About Festival

Gdańsk Music Festival is a continuation of a project which was realised for the first time in 2008. The form of the festival is open however an individual touch to its every edition gives its message or an Artist of Residence. Among prominent artists who took this role were Elżbieta Sikora, Ewa Pobłocka, Stefania Toczyska, Konstanty Andrzej Kulka, Włodzimierz Nahorny and Daniel Reuss. The festival commemorated important anniversaries: of F. Chopin, W. Lutosławski and G.Verdi. The first edition of the festival was dedicated to two great Gdańsk pedagogues: professor Stefan Herman and professor Zbigniew Śliwiński.

In 2016 legendary Maxim Vengerov will be an Artist in Residence. Great violinist, conductor and teacher will lead a Master Course in Gdańsk, he will also present six musicians that he chose for the International Henryk Wieniawski Violon Competition which is planned for the autumn 2016. Vengerov will be also a soloist on the Final Gala and he will perform Henryk Wieniawski and Karol Szymanowski concerts. Gdańsk Music Festival 2016 will be dominated with string instruments because of the Artist in Residence name. The tradition of the festival is however to present the finalist of the International Frederic Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw, and so this year will perform its Enfant terrible - Georgijs Osokins, who was chosen in social media plebiscite.

Not only Maxim Vengerov will present Polish repertoire, the leading motive of 2016 edition will be „Polish concert”. Prominent pianist and Chopin Competition jury member Nelson Goerner, will perform on the inauguration festival, with Polish Radio Orchestra he will play I. J. Paderewski Piano Concert. Polish music will fill the whole concert of Polish Chamber Choir Scholi Cantorum Gedanensis, which under the baton of Jan Łukaszewski will present Polish Vocal Classic of 20th and 21th century.

The concerts promoting talented youth sound also promising. Young cellist Maciej Kułakowski will perform with renowned AMADEUS orchestra of Agnieszka Duczmal and Baltic Young Philharmonic conducted by Sylwia Janiak will perform with Janusz Wawrowski, violinist making world-wide career, recording for EMI. For youth is also dedicated a concert of renowned flutist Łukasz Długosz in Music School in Kościerzyna. It will be proceeded with master course of interpretation for music school students from the whole region.

In Gdańsk Music Festival 2016 programme there will be, as always, concerts of Gdańsk ancient and contemporary music. Star of the Old Gdańsk Sounds will be a prominent English conductor and countertenor Paul Esswood, who will lead Cappella Gedanensis. The ensemble plays on historical instruments. In St. John’s Centre will take place anniversary concert of Cappella Gedanensis 35 years of existence.