Having sustained an injury to his left hand, Artur Malawski had to abandon his career as a virtuoso violinist and went on to become a successful teacher and composer in his native Poland. The Symphonic Études of 1947 brought him international recognition with its unorthodox design and powerful expression. The Overture shares something of his younger contemporary Lutosławski’s resourcefulness, while the Toccata shows a similar adventurousness of spirit. The manuscript of Mountaineers’ Triptych has not survived complete – it is heard here in a realisation by Kazimierz Wiłkomirski.

Conductor Mariusz Smolij’s album of works by Polish composer Grazẏna Bacewicz won a 2015 Fryderyk Award (Naxos 8573229). In 2019 the president of Poland awarded him the Knight’s Cross of the Order of Merit for the promotion of Polish culture.

Beata Bilińska is a laureate of numerous international competitions, including the 1st International Competition for Young Pianists ‘Arthur Rubinstein in Memoriam’, the 46th Ferruccio Busoni International Piano Competition and the 17th Rina Sala Gallo Monza International Piano Competition. In 2003 she made her debut at the Isaac Stern Auditorium in Carnegie Hall, receiving an enthusiastic review in The New York Times. Bilińska’s recording credits include 13 albums. In 2015 she received a Fryderyk Award for her recording of Wojciech Kilar’s Piano Concerto no.2, and she is also the recipient of numerous other phonographic awards, including the Pizzicato Supersonic Award (twice) and the 2008 MIDEM Classical Award.