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Home , Bytom, Pomeranian Philharmonic, Sinfonia Varsovia

PolishBrassQuintet

In the beginning there was passion for music. This passion led each one of us to music school, then on to college and finally to becoming professional soloists. This is how we met – learning together, playing together, and competing at various contests. Even though each one of us is a talented soloist in his own city, we really wanted to create something together. We wanted to combine our talents and create a group that did not exist in all of yet! A quintet comprised of accomplished soloists from the best Polish symphony orchestras. This is how Polish Brass Quintet was born. We want to show the Polish and international audiences the true capability of our instruments, which are often relegated to orchestral background. Our instruments add color to symphonic masterpieces, but often behind other orchestra sections. Brass is not only for marches and bugle calls. Composers in the twentieth century realized the potential of brass ensembles, and therefore the repertoire of this era is of most interest to us. We want to work together with renowned Polish and international composers, encouraging them to create music with Polish Brass Quintet in mind. We want to inspire young creators to discover the potential of the brass quintet, as well as debuting musicians to create similar groups. We hope that our efforts will eventually give rise to a new repertoire which can be used in Poland and around the world. We would also like to further the advancement of brass chamber music by attending master’s courses, workshops and participating in Polish and international festivals. Polish Brass Quintet is an ensemble of people with passion and skills. Playing music is an adventure for us that gives us lot of joy that we would like to share with our audience.

Please join us for our concerts! Members

Jakub Waszczeniuk - trumpet

Born in Dębno. He graduated with honours from the Secondary Music School in Gorzów in the trumpet class of Włodzimierz Kozłowski. He went on to graduate with honours from the Wrocław Academy of Music in the trumpet class of Professor Igor Cecocho. In 2005, as a 4th year student, he commenced work in the Sinfonia Varsovia Orchestra as trumpet soloist. Since then, he has played several hundred concerts with the Orchestra, performing at the most renowned concert halls in the world. He has also appeared many times as soloist with, among others, the Sinfonia Varsovia Orchestra and with the Poznań, Łódź and Lower Silesian Philharmonic Orchestras. In July 2006 Waszczeniuk performed as soloist at the inaugural concert of the Chopin and his Festival. Together with Martha Argerich and with the Sinfonia Varsovia Orchestra under the direction of Alexander Rabinovitch-Barakovsky he played Shostakovich’s Concerto No. 2 for , Trumpet and Strings Op.35 Waszczeniuk plays with the following orchestras: Sinfonia Varsovia (principal trumpeter), Sinfonietta Cracovia, Leopoldinum, Poznań Philharmonic Orchestra, Łódź Philharmonic Orchestra, and Beethoven Academy Orchestra.

Ostap Popovych - trumpet

Charisma, professionalism, artistic sensibility and outstanding technical skills made the highest rank Polish cultural institutions’ door wide-open for Ostap Popovych. Cooperation with philharmonic orchestras in Poland and Ukraine enabled to introduce him to the world as a top soloist and chamber musician. Since 2013 Ostap is the leader of trumpets in Poznan Philharmonic Orchestra. Ostap was born in Lviv in a family of very strong musical roots. Since his youth he is being consequently awarded with various performing prizes in a field of classical music, such as: Grand Prix at International Competition Kiev- Worzel (2003), Grand Prix at 1st International Competition for Young Instrumentalist in Czerniowice (2004), Grand Prix at 3rd International “M.Staroweckoho” Trumpet Competition in Tarnopol (2008), Distinction at 6th International Brass Competition in Gdansk (2012), II prize at Polish Brass Competition in (2013) and Grand Prix at 9th International Brass Competition in Brno (2013). Ostap graduated from Mykola Lysenko Lviv State Academy of Music and Feliks Nowowiejski Academy of Music. Ostap has participated in masterclasses with Roman Gryń and Tomasz Ślusarczyk during Yamaha Brass Master Class and was taking directions of Wynton Marsalis at the Alfa Jazz Fest. Despite his young age, Ostap Popovych is already a very experienced orchestra musician. He cooperated with such orchestras as: Lviv Philharmonic Orchestra, Sinfonia Iuventus or the Broadway SOMA Orchestra with that he had a half of the year orchestra tour around China. In his professional life he had such an honour to work with authorities as: Valery Giergiev, , Sir Neville Marriner, , Gabriel Chmura, , Marek Pijarowski, Rafael Payare, George Tchitchinadze. Ostap was awarded with a Scholarship of Ukranian President, Wladimir Spiwakow Foundation Scholarship and the Special Scientific Council Scholarship of the Music Academy in Lviv. Henryk Kowalewicz - French horn

