There has never been such an event in the Sejm before. The largest Polish piano, produced in 1938, will be heard by guests of a special event. On May 22 at 4 pm there will be a screening of the documentary film "Soul Enchanted in the Piano" combined with a recital by Adam Makowicz on an Arnold Fibiger concert grand piano. Honorary patronage has been assumed by Mr. Szymon Holownia, Speaker of the Polish Parliament.
Does a piano have a soul? If so, what is it? Is it intangible - or is its creator a piano builder? One of them was Gustav Arnold Fibiger III, born in Kalisz in 1912. His passion for creating instruments survived even when his family factory was taken away after the war. Who was he? A Pole with German roots who fought in the defense of Warsaw, a great patriot, but also the only piano designer in Poland who led the development of the music industry in our country.
Although pianos have no longer been produced in Poland for more than a dozen years, Poland is still a powerhouse in the world piano industry. It's in Kalisz that the world's largest hub of piano and grand piano repair companies operates. It is also in Kalisz that one of the three schools in Europe teaching piano tuning and construction at the secondary education level operates. This would not have been possible had it not been for Gustaw Arnold Fibiger III, who was the last owner of the Arnold Fibiger piano factory in Kalisz and the founder of the Piano Construction Technical School nearly 70 years ago.
Among other things, this is the subject of the documentary film "Soul Enchanted in a Piano," directed by Judyta Fibiger, Gustav's granddaughter, which will have a special screening at the Jacek Kuroń Hall in the Sejm. Following the screening of the film, a short concert will be played by Adam Makowicz on an Arnold Fibiger grand concert grand piano (280 cm), constructed in 1938 by 26-year-old Gustav Arnold Fibiger III. Only 11 pieces of this instrument were built until the outbreak of World War II. Flattering opinions of instruments from the Fibiger Factory were expressed by such great artists as Artur Rubinstein and Jozef Wieniawski, among others. This piano was restored in 2022. It is currently in use by the Kalisz Philharmonic Orchestra.
Participation in the event under the patronage of Speaker of the Polish Parliament Szymon Holownia announced, among others.:
Marta Cienkowska - Deputy Minister of Culture and National Heritage
Barbara Oliwiecka - Member of Parliament of the Republic of Poland
Krystian Kinastowski - President of Kalisz
Grzegorz Kulawinek - Vice President of Kalisz
Artur Szklener - Director of the Fryderyk Chopin Institute
Stanisław Leszczyński - Deputy Director of the Fryderyk Chopin Institute, honorary member of the SPSF
Paweł Sroczyński - Chancellor of the Fryderyk Chopin University of Music
Joanna Ławrynowicz-Just - Head of the Piano Department of the Fryderyk Chopin University of Music
Krzysztof Jabłoński - Pianist, Head of the Department of Piano and Keyboard Instruments at The Chinese University of Hong Kong
Mariusz Klimsiak - Dean of the Department of Instrumental Performance and Head of the Department of Piano at the Academy of Music in Bydgoszcz
Jarosław Drzewiecki - Pianist, Professor at the Academy of Music in Bydgoszcz, honorary member of the SPSF
Krzysztof Sowiński - Dean of the Department of Instrumental Performance, Historical Performance, Jazz and Stage Music of the Academy of Music in Poznań
Marcin Elbanowski - Chancellor of the Academy of Music in Poznań
Gabriela Parczyńska - Yamaha Music Europe, European Branch
and Elwira Fibiger (Honorary President of the SPSF, daughter of Gustav Arnold Fibiger III) and Judyta Fibiger (Vice President of the SPSF, granddaughter of Gustav Arnold Fibiger III).
From the Association, the following have confirmed their participation: Jaroslaw Bednarski, Andrzej Chabracki, Szymon Jasnowski, Sylwester Kowalczyk, Zbigniew Kozera, Leszek Ostrowski, Bohdan Szydzisz, Andrzej Wlodarczyk, Jaroslaw Zając.
The event is organized by the Association of Polish Piano Tuners (SPSF), with the support of Ms. Barbara Olivetska MP. It is part of broader activities that SPSF is undertaking together with the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage towards the inclusion of piano tuners in the list of artistic professions, building a new curriculum basis for the education of tuners in selected second-level music schools, and including the Piano Construction Technical School in Kalisz in the new form of teaching future tuners. The association is also taking steps to include the Kalisz piano industry on the list of intangible cultural heritage.
