Follow the Light

His violin virtuosity first dazzled Polish and later European audiences. Unfortunately, just as he was about to conquer America, his life was cut short by cancer. Held every other year since 2014, the Zbigniew Seifert International Jazz Violin Competition is the perfect opportunity to discover the maestro’s successors in the field. Due to the ongoing pandemic, the format of this year’s events (8-10 July) will be very different to past festivals. Instead of attending reviews in Kraków or Lusławice, the 14 entrants from 11 countries perform online from their local stages. Additionally, the musicians will be joined by their ensembles as well as performing solo. However, the main aspect of the competition remains unchanged: young musicians premiere their materials which are assessed by experienced colleagues. The jury includes the violinist and saxophonist Michał Urbaniak, the Dutch cellist Ernst Reijseger and the Czech double-bassist Miroslav Vitouš. As well as listening to the semi-finals and the finale concert, we will visit the competition studio with music journalists and special guests recalling the festival’s patron, commenting on the ongoing events and reminiscing over some of the best moments of past editions. (Bartosz Suchecki, “Karnet”)