Jan Jarczyk

A pianist. He was born in Krakow, and in his home town he finished Music High School in Maria Szylska-Kaszycka's piano class. He also studied composition at the State Academy of Music in Krakow (prof. Tadeusz Machl and Lucjan Kaszycki), trombone and arranging / composition at the Berklee College in Boston.

In Poland he worked with Zbigniew Seifert, Jazz Studio of Polish Radio conducted by Jan Ptaszyn Wroblewski, as well as Tomasz Stanko, Zbigniew Namyslowski, Włodzimierz Nahorny, Janusz Muniak and the entire galaxy of Polish jazz musicians. In the 70s he worked in Warsaw as a studio musician, and composed music for theater, radio and television. He writes and arranges music for theater, chamber ensembles, orchestra and solo instruments.

Since 1977, he lives abroad. In Boston between 1980 and 1985 he taught arrangement and harmony at Berklee College, and from 1985 he has worked as a professor of composition and piano in Montreal. Currently he is a professor at McGill University. He performs as a soloist and as a member of ensembles (trio, quartet, quintet), playing his compositions with the best musicians in the U.S., Canada and Poland. The artist has recorded and performed in Poland, Germany, Czech Republic, Hungary, Austria, France, Benelux, Great Britain, Scandinavia, the United States, Japan, Spain, Kuwait and Canada.

Jan Jarczyk has won numerous awards at international festivals, both as performer and composer. He was rewarded on Jazz nad Odrą (1968, 1969), improvisation competitions in Gdansk (1967-1969), he won the Grand Prix at the International Jazz Improvisation Competition in Lyon (1974), was awarded the Honorary Order of City Chodzież for merit in Culture (1999), received nomination for Album of the Year (Felix Awards) in Montreal (1996) for the album Things to look for, and first prize for composition in the Jazz Festival in Montreal (2001).