Our musicians

The Orchestra of the Capital Royal City of Krakow Sinfonietta Cracovia is one of the leading chamber ensembles in Poland. The character of the Orchestra is defined by the performance versatility, precision and flexibility which is successfully transferred to a symphonic ensemble. Sinfonietta Cracovia is praised for its performances of contemporary music in its various forms (from avant-garde to film music). In search for new forms, it becomes involved in numerous projects promoting new music and works of Polish composers. It is famous for its interpretations of the works of Krzysztof Penderecki, the mentor and patron of many of the Orchestra’s projects.

Sinfonietta Cracovia as a municipal cultural institution daily participates in creating the cultural offer for Krakow residents and visitors from outside the city. One of the main threads of its activities is promoting Krakow and Polish music abroad. The Orchestra regularly participates in international concert tours and festivals. It collaborates on international phonographic projects and recordings for film and television, including Netflix.

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The origins of Sinfonietta Cracovia date back to the formation of the ensemble of Young Krakow Chamber Musicians that in 1994, thanks to the support of Elżbieta and Krzysztof Penderecki, was granted the status of a municipal orchestra and a name under which it operates to this day. For 20 years the ensemble was directed by violinist, violist and teacher Robert Kabara, and in 2014 the bassist of the Vienna Philharmonic and cultural life animator Jurek Dybał took over. Since the 2021/2022 season, Sinfonietta Cracovia is headed by the duo: Agata Grabowiecka (cultural manager) and Katarzyna Tomala-Jedynak (conductor). 

In the course of the 30 years of its activity, Sinfonietta Cracovia completed numerous tournées in Europe, China and the US where it had the opportunity to perform the music of Philip Glass in New York, in the presence of the composer himself. The map of international performances of the Orchestra includes leading concert halls in Europe: Berlin Philharmonic, Berlin Konzerthaus, Theatre Mogador in Paris, Saint Petersburg Conservatory and Mariinsky Theatre, Auditorio Nacional in Madrid, Casa da Música in Porto, Italian theatres in Brescia, Naples and Parma, Teatro Leal San Cristóbal de La Laguna on Tenerife, National Philharmonic in Warsaw, Zurich Tonnhalle, Wiener Musikverein and Wiener Konzerthaus.

The ensemble truly spread its wings in the period of collaborations with eminent artistic figures: Krzysztof Penderecki, Christoph Echenbach, Antoni Wit, Misha Maiski, Maksim Wiengierow, Lorin Maazel and Marc Minkowski. The soloists, conductors and composers who worked with the orchestra also include Daniel Stabrawa, Kaja Danczowska, Jerzy Maksymiuk, Jan Lisiecki, Rudolf Buchbinder, Tabea Zimmermann, Max Richter, Ben Frost, Patrick Doyle, Agata Zubel and Anu Tali. John Axelrod and Rafael Payare were guest conductors of the Orchestra. Since 2024, Dirk Brossé is the honorary conductor. 

Sinfonietta Cracovia documented its artistic versatility with phonographic projects and recordings for Telewizja Polska, TV ARTE, BBC Classical Music Television, German Redio, Radio Nacional de España, Polskie Radia and Netflix. Orchestra musicians collaborated with Krystian Zimmerman on the Polish Festival orchestra project culminating in the album published by Deutsche Grammophone. The discography of Sinfonietta Cracovia also features recordings for such labels as Arion (France), Channel Classic (Netherlands), Sonny Classical and Polish CD Accord and DUX.