Classical Music in the Renaissance Heart of Kraków. November at Villa Decius
November at Villa Decius resonates with the sounds of piano, harp, and poetry. In its Renaissance interiors—drawing artists from around the world for centuries—classical music meets contemporary sensibility, and sound becomes a language beyond borders.
Classical November at Villa Decius
A Month Resonating with Piano, Harp and Poetry
November at Villa Decius resonates with the sounds of piano, harp, and poetry. In its Renaissance interiors—drawing artists from around the world for centuries—classical music meets contemporary sensibility, and sound becomes a language beyond borders.
Villa Decius has long been a place where art finds its home. Here, in the historic ballroom, the sound of piano and harp intertwines with poetry, emotion, and cultural dialogue. This November brings a unique cycle of classical concerts—three evenings, three musical stories, three distinct approaches to tradition and the interpretation of sound.
On 21 November, the month opens with the poetic concert “Herbarium in the Desert”, performed by Portuguese artists Mia Tomé and Clara Lacerda, together with Polish-Italian actress Magda Andrzejewska. The audience will embark on a sensory journey through the poetry of Emily Dickinson, in a programme combining music, spoken word and performative expression—in English and Portuguese—creating a vivid intercultural dialogue between Portugal, Poland and the United States.
Two days later, on 23 November, the halls of Villa Decius will fill with the sound of harps during the concert in memoriam Professor Józef Lipiec. Malwina Lipiec-Rozmysłowicz and Mila Rozmysłowicz will pay tribute to a philosopher for whom ethics, beauty and spiritual reflection were central to life. The programme will include works by J.S. Bach, Aldona Poczwardowska, Claude Debussy, Krystyna Siek and Marcel Tournier—repertoire that will captivate both classical music connoisseurs and those drawn to its emotional depth.
The month will conclude with the concert “French Piano Chamber Music” on 30 November. Pianists Olga Michałowska and Szymon Paruzel will present works by Debussy, Ravel, Poulenc, Fauré and Tansman. Their interpretations—enhanced with commentary—will reveal the nuances of French musical sensitivity and the poetic timbre of the piano.
Concert Details
“Herbarium in the Desert” – Poetic Concert
Villa Decius, 21 November 2025 (Friday), 6:00 PM
On Friday, 21 November at 6:00 PM, Villa Decius invites audiences to the poetic concert “Herbarium in the Desert”, performed by Portuguese artists: actress and vocalist Mia Tomé, accompanied on piano by Clara Lacerda. Music and poetry, joined by the performative presence of Magda Andrzejewska, create a sensual encounter of word and sound. This original project, inspired by the work of Emily Dickinson, celebrates the written word—particularly the Portuguese language—and women’s poetry.
Dickinson’s poems weave together intimate observations of domestic life with existential reflections, meditations on fate, recurring motifs of longing, suffering, and the search for an undiscovered inner self. Her works often end with witty, darkly ironic punchlines. Themes such as flowers and gardens, love, mortality, and identity will echo throughout the performance.
Elements referencing Portuguese culture, along with the presence of Polish-Italian actress Magda Andrzejewska—whose voice, movement, and poetic expression add depth—highlight the dialogue between these three artistic traditions. Performed in English and Portuguese, the programme invites audiences into a sonic desert landscape, exploring the plasticity of sound and the resonance of language.
FREE ENTRY:
Complimentary tickets: https://bilety.willadecjusza.pl/
Performers
Mia Tomé
A Portuguese actress and singer, Mia Tomé graduated from the Higher School of Theatre and Cinema and refined her craft at the Lee Strasberg Theatre & Film Institute in New York under a Gulbenkian Foundation scholarship. She is known for her work with spoken word and her focus on the expressive power of language. Her original projects include the album Projeto Natália, performed internationally in Washington, Boston, New York, and Dartmouth. In 2022, she recorded Há um Herbário no Deserto—a Portuguese-language musical project inspired by Emily Dickinson.
Clara Lacerda
A Portuguese pianist and composer, Clara Lacerda studied classical piano at the Porto Music Conservatory and jazz piano at ESMAE. She has performed in numerous ensembles and artistic residencies and currently continues her master’s studies in composition while touring internationally with Salvador Sobral’s group.
