The Winner of 2009 International Web Concert Hall
Competition
(Honorary Mention)
 [Krystian]
… plays elegant and tasteful in Bach’s Toccata, showing in-depth
knowledge of Baroque ornamentation and phrasing. Szymanowski’s Mazurkas
were exquisitely shaped, showing lovely shadings and contrasts of
dynamics… Chopin had fine dynamics of their own; passionate and lush -
without over pedaling or pretension. It was in Rachmaninoff’s Etudes …
that [was] Tkaczewski’s powerhouse technique.
Anthony Aibel – New
York Concert Review Inc.
How
did you begin to play the piano?
I started the piano at
the age of seven in Paderewski Music School in my hometown- Tarnow. I
believe I was destined to play the piano. I was born into a family with
a very long musical heritage. Even my name Krystian was adapted from the
superb pianist Krystian Zimerman after the Chopin Competition in 1975.
It was my mother’s dream for me to become a concert pianist and I owe
all to her. Although my mother was not a professional musician, she was
musically educated. She encouraged and taught me how to work hard and
prepared me for achieving the goals in my life. I also had uncles who
were great musicians and my grand grandfather was an organist. None of
my father side had a musician.
Do you have any siblings who play a musical instrument?
I am the only child in
the family.
Where
were you born and where do you live now?
I was born in 1980 in
Tarnow, Poland. Since childhood, I traveled often. I attended Chopin
Music High School in Warsaw and Karol Lipinski Music Academy in Wroclaw.
I also attended the Royal Conservatory of Music in Hague, Netherlands. I
took part in at least thirty piano competitions around the world; being
the laureate or finalist 24 times. Since 2005, I have been residing in
West Hartford Connecticut. I received a Graduate Professional Diploma
from Hartt School, University of Hartford under Oxana Yablonskaya.
Presently I am pursuing a Doctor of Music Arts degree at the same
university. I believe that the United States offers many possibilities
for the young artists. There are many interesting concert venues. I hope
earning a doctoral degree will help me in both a concertizing and
teaching career in the USA.
How did you meet Oxana Yablonskaya?
I met professor
Yablonskaya in her master classes, which she held in Germany and France.
I was very impressed with her style of teaching. I came to the US and
was offered a scholarship based on my playing. Madame Yablonskaya’s
teaching is inspiring for me in many ways. She focuses on quality of
sound and encourages on expressing yourself at all times. She allows her
students to roam freely to experience their own expressions as much as
they can. However, she holds and guides you within the frame with her
outstanding advices that promotes and draws out the highest quality from
the player.
 Do
you have a practice routine?
Actually this is a very
complex question for me to answer. When I begin to practice, I always
focus on what I need to understand and learn about the music as much as
I can. I strongly avoid practicing mechanically, if possible. I try to
understand the entire structure as well as the form and style of the
music as a whole. Of course I may sometimes practice the piece in slow
tempo for hours, but I try to avoid using the metronome. I often remind
myself of the statement Josef Hoffman made… [practicing mechanically
can] “kill musical rhythm of a piece”…
Can you elaborate on Hoffman's statement?
I agree with Josef
Hoffman that practicing with a metronome can make you play mechanically
without you being aware of it. I believe that every note should be
played, shaped and sculpted from the soul. However, working with a
metronome can too often diminish one’s playing to a single entity, which
can wipeout the spirit of seeing music as a whole. A child or beginner
may play scales, work with a metronome and play passages mechanically
and so on. However, I believe I have surpassed that level.
Tell us about your strengths in the piano playing…
I love to dazzle
audiences with my technical skills. However, I believe that bringing out
the deep personality using verity of color and expression to decorate
the music you are playing is the most important of all. I believe that
pianists should perform music that they really enjoy, appreciate, and
most importantly, a work that they most understood.
What period of music
do you enjoy playing the most and why?
There are two main
tracks of repertoire in my playing. The first is following the music of
my great compatriot, Fryderyk Chopin. The other is the music of
romanticism of Russia, especially Rachmaninov. I come from Poland which
is a part of the Slavic countries. The music of Chopin was with me since
the beginning. Chopin’s music is very noble, connecting a fine technical
skeleton with great intelligence and last but not least extraordinary
verity and honesty. Especially, I love to perform Mazurkas and
Polonaises. It gives me national pride when performing these pieces far
from my homeland. I was delighted to perform these pieces in Chopin’s
birthplace in Zelazowa Wola twice. On the other hand, music by
Rachmaninov flows directly from my heart. Rachmaninov was a mystical
person, the same as his music is. It resembles vivid pictures of the
soul of Russia; church bells and the loneliness and sadness of Russian
people. It gives performers the possibility to discover the depth of
music. By listening and understanding the polyphony of musical texture,
we can find the message and the meaning of magnificent work.
What will your doctoral thesis be?
My dissertation will
discuss certain aspects of Mazurkas by Fryderyk Chopin. It is the music
which is very close to my heart and holds many interesting dilemmas
worthy of investigation. In the opening chapters I will describe
etymology and characteristic of polish national dances which create a
genre of Mazurka: Mazur, Oberek and Kujawiak. In the following chapters
I will discuss, based on the recordings of major pianists, how rhythmic,
articulation and tempo features of national dances have been observed by
various performers.
Why are you interested in this topic?
Throughout my
professional career, I have heard literally hundreds (thousands?) of
recordings and performances of Mazurkas. In my opinion, I can safely
conclude that most pianists I heard may have never heard about Mazur,
Oberek, and Kujawiak. There are many nuances involved in mazurkas which
most performers have limited knowledge of. Therefore, I strongly believe
that writing a thesis based on my research and findings can make a major
contribution in the field of performance.
What do you do for
hobby?
My interests are
quite extensive. I am interested in sports and politics and many other
art forms. I love to visit galleries around the world, which inspire me
quite often. When I perform in various countries, I always try to visit
new places as much as I can. I visited galleries in Paris (Louvre),
Madrid (Prado), Vienna, New York, Chicago, etc. I primarily love
paintings by Flemish masters and that of Impressionism. Simultaneously,
I dwell on everything associated with intellectual challenges. I also
belong to an exclusive High IQ Society
www.highiqsociety.org. I love to read books by Paulo Coelho and Dan
Brown. I was a judge in Miss Polonia Connecticut 2009 in Hartford,
Connecticut.
Do you have any
projects coming up in the near future?
Yes, I am the
organizer and director of the first International Chopin Competition
that will take place in Hartford; it will take place in February 2010.
2010 is the bicentennial anniversary of Chopin’s birthday.
The competition is open
to young performers of age 18 and younger. Rules and prizes are not yet
determined. As soon as I have more information, I plan to make a formal
announcement and begin to promote the competition. Anyone who wishes to
learn more about the competition should contact me directly at
ktkaczewski@gmail.com
Furthermore, I was featured as a soloist in the Fryderyk Chopin Society of Connecticut which was recognized and
honored by the Governor of
Connecticut.
How did you learn
about the International Web Concert Hall Competition?
I found the
information on the Internet. In the previous competition, I was a
finalist.
 Do you have any upcoming concerts in 2009?
April - Recital at
Hartt School, University Of Hartford
April – Hamden,
Connecticut
April - Polish National
Home, Hartford
April - Carnegie
Weill Hall - American Protégé competition prize winners concert.
July - Chopin Festival
in Busko Zdroj, Poland
On be half of the Web Concert Hall, we
would like to thank you for your time and we wish all the success.
Interviewed by Webconcerthall in March, 2009
|
