Pawel Tomaszewski - pianist, keyboardist, composer, arranger, music educator. Dean of Jazz And Pop Music Department in Karol Szymanowski Academy Of Music In Katowice.

In 2009, he participated as a pianist in the recording of Gregorz Nagórski Quartet, which won the prestigious Fryderyk award in 2009 in the category “Jazz Debut of the Year”.

The following recordings with Pawel’s involvement were nominated for the Fryderyk Award:

• “Over and Over” by Gregorz Nagórski Quartet – Jazz Album of the Year,

• “The First Look” by Marta Król – Jazz Debut of the Year,

• “Image of My Personality” by Przemysław Florczak Quartet – Jazz Debut of the Year.

One of the biggest impacts on Pawel Tomaszewski’s professional artistic career was studying at the Katowice Academy of Music. During his studies, Pawel formed his first band – Tomaszewski Trio. The intensive creative work of the band resulted in receiving main prizes of major Polish festivals and competitions.

One of the prizes of Bielsko Zadymka Jazz festival was recording of the “Actual Proof” CD. The album was included in the nationwide “Jazz Forum” magazine in 2006 that helped in reaching a wider audience, which could explore Pawel Tomaszewski’s work.

During his third year at the Academy, Pawel was invited to work with the drummer Eryk Kulm. Eryk revived one of the most popular jazz bands of the 90s in Poland – Quintessence. Over ten years, the band had a wide variety of Polish music stars, such as Leszek Możdżer, Piotr Wojtasik, Maciej Sikała, Wojciech Karolak, Wojciech Niedziela, Jacek Meira, Robert Majewski, Andrzej Jagodziński, Piotr Baron, Henryk Miśkiewicz and others.

In addition to numerous concerts, the outcome of Pawel and Eryk’s work was a release of “Back to the Presence” album in 2005. In later years, Eryk Kulm also collaborated with American musicians, including trumpeter Longineu Parsons and Troy Anderson, and saxophonist Sulaiman Hakim.

Another important milestone in the artistic career of Pawel Tomaszewski was a collaboration with Jaroslaw Śmietana, one of the greatest Polish jazz guitarists. With his quartet, Pawel has performed on the stages of concert halls in Germany, Belgium, France, England, Scotland, Romania, Russia, Belarus, Lithuania, Georgia, and Vietnam. With the same quartet, he had the opportunity to perform alongside notable artists, like Nigel Kennedy, Larry Coryell, Z-Star, Karen Edwards, Bill Neal, Wojciech Karolak, Hanna Banaszak, Ryszard Rynkowski, Jorgos Skolias, Krzesimir Dębski, Wieslaw Pieregorólka, and many more.

During his studies, Pawel also was a member of Anna Serafińska’s band – Groove Machine, which helped him to broad his musical horizons.

Important events in the artistic life of pianist and composer were European tours with Dean Brown Quartet and Eric Marienthal International Band; both are representatives of the world of fusion music genre.

Pawel continued his collaboration with Gregorz Nagórski Quartet that led to release of two CDs. The first album “Dedication” received the prestigious Fryderyk award in 2009 in category “Jazz Debut of the Year”.

The same year, Pawel Tomaszewski became a music producer, band manager, arranger and pianist of the Kaczmarski & Jazz project. Leading vocalists of Polish jazz – Anna Serafińska, Maria Sadowski and Janusz Szrom participated in this project. Kaczmarski & Jazz premiered at the Jazz Jamboree festival in 2009. The concert was recorded and broadcasted by TVP Kultura channel. The following year, the Kaczmarski & Jazz project released a CD.

In 2011, Pawel Tomaszewski was invited to participate in Slawomir Jaskułki project Chopin For 5 Grand Pianos, with whom he toured Singapore and China.

In order to meet demand of the modern music scene and to fulfill his hunger to explore new ways of expression, Pawel became interested in electronic instruments and music production. The effects of his work can be found in the recordings of Damage Control band (albums; “Damage Control” and “Magical Theater”), which he has been co-creating for the last few years. Currently, Pawel is also a member of Adam Bałdych’s band Imaginary Quartet.

Pawel has been exploring the art of playing the Hammond organ. In addition to “Image of my Personality” recording with the Przemysław Florczak Quartet and song “Over and Over”, which appeared on the last album of Gregorz Nagórski, this instrument can be heard in recordings of Wojtasik / Nagórski / Tomaszewski / McCraven Quartet, Maciej Sikała Trio and blues project of Jarosław Śmietana and Bill Neal.

In 2011, Pawel Tomaszewski created the Gentleman band (with Hammond organ in the lead role). The band was invited to represent Poland at the European Cultural Festival in Algeria. The concert had such an enthusiastic reception that the Polish Embassy in Algeria reiterated its invitation to the same festival the following year. These events inspired Pawel to form a trio with Andrzej Gondek, electric guitar, and Pawel Dobrowolski, drums.

