prof. dr. hab. Bogdan Makal

A bass-baritone, as well as an experienced pedagogue.

Bogdan Makal studied solo singing at the Academy of Music in Bydgoszcz and Wrocław. He graduated with distinction from the Karol Lipiński Academy of Music in Wrocław, where he studied in the class of Prof. Kazimierz Myrlak and was a recipient of a scholarship from the Ministry of Culture and Art.

A laureate of numerous vocal competitions, international awards and distinctions, his competitive achievements include:
– the 2nd Prize and a Special Award for the performance of Stanisław Moniuszko’s songs in Warsaw (1989),
– the 3rd Special Prize at the All-University Competition of Polish Art Song Performance (Warsaw, 1991),
– the 2nd Prize and a Special Award for the performance of Polish works at the 2nd Inter-University International Vocal Competition in Duszniki-Zdrój (1992),
– the 2nd Prize and a Special Award from the Rector of the Academy of Music in Gdańsk at the All-Polish Grieg Competition (1993),
– award for a soloist at the International Festival of Orthodox Church Music in Hajnówka.
He participated in several competitions organized by the Academy of Music in Wrocław, the Hochschule für Musik Franz Liszt in Weimar, and the Bach Academy of Helmut Rilling.

His repertoire interests are broad, encompassing oratorio and cantata music from the Renaissance to the contemporary period, romantic lieder (art song), Polish music, Orthodox and Armenian church chants, Creole music, and opera. He has performed bass and baritone parts in over 100 oratorio works. He was the first in Poland to sing bass parts in oratorio and cantata works by composers such as Johann Sebastian Bach, George Frideric Handel, Giacomo Carissimi, Karl Richter, and Maciej Wronowicz, performing with period instrument orchestras in the spirit of historically informed performance. He has collaborated with both the opera and drama theatres. He has made numerous premiere phonographic recordings, honored with prestigious awards, including those for radio and television in Poland, the Czech Republic, France, and the USA. Among these are albums honored with the Grand Prix du Disque de l'Academie Charles Gros and the Diapason d'Or.

He performed at numerous festivals and concerts in Poland, Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Belarus, France, Spain, Lithuania, Monaco, Germany, Switzerland, Ukraine, Italy, and the USA.

He pursues extensive pedagogical and didactic activity as a lecturer and teacher. He is a titular professor at the Academy of Music in Wrocław. He served in managerial functions as the Dean of the Vocal Faculty at the Academy of Music in Wrocław and also as the Head of the Vocal Department at the State Music School. He educated and contributed to the success of many singers performing on prestigious opera stages worldwide including: La Scala, the Metropolitan Opera, the Royal Opera House in London, Wiener Staatsoper, the Bolshoi Theatre, Teatro di San Carlo, Opéra Bastille, Teatro dell'Opera di Roma, Opéra de Lyon, Teatro Massimo Palermo, Teatro Regio Torino, Dresden Semperoper, Deutsche Oper Berlin, Staatsoper Unter den Linden, Bayerische Staatsoper, Státní Opera Praha, Národní divadlo v Praze, Den Norske Opera & Ballet, the Dutch National Opera & Ballet, Teatro Real de Madrid, the Mariinsky Theatre, the Grand Theatre in Warsaw.

He conducted classes at three universities in the USA (Chapel Hill, Charlotte, Wake Forest University), as well as at the Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst in Vienna and the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre in Vilnius and Academy of Music of Vytautas Magnus University in Kaunas. He led Masterclasses in Kyiv (Ukraine), Lonigo (Italy) and at the Grand Theatre in Warsaw. He consulted vocal classes in many cities in Poland, Lithuania and Russia. He is an Expert for the Ministry of National Education. He is also a lecturer and director of the Winter Vocal Course in Duszniki Zdrój, a co-organizer of oratorio-cantata courses at the Wratislavia Cantans festival and a lecturer at the Summer Music and Vocal Academies in Wrocław and Sopot, as well as the international Ars Musica festivals in Suwałki. He served as a juror for vocal competitions in Poland, Lithuania, and Italy and participated in conferences organized by the Bundesverband Deutscher Gesangspedagogen and Polish Association of Singing Pedagogues.

For his pedagogical activity he received numerous awards and diplomas of recognition, including the bronze Gloria Artis Medal for Merit to Culture, the Silver and the Gold Cross of Merit, the Honorary Badge "Meritorious for Polish Culture", the Medal of the Polish National Education Commission, the Golden Badge of the Association of Polish Music Artists, the Meritorious for Wrocław medal and diplomas from the Director of the Centre for Artistic Education (twice), the Rector of the Academy of Music in Wrocław and the Polish Association of Singing Pedagogues.