We already know the title of the new composition of Leszek Możdżer, a world famous jazz musician and composer who – after The Book of Psalms (2001) and Missa Gratiatoria (2008) – again reached for a religious text. The old christian Te Deum laudamus has already inspired a lot of different composers: Marc-Antoine Charpentiera, Anton Bruckner, Krzysztof Penderecki are only a few of them.

Surely the Grand Opening of the beautiful gothic St. John’s church is a great occasion to share this composition with a wider audience. How will composed for soprano and string orchestra, performed by the Polish Chamber Philharmonic Orchestra from Sopot, conducted by Wojciech Rajski, Te Deum sound in the renovated interior of the church? This we will get to know during the last evening organised in the cycle of events prepared for the Grand Opening of the church.

START: 7.00 pm
TICKETS: 50 zł (can be purchased at the BSCC Secretariat, notice that there is no possiblity to make a ticket reservation)

ABOUT LESZEK MOŻDZER
An outstanding pianist, composer and producer, Leszek Możdżer is widely considered to be the greatest revelation of the Polish jazz of the last decade. Born in 1971, he has been playing the piano since the age of five. He has covered every stage of the formal education until graduating from the Gdańsk Academy of Music named after Stanisław Moniuszko in 1996. He became interested in jazz relatively late - in the last grade - when he was 18. He was introduced into jazz in the band of Emil Kowalski, a clarinet player, but his proper start took place at the first rehearsal with a band called Miłość (Love) back in 1991. One year later, he received an individual award at the International Jazz Competition Jazz Juniors '92 held in Kraków. He was also a member of the Zbigniew Namysłowski Quartet. In the poll organized among Jazz Forum readers Możdżer was voted the Most Promising Musician of the year 1993 and 1994, the Best Jazz Pianist – each year since 1994 till present as well as the Musician of the Year 1995 and 1996.
Since then the young pianist has collected numerous music awards, including:

• Krzysztof Komeda prize awarded in 1992 by the Foundation of Polish Culture
• 1st prize at the International Jazz Improvisation Competition in Katowice in 1994
• Mateusz Święcicki Prize awarded by 3rd Channel of the Polish National Radio
• Grand Prix Melomani – the Artist of the Year 1997 awarded by Łódź Music Lovers’ Society
• Fryderyk 1998 – the Jazz Musician of the Year 1998
• Prize of the Mayor of the City of Gdansk for outstanding artistic achievement 2004
• Paszport Polityki, awarded by the Polish magazine Polityka - 2004
• Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs Prize for the Polish Culture Promotion abroad – 2007
• Readers of Jazz Forum prize: Pianist of the Year – from 1994 till 2008
• Prize of the President of the City of Gdansk for the artistic achievements Neptuny 2009
• Sztorm Roku Prize of Gazeta Wyborcza Trójmiasto for the best event in 2010 – Możdżer +
• Splendor Gedanensis – The City of Gdańsk in Music category, 2011
• MocArty 2010 RMF Classic – The Man of The Year 2010, 2011
• Fryderyk 2011 prize for Kaczmarek by Możdżer
• Fryderyk 2011 prize for Kaczmarek by Możdżer - Album of the year category - Original Soundtrack
• Grand Prix Jazz Melomani 2010, Artist of the Year 2010

On many occasions Możdżer recorded film music with Zbigniew Preisner he also regularly works with Jan Kaczmarek, polish composer working in LA, while recording music score (for 20th Century Fox and Mira Max). He has been invited to perform jointly with the celebrities of Polish jazz, such as Tomasz Stańko, Janusz Muniak, Michał Urbaniak, Anna Maria Jopek, Adam Pierończyk and Piotr Wojtasik; and has also worked with acclaimed international musicians, including Arthur Blythe, Buster Williams, Billy Harper, Joe Lovano, Pat Metheny and Archie Shepp.

