From 28 August to 2 September, the 8th Festival of Romantic
Compositions: Elsner and His Successors will take place at the Royal Łazienki Museum in Warsaw.
The opening concert will feature Krzysztof Michalski, the Polish cellist who won a prize at this year's Queen Elisabeth International Music Competition in Belgium. On the following day, audiences will hear a piano recital by Yehuda Prokopowicz, presenting works by Maria Szymanowska, Frédéric Chopin, Franz Liszt, and Sergei Prokofiev. On 30 August, the chamber duo Karomiko—violinist Karolina Mikołajczyk and accordionist Iwo Jedynecki—will perform original arrangements of works by Józef Elsner, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Maria Szymanowska, Karol Szymanowski, and other composers, showcasing the distinctive combination of violin and accordion. Pianist Piotr Pawlak will appear on 31 August with a programme featuring works by Johann Sebastian Bach, Frédéric Chopin's Piano Sonata in B-flat minor, Op. 35, and Ignacy Krzyżanowski's Piano Sonata in B-flat minor, Op. 45, a work inspired by Chopin's masterpiece and composed by one of his students. The chamber concert on
1 September will bring together an outstanding trio of musicians:
Aleksandra Kuls (violin), Antoni Wrona (cello), and Krzysztof Książek (piano). They will perform piano trios by Ignacy Dobrzyński and Clara Schumann. The festival will conclude with a recital by Adam Golka, entitled "Stories at the Piano." The programme will include ballades by Robert Schumann, Clara Schumann, Johannes Brahms, Juliusz Zarębski, Frederic Rzewski, and Frédéric Chopin.
The Festival of Romantic Compositions is organized by the Ludwig van Beethoven Association in cooperation with the Royal Łazienki Museum in Warsaw. Concerts will take place at the Royal Theatre and the Palace on the Isle. The festival poster was designed by Patrycja Longawa.
Elsner and his Successors
8th Festival of Romantic-Era Compositions
Warsaw, 28 August – 2 September 2026
Friday, 28 August, 6:30 pm
Royal Theatre, Royal Łazienki Museum
Cello Recital
Fryderyk Chopin
Introduction and Polonaise brillante in C major, Op. 3
Nadia Boulanger
3 Pieces
Robert Schumann
Five Pieces in Folk Style, Op. 102
César Franck
Violin Sonata in A major (arr. J. Delsart)
Krzysztof Michalski – cello
Sarah Zajtmann – piano
Saturday, 29 August, 6:30 pm
Royal Theatre, Royal Łazienki Museum
Piano Recital
Maria Szymanowska
Vingt exercices et préludes – selection
Fryderyk Chopin
Prelude in E-flat major, Op. 28 No. 19
Prelude in B-flat major, Op. 28 No. 21
Mazurka in B-flat major, Op. 17 No. 1
Mazurka ii E minor, Op. 17 No. 2
Mazurka in D major, Op. 33 No, 3
Mazurka in A minor, Op. 59 No. 1
Mazurka in A minor, Op. 17 No. 4
Ballade in F minor, Op. 52
Ferenc Liszt
Études d'exécution transcendante, S. 139 – selection
Fryderyk Chopin
Scherzo in C-sharp minor, Op. 39
Yehuda Prokopowicz – piano
Sunday, 30 August, 6:30 pm
Palace on the Isle, Royal Łazienki Museum
Chamber Music Concert
Józef Elsner
Sonata in D major, Op. 10 No. 1
Fryderyk Chopin
Nocturne in E-flat major, Op. 9 No. 2
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Violin Sonata in G major, K. 301
Karol Szymanowski
Roxana's Song from King Roger
Szymon Laks
Polish Suite
Maria Szymanowska
Divertissemente in B-flat major
Karolina Mikołajczyk – violin
Iwo Jedynecki – accordion
Monday, 31 August, 6:30 pm
Palace on the Isle, Royal Łazienki Museum
Piano Recital
Johann Sebastian Bach
Prelude and Fugue in B-flat minor, BWV 891
Fryderyk Chopin
Sonata in B-flat minor, Op. 35
Ignacy Krzyżanowski
Sonata in B-flat minor, Op. 45
Piotr Pawlak – piano
Tuesday, 1 September, 6:30 pm
Palace on the Isle, Royal Łazienki Museum
Chamber Music Concert
Ignacy Feliks Dobrzyński
Piano Trio in A minor, Op. 17
Clara Schumann
Piano Trio in G minor, Op. 17
Aleksandra Kuls – violin
Antoni Wrona – cello
Krzysztof Książek – piano
Wednesday, 2 September, 6:30 pm
Palace on the Isle, Royal Łazienki Museum
Piano Recital
“Piano Tales”
Robert Schumann
Fair Hedwig, Op. 106
Clara Schumann
Ballade in D minor, Op. 6 No. 4
Johannes Brahms
4 Ballades, Op. 10
Juliusz Zarębski
Ballade in G minor, Op. 18
Frederic Rzewski
North American Ballad No. 3 “Winnsboro Cotton Mill Blues”
Fryderyk Chopin
Ballade in F major, Op. 38
Ballade in A-flat major, Op. 47
Adam Golka – piano
