Adam Mickiewicz Institute has commissioned my newest composition based on Adam Mickiewicz poetry — Budyń o smaku Mickiewicza.
This concert is the final one in this year’s tour, we played in Serbia, now we are playing in Budapest, where we are recording the album.
The Budapest itself inspires the trip down the memory lane, just as we are time-travelling. The atmosphere of the city allows us to absorb this feeling.
„Do you reckon this would be the baseline take? Which one would be better for you?” „I don’t know, I suppose I sang best on the first take” „That one was good, definitely”
„This is very art of high degree of sophistication – what Nikola and musicians are performing.”
„I’m learning every day listening to this music, but this is also another motivation to work on myself.”
„Technically this music is the peak hardcore difficulty for vocalists and instrumentalists alike.”
„I need falsetto for this”
„We just need to hear that”
„It is great fun, privilege also, in confronting challenging but also beautiful song, so I am out of the proverbial comfort zone to make something completely new.”
„It’s a very eclectic material that could be very interesting for people interested in storytelling in music, and this story informs all of the music — the music is subjugated to the narrative.”
„I have invited Jacek Szymkiewicz Budyń to reinterpret the poetry. He had done it masterfully and in his own personal style.”
„Jacek Budyń Szymkiewicz – sadly not with us anymore – used the broadest possible spectrum of colors to paint the emotions and stories, and it shows as being extremely captivating.”
„Those stories are crafted in a way as we would talk about people we know”
„Jacek translated the Ballads into today’s language, but it is still poetry — it is one of a kind way of expression, absolutely unique to him — his language.”
„It is large ensemble instrumental jazz, with added songs on top of…”
„…so it is something between songwriting and instrumental concept album – joined into one.”
Nikola Kołodziejczyk Orchestra
Nikola Kołodziejczyk piano, conductor
Natalia Grosiak voc
Tomasz Organek voc
Maciej Starnawski voc, acoustic guitar
Agnieszka Kiepuszewska voc, piano
Jan Krzeszowiec flute, alto flute
Robert Wypasek soprano & tenor saxophone
Tomasz Żymła bas clarinet
Adam Jędrysik el. guitar
Andrzej Kowalski el. guitar
Cyprian Baszyński trumpet
Mateusz Feliński french horn
Mateusz Mendyka bass trombone
Bartek Pieszka vibraphone
Maciej Szczyciński double bass
Miłosz Berdzik drums
Michał Pękosz percussion, handpans
Mateusz Sołtysik soundegineer
Weronika Wendrowska
IAM representative