{"id":6694,"date":"2026-08-08T12:40:44","date_gmt":"2026-08-08T10:40:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/whystory.pl\/en\/?p=6694"},"modified":"2026-08-08T12:40:46","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T10:40:46","slug":"55-years-of-the-band-and-community-of-several-generations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/whystory.pl\/en\/55-years-of-the-band-and-community-of-several-generations\/","title":{"rendered":"55 Years of the Band and Community of\u00a0Several Generations"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

An interview with Arlena R\u00f3\u017cycka-Ga\u0142\u0105zka and Waldemar Ga\u0142\u0105zka, conductors of the Resonans con tutti choir, about the musical path that led from school fascination with cello and rock guitar to\u00a0co-creating one of the most recognizable youth choirs in Poland. It is also a story about prof. Norbert Kroczek, the sudden takeover of\u00a0responsibility after his death, working with subsequent generations of young people, international competitions, a\u00a0family immersed in music. The\u00a0artists emphasize that art requires not only passion, but also real patronage. Arlena R\u00f3\u017cycka-Ga\u0142\u0105zka was awarded the title of\u00a0Charismatic Woman,<\/em> and\u00a0Waldemar Ga\u0142\u0105zka was awarded the\u00a0title of\u00a0Leader\u00a0by\u00a0Vocation.<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Were you born a\u00a0Charismatic Woman or did you become one?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Arlena: <\/strong>I\u00a0admit that I\u00a0was rather shy and introverted. The choir and conducting prepared me me for this role. Later I\u00a0started to manage the cultural centre, which meant responsibility not only for the team, but also for the facility, people, activities and documents. Today I\u00a0know that leadership can be learned, and charisma is something you simply have.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And what about the leader?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Waldemar:<\/strong> I\u00a0think you can become one. I\u00a0went through all levels in Resonance: from an ordinary chorister, through singing in tenors, conducting section rehearsals, to conducting the entire choir. However, I\u00a0had my first leadership experience earlier, in primary school, when I\u00a0founded a\u00a0rock band with my friends. I\u00a0played electric guitar and led the band for a\u00a0bit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How did your musical journey together begin?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Arlena: <\/strong>We met at music school. I\u00a0was seventeen, and Waldek was already involved with the choir. He was the one who actually brought me to Resonans cn tutti. When I\u00a0came to prof. Norbert Kroczek, I\u00a0was very impressed with him. I\u00a0sang with him for four years, I\u00a0went to competitions and then I\u00a0thought that I\u00a0also wanted to work with music this way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Waldemar: <\/strong>I\u00a0am from the Mikulczyce \u2013 district of Zabrze, so I\u00a0went to a\u00a0nearby electrical high school. Music came to me a\u00a0bit from rock. After the Maanam concert in Zabrze, I\u00a0decided that I\u00a0had to play the guitar. Only later did the chorus appear in my life and I\u00a0decided that being an electrician was not my calling. I\u00a0got to music school late, so I\u00a0had to make up for it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The choir after the competition auditions at the Lloret de Mar Festival in Catalonia in 2023 (3 gold medals)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Prof. Was Norbert Kroczek your champion or idol?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

A: <\/strong>Definitely, yes. After years of music school, it was only in him that I\u00a0saw a\u00a0real enthusiast. Previously, I\u00a0even thought about medicine, because I\u00a0liked biology very much \u2013 with this goal in mind, I\u00a0went to the 1st high school to study biology and chemistry, but the choir changed my life. Norbert Kroczek showed me that working on a\u00a0piece of music can be something deep, lively and very responsible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

W: <\/strong>Professor Kroczek created Resonans as a\u00a0team with a\u00a0huge brand. We entered this history first as choristers and instructors. Only a\u00a0dramatic event made us have to take on much more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Are you talking about Ireland in 1994?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

