Piotr Ryszard Pawlak

Without a hint of exaggeration, he is among the most versatile young pianists: effortlessly combining modern and period instruments, analytical thinking with improvisation, and music with mathematics – reaching true mastery in both domains.

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Piotr Ryszard Pawlak, photo: International Chopin Piano Competition

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Born on 20 February 1998 in Gdańsk, Piotr Ryszard Pawlak comes from a family of engineers and, as he admits, his musical ear developed independently of any family traditions. Yet there was fertile ground: an old, unused piano in his grandparents’ flat. His growing interest in music soon led to formal studies at a music school.

From the outset, Pawlak’s education followed multiple paths. At the Feliks Nowowiejski Secondary Music School in Gdańsk, he studied piano with Waldemar Wojtal and organ with Hanna Dys. Alongside musical competitions, he also enjoyed considerable success in national olympiads in mathematics and computer science. Continuing his collaboration with Wojtal, in 2021 he graduated with honours from the Gdańsk Academy of Music, and since 2024 has been a student at the prestigious International Piano Academy Lake Como. He continued to deepen his musical education in Gdańsk, studying conducting under Zygmunt Rychert and taking individual composition lessons with Krzysztof Olczak. He has not, however, abandoned ‘the queen of the sciences’: he is currently working on a PhD in class groups of mappings on non-orientable surfaces at the University of Gdańsk.

In addition to international mathematics competitions, he has also enjoyed success as a pianist. He won the 5th Maj Lind International Piano Competition in Helsinki (2022) and the 11th International Chopin Piano Competition in Darmstadt (2017), where he also received the prize for best improvisation. He has collected awards at Chopin competitions in Beijing (2016), Budapest (2018), and Kraków (2019); the Stanisław Moniuszko International Polish Music Competition in Rzeszów (2019); the Ignacy Jan Paderewski International Piano Competition in Bydgoszcz (2022); and the International Chopin Competition on Period Instruments in Warsaw (2023).Notably, he has already taken part three times in the International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw (2015, 2021, 2025).

He has performed widely across Europe, in venues such as the Berlin Philharmonie, the St Petersburg Philharmonic, the National Philharmonic in Warsaw, the Sala Verdi in Milan, and Teatro alla Scala – as well as in the United States, China, and Japan. He has appeared with orchestras including the Polish National Philharmonic, the Baltic Philharmonic, the Świętokrzyska Philharmonic, the Lower Silesian Philharmonic, the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, and {oh!} Orkiestra. His performances have featured at festivals such as Kissinger Sommer in Bad Kissingen and Chopin and His Europe in Warsaw. Among various scholarships, he was awarded one founded by Krystian Zimerman.

In 2025, in collaboration with musicians from the Wrocław Baroque Orchestra, he released an album of chamber music by Józef Elsner, recorded for the first time on a period instrument. In February of the same year, his debut solo album featuring music by Fryderyk Chopin was released – recorded during the 2nd International Chopin Competition on Period Instruments.

Intuition or Scientism?

Asked why he combines such seemingly distant fields, he explained to Justyna Michalkiewicz-Waloszek of the Trójmiasto.pl website:

‘Mathematics allows me to perceive and analyse the complexity of musical works, to explain the logic of musical structures – while music, in turn, enables me to admire the beauty and harmony of mathematical theory. I also appreciate having opportunities to engage in areas that lie between the two disciplines – whether it's piano construction or the design of music software’.

Pawlak sees the rational analysis of individual pieces and an understanding of their broader context as tools for enhancing the aesthetic experience. Yet his true motivation for pursuing music lies in the pleasure of encountering beauty – as he admitted in Klasyka na Podkarpaciu in 2024:

‘My priority right now is the piano. Playing this instrument brings me the greatest pleasure and satisfaction. I will, of course, still pursue my other interests, as they give me great joy and expand my horizons. You approach the works of Johann Sebastian Bach differently when you’ve previously played his compositions on organ or period instruments like the clavichord.My mathematical background also shapes how I perceive the genius and perfection of Bach’s compositions’.

New Old Sounds

Pawlak was first introduced to historical performance practice in 2016 through the Fryderyk Chopin Institute, which invited him to participate in piano master classes in Radziejowice. This was yet another of Pawlak’s many ‘optional courses’ in aid of his individual performance style and scholarly interpretations. As he told Radio Kielce:

‘When I played a modern piano, I sometimes wondered why Chopin wrote something so strangely, when it would sound better otherwise. But then, sitting at a period instrument, it suddenly turns out that everything sounds amazing and creates a certain effect, so the pieces sound… I’m not sure if “more authentic” is the right term, because this music is universal and can be performed on any instrument – but certainly, it becomes easier to approach and to understand Chopin’s intentions. Later, when you return to a modern piano after playing a period one, new colours emerge, and a new quest begins: to find those old sounds in the modern instrument’.

As part of his exploration of historical performance, Pawlak is also committed to ‘restoring improvisation to the world of classical music’. Here, too, he has achieved considerable success, as demonstrated by the award for best improvisation in Darmstadt, based on themes from Der Freischütz by Carl Maria von Weber. In 2020, he also won second prize at the Transatlantyk Instant Composition Contest during the International Film Festival in Katowice.