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Paweł Kowalski plays for Polish Independence Day
The NYU Abu Dhabi Polish Cultural Association hosted renowned Polish pianist Paweł Kowalski at a recital last Saturday, 7 Nov., to celebrate Polish ...
Nov 14, 2015
The NYU Abu Dhabi Polish Cultural Association hosted renowned Polish pianist Paweł Kowalski at a recital last Saturday, 7 Nov., to celebrate Polish Independence Day. Held in the lobby of the Arts Center, the performance was open to university members and the general public.
The recital consisted of works mainly by Frederic Chopin, with Kowalski adding in more modern pieces by other famous Polish composers, including Krzysztof Komeda’s score of the classic horror movie Rosemary’s Baby.
Kowalski is a classical pianist who made his debut in Warsaw playing in a concert conducted by Witold Lutosławski, one of the most preeminent European composers of the past several decades. He studied piano in Poland, Germany and Canada on a grant from Lutosławski and has performed in over 40 countries on four continents.
This was not Kowalski’s first visit to Abu Dhabi. In the past, he has judged classical music competitions in the region and performed in May at Paris-Sorbonne University.
The event was coordinated by the PCA, a Student Interest Group at NYUAD, which worked in cooperation with the Polish Embassy in Abu Dhabi and the Polish Business Group in the UAE.
According to members of the SIG, the idea for the recital began in September, after members visited the embassy to vote in a recent referendum.
“The embassy recommended us Paweł Kowalski, who is currently one of the most important Polish pianists. We contacted him and because of the occasion, Independence Day, he agreed to come from Poland and play a recital at NYUAD," wrote Vice President of the PCA and freshman Tomasz Bachosz.
"The Embassy and Polish Business Group in the UAE as well as the Office of the Vice Chancellor provided us financial support,” added Bachosz.
The PCA was founded by freshmen Polish students who, upon entering NYUAD, wanted to form a community centered on Polish culture.
“After our first month at NYUAD, we found out that there were quite a few students interested in Polish culture and language. This was enough to think about starting a SIG,” wrote Bachosz.
PCA President freshman Jakub Bartoszewski mentioned the diversity of the NYUAD community as another reason for the SIG's establishment.
“That seemed to be perfect ground for presenting the best parts of our culture,” he wrote.
Bartoszewski expressed his hope that the SIG will continue being active on campus and bringing a little piece of Poland to the UAE.
“Beyond smaller events such as the Polish Language Couch, where students can learn some Polish, screenings of Polish movies or our recent presentation about Poland with Polish dishes ... we aim to organize big cultural events, similar in scale to the piano recital by Pawel Kowalski,” Bartoszewski added.
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