Jakub Józef Orliński and pianist Michał Biel’s new album Farewells is available now on Warner Classics. The album is a tribute to 19th- and 20th-century composers of their native Poland. Biel describes the music as, “…a lot of very intense, very Polish, post-Romantic music!” The repertoire features many beautiful songs by Karel Szymanowski, Henryk Czyż, Stanisław Moniuszko, Mieczysław Karłowicz, and Tadeusz Baird.
Katherine Cooper from Presto Music writes, “…This beautifully programmed and executed recital cuts through all the noise to reveal an artist of real integrity and imagination…the dense piano-writing and sweeping, ardent vocal lines sounding as if they could have sprung from the pen of Rachmaninov. Many of the qualities which make this an album to conjure with are revealed within the first minute: Orliński’s evident relish of the Polish language (particularly the expressive possibilities of the many ‘sz’ sounds), the unforced power of his lower register, and the pair’s instinctive awareness of when to step on the gas and when to let the music breathe…Orliński’s unmannered but infinitely subtle colouring of texts which he clearly adores is a joy.”
Photo credit: Honorata Karapuda
