Maciej Zieliński,
composer. Born on 29 March 1971 in Warsaw, he graduated in from the Academy of Music (now – the Fryderyk Chopin University of Music) in Warsaw in 1996 with honours, having studied composing with Marian Borkowski. In 1999 he completed a postgraduate programme at the Royal Academy of Music in London, having studied composition with Paul Patterson. In 1993-97 he participated in the Summer Courses for Young Composers held by the Polish Society for Contemporary Music, as well as in the 1st Young Composers Meeting in Apeldoorn, the Netherlands (1995), which was a chance for him to learn from Louis Andriessen, Osvaldas Balakauskas, Martin Bresnick, Michael Finnissy, Peter Michael Hammel, Zygmunt Krauze, Hanna Kulenty, Claude Lefebvre, Daryl Runswick, Witold Szalonek, Joji Yuasa.
His pieces have been performed at many festivals, such as the Encounters of Young Composers “Droga” in Gdańsk (1994), Warsaw Autumn (1994, 1995, 1998, 2004), Forum of Young Composers in Kraków (1994), Festival of Electronic Music in Prague (1995), Synthesizer-Musik-Festival in Braunschweig (1995), Ryszard Bukowski Festival in Wrocław (1995, 1996), International Festival of Choral Art "Jihlava ’96" in the Czech Republic (1996), Musica Polonica Nova in Wrocław (1996), International Contemporary Music Festival "Two Days and Two Nights in Odessa" (1996), European Youth Music Festival Copenhagen ’96 in Denmark (1996), Lutosławski Forum in Warsaw (1996, 1998), Gaude Mater in Częstochowa (1997), Musica del Novocento in Rome (1998), Park Lane Festival in London (1999), 200 Years of Russian Music in London (1999), Commemorative Concert for Witold Lutosławski in London (1999), Audio Art in Warsaw (1999), ISCM World Music Days in Romania (1999), Warsaw Music Encounters (1999, 2000, 2004, 2005).
His works have been recorded and released by Dux, Acte Préalable and Polskie Nagrania, and have been aired by many European radio stations. The album featuring his String Quartet No. 1 (1994) performed by the DAFÔ Quartet, released by PWM/DUX, won the 2002 Fryderyk Award. September 2011 saw the release of a monograph album, entitled Across the Millenniums, featuring his classical music pieces. In 2014 his album V Symphony was nominated for the Fryderyk Award as the Album of the Year.
Maciej Zieliński is a laureate of the Critics’ Award at the Second Meeting of Young Composers in Kraków (2nd Prize, 1994), The Young Composers’ Musica Sacra Contest (2nd Prize, 1995), the Syhtesizer-Musik-Festival (2nd Prize, 1995), International Composer Contest Jihlava 96 (3rd Prize, 1996), the 1997 Polish National Composers’ Competition in Gdańsk (3rd Prize), the 1999 Josiah Parker Composition Prize in London, the 1999 Alan Bush Composition Prize in London, and the Grand Prix of a multimedia competition of the Polish Society for Contemporary Music (1999).
He received a scholarship from the Polish Ministry of Culture and Art (1995) and the British Council Fellowship Award (1998). In April 2000 his piece Lutosławski in memoriam for oboe and piano (1998-99) was selected by the Associated Board of Royal Schools of Music for their syllabus in English schools until 2006.He started composing songs in 1990. At that time he worked as a composer, arranger, and keyboard player with the Silver Points pop rock band. He has written a number of songs for TV productions (e.g. the Polish edition of Sesame Street) and arrangements. His best know song, Kto wie? [Who Knows?] by De Su topped hit lists two years in a row (2000, 2001), becoming one of Poland's most frequently aired Christmas songs.
Maciej Zielinski is also a popular composer of film music, theatre music, pop music, and scores to TV ads, TV and radio programmes. He deputed as composer of theatre music at the age of 18 in K. Vonnegut's Hart ducha directed by Jakub Duszyński, which won a range of prizes (including for music) at the Warsaw Theatre Review. Then he wrote a score to his first full-length film – Natalia Korynska-Gruz's documentary Powrót Arystokratów (1992). After that, he collaborated with Teatr Telewizji (TVP's television play series), the Akson film studio, and well-known composers of film music: Stanisław Syrewicz, Krzesimir Dębski and Jan A.P. Kaczmarek. His first feature film was Gry uliczne directed by Krzysztof Krauze (1995) – around 50 minutes of a very diverse music, ranging from rock music, an acid jazz love theme, techno, to pieces for orchestra and string quartet. From then on, Mr Zieliński wrote tens of soundtracks. Among the films he wrote music to are: Nigdy w życiu! (2004), Tylko mnie kochaj (2006), Dlaczego nie! (2007), To nie tak jak myślisz kotku (2008), Nie kłam kochanie (2008), Jeszcze raz (2008), Projekt dziecko (2009), Och Karol 2 (2011), and Fotograf (2014). He wrote the soundtracks for such TV series as Kryminalni (2004-2008), Dublerzy (2006), Miś Fantazy (2006-2007), Barwy szczęścia (2007-2014), Agentki (2008), and Na sygnale (2014).
Maciej Zieliński has written music for hundreds of ads, firms and brands, such as Algida, Citroen, Coca-Cola, Commercial Union, Danone, Era GSM, Fanta, Finea, Idea, Jacobs, Nestle, PeKaO S.A., Philips, Pizza Hut, Procter&Gamble, Raiffeisen Bank. Many of his productions have been broadcast in Europe, and even in Asia. His biggest successes in advertising have been the song Najmilsza chwila poranka; the corporate theme of the telecommunication services provider ERA GSM and a few campaigns for the company (1997-99); the corporate theme of Raiffeisen Bank (2002-); the awards: Tytan '93 (Jacobs Coffee), Tytan '96 (Coca-Cola "Christmas Charity"), and Kreatura 2000 for the best music (Procter&Gamble "Ciepło-Zimno").
Maciej Zieliński was a moderator of the International Composition Courses in Radziejowice (2000). He sat on the jury of the ISCM World Music Days Festival (2003 and 2004), the Tadeusz Baird Competition for Young Composers and the Musica Sacra Competition. He is a member of the Polish Composers’ Union (acting as its vice president 2013-2015, and a Board Member, since 2015), the Polish Society for Contemporary Music, Association of Polish Artists and Performers SAWP and ZAiKS (collective rights management organisation). From 2002 to 2007 he was vice president of the Polish Society for Contemporary Music. Since 2004 he has been a member of the Polish Composers’ Union (member of the Board of the Warsaw division), and since 2005 – member of ZAIKS revision commission.
In the 2011/2012 season he was the composer-in-residence at the Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra as part of the Composer-in-Residence Programme of the Institute of Music and Dance in Warsaw. In February 2012 he was nominated for the Fryderyk Award as The Composer of the Year.
Updated: September 2015 (iz)
The composer's website: www.MaciejZielinski.pl
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