Alfred Polansky
Composition & Guitar
Austrian writer, composer, guitarist and lute player. He received his basic musical education from his father, who himself was a musician, later at the Conservatory in Vienna and in the wild. He composed film music, commissioned works for orchestras, songs and solo pieces for guitar and lute, and as an interpreter he mainly performs his own music throughout Europe.
Many of his CDs and novels were released by various publishers. This current recording is the English contribution of Polansky’s long-term project “The musical surveying of Europe by a native”, in which Europe’s cultural and poetic peculiarities and uniqueness are accentuated by his musical conception.
Louis Romégoux-Hartinger
Voice
Born to French/British parents in the northern English city of Sheffield, Louis relocated to the south of Styria, Austria in 2010. Raised in a family with a strong Welsh and Ardéchois musical heritage, Louis began life as a boy chorister in Sheffield Cathedral choir, where he first received singing lessons. In his teens Louis began to perform both as a solo singer-songwriter and frontman/guitarist of several indie bands in the Yorkshire area, including Sheffield band Watch This Fire Spread. He also returned to Sheffield Cathedral choir as a choral scholar during his university years and continued his vocal training under Dr Vivien Pike. He won the David Clover award for French Song.
Louis has toured with his own music throughout Europe and has gained critical acclaim as an exciting live performer and songwriter. Performances include Riba Rocks festival 2015 (Spain), Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club in London (2014), Tramlines festival (UK), Harkamp Kitchen on Air (Austria) and Sound of the Forest festival 2014 (Germany). Louis’ latest album Solo was released in 2016 and features original compositions and adaptations of folk songs from France and the United Kingdom.
Paul Schwingenschlögl
Trumpet, Flugelhorn
In the course of his career, Austrian trumpeter and composer Paul Schwingenschlögl showed his skills in many areas: he has composed for theatre and film and worked as trumpeter in contemporary music, modern jazz and improvised music, among others with Gil Evans, Lew Soloff, George Adams, John Surman, Johannes Bauer and Joachim Kühn.
With Christer Hennix Chorasson Court Mirage he has performed in Amsterdam, New York City, Berlin and Austria. In May 2013 he toured in India with the band “Chronic Blues Circus”.In addition to radio live recordings for German, French and Austrian radio stations he has made several CD recordings and received awards for composition and performance in Austria and Germany.
Angelika Moskal
Violin
The native Viennese with Slavic roots began with her musical unfolding in early childhood. She received her first violin lessons from her uncle, then continued her education at the Viennese Music Schools, at the Anton Bruckner Private University and at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna. With a completed violin studies, Angelika not only goes into the world of classical music with its
mandatory virtuosity, but also explores her ways in film and pop music, world music, new music and, above all, music in every conceivable musical setting. Chamber music, soloist performances or the symphonic orchestral sound, the young violinist has already crossed the globe, from America’s east coast to Shanghai, from Peru via São Paulo to Spain and Montenegro and even further …
Adina Felicia Radu
Percussion
Originally from Romania, Adina completed her percussion studies at the National University of Music in Bucharest and relocated to Vienna in 2003. She continued studying for a two-year postgraduate certificate at the Music and Arts University of the City of Vienna, graduating in 2005. Adina has performed with various orchestras and ensembles not only in Vienna and throughout Austria,
but also abroad, in Europe and Asia, being involved in freelance projects with classical, church, chamber and contemporary music. She has made numerous appearances with Neue Oper Wien, Sirene Operntheater, Franz Schmidt Chamber Orchestra, and Künstlerorchester Wien, to name only a few.
Stella Grigorian
Mezzo-Soprano
Our special guest on track 14
Stella was born in Tiflis/Georgia. She studied singing at the Music Academy in Tiflis (graduating with honours) and at the Vienna Conservatory. In 1998 her first professional engagement took her straight to the Vienna State Opera where she remained a member of the company until June 2006.
In 2000, her first CD (‘A part of you’) was recorded and released with songs by John Dowland and Alfred Polansky who also played the lute and the guitar on this recording.
Currently she is worldwide active as a freelance opera singer. Her most important guest performances took her to Gran Teatro del Liceu in Barcelona, to Lisbon, Hamburgische Staatsoper, Salzburg Festival, Opera Zürich, Deutsche Staatsoper Berlin, Opéra National de Lyon, New Israeli Opera, New National Theatre Tokyo, Bregenz Festival, a.o.
Further concerts took her – among other places – to Florence with Zubin Mehta and to Basel with Fabio Luisi.