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Grand Prix Paderewski is an International Competition of Polish Music named after Ignacy Jan Paderewski — pianist, composer, and statesman. Founded by Prof. Michał Dmochowski and organised by Global IberArtis, the competition brings together musicians from different generations and countries, promoting Polish classical music across Europe.
Discover the competition, its history, and the people behind it.
Michał Dmochowski
Founder and Director
Founder of Global Iberartis and Director of the Ignacy Jan Paderewski Polish Music Competition, Michał Dmochowski was born in Warsaw, where he began his cello studies with Kazimierz Michalik at the Chopin Academy. Between 1998 and 2001 he furthered his training with Frans Helmerson and Natalia Shakhovskaya at the Escuela Superior de Música Reina Sofía, where he received the Award for the Most Outstanding Student of the Chair from the Queen herself.
A laureate of prestigious international competitions — including the Ludwig van Beethoven International Cello Competition (Czech Republic), the International Cello Competition in Liezen (Austria) and the Witold Lutosławski International Cello Competition in Warsaw — Dmochowski has collaborated with artists such as Teresa Berganza, Zakhar Bron, Gérard Caussé, Paul Meyer, Hansjörg Schellenberger and Jörg Widmann, and performed as soloist with the Octeto Ibérico de Violonchelos and Plural Ensemble.
He has given recitals across Europe, Asia and the Americas, appearing at venues including the Auditorio Nacional de Música in Madrid, the National Philharmonic in Warsaw, the Auditorium di Roma, the Opéra Comique in Paris, Pick-Staiger Hall in Chicago and festivals such as the Warsaw Autumn. His recordings include sonatas by Rachmaninoff, Stojowski and Tansman with Graham Jackson, My Spain (Deutsche Grammophon), and the Brahms Double Concerto with Zakhar Bron and the Polish Radio Orchestra.
Dmochowski has held a tenured position at the Conservatorio Profesional de Música Jacinto Guerrero in Toledo since 2000 and currently teaches at the Escuela Superior de Música Reina Sofía and the Centro Superior Katarina Gurska. From 2012 to 2016 he directed Europe at the Gate, an EU-funded music-education programme for conservatories in Poland's Silesia region. Among his students are prize-winners and members of orchestras such as the Orquesta Nacional de España, the Gulbenkian Orchestra and the Orchestra of the Teatro Real in Madrid, including Pablo Ferrández and Fernando Arias.
He plays an English cello built in 1780 by W. Forster, courtesy of D. Juan Vizuete Mendoza.
The history of this competition is not a coincidence, but the result of a dream that I have carefully nurtured over many years. Professor Michał Dmochowski, a cellist and educator, had long been looking for a way to share his country’s rich musical heritage with Spain. In Poland, classical music is not only a form of artistic expression, but also an integral part of everyday life, identity, and history. Chopin’s name is known throughout the world, but alongside him stand the works of other great composers who have profoundly shaped the European musical landscape, including Karol Szymanowski, Grażyna Bacewicz, Witold Lutosławski, Krzysztof Penderecki, Henryk Mikołaj Górecki, and Ignacy Jan Paderewski himself, to name but a few.
Aware of this vibrant and powerful heritage, Professor Dmochowski wanted to build a bridge. I wanted to create a space where this music could also resonate on Spanish stages, inspiring young performers and giving rise to new, shared cultural experiences. This is how the Ignacy Jan Paderewski Music Competition came into being, organised by Global IberArtis, an institution committed to the development and promotion of culture. From the very beginning, the initiative received the support of the Polish Institute in Madrid as its cultural partner, and soon afterwards also of the Embassy of the Kingdom of Spain in Warsaw, which recognised the project not only for its artistic value, but also for its potential to bring the two countries genuinely closer together.
The first edition, held in Madrid, was met with tremendous enthusiasm. The competition generated great interest among students, conservatory communities, and young musicians. Polish music, full of intensity, lyricism, and expressive power, immediately sparked curiosity and attracted an increasing number of participants. Rather than being a tentative debut, the event was vibrant and full of energy from the very beginning, drawing an engaged audience and an artistic community captivated by the discovery of a new and exceptionally compelling repertoire
Around this vision, a prestigious international jury has come together, bringing together distinguished figures from the world of music such as Paweł Mazur, Paweł Radziński, Andrés Salado, and Cecilia Montserrat, among others. Their participation has ensured the competition’s high artistic standards and helped establish its recognition beyond national borders. Both the audience and the musicians have particularly valued the quality of the artistic dialogue that takes place throughout the competition — a space where participants not only compete, but also learn, exchange ideas, and share their musical experiences.
With each edition, the competition has continued to grow, reaching increasingly prominent stages and strengthening its identity. Performances of works by Chopin, Paderewski, Bacewicz, Penderecki, Lutosławski, Xaver Scharwenka, Wiłkomirski, Wieniawski, Lipiński, and many others have resonated in concert halls across Madrid, while at the same time inspiring young performers who have discovered in this repertoire a new form of artistic expression. Alongside the competition, cultural activities — including lectures and exhibitions devoted to Paderewski’s life and legacy — have helped broaden its reach. These events have brought together prominent figures from the worlds of music and culture, as well as an increasingly large audience that returns year after year, drawn by the enthusiasm the competition has managed to inspire.
One of the most beautiful features of the competition is its unique atmosphere. A warm, intense, and deeply human sense of community develops among participants, jury members, and the audience — an environment that encourages new friendships, artistic exchange, and professional opportunities. From the very beginning, this aspect has been essential to Professor Dmochowski: the competition was intended to be a platform for professional development, certainly, but also a space for personal growth — a place where music could be shared, rather than simply evaluated.
The main prize, a trip to Poland with the opportunity to give concerts, reflects the international dimension of this initiative. For the winners, it is not merely a form of recognition, but a genuine artistic experience: discovering another country through its musical culture, performing in its concert halls, and becoming part of an exchange that enriches both sides.
Looking ahead, the competition is opening a new chapter. Alongside the existing categories, a new age-unrestricted category is being introduced, based on a simple yet profound idea: music knows no boundaries. This expansion aims to bring new energy and an even greater dimension to a project that, from the very beginning, has sought to unite generations and people from different backgrounds through a shared passion for music.
Today, the Ignacy Jan Paderewski Competition is much more than a musical event: it is a living cultural encounter, a bridge between Poland and Spain, between young talents and established artists, and between the past and the future. It is a story that grows with every edition, every note, and every friendship formed through music. A story written not only in musical scores, but also in the looks, conversations, and shared dreams of those who bring it to life.
