Tomasz J. Opałka’s music has been released on six CDs (Castello GT, POLMIC, Hudobne Centrum).
In her book Dźwięki, Szepty, Zgrzyty (Sounds, Whispers, Rasps), Agnieszka Lewandowska-Kąkol describes Opałka as one of the 16 greatest living Polish composers, alongside Krzysztof Penderecki, Krzesimir Dębski and Michał Lorenc.
Tomasz Opałka has cooperated with ensembles such as Sinfonia Iuventus (conducted by Krzysztof Słowiński), the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra in Katowice (conducted by Michał Klauza), the Polish Radio Orchestra (conducted by Wojciech Michniewski, Łukasz Borowicz and Szymon Bywalec), the New Music Orchestra (conducted by Szymon Bywalec), the Gorzów Philharmonic Orchestra (cond. by Monika Wolińska, Maciej Tworek and Zygmunt Rychert), the Kielce Philharmonic Orchestra (cond. by Jacek Rogala and Mieczysław Gawroński), the Musica Festiva Orchestra (conducted by Stanisław Krawczyński), the Łódź Philharmonic Orchestra (cond. by Michał Klauza), the Kalisz Philharmonic Orchestra (cond. by Adam Klocek), the Scontri Ensemble, the Choir of the Centre for Thought of John Paul II, and the soloists: Leszek Lorent, Janusz Wawrowski, Jadwiga Czarkowska, Wojciech Herzyk, Maciej Frąckiewicz, and others. He has written music for institutions such as the Witold Lutosławski Society, the Adam Mickiewicz Institute, the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra in Katowice, the Kielce Philharmonic, the Gorzów Philharmonic, the Royal Castle in Warsaw, the Kalisz Philharmonic, and the Centre for Thought of John Paul II.
In the 2013/2014 season Opałka was a resident composer at the Gorzów Philharmonic.
The composer successfully divides his attention between classical and film music. He is the author of more than 20 film scores, including short films awarded at prestigious competitions and festivals around the world. Many of these films appear regularly on TVP Kultura. Among the most award-winning productions are: Lumberjack (Poland) produced by the Fumi Studio and directed by Paweł Dębski, Skeleton Girl 3D (Canada), produced by Bleeding Art Industries (Grand Prix at the 3D BE FILM Film Festival, New York, 2012), Na dobry początek (Off to a Good Start) by Wojciech Klimala (participating in the Young Cinema competition at the 36th Polish Film Festival in Gdynia), and ExAnimo directed by Wojciech Wojtkowski.
Tomasz J. Opałka had already began teaching at Fryderyk Chopin University of Music in 2010, before graduating in 2011, after which he taught orchestration and led a contemporary music seminar. In addition, he worked as a visiting professor at Warsaw Film School and Łazienki Królewskie as part of the Łazienki ForMusic programme. In the years 2008-2012 he was a member of the Youth Circle of the Polish Composers’ Union, and in 2010-2012, he served as its Vice-President. Since 2012, he has been a member of the Polish Composers’ Union and since 2013 – a member of its board. Since 2007 he has also been a member of the Polish Society of Authors and Composers.
Opałka has received scholarships from the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage, the Pro Polonia Foundation, the DongSan Research Foundation, the Witold Lutoslawski Society, the Polish Society of Authors and Composers, and the City of Warsaw.
He is the author of the film score for Człowiek bez twarzy (The Man Without a Face) directed by Janusz Dybowski. In March 2007, Visions of Perfect Shapes had its Polish premiere during the fourth Generacje Festival in Warsaw. In the same year he received a commission from the John Paul II Centre for a piece for the choir and orchestra, which was then performed to commemorate the second anniversary of the pope’s death.
Tomasz Opałka is one of the four main characters of the full-length documentary Kilka pytań o słyszenie świata – Portrety Kompozytorów (A Few Questions on Hearing the World: Composers’ Portraits, 2013) directed by Maja Baczyńska.
In 2018, proMODERN Sextet received two Fryderyk Awards for their album Shakespired, which contains a piece composed by Tomasz Opałka – …lips to kiss….