A festival devoted to Karol Szymanowski opens his music to a wider dialogue with Polish, European and international composers.
The Kraków Philharmonic will host the Szymanowski / Poland / World Festival this September and October, placing the work of its patron within a broader landscape of orchestral and chamber music.
Rather than focusing exclusively on Szymanowski, the festival brings his compositions into dialogue with works by his contemporaries and pieces from the global symphonic repertoire. The programme moves between early and mature works, Polish composers and international figures, creating a musical portrait shaped by connections rather than isolation.
Among the works featured are Szymanowski's Three Fragments from Poems by Jan Kasprowicz, presented alongside Dies irae, a song cycle using texts by the same poet and arranged by Stanisław Rzepiela. The cycle will be performed by tenor Piotr Kalina.
The programme also includes an orchestral arrangement of Szymanowski's early Etude in B-flat minor, set alongside Mieczysław Karłowicz's Eternal Songs and Maciej Fortuna's contemporary Aurora, a double concerto for violin and trumpet. Fortuna will perform on trumpet alongside violinist Marta Gidaszewska, with the Opole Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra conducted by Jakub Chrenowicz.
Another strand of the festival explores clarinet repertoire, bringing works by Karol Rathaus, Mieczysław Weinberg and Zbigniew Bargielski together with clarinet arrangements of Szymanowski's Mazurkas and Myths. Among the performers are clarinettist Piotr Lato and pianist Piotr Sałajczyk.
The programme then shifts towards Szymanowski's lyrical Litany to the Virgin Mary and Stabat Mater, contrasting their intimate character with Antonín Dvořák's Symphony No. 9 “From the New World”. Dvořák's symphony, shaped by memories of his homeland and his fascination with life across the Atlantic, adds another perspective on how composers respond to place and experience.
A festival concert featuring soloists, the Kraków Philharmonic Orchestra and Choir, conducted by Michał Klauza, will also inaugurate the institution's 82nd artistic season.
Across its programme, the festival therefore presents Szymanowski not simply as a composer to be celebrated, but as part of a much broader musical conversation. That sense of connection gives the Kraków concerts their central character, linking Polish musical heritage with works and ideas reaching far beyond it.
Visitor Information
Venue: Kraków Philharmonic
Thursday, September 17, 2026: 7:00 PM
Friday, September 18, 2026: 7:30 PM
Tuesday, September 29, 2026: 7:30 PM
Friday, October 2, 2026: 7:30 PM
Saturday, October 3, 2026: 6:00 PM
