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Robert STEFAŃSKI (Łódź, Poland)

Grażyna and Kiejstut Bacewicz Academy of Music in Łódź, State Primary Music School in Zgierz

 

He graduated with honors from the Grażyna and Kiejstut Bacewicz Academy of Music in Łódź, in the clarinet class of the senior lecturer Ryszard Ryczel, in 2005. He also completed postgraduate studies at the Karol Szymanowski Academy of Music in Katowice, in the clarinet class of Prof. Andrzej Janicki.

He has honed his skills at, inter alia, international summer courses and music interpretation competitions for wind instruments in Duszniki-Zdrój, held by Prof. Mieczysław Stachura and Prof. Diethelm Kühn as well as other renowned artists, such as Eduard Brunner, Oriol Romani, Matthias Müller, Florent Hëau, Antonio Soiote, Valter Vitek, Mirosław Pokrzywiński, Jan Jakub Bokun, Arkadiusz Adamski, Aleksander Romański.

He is a prizewinner of national and international music competitions, where he performed as a soloist and chamber musician: the Young Musician Competition in Szczecinek (1994 – 1st prize, 1996 – 2nd prize), the All-Polish Auditions for Wind Instruments in Olsztyn (2000 – 3rd prize), the All-Polish French Music Competition in Łódź (1999 – 3rd prize), the International Tansman Festival and Competition of Musical Individualities in Łódź (2002 – finalist; 2008), the International Kiejstut Bacewicz Chamber Music Competition in Łódź (2007 – 2nd prize, 2010 – finalist), the Clarinet Festival in Piotrków Trybunalski (1995 – 1st prize in chamber category and honorary mention as a soloist, 2001- 3rd prize in chamber category and honorary mention as a soloist , 2003 – 2nd prize both in chamber and solo category).

He cooperates with the Polish Chamber Orchestra, the ‘New Art’ Radio Philharmonic, the Camerata Mazovia Chamber Orchestra, the Polish Chamber Opera, the Chamber Orchestra of Radom and the Philharmonic of Łódź. He is a founder and member of the following ensembles: ‘Acoustic Duo’, ‘Bacewicz Duo’, ‘Family Duo’, ‘Jedyne Takie Trio’ and ‘Subito Quartet’. He has given several dozen premieres of contemporary music pieces. He is a jury member of all-Polish and regional competitions for wind instruments and chamber ensembles.

He has performed as a soloist with the Big Band of the Academy of Music in Łódź, directed by Jacek Delong, the Łódź Philharmonic, the New Music Orchestra and the Camerata Mazovia Chamber Orchestra. He has recorded music for the Łódź Radio and Channel 2 of the Polish Radio. His recordings can be found on a few CDs, featuring works of F. Poulenc, J. Brahms, B. K. Przybylski, T. Szczepanik, S. Zamuszko, published by the Academy of Music in Łódź and the Warsaw Autumn Festival chronicles.

In 2012, he got a doctoral degree in music arts (DA) and in 2017 – habilitated doctor degree (DA hab). Currently, he works on the position of adiunkt [assistant professor] at the Grażyna and Kiejstut Bacewicz Academy of Music in Łódź; he also teaches at the State Primary Music School in Zgierz.