Oh, what an evening it was! We said goodbye to the summer of 2019 in a truly concerted way. Olivia Camerata, which is part of the Olivia Cooltura project, is called All That Jazz. And it’s true, the camerat’s repertoire abounded in everything that was wonderful, swaying, endearing and beautiful. For a good start, a bit of Fryderyk Chopin, sprinkled with improvisations for piano, then Latin, energizing songs for voices, and in the finale, swinging jazz in an excellent performance. Didn’t that sound like a recipe for a perfect Saturday afternoon?
Saturday’s concert at Olivia Star was opened by Alexander Stupnikov, an artist and composer from Schibsted, a resident of Olivia Business Centre. The second part featured the Olivia Business Centre Choir, and the third part was a jazz feast. We listened to a wonderful swing performed by Krystyna Durys with the accompaniment of a jazz band.
On the Facebook page of Olivia Business Centre you will find the full recording of the concert.
See the photo report from the event. Cinematography : Maciej Roszkowski.
About the artists:
Alexander Stupnikov
Alexander Stupnikov from Schibsted recently hypnotized the audience on the 32nd floor of Olivia TOP Star with his “Autumn Waltz”. Inspired by the classics, he relaxes by playing Beethoven and Chopin, challenging himself to Liszt’s technically demanding Second Hungarian Rhapsody. Stupnikov began his musical adventure 14 years ago. He is a programmer by day, but he composes and plays the piano out of passion. During the Olivia Camerata concert, the artist performed one of Fryderyk Chopin’s most outstanding works, “Fantaisie Impromptu, Op. 66” and his own works: Polka in F major and Jazz Impromptu.
Olivia Business Centre Choir
At Olivia, we share a passion. The choir was founded in March 2018 on the premises of Bayer in Olivia Business Centre. Then, on the initiative of conductor Wiktoria Batarowska, the Choir spread its wings and expanded its activities to include the entire OBC. Currently, the Choir consists of 40 people, and has been operating in such a unique composition since 2019. It brings together representatives of a dozen or so Olivia’s resident companies, m.in. AirHelp, Bayer, Energa, GFKM, Nordea, OBC, PwC, Sii, Talkersi and Thyssenkrupp. The OBC Choir made its debut at the Olivia Camerata Easter Concert at Olivia Star with Don Howard’s “Oh Happy Day,” “Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” a classic ballad written by Harold Arlen and E.Y. Harburg for the 1939 film “The Wizard of Oz,” and Elvis Presley’s “Can’t Help Folling in Love.”
During the concert, the OBC Choir presented the following pieces:
- “El ultimo Cafe” (tango) by mus. Hector Stamponi
- “Prende la Vela” by mus. Lucho Bermundez (tenor solo: Hamish Potts, drums: Katarzyna Rozkosz)
- “Volare” by mus. Domenico Modugno
Krystyna Durys with the accompaniment of the band
Krystyna Durys – a jazz vocalist fascinated by the swing era, inspired primarily by the performances of the queen of jazz, Ella Fitzgerald. She started her adventure with the stage at the age of 7 and continued it m.in. as a member of two youth choirs. The greatest influence on the artist’s vocal and stage development was exerted by the performances of top American jazz vocalists, the aforementioned Ella Fitzgerald and Sarah Vaughan. The final touches were brought by numerous performances with jazz musicians in the artist’s homeland and abroad. She was invited to work with her by m.in. Jan Konop Big Band, Przemek Dyakowski, and Riverboat Ramblers Swing Orchestra. In 2012 In cooperation with excellent Tri-City musicians Marek Jurski (piano, arrangements), Marcin Janek (saxophones/clarinet), Maciej Sadowski (double bass) and Adam Zagrodzki (percussion), Krystyna founded her first jazz band. In 2016 Paweł Hulisz and Adam Wiśniewski joined the team. Thanks to the brass section, the band gained a new big band sound so characteristic of the swing era. In 2014 Krystyna Durys won the Golden Washboard in the vocal competition at the 44. International Traditional Jazz Festival in Iława. In 2017 she won second place in the “New Hope” category and a nomination in the “Female Vocalist of the Year” category of the Jazz Forum magazine. In September 2016, She released her first album entitled TRIBUTE TO LADIES OF JAZZ, which won 5th place in the “Polish Jazz Album of the Year” category and many nominations for other awards. Since the release of the album, the ensemble has presented its unique repertoire in Indonesia, Denmark, Sweden, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and many times in Poland.
