Orkiestra Muzyki Nowej
The New Music Orchestra (Orkiestra Muzyki Nowej, OMN), founded by Professor Aleksander Lasoń, has been active for almost thirty years, specializing in the performance of contemporary music. Initially a student group of enthusiasts, since 2006 under the direction of Szymon Bywalec it has developed into a professional ensemble capable of performing even the most demanding scores. The orchestra sees its mission as exploring the field of contemporary music in search of works that are significant for musical culture and worthy of preparation and public presentation.
OMN constantly broadens its skills, working on pieces under the guidance of outstanding Polish and international composers (Lachenmann, Andre, Steen-Andersen, Andriessen, Saariaho, Nørgård, Sørensen), inviting renowned soloists (Jakob Kullberg, Ashot Sarkissjan, Marco Blaauw, Michelle Marelli) and conductors specializing in new music (Daniel Kawka, François-Xavier Roth, Jean Deroyer, Christopher Austin, Steven Loy, Ivan Buffa, Wojciech Michniewski). It often collaborates with musicians from leading European new music ensembles as well as sound engineers from IRCAM, Experimentalstudio des SWR and Tempo Reale.
The orchestra has premiered nearly 300 works worldwide and presented many of the most important contemporary compositions for the first time in Poland. Each season, it commissions several new pieces and organizes both their premieres and subsequent performances in other centers. OMN regularly appears at the most important festivals and in key music centers across Europe (Aarhus, Bratislava, Prague, Oslo, Copenhagen, Vienna, Paris, Mons, Freiburg, Tallinn).
Its discography includes several dozen recordings, many released on CD by Anaklasis, Aurora, Decca, Dacapo Records, Dux, CD-Accord, PWM and under the ZKP label. These recordings have received excellent reviews in leading music magazines in Italy, France, Denmark, the United Kingdom and the USA, distinctions at the International Rostrum of Composers in Paris and Amsterdam, as well as international awards such as the Danish Radio Award, Pizzicato Supersonic Award, Carl Prisen, and nominations for ICMA, Fryderyk Awards and Classical:NEXT – Innovation.
OMN is the initiator and organizer of many artistic events: festivals, concert and educational cycles, and interdisciplinary projects with dancers, soloists and vocalists, often realized outside traditional concert halls with the use of multimedia and new technologies. It also participates in international artistic and educational projects, collaborating with leading European new music ensembles and institutions promoting contemporary music.
As an ambassador of Polish culture, OMN has carried out projects with foreign partners presenting the achievements of the Polish school of composition in major European music centers. It has performed Polish works in the European Capitals of Culture (Tallinn, Wrocław, Mons) and promoted Polish music in Aarhus, Vienna, Prague, Oslo, Copenhagen, Beijing, Paris, Freiburg and Bratislava.
Since 2014, at the seat of the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra in Katowice, OMN has been running a highly acclaimed concert series, presenting several contemporary music programs each season.
Photo: The New Music Orchestra, by Bartek Barczyk
OMN constantly broadens its skills, working on pieces under the guidance of outstanding Polish and international composers (Lachenmann, Andre, Steen-Andersen, Andriessen, Saariaho, Nørgård, Sørensen), inviting renowned soloists (Jakob Kullberg, Ashot Sarkissjan, Marco Blaauw, Michelle Marelli) and conductors specializing in new music (Daniel Kawka, François-Xavier Roth, Jean Deroyer, Christopher Austin, Steven Loy, Ivan Buffa, Wojciech Michniewski). It often collaborates with musicians from leading European new music ensembles as well as sound engineers from IRCAM, Experimentalstudio des SWR and Tempo Reale.
The orchestra has premiered nearly 300 works worldwide and presented many of the most important contemporary compositions for the first time in Poland. Each season, it commissions several new pieces and organizes both their premieres and subsequent performances in other centers. OMN regularly appears at the most important festivals and in key music centers across Europe (Aarhus, Bratislava, Prague, Oslo, Copenhagen, Vienna, Paris, Mons, Freiburg, Tallinn).
Its discography includes several dozen recordings, many released on CD by Anaklasis, Aurora, Decca, Dacapo Records, Dux, CD-Accord, PWM and under the ZKP label. These recordings have received excellent reviews in leading music magazines in Italy, France, Denmark, the United Kingdom and the USA, distinctions at the International Rostrum of Composers in Paris and Amsterdam, as well as international awards such as the Danish Radio Award, Pizzicato Supersonic Award, Carl Prisen, and nominations for ICMA, Fryderyk Awards and Classical:NEXT – Innovation.
OMN is the initiator and organizer of many artistic events: festivals, concert and educational cycles, and interdisciplinary projects with dancers, soloists and vocalists, often realized outside traditional concert halls with the use of multimedia and new technologies. It also participates in international artistic and educational projects, collaborating with leading European new music ensembles and institutions promoting contemporary music.
As an ambassador of Polish culture, OMN has carried out projects with foreign partners presenting the achievements of the Polish school of composition in major European music centers. It has performed Polish works in the European Capitals of Culture (Tallinn, Wrocław, Mons) and promoted Polish music in Aarhus, Vienna, Prague, Oslo, Copenhagen, Beijing, Paris, Freiburg and Bratislava.
Since 2014, at the seat of the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra in Katowice, OMN has been running a highly acclaimed concert series, presenting several contemporary music programs each season.
Photo: The New Music Orchestra, by Bartek Barczyk
