Maciej Frąckiewicz – the winner of the 3rd Michał Spisak International Music Competition in accordion. As he claims, he is still too young to be called a successful musician, but considering the progress of his career, he can be put as a model of a musician who has made the right decisions for his artistic life.
Maciej Frąckiewicz, when he won the Dąbrowa Competition, was certainly not wasting his time, as evidenced by his achievements: victory in the prestigious Arrasate Hiria Accordion Competition in Spain in 2012 and the Polityka’s Passport in 2013. His music is a combination of youth, talent and experience, which also results in untamed artistic temperament. It was influenced by the path he took. He did not limit himself only to accompanying orchestras, but also made significant efforts to create a number of original chamber music projects, such as TWOgether DUO with Magdalena Bojanowicz or projects with Marek Bracha and Łukasz Kuropaczewski.
His hard work helped him enter into the pantheon of the best Polish accordionists. More than 70 new accordion songs were created on his initiative. He performs classical music and modern music, that is why Dorota Szwarcman called him one of the most interesting musical personalities of the young generation. Despite a number of responsibilities we managed to persuade Maciej Frąckiewicz to give us a short interview:
How did your adventure with accordion start?
The beginning of my adventure with accordion is not long and colorful. Everything started almost accidentally. My parents were persuaded by my kindergarten teachers to take me to exams to the music school. A child at the age of 6 usually knows only the most popular instruments, like violin and piano. And just like my peers, I also thought that I would learn one of these instruments. However, the recruitment committee offered me an accordion course, to which my parents agreed. And that’s how it has been ever since.
You were awarded the first prize in the 3rd edition of the Michał Spisak International Music Competition. Did that competition influence your further career?
It is hard to say which competition contributed the most to the development of my career. Nevertheless, Spisak competition was certainly one of those that gave rise to great opportunities, for example very important cooperation with IPIUM Silesia which lasts until this day. In addition, I often play with the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra, and during concerts organized by this institution, which is probably also related to the victory in the Spisak competition.
What did you do with the cash prize you received for the first place in the competition?
I am trying to constantly invest in myself. After winning the competition, I spent several years studying abroad without any specific scholarship. Since then I bought two brand new instruments, which unfortunately were very expensive. The cash prize certainly came in handy.
Do you have any special memory associated with the Spisak competition?
I particularly remember the very stressful finale, during which every participant had to perform “Koncert Bogdana Dowlasza”. A piece of music which basically does not have any official recordings. At first I thought that it would be impossible to learn it by heart. I was learning this song until the very last day of the competition.
What do you currently do as a musician?
As one of the few musicians, I stayed in the profession by performing a whole range of solo, chamber music, and orchestral pieces for accordion. Apart from that, a great deal of my work involves cooperation with composers and preview performances of works – more than 80 works so far, written by composers such as: Krzysztof Penderecki, Zygmunt Krauze, Dariusz Przybylski, Wojciech Blecharz, Aleksander Nowak.
Do you consider yourself successful?
I am at the beginning of my artistic path and I am still too young to consider myself a successful musician. It is very difficult for me to value my successes, everyone is different and has different achievements. My achievements were also recognized in another environment. One of the most important turning points is the participation in the finals of the Eurovision Competition for Young Musicians (as the first accordionist in history). Because of that I got recognized on the Polish music market. Another one is victory in the International Accordion Competition “Arrasate Hiria” in Spain in December 2012, “Polityka’s Passport” in January 2013 or victory in the GWK Competition in March 2015, where, in addition to cash prize, I was given the opportunity to record another album and receive an offer to play concerts in Germany. Besides, I should also mention my cooperation with Krzysztof Penderecki and preparation for the release of his “Sinfonietta for accordion” by the music publishing house Schott.
You have released several music albums. Which one would you recommend to a layperson and which one to a passionate of accordion music?
I think that a layperson would like my solo album, which has a full repertoire from Bach’s “Partita” and Cesar Franck, to Sofia Gubaidulin and Penderecki. I have yet to record an album which would be appealing to a passionate of accordion music and I will probably never record one.
What are your plans for the future?
Further development, expanding my possibilities and the sound of my instrument.
