Polish music and musicians figure prominently at the St Magnus Festival in Orkney Islands, one of U.K’s major music events.

Its Director, Glenys Hughes, wrote in the Festival brochure: ‘We welcome, as special guests, an array of world-class Polish musicians, and, in his bicentennial year, we celebrate the genius of Poland’s greatest composer, Fryderyk Chopin.’

In addition to Chopin, the programme of the event, which lasts until 23 June, includes works by Karol Szymanowski, Mieczysław Karłowicz, Grażyna Bacewicz, Witold Lutosławski, Henryk Mikołaj Górecki and representatives of the younger generation  -  Paweł Mykietyn and Aleksander Kościów, both of whom are the Festival guests.

The list of performers includes the pianists Ewa Kupiec, Jan Krzysztof Broja and Leszek Możdżer, the cellist Andrzej Bauer, the Royal String Quartet from Warsaw and Trebunie Tutki,  a family band from the Tatra Mountains. In one of the concerts (21 June), the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra will be conducted by Poland’s Michał Dworzyński.

Adrian Thomas, a renowned specialist on Polish music will give a talk on the legacy of Chopin’s music for both writers and composers.

Many of the Festival performances have the logo of Polska! Year, a series of about 250 projects presenting the best of Polish arts and culture. Launched in the spring of 2009, it is now coming to a close. (mk)