JAZZ STANDARDS NIGHT: WYLEŻOŁ/WIĘCEK/WYKPISZ/FORTUNA

Piotr Wyleżoł – piano

Kuba Więcek – sax

Alan Wykpisz – double bass

Dawid Fortuna – drums

tickets: 25/30 pln

Piotr Wyleżoł – polish pianist and composer.

Born December 6^th, 1976. As a child, he was already winning awards at national piano competitions in Poland and playing concerts with a classical repertoire. At 10 and 11 years old, he performed Mozart and Beethoven piano concertos with the Philharmonic Orchestra of Rybnik, Poland.

In 1989, he completed the Karol and Antoni Szafranków Public Primary School of Music in Rybnik, in the piano class of Romana Fritzowa, and graduated from the Karol Szymanowski Public Secondary School of Music in Katowice in 1995, in the piano class of Irena Kryszczukajtis. In 2000, he received his diploma from the Katowice Academy of Music, where he studied piano under Wojciech Niedziela in the Department of Jazz and Popular Music.

He began his jazz performing career while still studying in Katowice, in groups led by Janusz Muniak, Jarek Śmietana and Marek Bałata, among others. As a student, he was also a laureate of numerous jazz competitions and festivals: Jazz Juniors in Krakow (1^st prize), the Jazz Standards Festival in Siedlce (1^st prize), the Pomeranian Jazz Autumn’s “Key to a Career” and Jazz on the Oder in Wrocław (individual award for best instrumentalist),  and the International Jazz Improvisation Competition in Katowice.

Piotr Wyleżoł has led his own trio since beginning his activity as an artist. In 2001 his first CD as a leader was released, titled “Yearning” and recorded with Adam Kowalewski on bass, and Łukasz Żyta on drums. Even then, the music press was generous in its praise: “This is one of the most interesting debut albums to come out in some time. A trio of young Polish musicians has created a musical atmosphere on this CD which is on a par with some of the finest work in this genre.” (Jazz Forum, November 2001). In 2006 his second CD, “Piano Trio” (with Michał Barański on bass and Łukasz Żyta on drums) was released, and in 2009 the renowned label Fresh Sound Records released his third and latest project, “Children’s Episodes”. This CD was issued on that label’s New Talent series, which includes names like Brad Mehldau, Kurt Rosenwinkel and Chris Cheek, among others. It’s worth mentioning that Piotr Wyleżoł is the first Polish musician ever to have been included by Fresh Sound in this distinguished circle of musicians. “Children’s Episodes” was also nominated for a Fryderyk Award (Poland’s equivalent of a Grammy Award), in the Jazz Album of The Year category. Besides the trio studio albums, his discography also includes two live recordings as a leader. The first, “Quintet Live”, was released in 2010 and included guest musicians Adam Pierończyk on sax, and David Doruzka on guitar, while the second – titled “DuoDram” – is a piano duo concert with Sławek Jaskułke, recorded at the “Jazz in Gdynia” festival.

In the course of his presence on the professional jazz stage thus far, he has had occasion to work with a number of its leading figures, including: Gary Bartz, Billy Hart, Nigel Kennedy, Steve Logan, Monty Waters, Bennie Maupin, Janis Siegel, Ed Schuller, Antymos Apostolis, Piotr Baron, Andrzej Cudzich, Urszula Dudziak, Kazimierz Jonkisz, Grzegorz Nagórski, Adam Pierończyk, Tomasz Szukalski, Tomasz Stańko, Mika Urbaniak, Jan Ptaszyn Wróblewski, and others. He has worked regularly with Nigel Kennedy since 2005, taking part in the violinist’s own projects as well as performing classical concerts with him, playing harpsichord in a repertoire of Bach and Vivaldi.

Piotr Wyleżoł has performed at numerous concerts and festivals throughout Poland, as well as in several dozen various countries of the world. Besides his own CDs recorded as a leader and co-leader, he has participated in a significant number of recordings by other artists, and the number is constantly growing. He has also been teaching piano at the Krakow Academy of Music’s Jazz and Modern Music Department since 2007.

http://www.piotrwylezol.com/

KUBA WIĘCEK

Kuba Więcek – Born 29th October 1994 in Rybnik, sax player and composer, student of Copenhagen’s prestigious Rhythmic Music Conservatorium. Winner of many awards and international competitions. He has studied with such masters as Lee Konitz, Steve Lehman and David Binney. He has given concerts throughout Europe, North America and Asia, in collaboration with such artists as Mike Stern, Ralph Alessi, Gilad Hekselman, and many others. He started learning the cello at age seven, but four years later he abandoned that instrument for the saxophone. He developed his technical mastery and enhanced musical sensibility by studying classical music.

His adventure with jazz began at workshops in Puławy and Chodzież, where as a 17-year-old he also had an opportunity to establish contacts with young musicians studying in Denmark, which inspired him to continue his studies abroad. After secondary school he first improved his technique and knowledge of jazz in Amsterdam’s conservatory. His quest for self-expression then took him on a first journey to New York, while his studies now continue in Copenhagen.

The artist shares his time between these two cities and Warsaw, where he has resided since last year, taking active part in the cultural life of the Polish capital. As an acute observer, he finds inspiration in the multi-coloured reality of the surrounding world. He draws on the experience of many genres and styles, including classical music, European folklore as well as electronic, alternative and hip-hop projects. His private music collection contains, side by side with recordings by John Coltrane and Charlie Parker, also albums by such artists as Steve Reich, Brian Eno, Tom Waits, Bon Iver, Flying Lotus and Kanye West. The present album, “Another Raindrop”, is his phonographic debut.

http://kubawiecek.com/