The last weeks preceding the beginning of the 10th anniversary season of the National Forum of Music in Wrocław were accompanied by dramatic announcements. On the one hand, the enthusiasm of music lovers resulting from the appearance in the concert calendar of Chicago Symphony Orchestra, considered one of the best orchestras in the world. On the other hand, in early September, the announcement of the resignation of Andrzej Kosendiak, who had led the institution since its inception, raised many questions about the prospects for musical life in the city, to which the maestro answers in this interview.
– This is a special season not only for the NFM venue, but also for its resident ensembles. The NFM Wrocław Philharmonic is celebrating its eightieth anniversary, and it is also fifteen years since the establishment of the NFM Boys Choir. Are you planning to celebrate?
– We will take advantage of the opportunity to share our joy that we exist, that we are active and that we have managed to achieve so much here. It is precisely in these moments, when we see how these emotions are conveyed to others, that we most fully realise that what we are doing makes sense. Anniversaries will also be an opportunity to thank those by whose efforts the NFM was established and functions so dynamically. Celebrating this success with joy, we remember the entire generations of musicians who did not get the chance to play in this magnificent building at Plac Wolności, who had to perform in halls with poor acoustics and did not have the same comfort as artists in Wrocław today.
For reasons completely beyond their control, the audience could not fully appreciate the artists. We also remember the day when the first symphony orchestra concert took place in Wrocław after World War II. On June 29, 1945, the musicians played amidst the war ruins. We will refer to this event during the upcoming inauguration of the NFM Wrocław Philharmonic and the NFM Choir seasons. On the occasion of our tenth anniversary, superb international orchestras will perform at the NFM: Insula Orchestra, Australian Chamber Orchestra and Brazilian NEOJIBA. London’s Royal Philharmonic Orchestra will play with Yunchan Lim – winner of the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition.
In May, more great events: concerts by Dresdner Philharmonie with Henryk Mikołaj Górecki’s Symphony of Sorrowful Songs and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, one of the “Big Five” American orchestras. Among the soloists, performances by such outstanding musicians as Bomsori Kim, Piotr Beczała, Sondra Radvanovsky, Sergei Babayan, Emmanuel Pahud, Bruno de Sá, Jakub Józef Orliński, Giovanni Sollima, and Piotr Anderszewski must be mentioned. It is therefore without a doubt worth following the NFM’s repertoire.
– This season, the new artistic director of the NFM Wrocław Philharmonic, Christoph Eschenbach, has begun work with it. Which of the maestro Eschenbach concerts would you recommend to music lovers?
– Each of the six concerts featuring Christoph Eschenbach will be a celebration. Under his baton, the Wrocław Philharmonic Orchestra will perform works by true giants of symphonic music: Antonín Dvořák, Hector Berlioz, Witold Lutosławski, Johannes Brahms, Arnold Schönberg, and Krzysztof Penderecki. During the season finale, the musicians will also premiere a new piece by Agata Zubel. I remember maestro Eschenbach’s interpretation of Beethoven’s Pastoral Symphony during last year’s Wratislavia Cantans. Although my approach to classical aesthetics differs from Eschenbach’s, his vision of Beethoven’s Sixth – subtle and vocal – captivated me that evening. I listened in rapture. I think the audience can count on similar experiences every time this magnificent conductor stands before the orchestra.
– During the inauguration of the NFM season, the Wrocław Philharmonic and the NFM Choir, under your direction, will reenact the repertoire of the Philharmonic’s first ever concert in 1945. You mentioned that historic event – but I wouldn’t like us to go back that far into the past; I suggest we take a look at the last twenty years. How much has the musical life of the capital of Lower Silesia changed since 2005, when you became the director of the Wrocław Philharmonic and the International Festival Wratislavia Cantans?
– Everything has changed. The small concert hall of the Wrocław Philharmonic has been replaced by four NFM halls with phenomenal acoustics. Yet I must emphasise that the NFM has never been a project focused solely on the venue. It was only supposed to be a catalyst for profound changes in the way art is present in our city. We have managed to achieve this, and the effect has exceeded our initial expectations: artistic groups were created that continue to be present on the most important stages in Europe, and, above all, the music of artists associated with the NFM already reaches millions of people, we also have our own faithful audience. We are proud that Wrocław is today such an important point on the cultural map of our continent.
– We have learned that you have resigned from the position of NFM director. Why did you decide to take this step and what are your feelings having announced this?
– Announcing my decision to the public – although it was well-considered – turned out to be a poignant experience for me. It is the end of a long chapter that began twenty-one years ago. It all began at the City Office in Wrocław, where I led the preparatory work before the construction of a new concert hall, managing the entire project. Then, from 2005 to autumn 2014, while carrying out this investment, I was simultaneously the director of Wratislavia Cantans and the Wrocław Philharmonic. Then the two institutions merged, and I became the NFM director. I always knew that this adventure of my life would end someday. I decided that now was the right time.
The awareness of the passage of time, as well as the emerging limitations related to my health, made me ask myself, in a completely natural way, what is most important to me at the moment. The NFM was established and is now entering its tenth season of operation – this gives me a sense of fulfilment and is a source of great peace. An important stage of the mission of transforming the musical life of Wrocław has come to an end. I can now focus on artistic matters and hand over management to others.
I have proposed a solution that is optimal for the interests of our institution and ensures its stability. I am pleased that it has been accepted by the Minister of Culture and National Heritage Hanna Wróblewska, the Mayor of Wrocław Jacek Sutryk and the Marshal of the Lower Silesian Voivodeship Paweł Gancarz. The new director of the NFM is Olga Humeńczuk – my previous deputy, with whom I worked for twenty years. She knows both the specifics of running a cultural institution and the NFM itself very well. She therefore meets all the conditions to successfully introduce it into the next decade of activity.
