prof. dr hab. Marek Toporowski – harpsichord
Among his activities Marek Toporowski is a musician who is active in very many, often extremely diverse, spheres of the musical universe. He is a distinguished soloist of the harpsichord and organ and a chamber musician and conductor. He also performs on the clavichord and historic pianos.
Marek graduated from the Academy of Music in Warsaw (organ – Józef Serafin and harpsichord – Leszek Kędracki). Next he furthered his studies in France (Strasbourg), Germany (Saarbrücken), and Holland (Amsterdam) under the direction of Aline Zylberajch and Bob van Asperen (harpsichord) and Daniel Roth (organ). He was awarded First Prize of the Conservatory in Strasbourg for organ and harpsichord and the Concert Diploma of the Musikhochschule des Saarlandes for organ.
He also owes much to his encounters with the excellent pianist, Kajetan Mochtak.
He was awarded 1st prize in the 1st Wanda Landowska National Harpsichord Competition in Kraków.
In 1991 he founded Concerto Polacco, the group specialising in historical performance. In Warsaw he initiated a regular cycle of Oratorio concerts performed in accordance with historical practice. Many Early Polish musical works have received their first performances and recordings under his direction (the opera „Agatka” by J.D. Holland, the oratorio „Christiani poenitentes ad sepulchrum Domini” by J.T. Żebrowski , works by Wronowicz, Cichoszewski and many more)
He is the creator of the Silesian Centre for the Preservation of Keyboard Instruments – FORTEPIANARIUM.
For 20 years he has been the co-organiser of the summer course for the Interpretation of Organ Music in Koszalin. He performs in Poland and abroad and has made very many CD recordings in Poland, Germany and France.