The Piano Department of the Karol Szymanowski Academy of Music in Katowice engages in a holistic education of pianists – as soloists, chamber musicians and pedagogues. We can trace the piano department’s history back to 1924 with a tradition shaped by great figures of the art of piano playing: Wanda Chmielowska, Władysława Markiewiczówna and Bolesław Woytowicz. For over a quarter-century, the piano department was headed by Andrzej Jasiński, whose pupil, the great pianist Krystian Zimerman, is an alumnus of the Academy. The members of the current faculty are: Joanna Domańska, Wojciech Świtała, Zbigniew Raubo, Anna Górecka, Beata Bilińska, Magdalena Lisak, Piotr Banasik, Piotr Sałajczyk, Hubert Salwarowski, Szczepan Kończal, Łukasz Trepczyński, Mateusz Borowiak and Tymoteusz Bies. The mission of the piano department is to impart knowledge of the ins and outs of the art of piano playing, to support the passion for creative individuality and to conduct research and artistic activities among students and pedagogues.
The artistic landscape of the Academy has included “Piano Wednesday” – a piano recital series organised by the Piano Department featuring fine pianists and pedagogues affiliated with the Academy as well as guests that have included, among others: Joseph Banowetz, Thomas Beiyer, Jan Gottlieb Jiracek von Arnim, Ivo Kahánek, Szábolcs Esztényi, Rina Sudo, Hélène Tysman, Vyacheslav Gryaznov, Dmitry Shishkin and Daniil Trifonov. The Piano Department maintains an active international relationship with prominent pianists and professors and has hosted masterclasses by Waldemar Andrzejewski, Joseph Banowetz, Pierluigi Camicia, Jan Gottlieb Jiracek von Arnim, Ivo Kahánek, Wojciech Kocyan, Lee Kum Sing, Anna Malikova, Aleksiej Orłowiecki, John Perry, Dang Thai Son, Piotr Paleczny, Andrzej Tatarski, Támas Ungar, Adam Wibrowski, Adam Wodnicki and Krystian Zimerman.
Students and alumni of the Piano Department include young pianists from many countries, including Czech Republic, Slovakia, Belarus, Ukraine, Mongolia, Spain, Italy, France, Ireland, Great Britain, United States of America, Canada, Mexico, Thailand, Japan and China. There were some momentous events in recent years, such as the awarding of Honorary Doctorates to the most outstanding contributors in the field of the piano department’s activities: Krystian Zimerman (14th March 2005), Professor Andrzej Jasiński (14th December 2006) and Martha Argerich (23rd May 2015).
To promote the art of piano playing and to support the artistic development of young pianists around the world, the Piano Department holds the yearly summer International Piano Masterclasses (IPM) .
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