Castle Party dark independent festival had its first edition in 1994, when a group of over 300 people came to Grodziec Castle to see 5 young bands (Moonlight, Daimonion, Fading Colours and two other groups). After a great concert they were participating in, it was almost sure that the following year was to bring second edition of the festival. Set up, of course, in Grodziec Castle, which dark climate and mystic old surroundings made it almost unreal.

The following years brought more bands (amongst them such stars like Closterkeller, Artrosis, Agressiva 69, Daimonion, De Volanges, etc.), more public, more climate and... a problem to the festival's organizers, who met the Grodziec Castle too small for such a great number of gothic music fans. The decided to move Castle Party festival into a larger place and chose Bolkow Castle courtyard. Until this day Bolkow remains the most mystic Place in Europe when festival's running. Every year it gathers few thousand of people who participate in this great event. Also every year Bolkow Castle becomes a great scene for the most remarkable gothic and electro gothic music bands like Batalion d'Amour, God's Bow, XIII Stoleti, Ataraxia, Das Ich, Dance on Glass, Clan of Xymox, Arcana, Deine Lakaien and many others. It is also a great party of spectacular personalities - the public who wear magnificent clothes - especially women's great baroque black dresses and fantastic, black and white make-ups. This extraordinary festival is an essence of gothic climate and the greatest event for gothic music fans in all Europe.

The first edition of the festival took place in 1946 - exactly 120 years after Chopin's concert in Duszniki Zdroj. Chopin's excellent compositions had been presented by Zofia Rabcewiczowa and Henryk Sztompka.

Zofia Rabcewiczowa remitted all the money gained during the festival to the charity - a local orphanage. Since that year, the festival has been held yearly in Duszniki due to its cultural tradition and international range. The festival, as one of the oldest in Europe, gathers the most remarkable worldwide artists who perform Chopin's music and also the previous years laureates. Amongst those great personalities there were Edward Auer, Wladimir Aszkenazy, Ryszard Bakst, Halina Czerny-Stefanska, Zbigniew Drzewiecki, Raul Koczalski, Ewa Bandrowska-Turska, Stanislaw Szpinalski, Barbara Hesse-Bukowska, Lidia Grychtolowna, Adam Harasiewicz, Fu Tsong, Jan Ekier, Bella Dawidowicz, Ikuko Endo, Regina Smendzianka, Piotr Paleczny, Garrick Ohlsson, Krystian Zimerman, Paul Badura-Skoda and Stefan Askenase.

The International Chopin Festival in Duszniki Zdroj gained a lot of fame for all the years of its existence. People who come here are passionate of Chopin's music, himself and this place, which - so calm and beautiful, makes their emotion go free around this magical place.

The festival itself is also a cultural organization, which is very helpful in keeping the classical music greatest level. Every year, just before the festival beginning, many young pianists from all over the world can participate in workshops organized for them and learn the greatest Chopin compositions' performances.

Continuation of the idea worked while creating the International Chopin Centre in Duszniki Zdroj - the institution of meetings of young artists, competition participants, teachers and virtuosos from all over the world.

The Jewish Culture Festival in Krakow is one of the most important and largest events of its kind in the world. The First Festival took place in 1988 and its program focused on a scholarly conference on the encounter between two cultures, Jewish and Polish. It was a modest occasion but it turned out to have enormous significance, considering the boldness of the subject matter, upon which the communist authorities of the day looked askance.

Shaped by outstanding figures in various fields of Jewish culture and art, the Festival became over time a place where Jews and non-Jews from all over the world could meet. They are linked by the shared values that they find in Kazimierz and Krakow, the space of the Festival. For over a week, Kazimierz resounds with synagogue song, klezmer music, and Hasidic, classical, and Jewish folk music. There are films, performances, presentations, and exhibitions to see and stories told by the Jews about their culture to listen to.

