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To commemorate the 25th anniversary of the German-Polish Treaty of Good Neighbourship and Friendly Cooperation, a musical concert was organised by musicians from the two countries, at the Katara Opera House recently. The event was jointly organised by the embassies of the two countries and was graced by the ambassadors of the respective countries. œIt was 25 years ago, on the historic day of 17 June 1991, in Bonn, the capital of Germany, Polish Prime Minister Jan Krzyztof Bielecki and German Chancellor Helmut Kohl signed the Treaty of Good Neighbourship and Friendly Cooperation that paved way for the new era of Polish-German relations, ? said HE Krzysztof Suprowicz, Ambassador of Poland and HE Hans-Udo Muzel, the Ambassador of Germany, during their joint address to the audience. œThe Reconciliation Mass of November 12, 1989, held in Krzyzowa and attended by the first non-communist Prime Minister of Poland, Tadeusz Mazowiecki, and his counterpart Chancellor Helmut Kohl of Germany, opened the road for constructive dialogue between the two countries. Indeed, 1989 brought a watershed of changes to the future of the people of the two countries, ? narrated the two ambassadors back and forth, giving a well-crafted chronological presentation of the sequence of events that led to the signing of this treaty. Berlin war dissolved the borders between East and West Germany and Poland got its freedom from the communist rule. This treaty outlined the goals and areas of cooperation between the two countries, from security, politics and economic relations to environmental protection and youth exchange programmes. At its core, the treaty testified to the common values and interest of Poland and Germany, despite a difficult history and a difference in political and economic potential. The concert took off with Beethoven's Ode to Joy on piano by Polish artist Marek Bracha, who is regarded as one of the most interesting Polish pianists. His razor sharp sound and crisp expression makes him stand out among his contemporaries. Marek has an extraordinary touch for the classical and romantic periods in piano repertoire that goes perfectly well with his demure manners. His selection of music during the concert was heavily weighed towards seemingly his favourite composer Chopin. Flirting with Bach's French Suite no. 5 in G major, Marek's fingers were itching to play Chopin. He played Chopin's Fantasie-Impromptu in C sharp minor that was followed by Four Mazurkas and Polonaise in A major. However, the climax reached when his fellow German musicians Nicole Prebler on Flute joined the Polish pianist and Harald Georgi on cello and together then played Trio in G minor by Carl Maria von Weber. Nicole and Harald regularly play with Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra (QPO). œI am really honoured to be performing in Qatar for this Polish-German classical concert to commemorate the 25th Anniversary of the German-Polish treaty. I take this opportunity to thank my fellow musicians from the QPO who joined me in this concert, and would certainly look forward to finding more occasions like this to collaborate with the musicians of QPO, ? said Marek. Marek, in 2013, released his first album that includes solo works of Chopin. The CD was recorded for Frydeyk Chopin National Institute in Warsaw. Also, next year, he performed Wladislaw Szpilman Concertino with symphonic orchestra in Rzeszow, Poland. He also premiered newly commissioned Concertino for piano and orchestra by a Polish composer Joanna Bruzdowicz.