Magda Andrzejewska
A Polish-Italian actress educated in Rome, specialising in intercultural communication and audiovisual translation. Her artistic work spans theatre, film and performance. A former participant in the Culture Moves Europe residency at Villa Decius (2024) and winner of Polish Talent Support 2025.
Concert in Memoriam Professor Józef Lipiec
Villa Decius, 23 November (Sunday), 5:00 PM
The memorial concert dedicated to Professor Józef Lipiec will fill the chambers of Villa Decius with the sound of the harp. The programme includes works by J.S. Bach, Aldona Poczwardowska, Claude Debussy, Krystyna Siek and Marcel Tournier, performed by Malwina Lipiec-Rozmysłowicz and Mila Rozmysłowicz.
Professor Józef Lipiec devoted his life to philosophy. He taught at the AGH University of Science and Technology and the Jagiellonian University, and worked as a publicist. His fields of expertise included ontology, social philosophy, axiology, ethics, aesthetics and the philosophy of sport. He was a founding member and, from 2000, chairman of the Polish Olympic Academy.
FREE ENTRY:
Complimentary tickets: https://bilety.willadecjusza.pl/
Performers
Malwina Lipiec-Rozmysłowicz
A harpist and soloist of the National Forum of Music in Wrocław, lecturer at the music academies in Wrocław and Poznań, laureate of numerous awards, and recording artist with dozens of albums to her name.
Mila Rozmysłowicz
A talented young harpist, multiple award winner and scholarship recipient, with a repertoire encompassing both classical and contemporary harp literature.
“French Piano Chamber Music” – Piano Concert
Villa Decius, 30 November (Sunday), 5:00 PM
The final Sunday of November brings a programme featuring French piano music, including Debussy’s Petite suite, Ravel’s Ma mère l’Oye, Poulenc’s Sonata, Fauré’s Dolly, and Tansman’s En tournant la TSF. Performers Olga Michałowska and Szymon Paruzel will enrich their interpretations with commentary revealing the character and background of each piece.
TICKETS:
15 PLN / 10 PLN – available online or on-site.
https://bilety.willadecjusza.pl/
Performers
Olga Michałowska
A pianist specialising in 20th- and 21st-century music, performer of numerous premieres, participant of festivals and artistic residencies, and co-founder of the contemporary music ensemble NewTone.
Szymon Paruzel
A pianist, conductor and educator dedicated to 20th-century and contemporary repertoire, performer of premieres, collaborator with international music projects, and deputy director of the Non-Public Music School in Bibice.
Conclusion
November’s concerts at Villa Decius are more than musical events—they are encounters between people, cultures and emotions. From a poetic performance inspired by Emily Dickinson, through a harp tribute steeped in memory, to a French dialogue of sounds, each evening reaffirms that the Renaissance ballroom of Villa Decius still lives and breathes music. Music that connects generations and reminds us that beauty—like art itself—knows no borders.
A Month Resonating with Piano, Harp and Poetry
November at Villa Decius resonates with the sounds of piano, harp, and poetry. In its Renaissance interiors—drawing artists from around the world for centuries—classical music meets contemporary sensibility, and sound becomes a language beyond borders.
Villa Decius has long been a place where art finds its home. Here, in the historic ballroom, the sound of piano and harp intertwines with poetry, emotion, and cultural dialogue. This November brings a unique cycle of classical concerts—three evenings, three musical stories, three distinct approaches to tradition and the interpretation of sound.
On 21 November, the month opens with the poetic concert “Herbarium in the Desert”, performed by Portuguese artists Mia Tomé and Clara Lacerda, together with Polish-Italian actress Magda Andrzejewska. The audience will embark on a sensory journey through the poetry of Emily Dickinson, in a programme combining music, spoken word and performative expression—in English and Portuguese—creating a vivid intercultural dialogue between Portugal, Poland and the United States.