Henryk Julian Kowalewicz was born in . He began playing the French horn at the age of eleven. In 1988, he entered the State Music School Complex No. 4 in Warsaw, initially studying the piano. He became interested in the French horn only in grade 6, entering the class of Professor Krzysztof Specjał. In 2001 Kowalewicz entered the Fryderyk Chopin Academy of Music in Warsaw in the French horn class of Professor Jan Jeżewski, which he graduated in 2006. In 2005 Kowalewicz commenced post-graduate studies at the Hochschule der Kunste Bern in Switzerland in the French horn and natural horn class of Professor Thomas Muller, from which he graduated in 2007. Since 2002 Krzysztof Kowalewicz has worked with the Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Beethoven Academy Orchestra, the Pomeranian Philharmonic, the Polish Sinfonia Iuventus Orchestra, the Leopoldinum Wrocław Chamber Orchestra, Sinfonietta Cracovia, Sinfonia Varsovia, the National Philharmonic and the National Opera Orchestra in Warsaw. In the 2007-2008 he was the principal horn of the National Philharmonic in Warsaw. In 2011 he has also joined the European Brass Orchestra. Henryk Kowalewicz has performed as soloist with the Orchestra of the Fryderyk Chopin University of Music, the Wrocław Philharmonic Orchestra, Orchestra of the Warmińsko-Mazurska Philharmonic, the Łódź Philharmonic, the New Chamber Orchestra and with the Sinfonia Varsovia Orchestra. Kowalewicz is also an active chamber musician. He has been a member of the Sinfonia Varsovia Brass Quintet and of the Sinfonia Varsovia Wind Quintet since 2008. Since 2007 he has been a member of the Essentia Musica ensemble, which specialises in the performance of early music. He has joined the Mazo Horn Quartet in 2010. Henryk Kowalewicz is also a member of the Warsaw Brass Trio, with which he has performed at such festivals as the Schagerl Brass Festival (2008, 2011), Budapest Brass Weekend (2010), Lieksa Brass Week (2011), Melbourne International Festival of Brass (2011) and 13ème Stage de Trombone in Lille (2012). He has performed in Poland, , Finland, France, and Australia. In 2006-2013 he taught in the French horn class at the Fryderyk Chopin University of Music in Warsaw. In 2013 Kowalewicz led a master class at the International Belgian Brass Academy in Harelbeke- Kortrijk in Belgium. Henryk Kowalewicz is a laureate of a scholarship from the Minister of Culture and National Heritage for distinguished Polish artists of the young generation Young Poland (2006), In 2008 Henryk Kowalewicz became the principal French horn of the Sinfonia Varsovia Orchestra.

