Award-Winning “Christmas Impressions and More”: Monika Sroczyńska’s Celebration of Winter and Light
- WOMCO
- 3 hours ago
- 3 min read
Polish pianist, composer, and musicologist Monika Sroczyńska from Bydgoszcz has been honored with the Gold Prize at the World Grand Prix International Music Contest 2025, Season 3, for her CD album Christmas Impressions and More. Released on 20 December 2024 under the Classical Sound Studio label, the album presents around forty minutes of original compositions and arrangements, including Fantasy on Polish Christmas Carols, Toccata, Moment Lyrique, and Berceuse, blending elements of Polish Christmas traditions with lyrical and neoclassical piano writing. The competition ran from 28 May to 28 August 2025, with results announced in September 2025.
Following her recent international recognition, Monika Sroczyńska spoke with us about the inspiration behind Christmas Impressions and More, the recording process, and her thoughts on sharing music in the digital era.
Could you share the background of your award-winning piano CD Album Christmas Impressions and More? When and where did you record it, and how did you choose the repertoire?
Monika Sroczyńska:
"For as long as I can remember, I've enjoyed using motifs from Christmas carols and Christmas songs in my compositions. The simpler the motif, the more you can do with it! Besides Christmas pieces, the album also includes unincorporated pieces based on my own motifs. I recorded the album at the Concert Hall of the F. Nowowiejski Academy of Music in Bydgoszcz last December."
Recording a CD is very different from live performance—it becomes a lasting artistic statement. What were the biggest artistic or technical challenges you encountered while creating Christmas Impressions and More, and how do you hope listeners will connect with it in the digital era?
Monika Sroczyńska:
"Recordings are an important element of promotion in the artistic world. My compositions are then available to people around the world, not just those who can attend the concert. You have to be very well prepared for the recording, because the awareness that you're being recorded is also stressful. You want to play perfectly. You can record the material several times and make cuts and pastes, but the greatest satisfaction comes when you get it right the first time."
Biography
Monika Sroczyńska (born 1997) – pianist, composer, music theorist, academic teacher. In the years 2004-2016 she studied piano at the Fryderyk Chopin Music School Complex in Piła in the class of Jolanta Reszelska MA. In the years 2016-2021 she studied at the Feliks Nowowiejski Academy of Music in Bydgoszcz in the composition class of Prof. Zbigniew Bargielski, in the piano class of Anna Stempin-Jasnowska DMA, as well as in the field of music theory. Twice, in 2016 and 2018, she received an award from the Polish Composers' Union in Warsaw at the International Piano Forum "Bieszczady without Borders" in Sanok. In 2018, her piece „Contrasts” was distinguished at the 3rd International Ignacy Jan Paderewski Composition Competition in Bydgoszcz. In 2021, she received the Platinum Medal in the "Composition" category for the piece „Dislocations” and in the "Piano" category for her performance of Leo Ornstein's „6 Water Colors” at the 2021 Quebec Music
Competition. She regularly performed at composers' concerts and performed twice at the "New Music" festival in Bydgoszcz, performing their own and other composers' works. Since 2021, she has been actively teaching and giving concerts. In 2022, her debut album "PianoComposer" was released, containing solo and chamber pieces. During this time, she also began cooperation with the Office of Artistic Exhibitions of the Piła District, where she regularly performs solo recitals. In 2023, she was honored with the Piła Starost's Award in the "Culture" category. A year later, her next album “Christmas Impressions and More” was released, containing 14 pieces for piano. One of them, ‘Bagatelle No. 1’, received the third prize at the International Music Festival ‘Golden Key’ in Vienna. Her achievements also include laurels at international competitions such as the Golden Time Talent in London (World Talent Award - 3rd place) and the World Artistry Music Award (Platinum Prize). Monika Sroczyńska is also a member of the Young Composers' Circle of the Polish Composers' Union. Her compositional output includes piano, chamber, orchestral and electronic works, as well as musical graphics.