Adam Klocek

Cellist and conductor, winner of the 2014 Grammy Award, Krzysztof Penderecki described him as "one of the most promising conductors of the younger generation". In 2004, the artist won the competition for the position of assistant conductor to Maestro Jan Latham-Koenig, artistic director of the Wrocław Philharmonic and the "Vratislavia Cantans" festival. From 2006 to 2020, he served as the general and artistic director of the Kalisz Philharmonic, and since 2011 he has been the artistic director of the Youth Philharmonic Orchestra of Poland. In 2012, he also became the artistic director of the B. Huberman Philharmonic in Częstochowa. Since September 2020, he has been the general director of this institution. The artist's performance at the Hermitage International Music Festival in St. Petersburg, during which he performed his Cello Concerto with the State Hermitage Orchestra, was described by the leading national newspaper Nezavisimaya Gazeta as a "gift from heaven".

Adam Klocek studied at the Musikhochschule in Cologne and at the Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler in the classes of Marie Kliegel and Boris Pergamenschikow.

Successes at national (first prize at the D. Danczowski competition in Poznań, 1992) and international cello competitions, including those in Cologne, Munich, and New York, as well as awards and scholarships (C.M. von Weber, Interlochen Center for Arts, and the European Broadcasting Union EBU), led to performances on major music stages. The artist's concert plans include: He was invited to participate in the first performance of K. Penderecki's Concerto Grosso under the composer's baton, to represent Poland at the Europalia festival, the inauguration of the 8th Lutosławski Forum at the National Philharmonic, and a concert tour of the USA and the Far East. For his debut recording of "Concerto Grosso" with the National Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of A. Wit, the artist received the "Fryderyk 2002" award. In January 2003, he performed at the gala concert opening the "Year of Krzysztof Penderecki" at the National Philharmonic. In September 2004, he premiered Krzesimir Dębski's cello concerto, written for him, with Sinfonia Varsovia.

With Leszek Możdżer, he performed in a duo that the BBC described as "sensational," and whose album became the best-selling album of 2005. Both artists were the only representatives of the classical music world to perform at the TVP Kultura birthday gala concert. He signed a recording contract with Universal Music. From 1999 to 2016, he played an Antonio Stradivari instrument from 1717.

He currently plays a Giuseppe Rocca 'ex Tortelier' instrument from 1848.

After a busy career as a solo cellist from 1993 to 2003, the artist began conducting. He assisted, among others, Maestro Jacek Kaspszyk during the preparations for the production of G. Verdi's "Nabucco" at the Grand Theatre – National Opera. This was followed by winning the competition for assistant conductor to Maestro Jan Latham-Koenig at the Wrocław Philharmonic. As a cellist and conductor, Adam Klocek has performed with world-renowned artists such as Shlomo Mintz, Heinrich Schiff, Joshua Bell, Vadim Repin, Misha Maisky, Nelson Goerner, Yulianna Avdeeva, Valery Afanassiev, Krzysztof Penderecki, Dame Evelyn Glennie, Randy Brecker, Boris Pergamenschikow, Jerzy Maksymiuk, Antoni Wit, Sophia Gubaidulina, Freddy Kempf, Sayaka Shoji, Wanda Wiłkomirska, Jadwiga Rappe, and Leticia Moreno. The album "Preisner's Voices" (SONY Music), on which the artist performs, has received a triple platinum record. In September and October 2013, two new premieres of Zbigniew Preisner's music took place, in which Adam Klocek performed as conductor and soloist: "Four Colors of Łódź" and "Diaries of Hope" (Barbican Hall in London, with the Britten Sinfonietta and Lisa Gerrard from the ensemble "Dead Can Dance").

As a conductor and cellist, Adam Klocek was invited to the gala concert opening the ICE International Congress Centre in Krakow.

In 2010, at the initiative of Adam Klocek, Włodek Pawlik composed "A Night in Kalisz". The album "A Night in Kalisz", released in autumn 2012, recorded with the Włodek Pawlik Trio, trumpeter Randy Brecker, and the Kalisz Philharmonic, won the first Grammy award in the history of Polish jazz, the Grammy 2014. It also received numerous national awards (including "Album of the Year" from the Rzeczpospolita daily) and a triple platinum record. The artists performed at the Fryderyk Awards 2014 gala concert in the Congress Hall in Warsaw. In 2019, the artist released an album with soloist Astrig Siranossian and the Sinfonia Varsovia orchestra for the Swiss label Claves. This album received the highest European recording awards, including the extremely prestigious German "Preis der Deutschen Schallplatten Kritik", a nomination for the International Classical Music Awards 2019, "Clef d'Or" and "Clef de Mois" from Resmusica magazine, the highest rating "5**" from the prestigious French magazine Diapason and "5**" from Classica magazine, as well as "un evenement".