A podcast celebrating some of the greatest talents of jazz in Poland and highlighting the strength and variety of its vibrant contemporary jazz scene. Hosted by Debra Richards, brought to you by Culture.pl, the flagship brand of the Adam Mickiewicz Institute.
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Little-known histories from Central & Eastern Europe that changed our world... Heard of how The Rolling Stones played for the Communist Party? The bear who fought in WWII? Or the man who single-handedly created an entire language? Each episode of our narrative podcast tells incredible stories that all have one thing in common: the Eastern West. #SFTEW
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The late Krzysztof Penderecki was a legend of contemporary music. In this new limited podcast series, hear two famous British journalists, Jack Pepper and Charlotte Gardner, delving into the maestro's iconic work. Hosting five episodes each, every episode focuses on a single piece from Penderecki's impressive body of work. From the piece itself and the history of its creation, hear interesting stories from the master's biography, the history of Poland, and the world at the time the compositi ...
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In the tapestry of our lives, there are moments when the hand of Fate gently guides us towards unexpected encounters, and such is the enchanting tale of the Slovenian trio, Širom, and the Polish virtuoso guitarist, Raphael Roginski. It's a narrative they eloquently weave, with the resonating echo of Roginski's recording, 'Raphael Rogiński - Plays J…
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Within the Rebel Spirits series, a resounding truth emerges: music born from improvisation demands both formidable technical prowess and a receptive, open-hearted approach. Enter 'Voice 'n' Drums,' a collaborative venture between Polish vocalist Ania Rybacka and Danish drummer Stefan Pasborg, representing a bold exploration of one of humanity's mos…
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Holland Baroque x Bastarda
17:21
17:21
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17:21
The Bastarda’s and Holland Baroque’s joint project marks the inception of one of two captivating collaborations born from a shared reverence for music of eras long past. To pinpoint an exact period would be unwise, but this exceptional fusion of the Bastarda Trio and the Dutch ensemble, Holland Baroque, converges on the concepts, gestures, and dyna…
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Tomasz Dąbrowski received a prestigious commission to craft a composition for the grand finale of the Lodz Summer Jazz Festival, a tribute concert honoring the legendary trumpeter, Tomasz Stanko. Stanko, an internationally renowned figure in the jazz world, served as an extraordinary muse for Dąbrowski, who eloquently captures the enchanting elemen…
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At the heart of a 'Rebel Spirit' is an open mind, and it’s this openness that puts an artist like Wacław Zimpel in a vulnerable place that encourages the development of a musical intelligence that is not only intellectual but also spiritual. Wacław Zimpel has really dived into 'music of the world' as he puts it, to deepen his experience of sound an…
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Piotr Orzechowski aka Pianohooligan
22:16
22:16
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22:16
Like the other artists portrayed in Rebel Spirits II, Piotr Orzechowski aka Pianohooligan showed talent and a fiercely original mind at an early age. By his twenties, he'd won competitions and awards and had a clarity about his intention for music-making. There is one comment he made that particularly stood out to me. He said, “I want to revive the…
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Aga Derlak remembers her fascination with music as a young child. And once she began learning piano, she would lose hours in flowing through improvised journeys at the keyboard. This passion led her to gaining a place on the year-long Berklee Global Jazz Institute program. And in this interview, she discusses the impact that has had on many levels …
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In Marek Pędziwiatr there is a connection between the past and the present. The history of jazz and the African American musicians, who created it, and Polish innovators from Chopin through Krzysztof Komeda and Niemen. Marek is a hub, a central force pulling his golden threads of jazz, hip-hop, classical music, avant-garde, and Slavic folk. But his…
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To describe Joanna Duda as simply a pianist doesn't capture the extraordinary dimensions of the music she produces. Whether touching a broken keyboard, using the sound of a rewinding tape machine, or mixing in field recordings, her innate playfulness allows any instrument to blossom - you get a sense that one of her greatest strengths is to listen …
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In the history of jazz, there haven't been many musicians that give credit to their playing video games. But as a nine-year-old hardcore player, Kuba Więcek developed an affinity with repetitive practice and now feels the need for strategic thinking and fast decision-making has stood him in good stead as a bandleader today. After a pivotal moment a…