– In the upcoming season, you will lead nearly all the NFM ensembles as a conductor. Will this be an opportunity to say goodbye?
– We were planning the season before I made the decision to resign. At that time, we were thinking about our anniversaries, and it was for this occasion that I wanted to prepare a programme with each of the resident ensembles. However, it so happens that I will lead these concerts no longer as the director of the organisation. During the aforementioned inauguration with the NFM Wrocław Philharmonic and the NFM Choir, Mozart’s Great Mass will be performed, among others.
We will celebrate St Nicholas Day together with the NFM Boys’ Choir with a performance of Benjamin Britten’s Saint Nicholas cantata. Mark Padmore will be among the soloists. Just before Easter, on Holy Wednesday, when I will stand before the NFM Choir and the NFM Leopoldinum Orchestra, you will hear the cantata The Seven Last Words from the Cross by the contemporary Scottish composer James MacMillan.
Yet we cannot talk about farewells here because I will continue to work with the NFM musicians. I will definitely remain in the position of artistic director of Wrocław Baroque Ensemble. We have long-term plans that include international tours, new concert programmes and new recordings.
– Can we therefore say that resigning from the position of NFM director means the opening of a completely new chapter for you?
– The new NFM director – Olga Humeńczuk – suggested that, in addition to working with musicians and carrying out my own projects, I should also advise her on artistic matters. I am therefore happy that by sharing my experience and knowledge, I will maintain an influence on the institution’s programme and its further development.
Another proposal that I received was to take up the position of artistic director of the Andrzej Markowski International Festival Wratislavia Cantans. I am already looking forward to working on the future editions of this exceptional event, so important for the arts in our city. I have many ideas!
I would like to emphasise that this does not mean that Giovanni Antonini, who has directed Wratislavia so far, is saying goodbye to the NFM completely. I highly value the dozen or so years of his work with us. This outstanding musician is becoming an artist-in-residence at the NFM – so both he and Il Giardino Armonico will be performing with us even more often.
– We will hear Antonini the flautist this season, when the Wrocław Baroque Ensemble you direct will reach for the early cantatas of Johann Sebastian Bach. Is the January concert a part of some long-term undertaking?
– In recent years, the artists from Wrocław Baroque Ensemble have focused on recording Polish music of the 17th and 18th centuries. There have also been other episodes – I remember the concerts and the album devoted to the work of Antonio Maria Bononcini. We always love performing the works of Johann Sebastian Bach. After much hesitation, I decided that for the first time in my life I would record an album with Bach’s works. This is an incredibly important moment for me: I have always felt great respect for him, and I still do, but now I am ready to finally try.
I have planned it so that both the concert programme and the album will be entitled Komm and will include works containing this very call: “Come”. These will be the cantatas Gottes Zeit and Komm, du süße Todesstunde, and perhaps also Himmelskönig, sei willkommen. When I told Giovanni Antonini about my idea, he immediately offered to take part in this project as a flautist. I am glad that this wonderful musician, who has been collaborating with the NFM for years, considers Wrocław Baroque Ensemble as an equal partner.
In the cantatas, the soprano parts, including the solo ones, will be performed by members of the NFM Boys’ Choir, which has been very important to Giovanni and me. The concert, during which we will all be on stage together performing Bach’s music, will be one of the most important moments of this season for me.
– Bartłomiej Nizioł will return to the NFM in December, and together with Wrocław Baroque Orchestra under your direction, he will present one of Feliks Janiewicz’s concertos. We know very well how committed you are to restoring the music of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth to the repertoire. Janiewicz was born in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, experienced its fall and made a career in the United Kingdom. So what interested you in this personality and what is the story behind this project?
– A few years ago, before a concert at the NFM, I visited Bartek Nizioł in his dressing room. He is a great violinist, winner of the Wieniawski Competition. I noticed then that he had one of Janiewicz’s works on his desk. I had known for a long time how excellent these pieces were – they could also be heard at the NFM. So I asked him about these scores. It turned out that we were both fascinated by Janiewicz’s music and that we both saw the need to perform it on historical instruments.
Nizioł told me then that, in connection with his own anniversary, he was planning to record the complete five violin concertos by this composer in the historically informed style. I knew that for Bartek, who had previously performed with [musicians playing] modern instruments, this was a groundbreaking change. This is how, from word to word, the concept of the project was born, in which Wrocław Baroque Orchestra under my direction and Bartek Nizioł as a soloist will participate. We have already performed together in Wrocław, Warsaw and Vilnius, where Janiewicz was born. We have also recorded two of his concertos together. I can say that it sounds simply incredible.
Now it is time to complete the whole undertaking – this season we want to record the remaining three pieces. I hope that our albums will be released in the autumn of 2025. I cannot reveal the details at the moment, I will only say that they will be released on a renowned label. I believe that they will be of paramount importance to the art of performing early music, because they will reflect the revolutionary changes in violin technique and instrument construction that occurred in the 18th century.
– Finally, I would like to return to the NFM anniversary. What do you wish for the coming years of the institution you created?
– I wish the NFM to be managed by people who are able to recognise how this institution should function in the future. Times are changing rapidly: twenty years ago, when we started the first stage of work on the NFM project, we operated in a completely different reality, and in the next twenty years, nothing will be the same. Concert halls are already here, and music lovers will be able to enjoy the comfort they provide for decades to come.
Yet the question of how to reach the audience, how to invite them to experience the art and how to use the current style of communication for this purpose will ever be relevant. We must find the answer to these questions today because what will happen is being decided right now. The audience will come – regardless of age – when they need it. Therefore, there is no more important work for the future of the institution than arousing such a desire in people, while trusting in the power of music. We can be sure of this power.
