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Kuba Stankiewicz
A leading Polish jazz pianist, graduate of Boston's Berklee College of Music (1987–1990, Oscar Peterson Prize winner), semi-finalist of the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz International Piano Competition
in Washington, and member of the orchestra led
by the legendary clarinettist Artie Shaw. In the late 1980s Stankiewicz played in Jan 'Ptaszyn' Wróblew- ski's band, and later with Zbigniew Namysłowski's ensembles as well as in a quartet, which he founded with Henryk Miśkiewicz, Adam Cegielski, and Cezary Konrad. In 1993 he took part in the recording of CD Northern Song (Album of the Year in the 'Jazz Forum' readers' poll), later – of Big City Streets (Osiecka's songs) and Chopin Songbook. Member of Traveling Birds, he has also played with Scott Hamilton, Art Farmer, Sheila Jordan, Janusz Muniak, Tomasz Szu- kalski, and Anna Maria Jopek. In 2012 he recorded his original album Spaces (A Fryderyk 2013 nomina- tion for Jazz Album of the Year) and a solo CD of film music by Wojciech Kilar in his own interpretations. In 2014–2015, together with Peter Erskine and Da- riusz Oleszkiewicz, they recorded albums with music by Victor Young, Bronisław Kaper, and Henryk Wars, released by Warner Classics. In 2020, the album Film Music was released and the fruit of cooperation with Jacek Kotlarski – the album Kochanowski. Songs.
Stankiewicz's piano style, rooted in classical US models, tends more often toward Romantic-type lyricism than toward dynamic extremes. He plays genuine jazz rooted in a convincing sense of timing and open to what his stage partners have to offer. Stankiewicz also conducts teaching activities. He is the head of the Department of Jazz Music at the Karol Szymanowski Academy of Music in Katowi- ce. Karol Lipiński in Wrocław.
Dorota Miśkiewicz
One of the most important Polish jazz voices, composer, lyricist. She has released nine original albums, which have often been nominated for Fryderyk awards, and she has in recent years won the title of Female Vocalist of the Year in the annual ranking of "Jazz Forum" magazine. On September 8, 2023, she released her latest album, "Bons Amigos," recorded in Rio de Janeiro with Latin jazz icon, Brazilian guitarist Toninho Horta. It earned her a nomination for the 2024 Fryderyk Award in the Jazz Album of the Year category, and Dorota herself was nominated in the Artist of the Year category.
Dorota Miśkiewicz is also a visionary who creates bold artistic ideas. It was on her initiative, among others, that the unprecedented PIANO.PL project was created, during which, for the first time in the history of Polish music, a dozen outstanding Polish pianists of three generations performed with her on one stage, in intimate duets accompanied by the Atom String Quartet. She was nominated for the Fryderyk Awards and the prestigious Coryphaeus of Polish Music award.
The number of collaborations in which she participated at the invitation of other artists is countless. She was one of the few to sing and record a duet with Cesaria Evora, their joint song "UmPincelada" was well received by music lovers around the world. In addition, she has collaborated with Nigel Kennedy, Stefano Bollani, David Murray, Louis Winsberg, Kepa Junkera, Toninho Horta, Tomasz Stanko and a whole plethora of artists from the Polish music scene.
Anchored in jazz, she is eager to venture out into the wide waters of other musical aesthetics, not infrequently expertment. For years she can be heard on Grzegorz Turnau's albums and concerts, and is also invited to joint projects by artists from the hip-hop (including LUC), contemporary and avant-garde scenes (Paweł Szamburski, Kwadrofonik, Agata Zubel).
Jakub Olejnik
Double-bass and bass-guitar player, moving freely between the worlds of classical, jazz, and electronic music.
Olejnik teaches classes at the Karol Lipiński Academy of Music in Wrocław as well as conducting numerous music courses and workshops. He is also the founder and artistic director of Bass&Beat Festival, focussing on bass and beat as the founda- tions of contemporary music as well as promotion of young artists and new means of expression. His collaborations include projects with Wrocław's Capitol Music Theatre, Polski Theatre, and the National Forum of Music. Since 2022 he has been the president of the International Jazz-on-the-Odra Foundation.
Olejnik has worked with such foreign stars as Rory Stuart, Karen Carroll, Rufus Reid, Carlos Piñana, Dante Luciani, Achille Succi, Bjørn Charles Dreyer, Anne Paceo, and Nicolas Simion, as well as Polish artists: Agata Zubel, Piotr Wojtasik, Krzysztof Kiljański,
Piotr Baron, Grzegorz Nagórski, Henryk Miśkiewicz, Kuba Stankiewicz, and L.U.C. He is a co-author of the #PaderewskyOrchestra international artistic project concept, combining visual arts and music across a wide palette of styles and techniques. The project has been presented since 2018 in Poland and France.
The musician has appeared at such major jazz festivals as Jazz on the Odra, Warsaw Summer Jazz Days, Era Jazzu, Jazzycolors, the 'Jazz Bez' Internation- al Festival of Contemporary Improvisational Music, JazzFest Brno, and RCK Pro Jazz Festiwal.
Przemysław Jarosz
Jazz drummer and educator, graduate of the Karol Lipiński Academy of Music in Wrocław. He won several individual and ensemble prizes during his studies. Since 2005 he has taught jazz percussion at his alma mater, as well as conducting research (DMA degree in 2014) and working as a sound engineer at the Audiovisual Technology Studio. He also teaches classes at the University of Zielona Góra's Institute of Music. His interests focus on the sound colour aspects of percussion performance and on jazz improvisation.
Jarosz has performed as a drummer with such leading representatives of the Polish jazz scene as Piotr Baron, Dominik Bukowski, Piotr Wojtasik, Piotr Lemańczyk, Krystyna Stańko, and the Big Band of the University of Zielona Góra. He has appeared at the majority of jazz festivals in Poland.
With sax player Tomasz Pruchnicki and keyboardist Kajetan Galas, Jarosz plays in Yarosh Organ Trio, which made its debut in 2016. The band has released three albums and was invited to record with The Sound Pack vocal quartet for the CD Żyj kolorowo, which came out in 2023.