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Marcin Masecki considers that he has two parents, jazz and classical music. As a pianist, he is steeped in the tradition of learning piano as a young child with all the purity and precision that comes with that. In this interview, you get the sense of how that triggered Marcin’s disruptive streak, and how that has been central to his approach to mu…
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In the very last episode of Stories of The Eastern West as you knew it, we’re taking you to Estonia, 1989. A group of people there made 2 million others hold hands and create a human chain of unprecedented size and significance. The Baltic countries had a truly turbulent 20th century. They went from regaining their independence to losing it to the …
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Metamorphosen: Creativity and Intimacy
37:11
37:11
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37:11
Metamorphosen, Penderecki’s Second Violin Concerto, was written for the German violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter between 1992 and 1995. Drawing on the contrasts between this work and the First Violin Concerto, which was premiered by Isaac Stern in 1977, and contextualising Metamorphosen with the Second Violin Sonata and La Follia, this podcast will expl…
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The Passion of St Luke: Belief and Redemption
43:32
43:32
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43:32
“I was aiming for something that seemed unreachable”, said Penderecki of the St Luke Passion, a work written to mark one thousand years of Christianity in Poland, but commissioned by Westdeutscher Rundfunk to celebrate the 700th anniversary of Münster Cathedral. How was such a fundamental expression of faith received in Communist era Poland, and wh…
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Brigade of Death: Memory and Outrage
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35:15
On 8 September, 1939, when Krzysztof Penderecki was just a few weeks shy of his sixth birthday, German forces took control of his home town of Dębica with its majority Jewish population. Between then and the liquidation of the Dębica ghetto in 1943, the young Penderecki had to witness the Nazi regime’s systematic intimidation, segregation and exter…
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Threnody to the Victims of Hiroshima: Terror and Sorrow
32:16
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32:16
Fifty two strings. Eight minutes. Thirty seven seconds. Completed in 1960, Krzysztof Penderecki’s Threnody to the Victims of Hiroshima has become one of his most well-known works thanks to its use in soundtracks of films by David Lynch, Wes Craven and Alfonso Cuarón. In this podcast we explore its genesis, how its textures suggest an incomprehensib…
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Symphonies - Symphony No 7, 'Seven Gates Of Jerusalem'
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In the final episode of Jack's curated series, he charts the changing musical styles embraced by Penderecki across his career, using his symphonies as a starting point. Zooming in on the Seventh Symphony, Jack explains how Penderecki paints the epic picture of the founding of a city. Jack grapples with the challenges posed by a radically varied mus…
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Get to know Piotr Szkopiak, a London-based film and TV director who’s spent a good portion of his life pondering the nature of his identity. Piotr Szkopiak was born in the United Kingdom but into a Polish family. As he grew up, he learned that his parents and neighbours were all World War II prisoners of war who had escaped the USSR but couldn't go…
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Screen - Soundtrack to The Saragossa Manuscript
21:22
21:22
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21:22
Jack celebrates Penderecki's score to a classic work of Polish cinema. We hear how Penderecki embraced a varied musical language for the task at hand, from crashing organ chords to dancing guitars. Plus, we hear about his impact on the next generation of film composers, including a collaboration with Radiohead's Jonny Greenwood. Transcription WCAG…
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Aulodia / Ekecheiria: Polish Culture
17:08
17:08
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17:08
We explore how Penderecki found a world stage as a commissioned composer for the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich. We hear about the struggles Penderecki encountered in finding the right musical language for the commission, chart the internationalism of his work, and explore his wider use of electronics in his music. Further reading & listening: Krzysz…
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String Quartet No 3: Childhood & Roots
20:30
20:30
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20:30
