The Department of Song and Vocal Chamber Music, established within the Institute of Vocal Studies, has been in existence since 2019. Originally founded in 2009 as the Section of Song and Vocal Chamber Music, it was part of the Department of Vocal and Acting Studies at the I.J. Paderewski Academy of Music in Poznań. Since its establishment until the end of the 2015/2016 academic year, the Department was headed by prof. dr hab. Izabela Górska-Krasiel. In the 2016/2017 academic year, the function was assumed by prof. dr hab. Wojciech Maciejowski. Currently, the head of the Department of Song and Vocal Chamber Music is prof. dr hab. Laura Kluwak-Sobolewska.

In accordance with the principles behind its establishment, in the Institute’s structure the Department provides substantive supervision of the curricula of the following subjects: working with accompanist, vocal repertoire, vocal ensembles, piano for non-majors, Russian vocal literature, German vocal literature and French vocal literature.

The purpose of establishing the Department was to provide students with a creative space for the interaction of singer and pianist, which is one of the most important forms of collaboration within the Institute of Vocal Studies, both in the sphere of student training and in the broader artistic sense. Vocal chamber music, along with the art of opera, is one of the cornerstones of the teaching process at the Institute of Vocal Studies. The creative interaction between the instructor who teaches the major (solo singing) and the pianist who accompanies and educates the student in the classes offered by the Department shapes the technique and artistic personality of the singer.

The art of interpreting artistic song, one of the most sublime forms of chamber music, is a space where both singer and pianist creatively convey a message of music coexisting with poetry. The Department of Song and Vocal Chamber Music is therefore a place for the development of the staff formed by pianists employed at the Institute of Vocal Studies.

The programmatic scope of the tasks undertaken within the framework of the Department’s activities focuses on providing substantive support to pianists – employees of the Institute who are not part of the vocal teaching staff, but share responsibility for the process of the students’ vocal development. This includes the organization of vocal chamber music courses at the Academy, conducted by artists specializing in this field, to enable pianists to expand their skills and gain experience, as well as coordinating collaboration between pianists and vocalists in the implementation of artistic projects. Masterclasses and workshops organized by the Department focus on key issues, both in student training and those necessary for the specialized additional training of pianists in vocal couching: phonetics of foreign languages, stylistics of vocal repertoire of different eras and cultural areas, and interpretive issues. This provides the opportunity to move freely within the framework of proper aesthetics and artistic expression.

The Department undertakes activities in cooperation with the Department of Chamber Music and the Department of Piano Chamber Music (operating within the Institute of Instrumental Music and the Institute of Luthiere) and similar units from other domestic and foreign universities. This activity manifests itself in such forms as participation of pianists in concerts, lectures, seminars and courses. Artistic projects are also carried out in cooperation with the Department of Composition and the Department of Historical Performance Practice. All these activities are an essential form of promoting pianists engaged in the Department of Song and Vocal Chamber Music within and outside the Academy.

The Department’s responsibilities include periodic evaluation of pianists’ work, assistance in doctoral and postdoctoral proceedings, and an advisory vote in personnel matters concerning the employment of pianists at the Institute.

The Department of Song and Vocal Chamber Music closely collaborates with the Department of Vocal Studies at the Academy of Music in Poznań in implementation of artistic projects undertaken by students and vocal instructors. The events include cyclic concerts known as “Evenings of Vocal Lyrics” and chamber concerts which feature small vocal-instrumental forms (e.g. cantatas, motets along with chorales). The Department also collaborates with the “Ars Vocalis” Academic Circle of Students of the Institute of Vocal Studies in the implementation of student initiatives.

Artistic events organized by the Department of Song and Vocal Chamber Music allow students to build experience in musical partnership, while pianists-instructors may express themselves in chamber performance. For audiences, they provide an opportunity to experience repertoire from different corners of the world, exposing the synthesis of music with words.

Members of the Department of Song and Vocal Chamber Music

prof. dr hab. Laura Kluwak-Sobolewska – Head
prof. dr hab. Izabela Górska-Krasiel
prof. dr hab. Iwona Kowalkowska-Szepielow
prof. dr hab. Wojciech Maciejowski
prof. dr hab. Małgorzata Woltmann-Żebrowska
prof. AMP dr hab. Joanna Kozłowska-Szczepaniak
prof. AMP dr hab. Barbara Mądra-Bednarek
prof. AMP dr hab. Szymon Musioł
dr hab. Marzena Michałowska
dr Justyna Chęsy
dr Michał Karasiewicz
dr Kinga Książczyk
dr Olga Lemko
dr Paulina Zarębska
mgr Szymon Chorobiński
mgr Alicja Kosznik
mgr Miłosz Lewandowski
mgr Joanna Sipowicz
mgr Olena Skrok
mgr Joanna Zaremba