W: <\/strong>Yes. We went with the choir to a\u00a0competition. At that time, I\u00a0was a\u00a0beginner assistant conductor, I\u00a0was conducting section rehearsals, but I\u00a0had never conducted a\u00a0whole choir before. After the inaugural concert, Professor Kroczek fainted and died. The band decided that their work couldn\u2019t be wasted, and the professor himself used to say that if he ever dies on stage, we must not stop, we must continue singing\u2026 It was up to me. I\u00a0didn\u2019t sleep for two nights, getting ready. We started and won.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A: <\/strong>After returning, it wasn\u2019t any easier. Resonance had a\u00a0great reputation, and we were young students of the Academy of Music. Many people did not accept that suddenly we were leading such a\u00a0choir. We had to work very hard to prove that we could maintain it.<\/p>\n\n\n

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In the courtyard of Kartuzja Gaming during the Vienna Chopin Festival \u2013 August 2025 (this year we were invited to this festival again \u2013 its director is the 100-year-old Professor Dr. Theodor Kanitzer)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n
\n\n\n\n

How do\u00a0you divide responsibilities today?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

A: <\/strong>Waldek is the main conductor, but I\u00a0also conduct and lead the band. We have slightly different temperaments. He is better at concerts, where you have to react live, and I\u00a0like competitions because there you can refine everything. I\u00a0also deal more with the organizational side: trips, entries to competitions, organization of workshops, documents, festival correspondence. Waldemar determines the details of concerts, logistics, schedule planning and rehearsal strategies. He makes sure that we are on time with all the programs we are working on at the same time. I\u00a0have no sense of time \u2013 when I\u00a0get lost in the piece, I\u00a0don\u2019t notice the end of the rehearsal. Waldek disciplines me very well. The audience sees the concert, but before that there are months of rehearsals, work, conversations, consents, letters, etc.
This part is closely related to my work at Youth Cultural Center No. 1. I\u00a0did not plan to become a\u00a0director. I\u00a0took over this function at a\u00a0difficult time to maintain the continuity of the facility\u2019s operations. It quickly turned out, although of course I\u00a0could have expected it, that it was a\u00a0huge responsibility: activities, people, building, procedures, reports, regulations. It had to be learned on the fly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

W:<\/strong> In such a\u00a0band, music alone is not enough. You have to keep an eye on people, deadlines, level, finances and atmosphere. Arlena took on a\u00a0large part of this invisible work, without which there would be no rehearsals, trips, or concerts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What does working with young people mean to you?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

A: <\/strong>At the cultural centre, it\u2019s important to me that it\u2019s a\u00a0living place, not just a\u00a0building with a\u00a0schedule of classes. We have dance, sports, music, art, painting, and technical classes, and we collaborate with schools, organizations, and the local community. The idea is for young people to find something for themselves, meet people, and discover their passions. This is very close to what we do\u00a0at Resonans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

W: <\/strong>We take young people with no musical training. The key is ear fr music. Every year, I\u00a0audition about 700-800 people, of whom I\u00a0choose 120-150. Realistically, about forty people come, and after a\u00a0year, about ten remain. That\u2019s a\u00a0good result. We teach everything from the ground up: voice projection, music reading, intervals, technique, theory, and working with text.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Marina-Preveza \u2013 44th International Choir Festival, July 2026<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n
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How wide is the choir\u2019s repertoire?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

A: <\/strong>Very broad. We sing sacred and secular music, classical music, popular music, oratorios like Mozart\u2019s Requiem, Handel\u2019s Messiah, Brahms\u2019s Ein Deutsches Requiem, and Mahler\u2019s Symphony of a\u00a0Thousand, as well as film music, opera, and even rap opera. Small and large forms. This is important for young people, as they experience different genres and see that a\u00a0choir isn\u2019t a\u00a0museum piece.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

W: <\/strong>We also have many competition successes. I\u00a0particularly value Palestrina in Rome, Neerpelt \u2013 Summa Cum Laude, and the competition in Ohrid, where I\u00a0received the award for best conductor, even though there were fifty ensembles. The most important thing, however, is that we manage to maintain a\u00a0high standard over the years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is the biggest challenge offstage?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

