Soloist
Repertoire for marimba, vibraphone and percussion — from twentieth-century classics to new music.
Percussionist · Artist · Educator
Wojciech
Herzyk
In search of new sounds and musical meanings.
Percussion as a space for experimentation, pushing boundaries and discovering music that is constantly changing. A journey filled with encounters, inspiration,
and the shared search for new musical worlds.
Katowice, Poland
About
Music as a meeting
of sound and ideas.
I am a percussionist, soloist and chamber musician. My work centres on contemporary music, solo and chamber repertoire, and exploring new sound possibilities on percussion instruments.
I was born in Katowice, Poland, in 1983. I studied with Professor Stanisław Proksa at the Karol Szymanowski Academy of Music in Katowice, receiving the Primus Inter Pares medal in 2007. From 2007 to 2009, at the invitation of Professor Robert van Sice, I continued my studies at the Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore on a full scholarship, earning a Graduate Performance Diploma. Keiko Abe, Svet Stoyanov and Tom Freer have also been important influences on my musical development.
As a soloist and chamber musician, I have performed in Poland, across Europe, the United States and Asia. Since 2009, I have been the principal percussionist of the New Music Orchestra (Orkiestra Muzyki Nowej). I collaborate with composers, take part in premieres and recordings, and develop chamber projects exploring new sound worlds. I am an artist of Adams Musical Instruments.
Teaching is equally important to me. I teach at the Karol Szymanowski Academy of Music in Katowice and the Fryderyk Chopin General Music School in Bytom. In 2025, I was awarded the degree of doktor habilitowany, a postdoctoral qualification in the Polish academic system. I give masterclasses and workshops, serve on competition juries, and develop educational projects. My students have won more than one hundred awards, including the title of Young Musician of the Year 2020.
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Artistic work
Working with sound.
Open to the new.
Music as a meeting place — with composers, fellow performers, audiences and sound itself.
Chamber musician
Dialogue, attentive listening and exploring the sound possibilities of instruments together.
Contemporary music
Exploring new sounds, working with composers and remaining open to unexpected ideas.
For me, performing is an ongoing encounter with new music, ideas and ways of listening — and a space where sound can become the beginning of a story.
As a soloist and chamber musician, I explore repertoire that reveals the wide-ranging possibilities of percussion instruments: from marimba and vibraphone to extended setups with instruments of very different colours and characters. I am interested not only in the technical side of performance, but above all in what sound can communicate — tension, energy, silence, space and emotion.
Contemporary music holds a special place in my work. It continually invites questions, new solutions and a willingness to move beyond familiar habits. Working with a score means discovering its inner logic and, at times, helping shape the way a piece comes to life on stage. Precision and timbral colour matter, as do gesture, movement and the relationship between performer, instrument and space.
Collaboration with composers and fellow performers is an essential part of this journey. In chamber music, I value dialogue, attentive listening and the shared shaping of a musical form while preserving the individuality of each voice. Every project brings different challenges and offers a new perspective on the percussion world.
Since 2009, I have been a member of the New Music Orchestra (Orkiestra Muzyki Nowej), taking part in projects devoted to the music of our time. This experience brings regular encounters with diverse musical languages, composers and performers, and the collective search for new ways of listening. I see this openness — to people, ideas and sounds — as one of the most important dimensions of my artistic work.
Teaching
Growth through
sharing.
For me, teaching is about helping each musician find their own path. I combine solid technique and thoughtful work with curiosity, artistic independence and the confidence to express something personal. The teacher’s role is not to offer ready-made answers, but to guide each student towards their own.
I teach at the Karol Szymanowski Academy of Music in Katowice and the Fryderyk Chopin General Music School in Bytom; from 2017 to 2021, I also worked at the Stanisław Moniuszko State Music School Complex in Bielsko-Biała. At the Academy, I teach principal instrument, chamber music, orchestral studies and audition preparation. Alongside technique, I give particular attention to sound, movement, interpretation, independent practice and managing performance pressure.
My students have received more than 130 prizes and distinctions in Polish and international competitions, including the title of Young Musician of the Year 2020 and awards at competitions in Italy, Portugal and Ukraine. I value these achievements, while believing that progress also means growing in confidence, overcoming difficulties and discovering the joy of playing. My teaching and contribution to arts education have been recognised with awards, including the Award of the Minister of Culture and National Heritage.
I have led more than 50 masterclasses, workshops and seminars in Poland and abroad, sharing experience in solo and chamber repertoire, performance preparation and pedagogy. Among these were events in Tomar, Nuremberg, Bamberg and Castelló de la Plana, as well as workshops in Riga as part of the Sounds of Percussion conference and at Emīls Dārziņš Music School. I also founded the Interdepartmental Percussion Scientific Circle and organise concerts, educational projects and meetings with guest artists, creating opportunities for young musicians to learn through performance and collaboration.
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Projects
Music that
brings people together.
My projects grow out of my work as a performer and educator. They encompass contemporary music, the development of percussion education and opportunities for musicians at different stages of their careers to meet and exchange ideas. They include performances, workshops, competitions and educational initiatives.
I have been the orchestra’s principal percussionist since 2009. It is an important space for me to engage with contemporary music — music that can be challenging, unexpected and full of new ways of listening. Working with the ensemble means collaborating closely with composers and fellow performers, taking part in premieres and searching together for the sound that best brings each work to life.
Śląski Meeting Perkusyjny alternates between two formats: a competition edition and a workshop edition. The first edition, held in 2025, was a competition for students of upper-level music schools in Poland; in 2026, the event took the form of Workshop Edition. Masterclasses, talks and concerts create opportunities for shared learning and an exchange of experience. For me, the Meeting is not only a chance to compete, but also a place for the percussion community to connect and grow together.
Since 2023, I have served as artistic director of this competition in Lidzbark Warmiński for students of first-level music schools. It gives young percussionists a chance to perform, manage the nerves that come with the stage and meet others who share their passion. For me, the experience matters as much as the result: the joy of playing, the confidence gained and the motivation to take the next step.
Interdepartmental Percussion Scientific Circle
The Circle gives students a chance to step beyond their regular lessons and make things together: prepare concerts, explore new repertoire and meet visiting artists. I want it to be a place where they can experiment, exchange ideas and learn from one another — including through projects that reach beyond the limits of a single class.Conferences and educational projects
I also organise events that bring performance, discussion and education together, including Percussion in Therapy – Therapy in Percussion, the conference Polish Percussion Art: Today and Tomorrow, and the National Congress of Percussion Scientific Circles. Workshops and concerts for children and young people are another important part of this work, including inclusive projects that open up musical experiences to people with different needs.One idea connects all these projects for me: music grows most fully when it is shared. That is why organising encounters, supporting young performers and creating opportunities to work together matter just as much to me as performing itself.
Media
Images, sounds
and moments on stage.
Photographs from concerts, rehearsals and musical encounters.
Contact
Let's talk
about music.
Concerts, workshops, artistic collaboration and educational projects.
