(AJNews) – The abundance of talented Jewish composers at the onset of the 20th century is indeed astounding, and because of the hostile political landscape of Europe leading up to the Second World War, many of these emerging talents were lost all too soon. The historical significance of Arnold Schoenberg marks a milestone in the development of Classical music during the inter-war period, and his legacy is of lasting importance on the composers of the so-called 2nd Viennese School. Because of his Jewish heritage, Schoenberg, like so many others, needed to emigrate to America to survive.
In an intimate concert setting, on March 2 at 1 pm at the University of Alberta Timms Centre for the Arts in Edmonton (87 Avenue, 112 St NW), renowned pianist Mikolaj Warszysnki will present a programme showcasing varying musical styles from avant-garde to jazz, featuring composers of Jewish heritage from Central European countries. This piano recital will feature works by György Ligeti, Erwin Schulhoff, Władysław Szpilmann, and George Gershwin. A reception will follow.
Dr. Mikolaj Warszynski (D.Mus) enjoys a versatile career as pianist, lecturer, and pedagogue. Currently teaching at the Chopin piano studio in Edmonton, he has taught piano in Quebec at the University of Montreal and at the Cégep de Drummondville, at the University of Daegu in South Korea, Brno conservatory in Seoul; and at the Flaine Opus74 Academy in the French Alps. Canadian pianist of Polish origin, Mikolaj Warszynski released a debut CD for the Parisian Anima Records in 2015, with music by Haydn, Liszt, Szymanowski, and Chopin, and his most recent album Lisztomania was released for the Wirth Institute label in 2018.
Invitations to many prominent music festivals and societies have led to masterclasses and recent performances in China, Italy, France, Czech, South Korea, Poland, Austria, Hungary and across Canada. Warszynski has performed in Warsaw at the Royal Łazienki Park under the Chopin monument and at the Chopin Festival in Gdansk at the Baltic Philharmonic; in 2010 as part of the Chopin bicentennial celebrations, Warszynski toured with Chopin Concerto No. 2 across Canada. As a soloist, Warszynski has performed with the Kielce Philharmonic Orchestra, the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra, the Chamber Orchestra of Edmonton and most recently the Red Deer Symphony Orchestra.
As part of the ZUMI Duo with piano duet partner Zuzana Simurdova, Mikolaj has recently completed a recording of the complete Dvorak Legends. As a recipient of a doctorate scholarship from Quebec in support of his dissertation entitled “Exoticism and intercultural influences in the piano cycle Metopes (1915) by Karol Szymanowski,” Dr. Warszynski has gone on to perform lecture-recitals at Universities in Canada for Congress for the Humanities, and in the USA for the College of Music Society. Mikolaj completed studies with distinction at the University of Alberta with Marek Jablonski, and “cum laude” at the Rotterdam Conservatory in the Netherlands with Aquiles Delle Vigne, before completing both his master’s and doctorate degrees at the University of Montreal with Marc Durand and Paul Stewart.
Warszynski has been an artist-in-residence in Banff, Aspen, Salzburg and Paris. Currently, Warszynski is the artistic director of the Mazurka Music and Art Society and is the Music Liaison at the Wirth Institute for Austrian and Central European Studies at the U of A.
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