American swing | New Year’s Concert

The final night of the year and the first night of the new one deserve exceptional music. Music that brings a smile from the very first bars, stirs memories, and makes the world feel just a little more beautiful. This year’s New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Concerts at the Philharmonic in Szczecin will take us back to the golden age of American swing – a world of great orchestras, legendary voices, and melodies that have accompanied the most important moments of our lives for almost a century.

Under the baton of Kuba Wnuk, the Szczecin Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra, together with Natalia Muianga and Maciej Pawlak, will offer an evening filled with some of the most famous standards of the American songbook in new arrangements for symphony orchestra. This is a repertoire that has delighted successive generations of listeners for almost a century, with an appeal extending far beyond the world of jazz.

Swing was born in the United States in the 1930s and quickly became the soundtrack of its era. It filled dance halls, clubs, and radio broadcasts, while its distinctive pulse made audiences want to catch the rhythm and simply let the music carry them away. Over time, many of these songs became timeless standards, performed by the greatest stars of the American stage – from Frank Sinatra and Ella Fitzgerald to Nat King Cole.

Although these songs were written decades ago, they continue to enchant audiences with their lightness, elegance, and exceptional craftsmanship. They tell of love that is present day and night, of dreams capable of carrying us all the way to the Moon, and of the hope that somewhere over the rainbow a better world awaits. It is this universality that allows them to accompany life’s most important moments, including the farewell to one year and the beginning of another.

Symphonic arrangements offer a fresh perspective on this beloved repertoire. The rich sound of the orchestra brings out its wealth of harmonies and colours while preserving the characteristic lightness of swing. Familiar melodies take on a new brilliance, and the encounter between a symphony orchestra and the great American standards creates an evening filled with elegance and festive atmosphere.

For many years, the New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Concerts have been among the most popular events in our Philharmonic’s artistic season. They offer a special opportunity to bid farewell to the year that is ending and welcome the new one in the best possible company – with music that has brought smiles, stirred memories, and reminded generations of listeners that some things never grow old.