This is the 17th time you have organised LOTOS Jazz Festival Bielska Zadymka Jazzowa. What is your secret to maintaining the high standard of the festival, and attracting an ever growing number of listeners?
The success of the festival lies in people and our relations with them. We have known and liked each other for 17 years and we still want to meet and do things together. We always look forward to winter, because to us winter means Zadymka. The foundations of the festival were laid by the group of people who once formed Stowarzyszenie Sztuka Teatr (Association of Art and Theatre). Being a professional director and actor myself, I naturally wanted to make theatre. I was infected with the Wagnerian concept of theatre as the synthesis of the arts, so I cooperated with artists from various fields: actors, directors, film-makers, visual artists.

And shortly, it turned out that jazzmen were the strongest group...
This was the time of Golec uOrkiestra, Krzysztof Maciejowski, Krzysztof Dziedzic... Together, we founded an art club Piwnica Zamkowa. We used to organise theatre and cabaret performances, but soon we started to lean towards jazz, which has become our domain. Jazzmen simply use an international musical language, which has the power of uniting nations and speaking across borders. So we have started to play jazz, and later a festival emerged. Every year, we try to reach a higher level of development. This year, we have played at the new concert hall of the National Polish Radio Symphonic Orchestra (NOSPR) in Katowice, which brought a totally new quality to the festival. However, it should be noted that, in line with the tradition, the concert started with a song “Na holi, na holi”, which combines the elements of jazz and Polish Highlanders folk music. We started the concert surrounded by friends, and each year we hope to widen this circle. After this year's edition, we have certainly won many friends in Katowice.

Who are jazz lovers? How would you describe them?
I recognise them in the street. There is something characteristic in their eyes (laughs).

What surprised you most while preparing this year's festival?
While organising the festival, I face two major challenges: coordinating a multitude of logistics tasks, and handling unexpected accidents. We have contracts with the world's largest music agencies, which usually include provisions specifying the number of tickets that must be granted to the performers' guests. So far, such provisions have been dead, since the world's celebrities did not invite too many guests to their concerts in Bielsko-Biała. But this time was different. In the morning on the day of the Gala Concert in Katowice, it turned out that the music agency representing Wayne Shorter and Esperanza Spalding requested as many as thirty tickets... But all the seats had been sold 1.5 month earlier! That was a real challenge, because we had to find seats for all the additional guests. But we did it. Looking back, I think it was a yardstick of our success. The Agency wanted to demonstrate the expected success of the jointly organised event, and show off the amazing concert hall of NOSPR. Approximately 2,000 listeners gathered at the hall and gave the performers a standing ovation.

What is the direction of Zadymka's development?
During the last year's festival, we set the path of development. I hope that the festival will reach a constantly growing number of listeners. This is why this year's festival was held not only in Bielsko-Biała, but for the first time also in Katowice and outside of Poland − in Kowno. Together with Grupa LOTOS, we are going to promote Polish culture in Lithuania, and in the future in other European countries, too. We want the festival to constantly overcome both artistic and geographic borders.

What principles do you follow in your life?
I have always tried to do things which fascinate me, but also bring me fun and satisfaction.

Communications Office, Grupa LOTOS S.A., ul. Elbląska 135, 80-718 Gdańsk, Poland, tel. (+48) 58 308 87 31, (+48) 58 308 83 88, e-mail: media@grupalotos.pl

LOTOS Jazz Festival Bielska Zadymka Jazzowa