In 2014, Pawel Tomaszewski released an album “Love Revisited”, which was the result of collaboration with the brilliant vocalist Wojciech Myrczek. The collaboration Myrczek & Tomaszewski has won wide critical acclaim not only in Poland, but also abroad. The duo has performed in Switzerland during Montreux Jazz Festival, at the Conservatory Night in St. Petersburg, Russia, at the Sofia Jazz Peak Festival in Bulgaria, at the Celie International Jazz Festival in Slovenia, at the Jazzy Colors Jazz Festival in France and other.

Pawel Tomaszewski has collaborated with a number of artists, such as Michael “Patches” Stewart (album “On Fire”, featuring Kenny Garrett, Henryk Miśkiewicz, George Duke, Nick Smith, Paul Jackson Jr., Mark Napiórkowski, Raul Midon, Dorota Miśkiewicz, Poogie Bell and Michał Dąbrówka), Marta Król (“The First Look”), Iwona Kmiecik (“Kolor Szlachetności”), Daniel Popiałkiewicz Quartet (“Solstice”), Marcin Wawrzynowicz Sextet (“Missa Pacis”), and Krzysztof Urbański Quartet (“Krzysztof Urbański”).

In addition to the constant cooperation with the above-mentioned musicians, Pawel Tomaszewski is occasionally invited to participate in concerts of Michał Urbaniak, Urszuła Dudziak, Karen Edwards, Dorota Miśkiewicz, Marita Albán Juárez, Ewa Uryga, Anna Gadt, Krzysztof Popka, Stanisław Fijałkowski, Jerzy Główczewski, Marek Dykta, Krzysztof “Puma” Piasecki, Bronisław Duży and others. He also performed on stage with the foreign artists, like Steve Vai, Maria Schneider, Rick Margitza, Walter Smith III, Jacques Schwartz-Bart, Michael “Patches” Stewart, Mack Goldsbury, Xantone Blacq, Cleveland Watkiss, Otto Williams, Troy Miller, Judy Bady, Ed Neumeister, Steve Logan, Yaron Stavi, Josh Lawrence, Jacques Seguin, Brian Fentress.

During episodic collaboration with Teatr Rozrywki in Chorzów and Musical Theatre in Gliwice, Pawel performed as pianist in musicals “Dyzma” and “Chicago”. He also had an opportunity to record a song with Piotr Machalica during a live broadcast of concert on Trójka radio station. Pawel had a chance to collaborate with Mariusz Lubomski as well. The concerts with Alicia Węgorzewska allowed him to try himself in the field of classical vocal music. He also collaborated with representatives of commercial music – Maciej Miecznikowski and Monika Brodka. Pawel’s fascination with Latin music has led to collaboration with Jose Torres, where he acted as arranger of band’s songs as well as a pianist during a graduation recital of Torres’s band vocalist. Collaboration with Bełchatów Gospel Singers choir also enriched Pawel’s artistic experience. With Mika Urbaniak band, he had the opportunity to try himself in repertoire that consisted of soul, pop, contemporary, R&B and jazz genres. He had a chance to perform with Mieczysław Szcześniak, while promoting his album “Signs”. For three years, Pawel had been a member of the band that was formed for the purpose of the popular Polish television program “Tak to leciało”, which was based on American program “Do not Forget the Lyrics”.

Apart from work and lectures at the Jazz Institute in Katowice, Pawel has been invited to take part in:

- International Jazz Workshops in Pulawy in 2005,

- International Big Band Course in Nysa in 2006,

- III Szczecin Workshops of Popular Music in 2011,

- International Jazz Workshops in Chodzież in 2011 and 2012,

- And be a jury during the “Jazz in the Village” festival in 2014.

Pawel Tomaszewski Trio has been invited to participate in the rhythm section during the prestigious Jazz Improvisation Competition, which is being held since 2010 by the Jazz Institute of Music Academy in Katowice.

Pawel’s activities in the field of composition appears mainly in original projects. He composed Symphony of the Galaxies – a piece for jazz quintet and string orchestra, which was written on request of Jazz Jamboree Festival with support of the ministerial program Composers Commissions. The composition premiered in the auditorium of the Fryderyk Chopin University of Music in Warsaw on December 5, 2013.

He also arranged songs for the New Year’s concert of Jarosław Śmietana with the Philharmonic Orchestra of Cracow; Ewa Uryga’s album “One Look” with the Philharmonic Orchestra of Zabrze; for Krzysztof Popek – concerts with string quintet, and concert for the Teatr Rozrywki in Chorzow.

He has recorded music for movies Closer to the Moon, directed by Nae Caranfil with music by French composer Laurent Couson, and The Closed Circuit, directed by Ryszard Bugajski with the music of Canadian composer Shane Harvey.

Since 2015, Pawel is a member of the Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry (Związek Producentów Audio Video, ZPAV), an organization which confers the Fryderyk award.

He was a musical director of bands at such cultural events as Coryphaeus of Polish Music in 2012 and the Skills and Competence Award ceremony in 2014.