The Silesian Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra

Artistic director – Yaroslav Shemet

Honor Conductor – Mirosław Jacek Błaszczyk

1st Guest Conductor – Daniel Oren

The Silesian Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra has been working continuously since 1945. The philharmonic played its first concert on May 26 this year. Under the baton of Jan Niwiński and Faustin Kulczycki, they performed works by Polish composers – Fryderyk Chopin, Stanisław Moniuszko, Mieczysław Karłowicz, Zygmunt Noskowski, Ludomir Różycki and Faustin Kulczycki. The orchestra was accompanied by soprano Irena Lewińska during the concert.

In the following years, the positions of artistic directors of the Silesian Philharmonic and conductors of the Symphony Orchestra were held by, among others: Witold Krzemieński, Stanisław Skrowaczewski, Karol Stryja, Krzysztof Missona, Zdzisław Szostak, Czesław Płaczek, Jerzy Salwarowski and Mirosław Jacek Błaszczyk. Currently, Yaroslav Shemet is the artistic director and conductor of the Symphony Orchestra.

Guests on the conducting podium in Katowice were such masters as: Leopold Stokowski, Carlo Zecchi, Herman Abendroth, Eugene Ormandy, George Szell, Zubin Mehta, Herbert Blomstedt, Helmut Koch, Kurt Masur, and Genadij Rozhdestvenskij, and from the Poles – Witold Rowicki, Stanisław Wisłocki, Bohdan Wodiczko, Jan Krenz, Kazimierz Kord, Antoni Wit, Jacek Kaspszyk, Jerzy Maksymiuk, Tadeusz Strugała and Antoni Wit.

World-famous soloists played with the Orchestra. Foreign guests include: Victoria de los Angeles, Isaac Stern, Emil Gilels, Svyatoslav Richter, Dawid and Igor Oistrakh, Ruggiero Ricci, Magda Tagliaferro, Ida Haendel, Louis Kentner, Fou Ts’ong, Daniel Szafran, Maurizio Pollini, Bella Dawidowicz, Emanuel Ax, Garrick Ohlsson, Nikita Magaloff, Eugene Indjić, Tibor Varga, Elena Obraztsowa, Montserrat Caballé, Gwyneth Jones, Agnes Baltsa, Jose Carreras and Giuseppe di Stefano.

Among the Polish musicians we hosted on the stage of the Silesian Philharmonic were: Raul Koczalski, Witold Małcużyński, Halina Czerny-Stefańska, Regina Smendzianka, Józef Stompel, Andrzej Jasiński, Władysław Kędra, Adam Harasiewicz, Piotr Paleczny, Henryk Szeryng, Elżbieta Chojnacka, Wanda Wiłkomirska, Konstanty Andrzej Kulka, Kaja Danczowska, Roman Lasocki, Piotr Pławner, Stefania Woytowicz, Krystyna Szostek-Radkowa, Barbara Zagórzanka, Stefania Toczyska, Ewa Podleś, Urszula Kryger, Teresa Żylis-Gara, Bogdan Paprocki, Zdzisława Donat, Andrzej Hiolski, Wiesław Ochman, Ryszard Karczykowski, Wojciech Drabowicz, Romuald Tesarowicz, and Tadeusz Żmudziński and Krystian Zimerman.

Festivals

From the very beginning of its activity, the Silesian Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra has participated in many Polish and foreign music festivals. It is constantly present, among others: to the International Festival of Contemporary Music “Warsaw Autumn”, the International Festival of Oratorio and Cantata Music “Wratislavia Cantans”, the Festival “Music in Old Krakow”. Among foreign festivals she hosted, among others in: La Chaise Dieu, Sion-Valais, Prague, Ruse, Lucca, Halle, Kiel, Ostrava, Vienna, Linz, Berlin, Lisbon, Marianske Lazne, Brno, Varna, Athens, Taipei and Barcelona.

Premieres

The Silesian Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra gave world premieres of over 80 works. They included works by such composers as: Henryk Mikołaj Górecki, Krzysztof Penderecki, Wojciech Kilar, Tadeusz Baird, Andrzej Dobrowolski, Aleksander Glinkowski, Jan Wincenty Hawel, Eugeniusz Knapik, Aleksander Lasoń, Aleksander Nowak, Józef Świder.