His theatrical projects are also remarkable:

• Hair - love, rock musical - Musical Theatre in Gdynia
• Tango with Lady M. - Polish Theatre of Dance in Poznań
• A Midsummer Night's Dream - Musical Theatre in Gdynia in October 2001
• Psychosis Sarah Kane, directed by Grzegorz Jarzyna, Duesseldorfer Schauspielhouse
• Rewizor M. Gogol, directed by Andrzej Domalik, Teatr Dramatyczny, Warsaw, 2002
• Mandarynki i Pomarańcze Julian Tuwim, directed by Wojciech Kościelniak, Capitol - Music Theatre, Wrocław 2003
• Wojciech Kościelniak, Capitol - Music Theatre, Wrocław 2003
• Śluby Panieńskie by Aleksander Fredro, directed by Jan Englert, National Theatre, Warsaw 2007
• Operetka by Witold Gombrowicz, dir. Michał Zadara, Capitol - Music Theatre, Wrocław 2007

Up to date, Leszek Możdżer has recorded over 100 albums, including many released under his own name:

• Chopin - impressions in 1994
• Talk to Jesus in 1996 (considered to be the Album of the Year 1996 according to a survey by Jazz Forum)
• Facing the Wind 1996 in a duo with an American double bass player David Friesen
• Live in Sofia in 1997 with Adam Pierończyk (voted the Album of the Year 1998 by the readers of Jazz Forum)
• Chopin Demain - Impressions in 1999
• Live in Ukraine in 2003
• Makowicz vs Możdżer - At The Carnegie Hall NYC, EMI 2004
• PIANO , Arms Records 2004
• The Time Możdżer, Danielsson, Fresco - Outside Music 2005 ( Double Platinium Award in two months after album’s premiere)
• Between Us And The Light Możdżer, Danielsson, Fresco - Outside Music 2006
• (Double Platinium Award in two weeks after album’s premiere)
• Pasodoble - Lars Danielsson & Leszek Możdżer, ACT 2007
• LIVE CD&DVD Możdżer, Danielsson, Fresco - Outside Music 2007
• FIREBIRD VII Phil Manzanera, Le
• FIREBIRD VII Phil Manzanera, Leszek Możdżer, Charles Hayward, Yaron Stavi, Expression Records, 2008
• Missa gratiatoria – Leszek Możdżer with Gdańsk University Choir, 2008
• Tarantella - Lars Danielsson, Leszek Możdżer, Mathias Eick, John Parricelli, Eric Harland, ACT 2009
• Kaczmarek by Możdżer, Universal 2010
• Komeda, ACT 2011

Improvisations on the themes by Fryderyk Chopin have further strengthened his position of the artist and ranked him among the most outstanding individualities and virtuosos of the European jazz.

Together with Andrzej Bauer and m.bunio.s, Leszek Możdżer is working on a project called Lutosphere, based on Witold Lutosławski pieces. However presented to the audience, the project is still waiting for being released.
On 21st of August 2010 Leszek Możdżer performed on three stages in a project called Możdżer + together with: Naná Vasconcelos, Lars Danielsson, Zohar Fresco, John Scofield, Steve Swallow and Bill Stewart; Marcus Miller together with Alex Han and Louis Cato, Eddie Daniels and Charles Fox along with Polish musicians Motion Trio, Gaba Kulka and the Aukso Chamber Orchestra led by Marek Moś.

Leszek Możdżer has toured all European countries, as well as the USA, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzia, Brazil, Canada, South Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Japan, Urugway and in Chile for the audience of almost 15 000 people.

I consider him to be the greatest talent among Polish jazz pianists of recent years", "Personally, I think Leszek is the best Polish pianist. - Zbigniew Preisner

Leszek Możdżer is a revelation we have not had for years. The leader has arrived on the stage. And, whether we like it or not, he is already becoming the most distinguished musician of the Polish jazz - Jan Ptaszyn WrÓblewski

A jazz pianist with exceptional gift for improvisation as well as a great individual style. Music of Leszek Możdżer is an artistic phenomenon not to be missed - Robert Holzmann

Leszek Możdżer, one of the greatest piano virtuosos, could easily be dubbed the Star of the East - Frankfurter Allgemeine (Germany).

(biography after Możdżer's website)