My Story is a quest for those emotions in music that are close to my heart; the deepest ones that constitute the essence of one’s life. It is in them that our musical DNA is encoded, though its expression may change over time under the influence of various experiences.

The album’s programme has been carefully thought out. From the list of compositions reflecting my personal sensitivity and aesthetic (scored for various performing forces, from solo to symphonic), I could only select those written for violin and piano, plus one soloistic work. I attempted to build the narrative in such a way that it resembles the dramaturgy of a live concert. (…)

While listening to or performing music, I fulfill the desire to trace and tell part of my own story, to discover and share with the audience ‘a piece of myself’, rather than trying hard to adjust my own nature to what might appear as someone else’s tale. This is why I have always greatly cherished freedom of choice and interpretation. What I aim at is not superficial reappropriation of repertoires, genres or styles, but a strong identification with the given work and its atmosphere, which can turn that music into a mirror for my artistic soul. Hence the title of the album: My Story.

Robert Kwiatkowski

Richard Wagner (1813–1883)
[1] Träume (1857)4’22
from Wesendonck Lieder
arr. for violin and piano − Arthur Seybold

Ignacy Jan Paderewski (1860–1941)
Violin Sonata in A Minor, Op. 13 (1885)
[2] Allegro con fantasia11’59
[3] Intermezzo: Andantino5’08
[4] Finale: Allegro molto quasi presto7’32

Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750)
[5] Sarabande3’02
from Partita in D Minor, BWV 1004 for solo violin (1720)

Edward Elgar (1857–1934)
Violin Sonata in E Minor, Op. 82 (1918)
[6] Allegro8’20
[7] Romance: Andante7’20
[8] Allegro, non troppo9’17

Olivier Messiaen (1908–1992)
[9] Praise to the Immortality of Jesus6’14
for violin and piano from Quartet for the End of Time (1940)

Total time: 63’48