Anna Przybysz & Magdalena Durant

Organised by: Polish Association Aberdeen; Centrum Kultury Polonijnej

Anna Przybysz

Polish organist, born in 1992 in Warsaw, Doctor of Musical Arts, music manager, certified coach, graduate of the Fryderyk Chopin University of Music in Warsaw, in the class of Professor Józef Serafin, and the Hochschule für Musik und Theater in Leipzig, in the class of Professor Martin Schmeding.

She defended her doctoral dissertation "Continuator on the threshold of a stylistic breakthrough - organ music with religious themes by Karl Hoyer (1891-1936)" . 

In 2021, her debut album  "Karl Hoyer Organ Works" was released , in 2022 "Karl Hoyer Organ Sonatas", in 2023 "Karl Hoyer Organ Works vol.3" and in 2024 "Karl Hoyer Organ Miniatures". 

The albums "Karl Hoyer – Organ Works" , "Karl Hoyer – Organ Sonatas" , "Karl Hoyer – Organ Works vol. 3" were recognized for outstanding achievements in the artistic discipline of musical arts and awarded bronze and silver diplomas in the 2nd, 3rd and 4th International " Musical Eagles" Competition . The album "Karl Hoyer – Organ Works" was nominated for Polityka's Passports 2021. 

Positive reviews of the albums appeared in renowned music magazines such as Ruch Muzyczny, Musik und Kirche, Musica Sacra, Ars Organi, and Orgelforum. A program devoted to all the albums was broadcast on MDR Klassik (DE). Excerpts from the albums were also heard on "Muzyczne Rozmowy" (Musical Conversations) on Polish Radio 3. 

A recipient of an Erasmus scholarship and a student exchange program with Rice University in Houston, USA, she is also a two-time recipient of scholarships from the Prime Minister and the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD).

She teaches, conducts individual coaching sessions, and performs at international organ festivals in Poland and abroad. Shee also conducts concerts as part of organ music festivals.

The artist presented Karl Hoyer's music to a US audience for the first time in history, during a monographic concert at The Church of the Advent in Boston, MA, in 2024. For promoting Karl Hoyer's work, Anna Przybysz was awarded a gold diploma in the Soloist category at the 4th International "Musical Eagles" Competition.

Magdalena Durant

Magdalena Durant was born in Wrocław, Poland and studied at the Music Conservatory Karol Lipiński in Wrocław, Poland, as well as at the renowned Cologne State Higher School of Music in Germany. Magdalena Durant has extensive stage experience of a broad and demanding operatic repertoire. She performs throughout Europe, Asia, North and South America with the Berliner Kammeroper, Philharmonie Südwestfalen, St. Andrews Orchestra, New Edinburgh Orchestra as well as with ensembles led by renowned organist John Kitchen in Edinburgh. As a special highlight, she was featured in the 2008 ARD/WDR television documentary Ein Klavier geht. Currently, Magdalena Durant resides in Edinburgh, Scotland where she is a vocal tutor for the University of Edinburgh.