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„POLISH RADIO SESSIONS 1970-91”

Tomasz Stańko

Label: POLSKIE RADIO
Released: 2025
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Publisher: Music Agency of the Polish Radio Release: September21, 2025 The most famous Polish jazz musician, a world-renowned trumpet virtuoso and one of ECM Records' leading artists of the last three decades, was a regular guest at the Polish Radio recording studios in Warsaw between the 1960s and 1990s. During longer and shorter sessions, he was accompanied by top improvising artists. In 2025, on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the state Polish Radio and out of desire to present the unknown part of the legendary musician’s ouvrée, the idea of releasing a special collection - kind of radio portfolio of the Artist - was born. Its outcome is a collection of six unique records. Both CD and LP versions of deluxe box-set come with a 48-page booklet full of photos of Tomasz Stańko's bands, reproductions of sheet music, comments from the musicians participating in the recordings, and never-before seen stunning portrait of the Artist painted by Joanna Stańko. The mastering was made by Grammy Award-winner Jacek Gawłowski, who, using modern technology, amplified the Master's brilliance, recorded years ago on magnetic tapes and stored in the Polish Radio Archives. Anna Stańko, the Artist’s daughter and CEO of the Tomasz Stańko Foundation: “During a communism era Polish Radio was an absolutely unique place. An institution of the state, part of a political system, yet an enclave of freedom. A space for people operating outside the box. A hub of creativity, a cave of sounds, a spaceship transporting artists to a parallel reality. Freedom was not possibility there - it was a necessity. For me this is a new chapter in discovering my father's music. Recordings that are "old," yet remain fresh, new, unfamiliar, filled with the same tension and emotion he always brought to the studio. They feed the hunger to hear more, differently, more of him. The journey into the archives is a deeply personal experience for me. I know my Dad's music best from the time I worked with, from the early 2000s and later. I observed it emerge "from the inside": in rehearsals, on tour, in studios, in dressing rooms. This makes returning to its source all the more exciting.” Adam Domagała, editor: „The Artist's life was rich, marked by successful recordings and concerts all over the world. From today's perspective, this unprecedented success story of Poles-beloved trumpet player allows us to understand - at least a little - his decision to keep Polish Radio recordings unpublished. He had been creating too much and too quickly just to wait for the spare processing capacity of the music industry, in and oustide of Poland. He was a free spirit who did not care about what he did "yesterday". Only "today" mattered. Meanwhile, the radio chapter of his work, regularly documented since the end of the 1960s, gives the highest marks not only to him, but also to the musicians he gathered around. The sound engineers - Stańko used to consider them equally to artists - also deserved kudos.” Jacek Gawłowski, the Grammy Award winner and the author of modern mastering: “I wanted to preserve the sonic character of this music. Beyond the obvious, like noise reduction and removing defects resulting from the degradation of old tapes, I emphasized dynamics, occasionally modified spatial effects, and brought out the clarity of the instruments. The musicians played wonderfully, like being inspired, oblivious to everything, including technology. Years later, I merely allowed this expression to shine even brighter." 1. PIECE FOR DIANA AND OTHER BALLADS (1970/71) Cats / Wilderness / Stress / Ballad / Lullaby from "Rosemary's Baby" / Wooden Music, pt. 2 / Wooden Music, pt. 1 / Piece for Diana Tomasz Stańko - trumpet / Zbigniew Seifert - alto saxophone, violin /Janusz Muniak - tenor saxophone, percussion / Bronisław Suchanek - double bass / Janusz Stefański - drums Tomasz Stańko's first fully formed ensemble. The quintet performs legendary compositions by Krzysztof Komeda, pieces by the leader, and three spiritual-meditative works composed/ improvised collectively. 2. UNIT (1974/75) Placebo / Poacher / Stella by Starlight / Countdown / Giant Steps Tomasz Stańko - trumpet / Adam Makowicz - Rhodes piano, Rhodes Piano Bass / Czesław Bartkowski - drums Jazz standards and a foray into the world of improvisation bordering on the avant-garde. Adam Makowicz plays the Fender Rhodes electric piano and its bass modification. 3. ZAMEK MGIEŁ (1975) Castle of Mist / Bluish / Few Shades of Blue, parts 1-4 / First Free Etude / Second Free Etude / Third Free Etude Tomasz Stańko - trumpet, grand piano, hunting horn / Tomasz Szukalski - tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone, bass clarinet / Czesław Bartkowski - drums, percussion A carefully composed free jazz suite, utilizing the versatile skills of the brilliant saxophonist Tomasz Szukalski. This experimental music was recorded using studio overdubs. 4. FREELECTRONIC: ALMOST GAMA(1985/86) FREELECTRONIC: ALMOST GAMA (1985/86) Almost Gama I / Now A / We / Airfield / Magic Time / Euforila II / Asmodeus / Eagle-Owls / Almost Gama II Tomasz Stańko - trumpet / Witold Szczurek AKA Vitold Rek - bass guitar / Janusz Skowron - Roland JX-3P synthesizer, grand piano /Tadeusz Sudnik - electronics, EMS synthesizer The unusual configuration of acoustic and electroacoustic instruments (without percussion) gave Tomasz Stańko's band a modern, trance sound, comparable to the world's leading artists combining electronics with jazz. 5. RUE DE LA TOUR(1991) Rue de la Tour / The Two First, the Third and a Few Others / Almost Black / My W.S.B. Friend / Trumpet One / Bass One Tomasz Stańko - trumpet / Witold Szczurek AKA Vitold Rek - double bass Lyrical duo of trumpet and double bass and the magic of spontaneous improvisation by two virtuosos. Tomasz Stańko and Witold Szczurek (outside Poland known as Vitold Rek) made one of the first Polish jazz recordings using digital technology. 6. JAZZ ROCK COMPANY LIVE AT AKWARIUM (1983) JAZZ ROCK COMPANY LIVE AT AKWARIUM (1983) Mr. DD / Babylon Samba (CD and streaming only) / Purple Liquor / Hey! / End Jam (CD and streaming only) Tomasz Stańko - trumpet / Apostolis Anthimos - electric guitar / Jerzy Kawalec - bass guitar/ Witold Szczurek AKA Vitold Rek - double bass / Andrzej Ryszka - drums / José Torres - congas A recording of a concert broadcast by Polish Radio Programme IV from Warsaw's Akwarium Jazz club. The music is rhythmic and loud with Latin and funky elements. Release is sponsored by PKO BP and the Polish National Foundation. TVP is the media patron. The box-sets is available on vinyl, CD and all streaming services.