Two live shows in Wroclaw
Aleksandra Kurzak's repertoire is as varied as possible so that every one finds a little something to enjoy in it. While her National Music Forum performance features selected lieder for piano and voice by Frederic Chopin (with the outstanding Janusz Olejniczak at the piano), the Centennial Hall show focuses more on popular opera arias, musical repertoire as well as songs by Krzysztof Cugowski which were specially arranged for symphonic orchestra.
Superstar from Wroclaw
The beginnings of Aleksandra Kurzak's career are difficult to pin down, be it already the prenatal period as her mother, Jolanta Żmurko, herself a star performer at the Wroclaw Opera House, was expecting to have a baby, or a few years later as several-year-old Aleksandra was trying to imitate her mother's coloratura before conductor Stefan Rachoń. It is also possible that her success story began in Secondary School as Aleksandra, who focused on violin at the time, discovered her talent as a singer when she took part in the Karolek music competition. And she later decided to pursue her career in opera. Aleksandra Kurzak is now performing at the world's most prominent scenes, New York's Metropolitan Opera, Milan's La Scala or her beloved London's Royal Opera House Covent Garden, where her popularity verges on worship and where she also met Robert Alagna, her partner and a celebrated tenor himself. As their little daughter Malena was born last year, Aleksandra Kurzak is now dividing her time between family life and touring the world.
Even though her professional career began in Wroclaw (she spent one season singing for the Wroclaw Opera House), she has not been performing in the city for a while. She would come in recent years only rarely: either as Susanna in Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro (just one evening) or as a soloist in a performance during the Wratislavia Cantans Festival. However, she is coming three times this year. Her first show at the National Music Forum on 26 September brings a Chopin lieder recital, which she successfully released as a CD several years ago. The performance starts at 6 pm at the Forum's Main Hall.
Tickets range from 10 to 50 PLN and are available at the Forum's cash desks or online.
The events is also a great opportunity for Aleksandra Kurzak to promote Si, Amore, her first book and a series of interviews with critic Aleksander Laskowski. Si, Amore, the first book about Aleksandra Kurzak is an absolute must.
Fire and Water or Two Elements at the Centennial Hall
This is hardly the end. A day later, on 27 September, the singer is taking the stage at the Centennial Hall with a special show called Two Elements. Krzysztof Cugowski, the legendary Budka Suflera singer, features as fire while Aleksandra Kurzak adds a little water to the flames. The programme offers solo performances, duets with the accompaniment of the Sudeten Philharmonic Orchestra from Wałbrzych (conducted by Jerzy Kosek), "Lutnia Lubelska" Lublin Philharmonic Choir and "Dudaryk" Lviv Male Academic Choir. The show starts at 7 pm. Tickets range from 80 to 249 PLN. They are available at Empik, Media Markt and Saturn as well as online at ticketpro.pl and biletin.pl.
