Sinfonietta Cracovia

Sinfonietta Cracovia - With numerous invitations to participate in prestigious music festivals, glowing reviews from the critics and enthusiastic audiences for its concerts, the Sinfonietta Cracovia ranks among the leading chamber orchestras not only in Poland but on the wider European musical landscape. The ensemble was formed in 1990 at the initiative of a group of young musicians associated with the Krakow Academy of Music. In 1992 violinist Robert Kabara, the winner of several national and international music competitions, became the artistic leader of the ensemble. By 1994, largely due to the support of distinguished individuals in the arts world, most notably Elzbieta Penderecki and Maestro Krzysztof Penderecki, the Sinfonietta came under the patronage of the President of the City of Krakow. Since that time, the ensemble has appeared as the Orchestra of the Capital Royal City of Krakow.

The Sinfonietta Cracovia works with the most renowned artists, among them such conductors and soloists as Krzysztof Penderecki, Christoph Eschenbach, Antoni Wit, Rudolf Buchbinder, Barry Douglas, Jan Krenz, Jerzy Maksymiuk, Jerzy Katlewicz, Boris Pergamenchikow, Tabea Zimmermann, Grigori Zhislin, Irene Grafenauer, Kaja Danczowska, Kevin Kenner and many others. The group has been a regular guest at festivals within and beyond the borders of Poland: the Warsaw Autumn Festival, the Ludwig van Beethoven Easter Festival, the Music Festival in Lancut, the Krakow Composers Festival, the Festival of Ancient Music, the Kissinger Summer Festival, the Carinthian Summer Festival, the Mitteldeutsches Rundfunk (MDR) Festival and the Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival. The orchestra has also appeared at some of Europe's most prestigious concert halls, including the Alte Oper in Frankfurt (1994), the Auditorio Nacional in Madrid (1997), the Philharmonie in Berlin (1998 and 1999), and the Berlin Konzerthaus (2001), winning consistent acclaim. A particular success was the group's debut in the main hall of the Philharmonie performing works of Stravinsky, Penderecki and Shostakovich under the direction of Maestro Krzysztof Penderecki, with Tabea Zimmermann.

In 1999 several musicians from the Sinfonietta Cracovia comprised part of the Polish Festival Orchestra for concert tours with Krystian Zimerman (as director and soloist). They appeared in the most important halls of Europe and the United States (including the Salle Pleyel in Paris, the Royal Festival Hall in London, the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam and Carnegie Hall in New York, and recording the Chopin Piano Concertos for Deutsche Grammophon. The Sinfonietta Cracovia has made numerous recordings for television, radio and release on compact disc. The latter, which have enjoyed many critical accolades, have also been nominted for awards from the Polish music industry. In 1998 the ensemble was the recipient of the European Cultural Award, presented by the European Culture Foundation under the auspices of the Parliament and Council of Europe. The Sinfonietta Cracovia is currently comprised of a string ensemble, expended as required by its repertoire to a classical-size chamber orchestra, including a brass section. Its members are among the finest Polish soloists and chamber musicians of the younger generation. In September 2000 the American conductor John Neal Axelrod was named Principal Guest Conductor and in 2002/2003 season Principal Conductor of the Sinfonietta Cracovia. His activities with the ensemble consist of a series of subscription concerts, recordings and extensive touring. In 2001, he and the orchestra had a great success at the Pablo Casals Festival in San Juan, PR, as well as the Sommerliche Musiktage Hitzacker, the Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival and Ludwig van Beethoven Easter Festival, in concerts with Maestro Christoph Eschenbach as soloist.