prof. dr hab. Ryszard Żołędziewski

Saxophonist, pedagogue, arranger, composer and juror of music competitions in Europe and Asia. He studied in the field of playing classic saxophone at the Für Musik und Theater Bern-Hochschule der Künste Bern in Switzerland. He studied under the direction of such outstanding saxophonists as Christian Roellinger (France), John-Edward Kelly (USA), Ivan Roth and Marcus Weiss (Switzerland). He also participated in Jazz Master Class led by Jerry Bergonzi (USA). He studied composer artistry of contemporary music under the direction of Henri Pousseur (Belgium) and Urs Peter Schneider (Switzerland).

With saxophone recitals, or as a chamber music played in over 300 concerts as part of international music festivals in most European countries, Israel, Canada, Kazakhstan, Russia and the USA. As a soloist, he toured with orchestras in Austria (Vienna), Belgium (Antwerp), Belarus (Minsk), the Netherlands (Amsterdam, Utrecht), Israel (Jerusalem, tel. (Wrocław, Jelenia Góra, Opole, Gorzów Wielkopolski), Russia (Jekaterinburg, Krasnojarsk) and Ukraine (Kiev, Kharkiv). He participated in recordings for radio and television, made recordings of 4 CDs and published his original scientific monograph in Polish and English, 4 scientific articles (in Polish, English and Russian), 6 educational textbooks and 5 musical studies.

Ryszard Żołędziewski runs master classes and is a speaker of scientific lectures at universities in Austria (Universität für musik und darstellende kunst wien; kunst-universität graz), Belgium (Koninklijk conservatorium antwerpen), Belarus (Belarusian state academy Minsk), Estonia (Estonian Academy of Music and Theater in Tallini), Finland (Sibelius Ackademy - Uniarts Helsinki), Georgia (V. Sarajishvili Tbilisi State Conservatoire), Spain (Real Conservatorio Superior de Madrid), Netherland Conservatorium), Israel (Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance), Kazakhstan (Kumangazy Kazakh National Conservatory in Almaty), Lithuania (Šiauliai Academy of Vilnius University), Latvia (Jazeps Vitols Latvian Academy of Music in Rig; Daugavpils; University), Germany (Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler Berlin; Universität der Künste Berlin), Poland (Academy of Arts in Szczecin; K. Penderecki Academy of Music in Krakow; The Russian Federation in Moscow; I. Ivanov State Musical Pedagogical Institute in Moscow; Ural State Conservatory of Mussorgsky in Jekaterinburg), Slovakia National Music of Ukraine in Kyiv; Kharkiv National Kotlyarevsky University of Arts; Summer music courses in Duszniki Zdrój. Over the past 30 years of didactic activity, he has developed many excellent saxophonists, musicians who have repeatedly laureates of prestigious music competitions in Europe and Asia.

At the Music Academy Karol Lipiński in Wrocław, Ryszard Żołędziewski runs the saxophone class and acts as the head of the Department of Brass instruments, drums and accordion. He is also the chairman of the Association of Polish Musicians - a branch in Wrocław and artistic director of the European Saxophone Forum.

He is a promoter and reviewer in doctoral and habilitation proceedings, as well as a member of numerous doctoral and habilitation committees. He was awarded by the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine, the rector of the National Academy of Music P. I. Czajkowski in Kiev, the National Academy of Arts of Ukraine in Kiev and JM Rector of the Daugavpils University in Latvia for promoting musical culture in the territory of Ukraine and Latvia. By all the artistic, scientific and didactic activity, by the decision of the President of the Republic of Poland, he was awarded the Bronze Cross of Merit.