Jakub Polaczyk, (born 1983 in
Kraków
, officially the Royal Capital City of Kraków, is the List of cities and towns in Poland, second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city has a population of 804,237 ...
) is a Polish-American
composer
A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music.
Etymology and def ...
and
pianist
A pianist ( , ) is a musician who plays the piano. A pianist's repertoire may include music from a diverse variety of styles, such as traditional classical music, jazz piano, jazz, blues piano, blues, and popular music, including rock music, ...
based in
New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
. His works bridges his Polish roots and global influences, blending tradition with ritual, spirituality, and an imaginative, eclectic compositional voice. As a performer, educator and cultural ambassador in NYC, his influence spans beyond the concert hall to radio and community initiatives.
Recipient of many national and international awards: Global Music Awards Silver Medalist (2023), Runner-up of the John Eaton Composition Competition by New York Composers Circle (2024), Winner of the Clouzine Magazine Best Instrumental Album (2024),
American Prize in Composition 2020 and
Iron Composer 2013. Graduated from the Krzysztof Penderecki
Academy of Music in Kraków
The Krzysztof Penderecki Academy of Music in Kraków () is a music school, conservatory located in central Kraków, Poland. It is the ''alma mater'' of the renowned Polish contemporary composer Krzysztof Penderecki, who was also its rector for 15 ...
,
Jagiellonian University
The Jagiellonian University (, UJ) is a public research university in Kraków, Poland. Founded in 1364 by Casimir III the Great, King Casimir III the Great, it is the oldest university in Poland and one of the List of oldest universities in con ...
and
Carnegie Mellon University
Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. The institution was established in 1900 by Andrew Carnegie as the Carnegie Technical Schools. In 1912, it became the Carnegie Institu ...
. He studied in
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...
with:
Marcel Chyrzyński,
Krzysztof Penderecki
Krzysztof Eugeniusz Penderecki (; 23 November 1933 – 29 March 2020) was a Polish composer and conductor. His best-known works include '' Threnody to the Victims of Hiroshima'', Symphony No. 3, his '' St Luke Passion'', '' Polish Requiem'', '' ...
,
Marek Chołoniewski (pl), in
Belgium
Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...
with
Jan Van Landeghem and in the USA with
Reza Vali
Reza Vali () is an Iranian musician and composer.
Life and education
Vali was born in Qazvin in 1952 and studied at the Tehran Conservatory.
In 1972, he attended the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna, where he studied. He later a ...
. Since 2020 has been hosting program "Coffees After Bach" in the Polish Radio Chicago AM1030. Currently teaching at The New York Conservatory of Music. Between 2018-2023 Polaczyk was the vice president of the non for profit organization NYDAI and in 2020 - 2023 was the Artistic Director of the International Chopin & Friends Festival in NYC. " Conversations with Jakub Polaczyk" by Dennis Woytek got a Bronze statuette at the 43rd Telly Awards in New York City in 2023.
Artist was awarded a Bronze medal by the Minister of Culture of Poland: "Gloria Artis Medal for Merit to Culture" in 2023. In 2024 Artist was awarded the honorable decoration from the city of Stary Sącz and the same year President of Poland awarded him Gold Cross Medal of Merit. In 2024 he was among the first musicians asked to access Chopin’s recently discovered Waltz at the Morgan Library & Museum. He completed a contemporary realization and arrangement of the fragment that was later published in 2025.
References
External links
*
Jakub Polaczyk on YouTubeJakub Polaczyk on DonemusJakub Polaczyk on Albany RecordsJakub Polaczyk on "No Dead Guys"
Doctoral thesis about music of Jakub Polaczyk
1983 births
Living people
21st-century Polish pianists
Musicians from Kraków
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