Free music in Praga

Praga, on the right bank of the Vistula, has lagged behind its opposite bank for many years. Now, with the growing popularity of cultural venues such as Fabryka Trzciny and Wytwórnia Wódek Koneser, and Studium Teatralne, Praga is becoming a mecca for young artists and the intelligentsia. In the coming months the district will play host to a major music festival that will last until November 10.

"The fast pace of life has stormed its way to Praga. In this previously neglected part of Warsaw, an amazing new place is blooming with energy and the power of its own cultural roots. The first Muzyczna Praga festival is part of that dynamic vision of Warsaw," says Janusz Pietkiewicz, artistic director of the festival and the new director of the National Opera in Warsaw.

Classical music will be the cornerstone of the festival. The legendary Wiener Philharmoniker, the La Scala Orchestra, Sinfonia Varsovia, Baroque group, La Fenice of Sens along with the Chamber Choir of Namur will perform with well-known conductors, such as Walery Gergiev, Myung-Whun Chung, Jean Tybéry, and Krzysztof Penderecki.

Another attraction of the festival will be the Warsaw Fall Concerts. This will feature: Joseph Malovany from New York; a multimedia show by Bogusław Schaeffer; Maria Peszek, a representative of the Polish avant-garde; a performance of The Queen's Peacock - A Praga Opera; and a concert by pianist Waldemar Malicki.

Other projects include Karol Wojtyła's Brother of our God, staged by the Rampa Theater, Handel's Messiah, Szymanowski's Stabat Mater and Henryk Mikołaj Górecki's Lacrimosa and Te Deum.

Admission to all events (apart from the Warsaw Fall Festival) is free of charge.