The Mieczysław Karłowicz State Music School Complex in Cracow
Julia Kociuban piano
Cracow Young Philharmonic – Symphony Orchestra of the Mieczysław Karłowicz State Music School Complex in Cracow
Tomasz Chmiel conductor
Julia Kociuban piano
Julia Kociuban was born in Cracow. She started to learn playing the piano at the age of 5. In the years 1998-2006 she studied under the tutelage of Olga Łazarska. In 2010 she graduated with honours from the Secondary General Music School in the Mieczysław Karłowicz State Music School Complex in Cracow. Until 2012 she studied under Professor Piotr Paleczny at the Fryderyk Chopin University of Music in Warsaw.
She currently studies at the Universitat Mozarteum in Salzburg in the class of famous pianist and teacher Pavel Gililov.
Julia is a laureate of Grand Prix awards, 1st place awards and special prizes in many national and international piano competitions, including the Fryderyk Chopin National Piano Competition (Warsaw, 2008) and “Jeudis du Piano” in Geneva (2011). In 2011 she also won 3rd prize at the 3rd European Piano Competition in Ouistreham/Caen (France). She has also been awarded many prestigious scholarships, including from the Minister of Culture and National Heritage and form the “Young Poland” scholarship program.
She has worked together with many renowned teachers, including M. Voskresensky, V. Merzhanov, I. Monighetti, G. Wyss, J.C. Pennetier, A. Jasiński, J. Soriano, K. Popowa-Zydroń, J. Rouvier, T. Ungar, K. Helwig, D. Kim, E.Wong, O. Maisenberg and M. Raekallio.
She has performed in Poland, France, Germany, Russia, Italy, Kuwait, China, Canada, Austria, Switzerland, Estonia, Belarus, the Ukraine and Lithuania. In April 2009 she went on a three week concert tour of the United States. She played in many prestigious international festivals, including the La Roque d’Antheron International Piano Festival (2010, 2011), the Young Euro Classic Piano Festival in Berlin, at the 14th Ludwig van Beethoven Easter Festival in Warsaw and at the 64th International Chopin Festival in Duszniki Zdrój.
She has performed many times as a soloist, accompanied by chamber and symphony orchestras in Poland and abroad, under the direction of J. Maksymiuk, N. Järvi, K. Järvi, J. Salwarowski, M. Nałęcz–Niesiołowski, M. Dworzyński, N. Krauze, M. Wolińska, Ł. Borowicz, R. Bader, M. Tworek, E. Klas, M. Nesterowicz, M. Caldi, P. Przytocki and J. Swoboda.
Her recordings were used many times by Programme 2 of Polish Radio, Polish Television and by Radio “France musique”.
Julia also performs together with her brothers in “Trio Rodzinne” [Family Trio] and in DUOKociuban.
Julia Kociuban is represented by the Ludwig van Beethoven Association.
Cracow Young Philharmonic – Symphony Orchestra of the Mieczysław Karłowicz State Music School Complex in Cracow
The orchestra, which has borne its current name since 1983, was founded by Rafał Jacek Delekta. As of 2000, the orchestra has been directed by Tomasz Chmiel.
The ensemble’s repertoire is quite varied, encompassing many periods, from the baroque to contemporary music, as well as operatic, operetta and film music, as well as musicals.
The orchestra plays more than 30 concerts each season, appearing not only in Cracow, but also in other cities in Poland (including Teatr Wielki, the Roma Music Theatre in Warsaw, the Witold Lutosławski Concert Studio of Polish Radio, the Lecture Hall of the Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, the Upper Silesian Centre of Culture in Katowice, the concert hall of the Częstochowa Philharmonic and of the Gorzów Philharmonic). It has played together with many renowned soloists, including Konstanty Andrzej Kulka, Elżbieta Towarnicka, Adam Zdunikowski, Grażyna Brodzińska, Jacek Wójcicki, Zbigniew Wodecki, Lidia Jazgar, Jacek Muzyk, Katarzyna Oleś-Blacha, Tomasz Kuk, Halina Młynkowa and Jacek Zieliński. The orchestra is involved in collaboration projects with several youth orchestras (in Switzerland and Germany) and choirs, including the Cracow Philharmonic Choir, the Choir of the Academy of Music in Cracow, the Mariański Choir, the Dominanta Choir of the University of Economics and the H. Kołłątaj Choir of the University of Agriculture in Cracow. The Orchestra also actively cooperates with other Cracow institutions, including the Cracow Opera, Cracow Philharmonic and the C.K. Norwid Cultural Centre.
The most important landmarks in the orchestra’s history include the world premiere performance of Nieszpory Ludźmierskie [Ludźmierz Vespers] composed by Jan Kanty Pawluśkiewicz and Leszek Aleksander Moczulski (1992), and 1st place in the National Secondary Music School Orchestra Competition organised by the Academy of Film & Television in Warsaw with the Centre for Artistic Education and Programme 2 of Polish Radio.
The Orchestra performed many times at festivals, including the Cracovia Sacra festival. It is a frequent guest of the cycle Nowa Huta, dlaczego nie? [Nowa Huta, Why Not?] organised by the Nowa Huta Centre of Culture. It has performed three times at the La Folle Journée Festival in Warsaw. In August 2014 it has performed with the Orchestra of the Cracow Opera in the Jan Kiepura Festival in Krynica.
The Orchestra released a number of CDs, including Polskie Pieśni Patriotyczne [Polish Patriotic Songs], Kolędy [Carols] and songs from before World War II, released by Polish Radio on the album Nie zapomnisz mnie [You Will Not Forget Me].
Tomasz Chmiel
Tomasz Chmiel has twice received scholarships from the Ministry of Culture and Art and was awarded a Creative Scholarship by the city of Cracow. He is the 1st place winner at the 1st Witold Lutosławski Young Conductors’ Review in Białystok. He has participated numerous times in Helmuth Rilling’s Seminars at the Bachakademie in Stuttgart and in master courses in Salzburg and in South Ireland. Chmiel continues to be involved with his alma mater, working as assistant lecturer and working on his habilitation thesis. He is a guest conductor at the Cracow Philharmonic, at the Rzeszów, Częstochowa, Lower Silesian and Szczecin Philharmonic and in the National Radio Symphony Orchestra, Katowice. He works together with the Cracow Opera. A long-time collaborator with the Music Theatre in Lublin and the Cracow Chamber Opera. He also conducts the Young Cracow Philharmonic. Abroad, Chmiel has led performances in Sweden, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium and in South Korea.
He devotes particular attention to Polish music. He prepared orchestra parts from the manuscript and then performed Artur Malawski’s forgotten 1st Symphony. He has also transcribed for symphony orchestra song cycles by Chopin and Karłowicz, as well as Polish popular songs from before World War II, patriotic hymns and Christmas carols. He also prepared a performance score of T. Leschetizky’s Piano Concerto. Most of these works have been recorded and released on CD. For chamber orchestras Chmiel has also prepared the operas “Don Pasquale” and “L’elisir d’amore” by Donizetti, L. Adam’s “Torreador”, J. Stefani’s “Cracovians and Mountaineers”, F. Schubert’s “The Conspirators” (Die Verschworenen) and Lehar’s operetta “The Merry Widow”. He is also an ardent arranger of music for film.
