Do not walk on the well-trodden path - you may slip

Stanisław Jerzy Lec

About my repertoire…

In recent years my repertoire has been evolving towards contemporary music, improvised music, my own music… Names of such 20th-century classics as Takemitsu, Gubaidulina, Panufnik, Penderecki, Lutosławski, Harvey and Kancheli have appeared more and more frequently in my concert programmes. More recently, my programmes have been creatively interpreting works of various styles and periods.

I am not abandoning the classical repertoire. I even feel that contact with new art has an interesting impact on interpretations of works from the past. High-quality cello repertoire of bygone periods is not vast and in my quest over the years I have tried not to miss any important item from this canon.

In recent years I have played a lot of chamber music with outstanding partners. My belief is that only thanks to special understanding and mutual fascination can an artistic bond, which produces the most fascinating results, be born.

I have to list here pianists who are important to me, artists like Janusz Olejniczak, Andrzej Ratusiński, Piotr Anderszewski or, lately, Jan Krzysztof Broja and Peter Nagy.

Masterpieces of chamber music, such as O. Messiaen’s Quartet for the End of Time, or great works for piano trio or quartet give a lot of pleasure to the musicians and to the audience. J. Brahms’ chamber oeuvre is the best example and model of that.

A special place among by musical fascinations is occupied by the music of Bach. Not only because Bach wrote what may be the most important piece for cello to date. My understanding of this music changes with me.

There are works which I will always be glad to revisit. Some of them I would like to record. They include, in addition to Bach, the favourite Romantic pieces, especially R. Schumann’s Concerto in A minor and F. Chopin’s Sonata.

When it comes to 20th-century music, in my opinion the most important work for cello and orchestra is Witold Lutosławski’s Cello Concerto. A performance of this piece is always a great event for me.

I believe that contact with Witold Lutosławski and our joint music-making on stage have made it my duty to uphold his performance tradition and his vision of the work as a composer.

Of huge importance in my musical life have been works by Krzysztof Penderecki, especially his Viola Concerto but also Concerto Grosso, which I had the pleasure of performing for the first time in Poland. On many occasions I played them under the composer’s baton.

I had the pleasure of performing many works for the first time. My long-standing and still growing links with composers, my friendship and shared artistic convictions with many of them are a source of the most interesting musical experiences for me.

I believe that building a recital programme or a programme for a solo performance is an art in itself, an art requiring knowledge and care. Each concert programme should be unique, created anew, the most important of all.

 

 

After a long, tedious violin recital, one of friends of Samuel Johnson informed him: 'That piece is very difficult to perform'. To which Johnson replied: 'I wish it were impossible.'

