prof. dr hab. Renata Żełobowska-Orzechowska
Pianist, chamber musician and Professor of Musical Arts. For more than four decades she has combined artistic, pedagogical and organisational activity, becoming one of the most respected representatives of Kraków’s musical community.
She graduated from the Academy of Music in Kraków, where she studied piano under Professor Ludwik Stefański, and was a prizewinner of the 12th Fryderyk Chopin Piano Scholarship Competition. Throughout her professional career she has been associated with the Krzysztof Penderecki Academy of Music in Kraków, where she teaches at the Department of Chamber Music. In 2023 she was awarded the title of Professor of Musical Arts.
She has performed extensively in Poland and abroad, appearing in Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Sweden, Italy, Slovakia and South Korea. As a chamber pianist she has collaborated with many distinguished instrumentalists and singers, including Guy Deplus, Michael Wolf, Kaja Danczowska, Teresa Głąbówna, Wiesław Kwaśny, Wiesław Ochman, Peter Dvorský, Mariusz Kwiecień, Alicja Węgorzewska, Joanna Woś, Urszula Kryger and Wioletta Chodowicz.
A significant part of her artistic activity is devoted to chamber and vocal music. She has appeared at numerous national and international festivals, including the International Festival of Kraków Composers, the Music in Old Kraków Festival, the Wawel at Dusk Festival, the International Clarinet Festival and the Jewish Culture Festival in Kraków.
She has made numerous recordings for Polish Radio, Polish Television and leading recording labels. Her artistic output includes chamber, vocal and contemporary music, with particular emphasis on works by Polish composers. Together with distinguished artists, she has contributed to recording and concert projects that have become an important part of Kraków’s musical life.
For many years she served as Artistic Director of educational concerts for children organised by the Karol Szymanowski Philharmonic in Kraków. She has collaborated with the Kraków Opera, Kraków Philharmonic, Capella Cracoviensis, the ARIA Association of Friends of Kraków Opera and Anna Dymna’s Kraków Poetry Salon.
Teaching has always been an important part of her professional activity. She has educated numerous pianists and chamber musicians whose achievements contribute to musical life in Poland and abroad. She has served on competition juries and has given masterclasses devoted to chamber music interpretation.
In 2022 the musical community celebrated the 40th anniversary of her artistic and pedagogical career.
She has been awarded the Golden Cross of Małopolska (2025), the Bronze Medal for Merit to Culture – Gloria Artis, the Medal of the National Education Commission, the Silver Medal for Long Service and the Honoris Gratia distinction awarded by the Mayor of Kraków.