The 7th National Competition for Young Conductors in Witold Lutosławski Begins

On Sunday, May 15th, at 7:00 PM, we invite you to the Concert Hall on Podleśna Street for a unique musical evening inaugurating the 7th National Competition for Young Conductors in Witold Lutosławski. The Podlasie Opera and Philharmonic Orchestra will perform under the baton of Mirosław Jacek Błaszczyk.

The evening will begin with Krzysztof Meyer’s Hommage à Johannes Brahms, Op. 59, for whom Brahms’ music is particularly dear. This work for symphony orchestra was composed to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the German composer’s birth. Music lovers will also hear Krzysztof Penderecki’s Double Concerto for Violin, Viola, and Orchestra. From the very first chords, the composition surprises with its lyricism, sensitivity to tone, and perfection in building mood. The soloists will be Rafał Dudzik (violin) and Katarzyna Budnik (viola). The evening will conclude with a composition by Witold Lutosławski, the patron of the National Competition for Young Conductors – Symphonic Variations. Composed in 1938, the Variations became the first testament to the extraordinary talent of the then 25-year-old composer, who himself considered their premiere in April 1939 his official compositional debut. The work impresses with its freshness of invention and exceptional mastery of compositional technique.

Starting Monday, May 16th, auditions for the young conducting students participating in this year’s OKMD will take place on the Main Stage of the Podlasie Opera and Philharmonic. Auditions will be open to the public – for four days, everyone will be able to visit the Opera House on Odeska Street free of charge to hear works conducted by young artists.

The first stage of auditions, with 24 participants, will take place on May 16 and 17. Each conductor will select two works from Group A (Carl Maria von Weber – Overture to the opera ‘Der Freischutz’, Gioachino Rossini – Overture to the opera ‘Semiramide’, Władysław Żeleński – Characteristic Overture ‘In the Tatras’, Op. 27) and two from Group B (Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart – Symphony No. 41 ‘Jupiter’ in C major, K. 551, Ludwig van Beethoven – Symphony No. 3 in E-flat major ‘Eroica’, Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy – Symphony No. 3 in A minor ‘Scottish’, Op. 56). They will then randomly select one of the selected works from each group. They will have no more than 30 minutes to arrange them with the orchestra.

The top eight participants will advance to the second stage of the auditions (May 18 and 19). In this stage, the participant selects two works from the repertoire in Group A (Antonin Dvořák – Symphony No. 8 in G major, Op. 88; Pyotr Tchaikovsky – Symphony No. 4 in F minor, Op. 36; Johannes Brahms – Symphony No. 1 in C minor, Op. 68), and then draws one to perform. From Group B, the participants will draw one piece each (Henryk Wieniawski – Fantasie brillante, Op. 20, based on themes from Ch. Gounod’s opera Faust; Witold Lutosławski – Partita for violin and orchestra).

As Professor Mirosław Jacek Błaszczyk, artistic director of the OiFP and the originator of the competition, Żeleński’s Overture in the Tatras may pose some difficulty in the first stage: –It is very rarely performed, but many candidates have chosen this piece. In the case of the ‘Eroica’ composition, young conductors may have some difficulty choosing the tempo in the first movement, and this is absolutely crucial here – he explains. – The same applies to Mozart’s ‘Jupiter’ Symphony – here, too, you have to balance the right proportions and find an idea for the fugue in the last movement, a short but musically challenging fragment. In the second stage, the ‘Partita’ is very demanding, as are each of the symphonies, as it requires extensive knowledge and considerable maturity. Tackling such a vast form is a considerable challenge, especially for young conductors.

Competition participants will perform in alphabetical order, starting with a randomly selected letter. The young conductors will be judged by a jury composed of distinguished Polish conductors and professors from music universities, chaired by Mirosław Jacek Błaszczyk, artistic director of the Podlasie Opera and Philharmonic. The jury includes Tomasz Bugaj, Rafał Jacek Delekta, Sylwia Janiak-Kobylińska, Warcisław Kunc, Marek Pijarowski, Jacek Rogala, Piotr Sułkowski, and Monika Wolińska.

Maciej Koczur, winner of the 6th National Young Conductors Competition in 2016, today recalls his participation in the competition as one of the most exciting events of his life. – After the competition, I had the opportunity to once again perform in front of the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra, an incredible experience, but I must admit that I also recall with great emotion the performance of Sibelius’s Symphony No. 5 with the Białystok Philharmonic Orchestra, which was also a result of winning first place…

The charismatic conductor currently teaches at the Academy of Music in Łódź, specializing in new music. He has a proven recipe for success for the young conductors participating in this year’s OKMD competition: You have to be yourself, not pretend. Show your musicality and lift the orchestra with your personality – give the musicians as much energy and love for music as possible.

Who will win the title of best conductor of the young generation this year will be announced on the evening of May 19th, after the jury’s deliberations. The awards ceremony and the winners’ gala concert will take place on May 20th at 7:00 PM in the concert hall on Podleśna Street. Cash prizes of PLN 15,000, PLN 10,000, and PLN 5,000 await the winners. The first-prize winner will also receive the opportunity to participate in next year’s 11th International Grzegorz Fitelberg Conducting Competition in Katowice.

Competition Schedule:

OPENING CONCERT
May 15, 2022, 7.00 PM
ZSM Concert Hall, Podleśna Street 2

Podlasie Opera and Philharmonic Orchestra
Mirosław Jacek Błaszczyk – conductor
Rafał Dudzik – violin
Katarzyna Budnik – viola

Programme:
K. Meyer – Hommage à Johannes Brahms for orchestra, Op. 59
K. Penderecki – Double Concerto for violin, viola, and orchestra
W. Lutosławski – Symphonic Variations

COMPETITION AUDITIONS (free admission!)
May 16-19, 2022
Main Stage of OiFP, Odeska Street 1

Stage I (May 16-17)
10.00-11.30 AM
12.00-1.30 PM
6.00-7.30 PM
8.00-9.30 PM

Stage II (May 18-19)
10.00 AM-12.00 PM
6.00-8.00 PM

WINNERS’ CONCERT
May 20, 2022, 7.00 PM
ZSM Concert Hall, Podleśna Street 2

Podlasie Opera and Philharmonic Orchestra
OKMD Winners