory of Poland. UNESCO Memory of the World Program National List – 5th Edition”

The manuscript of the Nobel-prize winning epic novel Chłopi [The Peasants], the dethronement act of Tsar Nicholas I, the “golden bull” of the Polish language from 800 years ago, the works of Henryk Wars, the legacy of Jerzy Kukuczka and 12 other priceless historical documents were included this year on the UNESCO Memory of the…Continue Reading Exhibition: “Memory of Poland. UNESCO Memory of the World Program National List – 5th Edition”