Foreign tour

The orchestra went on its first foreign tour in May 1958, giving two concerts in what was then Czechoslovakia (Ostrava and Karvina). Since then, the band has gone on over 200 foreign tours, giving concerts throughout Europe, as well as in Japan, Taiwan and South Korea.

Recordings

The Symphony Orchestra’s record output includes over 40 recordings for Polish and global labels. A huge phonographic achievement of the Silesian Philharmonic and Karol Stryja was the recording for the “Marco Polo – NAXOS” company of all symphonic, vocal-orchestral and cantata-oratorio works by Karol Szymanowski, including Stabat Mater and the opera “King Roger”. The album with works by George Gershwin conducted by Jerzy Salwarowski received the “golden” status. In recent years, the Symphony Orchestra has recorded, among others: “Silesian Rhapsody” by Jan A. P. Kaczmarek and works by Henryk Mikołaj Górecki: “Sanctus Adalbertus” op. 71 (CD nominated for Fryderyk), “Beatus Vir” op. 38, “Concerto-Cantata” op. 65 and “Canticum Graduum” op. 27.

 

SILESIAN PHILHARMONIC SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA 

1st violins:

Anna Podulka – concertmaster
Krzysztof Kokoszewski – concertmaster
Dominik Kossakowski – deputy concertmaster
Marta Diug-Chwastek
Dariusz Wicherek
Elżbieta Pisarska
Aleksandra Pawełek-Zaborny
Beata Modliszewska
Michalina Piątek
Michał Siwy
Waldemar Staniczek
Katarzyna Gwizdon
Leszek Sojka
Magdalena Nawojska
Marta Pisarska-Wójcik
Zuzanna Gajos
2nd violins:

Agnieszka Skomorowska
Ryszard Słapik
Paweł Nalepa
Sławomira Łoś
Małgorzata Wacławik
Dawid Dancewicz
Łukasz Grabiński
Agnieszka Dancewicz
Paweł Muszała
Mikołaj Łukosz 
Katarzyna Hałoń
Anna Król
Jacek Widera
Wiktor Poziomnicki
violas:

Rafał Woźniak
Jarosław Marzec
Joanna Botor
Sabina Wocław
Robert Jagodziński
Adam Staśko
Krzysztof Modliszewski
Aleksandra Pindel
Anna Modliszewska
Magdalena Maier-Borowska
Weronika Milik
 
cellos:

Konrad Bargieł – concertmaster
Jacek Gwizdon – deputy concertmaster
Franciszek Skóra
Jerzy Szkopek
Justyna Majewska
Bernard Sczendzina
Grażyna Róg
Katarzyna Czypka
Anna Fert
Julia Grzegorzewska
double basses:

Piotr Rurański
Roman Huzior
Urszula Nancka
Przemysław Wacławik
Maciej Spychała
Paweł Łamik
Samuel Piękoś
Szymon Ręczmin
 

flutes:

Magdalena Maliszewska
Andrzej Staciwa
Grażyna Jursza
 
 
 
oboes:

Adam Stachula
Anna Kudala
Magdalena Kudala 
 
english horn:

Tomasz Stencel
clarinets:

Agata Piątek
Marek Miś
Marian Tobor
Rafał Kleszcz
 
 
bassoons:

Tadeusz Łukosz
Marek Krzemiński
Krzysztof Nowak
Adam Bury
horns:

Leszek Salwa
Waldemar Matera
Joachim Nowak
Jerzy Ślęzak
Grzegorz Grzegorzek
Piotr Sidor
trumpets:

Bartosz Gaudyn
Szymon Gaudyn
Maciej Mzyk
Wojciech Kaczkowski
 
trombones:

Grzegorz Kurowski
Mateusz Konopka
Marek Przegendza
 
bass trombone:

Piotr Misiak
tube:

Marek Ozioro
timpani / percussion:

Anna Famuła-Galwas
Michał Pawłowski 
Damian Oleksiak
harp:

Agnieszka Kaczmarek-Bialic
 
 
 
 
 
supervisor:
Piotr Rurański
 
tuner:
Wenancjusz Szołtysik

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