Muzyka dla Europy.
Music for Europe.
Musik aus Kreisau. Für Europa.
Looking Back at 10 Years
Symposia.
of Krzyżowa-Music
On 27th August and 3rd of September
in Krzyżowa, Poland
Musicians of the
Anniversary Season 2024
2015: Musicians in exile.
2016: The importance of artists in exile for the cultural development of their host country.
2017: Music in occupied Poland 1939 – 1945, as well as a discussion format with members of the Szpilman family after watching the film “The Pianist.”
2018: Restructuring Europe after World War 1. Can artists be apolitical?
2019: What impact do musicians have on the world, apart from their music?
2020: Solidarność. Music from Poland in the 1980s. Civil protests in Belarus.
2021: Music and image. A lifeline for musicians in times of crisis using the example of film music. Consequences of the pandemic and possibilities of digitalisation.
2022: Pan-Europe, the path from utopia to reality. Bronisław Huberman. New realities in Eastern Europe after Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine.
2023: Culture as a mirror of world events. Cultural identities in the post-Soviet countries.
Interesting guests, special musical contributions, lectures by academics, live broadcasts from the epicentres of the protests, passionate discussions, and substantial debates – all these have made the symposia not only a starting point for lively discussions, but also emotional occasions. It is also about realising that civil courage and musical life are interconnected.
What was the world situation like in 2015 when our festival was founded? There were always crises in the world, but we mainly had the feeling that they were temporary and that the democratic part of the world had a system of coordinates that guaranteed stability. Unfortunately, however, this feeling has weakened year after year, as one new crisis followed the next at a rapid pace and red lines were continually being crossed. As a result, the cultural scene is becoming more and more politically influenced, as dictatorships instrumentalise culture, and it is becoming increasingly evident that civil courage and civil responsibility are becoming a necessity, even among artists.
In this anniversary year, at the first symposium on August 27, together with the publicist Axel Brüggemann, we shall be looking back on the last 10 years and, amongst others, examine the effects of totalitarian systems on musical life. During the second symposium, on September 3, the English music journalist and novelist Jessica Duchen will be our guest. She will report on the effects of Brexit on artists’ biographies and British cultural life: unfortunately a particularly topical subject, as nationalist forces in so many countries are threatening to leave the EU. The topic: “How do we define the word Europe in 2024” is therefore the basic idea behind this year’s symposia.
Krzyżowa, with its spirit and history, is an ideal place for such discussions and exchanges. In these difficult times, the importance of such forums can only increase. We may not know what we are in for during the next 10 years, but whatever happens in the world, we want to continue meeting in Krzyżowa, making music there, searching for a common language, discussing, and exchanging ideas, developing visions and trying to find answers to even the most difficult questions. Because our aim is to strengthen Europe with our contribution to its sound and secure future.