Chopin University Big Band

Chopin University Big Band is an ensemble of the Chopin University of Music in Warsaw. Band leader and artistic director of the ensemble is Piotr Kostrzewa. Since its creation (2006), the band has performed in many spectacular artistic projects, including the world editions of the La Folle Journée/Nantes Festival in 2014, 2017, 2019, 2023 and the 30th anniversary edition in 2024, and was a guest at the Crazy Days of Music Festival in Warsaw in 2014, 2017, 2019 and 2023.

It has participated in the Jazz Jamboree Festival, Classica Nova, Podlasie Jazz Festival or the Siauliai Big Band Festival/Lithuania as well as special concerts including Oscar night on Canal+, Five o'Clock on Polish Radio Program II, Concert on the Trójka Radio - 100 years of Sinatra, 50th anniversary of Jazz Forum. The band has also given concerts at the NOSPR in Katowice, the Baltic Philharmonic, the Podlasie Opera and Philharmonic, the National Philharmonic, the Lodz Philharmonic and TWON.

The Big Band's phonographic heritage includes many CD albums: L'historie du big band, Classic on Jazz, Big Band - Swinging Christmas, I Got Rhythm and Dance, Frank Sinatra. 100th Birthday Anniversary, a guest participation in Basia Trzetrzelewska's album Butterflies, Carnets de Voyage featuring conductor and arranger Miho Hazama or the album Cinema Boogie. The band has twice been awarded the Grand Prix Big Band Festival in Nowy Tomysl (2015, 2017), and was one of the stars of the 2019 Summer with Radio Festival, also being featured on the Summer with Radio Festival CD. Chopin University Big Band also performed in the final concert of the 63rd Warsaw Autumn Festival (2020). In July 2021, it took part in the anniversary Summer with Radio Festival, and its performance was included in the commemorative album 50 Years of Summer with Radio.

Chopin University Big Band has performed with such renowned artists as: Basia Trzetrzelewska, Krzesimir Dębski, Henryk Miśkiewicz, Dorota Miśkiewicz, Adam Sztaba, Zbigniew Namysłowski, Gordon Goodwin, Grupa MoCarta, Kuba Badach, Janusz Szrom, Łukasz Lipski, Slawek Uniatowski, Agnieszka Wilczynska, Daniela Bereza, Vivian Buczek, Natalia Kukulska, Katarzyna Cerekwicka, Łukasz Zagrobelny, Ryszard Rynkowski, Danuta Blażejczyk, Wojciech Myrczek, Monika Borzym, Andrzej Dąbrowski, Urszula Dudziak. In 2022 the band was invited to participate in the documentary film directed by Janusz Majewski - "Jazz Outsider" performing in the final scene with Sonia Bohosiewicz. Since 2022 Chopin University Big Band has participated in the performance "Sinatra 100+" at the 6th Floor Theater. In October 2023, the Big Band was the band accompanying the participants of the next edition of "Voice of Poland" In May 2024, a new album will be released by the Polish Radio Music Agency and Chopin University PRESS with music by Henryk Miśkiewicz featuring the artist.