World premieres

  • J. Bauer – Sonata in One Movement – Łódź 1984
  • J. Bauer – Cello Concerto – Łódź 1986
  • J. Bauer – To – Łódź 2006
  • H. Kulenty – Sinequan – Arhnem 1993
  • H. Kulenty – Cradle Song –  Arhnem 1994
  • P. Mykietyn – Cello Concerto – Poznań 1999
  • P. Mykietyn – An Album Leaf – Warszawa 2002
  • S. Krupowicz – Passacaglia – Warszawa 2002
  • M. Talma-Sutt – Cellotronicum – Warszawa 2002
  • M. Wierzbicki – Retroactive Interferences – Warszawa 2002
  • J. Grudzień – Ad Naan – Warszawa 2002
  • J. Bauer – Passacaglia –  Warszawa 2003
  • C. Duchnowski – Beard – Schwaz (Austria) 2005
  • P. Mykietyn  – Sonata  –  Warszawa 2006
  • M. Radoszko – La Formicola – Wrocław 2006
  • S. Kupczak – Anafora V – Warszawa 2006
  • M. Długosz – ABamus – Warszawa 2006
  • C. Duchnowski – Martha’s Garden – Lipsk 2006
  • C. Duchnowski – Monada V – Warszawa 2006
  • A. Zubel – of Songs – Wrocław 2007
  • D. Jaskot – Hannah – Wrocław 2007
  • H. Kulenty – Tell me about it – Warszawa 2007
  • B. Franke – in between – Warszawa 2007
  • O. Hans – Locus Solus – Warszawa 2007
  • M. Bortnowski – Interrogavi Terram – Wrocław 2008
  • S. Kupczak – Penultima – Warszawa 2008
  • L. Sydorenko – Octagon – Radziejowice 2008
  • A. Szczetyński – Martha and Mary – Lwów 2009
  • M. Prynda – For Vincent – Lwów 2009
  • C. Duchnowski – Cello_net – Lwów 2009
  • B. Frolyak – Inventions – Lwów 2009
  • A. Gavrylets – Diptych – Lwów 2009
  • B. Koziak – Elves – Warszawa 2009
  • T. Szczepanik – Gankhar – Łódź 2011
  • A. Nowak – 3 Peaceful Street – Warszawa 2011;
  • C. Duchnowski – End of Poetry – Wrocław 2012;
  • A. Bauer – Plexus – Warszawa 2013;
  • R. Osada – Double Reflections  – Warszawa 2013;
  • S. Wojciechowski – Fingertrips – Warszawa 2013;
  • R. Osada – for A. B. – Londyn 2013
  • J. Bauer – II Cello Concerto – Warszawa 2013
  • C. Duchnowski – Music of Spatial Forms – Elbląg 2013
  • J. Kornowicz – Great Spinning – Warszawa 2014
  • A. Bauer – Fattoriale – Wrocław 2014
  • M. Pasieczny – Anamnesis – Wrocław 2014
  • Z. Zych – Roundflow / Throughflow / Outflow –  Warszawa 2014
  • Z. Jabri – Ode to Maulana Rumi – Warszawa 2014

Polish premieres

  • T. Takemitsu – Orion et Pleiades (1992)
  • A. Panufnik – Cello Concerto (1994)
  • S. Gubaidulina –  Und: Das Fest ist in vollem Gang (2000)
  • K. Penderecki – Concerto Grosso (2001)
  • K. Tanaka – Song of the Songs (2002)
  • A. Zubel – String Quartett No. 1 (2006)
  • K. Saariaho – Pres (2007)
  • J. Harvey – Advaya (2007)
  • J. M. Sánchez-Verdú – Arquitecturas de la ausencia (2009)
  • B. Franke – Hoffnung als ein Hauch (1999)
  • S. Reich – Cello Counterpoint (2011)
  • S. Gubaidulina – Quarternion (2014)
  • H. Holliger – Flüsterfuge und Zirkelkanon (2014)

Selection of my favourite pieces from my repertoire

  • J. S. Bach – tutto…
  • G. da Venosa – Madrigali
  • F. Couperin – Pieces en Concert
  • J. Haydn – Concertos C major, D major
  • L. van Beethoven – Sonatas  op.5 & 69 & 102
  • R. Schumann – Conceto A minor
  • P. Tchaikovsky – Rococo Variations  op.33
  • F. Chopin – Sonata op. 65
  • J. Brahms –  all chamber music
  • J. Brahms – Doppelkonzert op.102
  • C. Debussy – Sonata (1915)
  • D. Shostakovich – Sonata op. 147
  • D. Shostakovich – Concerto No. 2
  • W. Lutosławski – Cello Concerto
  • K. Penderecki – Concerto Grosso
  • K. Penderecki – Viola Concerto
  • A. Panufnik – Cello Concerto
  • T. Takemitsu –  Orion and Pleiades
  • S. Gubaidulina –  Und: Das Fest ist in vollem Gang (2000)
  • J. Bauer – Cello Concerto No. 2
  • P. Mykietyn –  Cello Concerto
  • G. Kancheli – Simi
  • J. Rodrigo – Concierto in modo glante
  • C. Duchnowski – Beard
  • J. Harvey – Advaya
  • M. Talma-Sutt – Cellotronicum
  • P. Mykietyn – Sonata, An Album Leaf