OMN concerts at Beijing Modern
The New Music Orchestra (Orkiestra Muzyki Nowej, OMN) performed at the prestigious Beijing Modern Music Festival in May. OMN was founded in 1996 from among the students of the Karol Szymanowski Music Academy in Katowice, on the initiative of the composer Aleksander Lason. Its principal goal is the promotion of new music and the classical works of the 20th-century repertoire. The orchestra is now made up of graduates and members of staff of the Music Academy in Katowice. In Beijing the Orchestra performed under the leadership of the conductor Szymon Bywalec.
The concert was held o 23rd May in the Concert Hall of the Central Conservatory of Music. The artists performed works of George Crumb, Tristan Murail as well as contemporary Chinese composers, Jia Daqun and Yu Pengfei. The programme also included pieces composed by outstanding Polish artists, Jakub Tomasz Opalka and Marcin Rupocinski especially for this occasion.
On the next day, Beijing Modern hosted the concert of the quintet Lason Ensemble - Mikolov City Chamber Players, made up of the OMN members. The programme of their performance consisted of the works of Polish composers: Karol Szymanowski, Grazyna Bacewicz and Aleksander Lason.