A:<\/strong> Finances. We could attend competitions several times a\u00a0year, but it\u2019s a\u00a0huge expense for such a\u00a0large choir. The bus we once took to Spain with a\u00a0group of 85 people cost 57,000 z\u0142oty. The young people pay around 1,200 PLN per person for the competition trip to Greece, and we have to raise the rest from projects and sponsors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

W: <\/strong>We don\u2019t want money to be a\u00a0barrier for young people. This is an amateur band, but when it represents the city and the country at competitions, it needs a\u00a0real support base. Culture also requires patronage, not just passion. It\u2019s a\u00a0significant challenge and makes planning the band\u2019s future more difficult.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is music also part of your family life?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

A:<\/strong> From birth, our children attended choir camps with us twice a\u00a0year. Then they rebelled against the music school, started a\u00a0rock band, and in their senior year, they decided they wanted to apply to the Academy of Music. They both graduated with a\u00a0degree in choral conducting. Today, my son Szymon studies sound engineering at the Jazz Department of the Academy of Music in Katowice and, of course, works in this field. My daughter Natalia leads the Children\u2019s Choir of the Silesian Opera, pursues numerous musical projects as a\u00a0conductor and bassist \u2013 for example, with Krzysztof Zalewski and Czes\u0142aw Mozil \u2013 studies jazz double bass at the Mieczys\u0142aw Kar\u0142owicz State Music School in Katowice, performs extensively with colleagues, and, of course, helps us run Resonans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

W:<\/strong> It\u2019s beautiful, but also difficult, because the band is constantly present. Someone can call at any time, make arrangements, place orders, ask questions. It\u2019s practically impossible to get out of that kind of work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What are you most proud of today?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

W: <\/strong>That you managed to keep the band going. After Professor Kroczek\u2019s death, many people predicted that Resonans would disband. It didn\u2019t. It survived, developed, and continues to attract young people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A: <\/strong>I\u2019m proud of my children, but also of the fact that Waldek and I\u00a0have survived these thirty-something years of leading the choir, that we were nominated for the Fryderyk Award, and that my husband has been a\u00a0member of the jury that awards this distinction ever since, and that we continue to gather fantastic young people and introduce them to the world of music. The recent anniversary celebration, celebrating our 55th anniversary, when 177 choristers and about 40 orchestra members took the stage, showed that Resonans con tutti is more than just a\u00a0band. It\u2019s a\u00a0community spanning several generations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And your plans for the future?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

W:<\/strong> We\u2019ve just had our 55 th anniversary concert, and now we\u2019re going to a\u00a0competition in Greece and more concerts. You have to choose wisely, because you can\u2019t do\u00a0everything. The choir needs to develop, but the people also need strength and a\u00a0sense of purpose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A:<\/strong> Maintain the continuity of the group, develop, improve our working methods, raise funds for our activities \u2013 trips to festivals and competitions, maybe buy a\u00a0choir bus (laughter). This would solve many of our needs.
And on a\u00a0personal note, my love is my energizing garden. After a\u00a0long day of rehearsals, filling out paperwork, making phone calls, working at the MDK, and organizing, it\u2019s good to get out into the trees and just be for a\u00a0moment. Because to give young people energy, you also have to get it from somewhere. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Szymon P\u0119czalski
Beata Seku\u0142a<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

An interview with Arlena R\u00f3\u017cycka-Ga\u0142\u0105zka and Waldemar Ga\u0142\u0105zka, conductors of the Resonans con tutti choir, about the musical path that led from school fascination with cello and rock guitar to\u00a0co-creating one of the most recognizable youth choirs in Poland. It is also a story about prof. Norbert Kroczek, the sudden takeover of\u00a0responsibility after his death, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6699,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[640],"tags":[],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/whystory.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6694"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/whystory.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/whystory.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/whystory.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/whystory.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6694"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/whystory.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6694\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6702,"href":"https:\/\/whystory.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6694\/revisions\/6702"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/whystory.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6699"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/whystory.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6694"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/whystory.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6694"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/whystory.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6694"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}