Tomasz Hajda - trombone

Born on July 21st 1983 in Tarnowskie góry, . He started his musical education in 1990 in the Frederic Chopin Comprehensive Primary and Secondary Music School in Bytom in guitar class. In 1997 he started his trombone playing education in Paweł Waloszczyk’s class and in 2003 he graduated with honours. During his early years of playing the trombone, Tomasz Hajda was a frequent prizewinner as a soloistand a chamber music performer. He was the prizewinner of the 6th Silesian Brass Instruments Contest in Dąbrowa Górnicza (1998), the prizewinner of the 2nd Trombone Festival in Warsaw (2000), the winner of the Regionwide Chamber Ensamble Contest in Tarnowskie Góry in the period of 1999- 2001. He was awarded 2nd prize in the Regionwide Music Contest in Chorzów (2000), 3rd prize in the Academic Chamber Music Ensambles Contest in Warsaw (2003), 1st prize in the 29th All-Polish Chamber Ensambles Music Contest of Secondary Music School in 2003. In the same year, he also won the scholarship of the Mayor of Bytom City. In 2003-2006 he studied at the Karol Lipiński Academy of Music in Wrocław in Assistant Professor of Music Michał Mazurkiewicz’s trombone class. He graduated with honours in 2007. During the period of his studies he was awarded: - 1st prize in the Short Compositions Contest in Wrocław in 2004-2005, - 1st prize in the 7th Music Contest of Chamber Music Ensambles of Euroregion of Nysa in 2004, - 2nd prize in the 1st All-Polish Brass Instruments Contest in Katowice in 2006, - 2nd prize in the 4th Trombone Festiwal in Solo Category and 3rd prize in the Orchestral Studies in 2006, After completing his studies he won: - 1st prize in the International Competition im. Michała Spisaka in Dąbrowa Górnicza (2008) - a scholarship of the Minister of Culture and National Heritage „Młoda Polska” (2010) - 2nd prize in the Internacional Competition for Brass Instrument in Gdańsk (2012) During his studies, he cooperated with the Lower Opera and since 2004 he has been performing as the first trombonist of the Polish Radio National Symphony Orchestra nationally as well as abroad. In may 2007 he has recorded a CD issued by Polish Radio and Silesian Music Society, in which a soloist 3rd Symphony of Glory, in april 2009 he recorded another CD issued by Polish Radio and Silesian Music Society, on that occur as a trombonist „Trombone Choir Silesian”. In 2012 he recorded to archive as a solo artist of the NOSPR Kazimierz Serocki „Sonatina”. He cooperates with the AUKSO Orchestra in , the Lower Silesia Opera, the Polish Youth Symphony Orchestra and the Sinfonietta Cracovia.

Krzysztof Mucha - tuba

Krzysztof Mucha, born 1988 in Brodnica (Poland). He began his musical education in 2004 in Karol Szymanowski's National Secondary Music School in Torun under direction of Kazimierz Kmieć. After 3 years he passed the exam and got to the college. He was a student of the Academy of Music in Cracow from 2007-2012 studying with Jakub Urbańczyk and in 2012 he graduated it with honors. He participated in master courses and seminars conducted by Roger Bobo, Oystein Baadsvik, Roland Szentpali, Paul Krzywicki, Zdzislaw Piernik, Rod Franks, Owen Slide, Simon Wills, Michael Thompson, Robert Kozanek, Carsten Svandberg, Wolfgang Pfistmuller. Krzysztof is a laureate of many national and international competitions. Among them he won the 1st prize at the 9th International Interpretative Competition for Wind Instruments in Brno, Czech Republic (2013), the 1st prize at the 6th International Competition and Festival for Soloists and Chamber Music Groups in Svirel (Slovakia) (2014), the 1st prize at 2nd National Brass Competition in Katowice, Poland (2010). In 2012 he received a scholarship of the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage "Young Poland". He is also freelance with other Polish orchestras like the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra, Sinfonia Varsovia, Polish Radio Orchestra, Beethoven Academy Orchestra, Sinfonietta Cracovia, and Julius Slowacki Theater. Passed the exam to young orchestras such as: Civic Orchestra (season 2014/2015), Gustav Mahler Jugendorchester (2010), I Culture Orchestra (2010). From 2012 he is principal tuba player with the National Forum of Music Symphony Orchestra in Wroclaw (Wroclaw Philharmonic Orchestra).