We explore the traumatic events of Penderecki's upbringing, growing up as a boy in Nazi-German-occupied Poland from the ages of 6 to 12. How was his music a reaction to the events of the Second World War? Further reading & listening: Krzysztof Penderecki // bio on Culture.pl Visit Penderecki's Garden, a digital garden in the composer's honour. Many…
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A Polish Requiem: Nationhood
27:24
27:24
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We use Penderecki's A Polish Requiem to explore the volatile history of the Polish nation, and how this in turn influenced Penderecki's outlook. From trade union protests to sustaining religious faith under communist rule, we discover how a composer can reflect wider issues of state, nationhood and identity. Further reading & listening: Krzysztof P…
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The late Krzysztof Penderecki was a legend of contemporary music. In this new limited podcast series, hear two famous British journalists, Jack Pepper and Charlotte Gardner, delving into the maestro's iconic work. Hosting five episodes each, every episode focuses on a single piece from Penderecki's impressive body of work. From the piece itself and…
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continue reading
Nicolaus Copernicus, born in 1473, was the orphaned son of a copper merchant in Toruń. Thanks to his bishop uncle, he obtained a first class education at the Kraków Academy and then in Italy, where he became an avid observer of the night sky – even though he was supposed to be preparing for a church career. His day job as a church canon, diplomat a…
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Vera Chytilová was the most important woman director of the Czechoslovak New Wave – although she remains relatively unknown outside of Central Europe. As the first female student of the prestigious FAMU film school in Prague, she had to fight in order to do things her own way. During the creative explosion of the Czechoslovak New Wave, she made her…
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Stanisław Lem was a science-fiction writer whose works, abilities and quirky sense of humor convinced Phillip K. Dick that he was too brilliant to exist and must have actually been a committee of people! Indeed his rare gift for blending philosophy with technology and action made him an instantaneously recognisable voice in the European sci-fi worl…
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This year we have more great stories for you! There's going to be a bit of sci-fi, a pinch of socialist realism, a good portion of astronomy, and some old-fashioned moving testimonies from a region that never sleeps! Stay tuned: the first episode drops September 7th! Like our show? Get our newsletter!…
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The Fusionist: Zbigniew Namysłowski
29:24
29:24
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29:24
Like most Polish jazz musicians, Zbigniew Namysłowski learned the basics of jazz listening to Willis Conover’s “Jazz Hour”. Originally starting his musical career playing piano, cello and trombone, Namysłowski became infatuated with the saxophone after meeting composer Krzysztof Komeda, who happened to be carrying an alto saxophone with him, on a t…
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The Fusionist: Zbigniew Namysłowski
29:24
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29:24
Like most Polish jazz musicians, Zbigniew Namysłowski learned the basics of jazz listening to Willis Conover’s “Jazz Hour”. Originally starting his musical career playing piano, cello and trombone, Namysłowski became infatuated with the saxophone after meeting composer Krzysztof Komeda, who happened to be carrying an alto saxophone with him, on a t…
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The Virtuoso: Adam Makowicz
24:15
24:15
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24:15
Adam Makowicz grew up in a house where a piano was the centre of the home. His mother had long planned for him to become a classical virtuoso, but a meeting with a musician who introduced him to jazz changed this path completely. Adam packed his bags and left for Kraków, where he moved into a jazz nightclub and immediately became part of the city’s…
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The Virtuoso: Adam Makowicz
24:15
24:15
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24:15
Adam Makowicz grew up in a house where a piano was the centre of the home. His mother had long planned for him to become a classical virtuoso, but a meeting with a musician who introduced him to jazz changed this path completely. Adam packed his bags and left for Kraków, where he moved into a jazz nightclub and immediately became part of the city’s…
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The New Yorker: Michał Urbaniak
29:55
29:55
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29:55
“Polish jazz group - 100$ a night” Displayed on the posters in Michał Urbaniak’s band’s van while playing across Europe in the 60s, this hippy traveling player was soon to become one of the most innovative Polish jazz musicians in history. Though his European career was quickly evolving, the old continent simply didn’t feel like enough. From a very…
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