In its present form, the Festival not only introduces the living Jewish tradition to a wide audience, but also offers a share of the joy in creating that tradition. Workshops in Hasidic dance and song, klezmology, Hebrew calligraphy, Jewish paper cutting and cooking, conducted by people from both Ashkenazi and Sephardic culture, attract numerous learners. Every year, the Festival puts on over 100 events featuring dozens of performers and thousands of participants from all over the world. During the most recent Festival, 13,000 people attended "Shalom on Szeroka Street," the grand finale concert. The number of Festival guests grows from year to year, and television coverage brings the Festival to viewers across Poland and Europe and around the world. To all of them, we address the main idea of the Festival: dialogue as a pathway to mutual respect and understanding. Each year, the Festival's celebration of life commemorates the past, traces of which can still be found in Kazimierz, Krakow, and Poland.

The Festival is a span of the symbolic bridge where Poles and Jews meet to strengthen the process of understanding and reconciliation. The Jewish Culture Festival in Krakow is, after all, a symbol of tolerance, pluralism, and the faith that we have a chance, through the celebration of Jewish culture and the celebration of life, to build mutual relations based on truth and respect.

www.jewishfestival.pl

International Festival 'Wratislavia Cantans' is a great musical event that was set up by a remarkable conductor Andrzej Markowski almost 40 years ago. Over the next 20 years the festival was extending its formula, including chamber concerts, recitals and the visual art presentations. On the 30th anniversary of the festival, the festival's authorities decided to transform it into an independent event, so in 1996 a State Institution of Culture under the name of International Festival 'Wratislavia Cantans' came into existence with the General Director Lidia Geringer d'Oedenberg. The new authorities entrusted the planning of 34th festival's edition to the third conductor in 'Wratislavia Cantans' history - Ewa Michnik, who was also a General and Artistic Director of the Wroclaw State Opera until 2002. The following two years (1992-1994) brought to the festival another excellent Director Mariusz Smolij, an Artistic Director of Wroclaw Philharmonic, Music Director and conductor of the Houston Symphony Orchestra and the conductor of Symphony Orchestra in Lafayette, USA.

Since 1996, the institution not only was to organize one of the greatest festivals in Poland, but also to gain the financial sources for the creation and realization of ambitious artistic plans, which are being document on films, CD-records and in numerous books and photographic albums. The recording of 'Jutrznia' of Krzysztof Penderecki had been nominated in 1999 to a Frederyk Award - the most prestigious prize of Polish phonographic industry, 'Rossini Gala' with Ewa Podles won the award in 2000 and 'Credo' of Krzysztof Penderecki was presented in 2000 in Cannes, at the phonographic fair 'Midem', where it's composer was granted a title of the most remarkable of living composers.

International Festival 'Wratislavia Cantans' purpose was to be an open festival, where numerous nations culture would be presented. The festival includes then oratorio-cantata concerts, symphonic and chamber music concerts, opera and ballet performances, concerts of sacred music of different religions and denominations, vocal and instrumental recitals, exhibitions and many other attractions. Every year over two thousand of artists participate in concerts, which take place in the most splendid historical interiors of Wroclaw several other Lower Silesia cities' buildings.

In 2000, the 'Wratislavia Cantans' institution was chosen to be a main realizer of Polish music presentation under the name of 'Europatia Poland 2001', which will take place in Benelux and the northern France.

The idea of the Rawa Blues Festival was introduced in 1980 by Irek Dudek - great musician and blues promoter. The first festival was organized in the Katowice Theater and gathered some twenty blues from all over Poland and 500 blues fans. Fourteen years ago Festival moved into Polish biggest and most famous concert arena "Spodek" and actually became one of the biggest blues festivals in Central Europe. In the past years thousands of blues fans have enjoyed themselves while listening biggest Polish, American and European blues musicians playing 100% live.

The Festival was regularly televised and screened throughout the national TV Network. Among the highlights of past festivals were: Luther Allison. Junior Wells, Koko Taylor, Carey Bell, John Cephas and Phil Wiggins, C. J. Chenier, Rory Block, Little Charlie & The Nightcats, not to mention Shakin' Dudi and other greatest Polish blues legends such as Tadeusz Nalepa, Slawek Wierzcholski and many others.