Two days later, on 23 November, the halls of Villa Decius will fill with the sound of harps during the concert in memoriam Professor Józef Lipiec. Malwina Lipiec-Rozmysłowicz and Mila Rozmysłowicz will pay tribute to a philosopher for whom ethics, beauty and spiritual reflection were central to life. The programme will include works by J.S. Bach, Aldona Poczwardowska, Claude Debussy, Krystyna Siek and Marcel Tournier—repertoire that will captivate both classical music connoisseurs and those drawn to its emotional depth.
The month will conclude with the concert “French Piano Chamber Music” on 30 November. Pianists Olga Michałowska and Szymon Paruzel will present works by Debussy, Ravel, Poulenc, Fauré and Tansman. Their interpretations—enhanced with commentary—will reveal the nuances of French musical sensitivity and the poetic timbre of the piano.
Concert Details
“Herbarium in the Desert” – Poetic Concert
Villa Decius, 21 November 2025 (Friday), 6:00 PM
On Friday, 21 November at 6:00 PM, Villa Decius invites audiences to the poetic concert “Herbarium in the Desert”, performed by Portuguese artists: actress and vocalist Mia Tomé, accompanied on piano by Clara Lacerda. Music and poetry, joined by the performative presence of Magda Andrzejewska, create a sensual encounter of word and sound. This original project, inspired by the work of Emily Dickinson, celebrates the written word—particularly the Portuguese language—and women’s poetry.
Dickinson’s poems weave together intimate observations of domestic life with existential reflections, meditations on fate, recurring motifs of longing, suffering, and the search for an undiscovered inner self. Her works often end with witty, darkly ironic punchlines. Themes such as flowers and gardens, love, mortality, and identity will echo throughout the performance.
Elements referencing Portuguese culture, along with the presence of Polish-Italian actress Magda Andrzejewska—whose voice, movement, and poetic expression add depth—highlight the dialogue between these three artistic traditions. Performed in English and Portuguese, the programme invites audiences into a sonic desert landscape, exploring the plasticity of sound and the resonance of language.
FREE ENTRY:
Complimentary tickets: https://bilety.willadecjusza.pl/
Performers
Mia Tomé
A Portuguese actress and singer, Mia Tomé graduated from the Higher School of Theatre and Cinema and refined her craft at the Lee Strasberg Theatre & Film Institute in New York under a Gulbenkian Foundation scholarship. She is known for her work with spoken word and her focus on the expressive power of language. Her original projects include the album Projeto Natália, performed internationally in Washington, Boston, New York, and Dartmouth. In 2022, she recorded Há um Herbário no Deserto—a Portuguese-language musical project inspired by Emily Dickinson.
Clara Lacerda
A Portuguese pianist and composer, Clara Lacerda studied classical piano at the Porto Music Conservatory and jazz piano at ESMAE. She has performed in numerous ensembles and artistic residencies and currently continues her master’s studies in composition while touring internationally with Salvador Sobral’s group.
Magda Andrzejewska
A Polish-Italian actress educated in Rome, specialising in intercultural communication and audiovisual translation. Her artistic work spans theatre, film and performance. A former participant in the Culture Moves Europe residency at Villa Decius (2024) and winner of Polish Talent Support 2025.
Concert in Memoriam Professor Józef Lipiec
Villa Decius, 23 November (Sunday), 5:00 PM
The memorial concert dedicated to Professor Józef Lipiec will fill the chambers of Villa Decius with the sound of the harp. The programme includes works by J.S. Bach, Aldona Poczwardowska, Claude Debussy, Krystyna Siek and Marcel Tournier, performed by Malwina Lipiec-Rozmysłowicz and Mila Rozmysłowicz.
Professor Józef Lipiec devoted his life to philosophy. He taught at the AGH University of Science and Technology and the Jagiellonian University, and worked as a publicist. His fields of expertise included ontology, social philosophy, axiology, ethics, aesthetics and the philosophy of sport. He was a founding member and, from 2000, chairman of the Polish Olympic Academy.
FREE ENTRY:
Complimentary tickets: https://bilety.willadecjusza.pl/
Performers
Malwina Lipiec-Rozmysłowicz
A harpist and soloist of the National Forum of Music in Wrocław, lecturer at the music academies in Wrocław and Poznań, laureate of numerous awards, and recording artist with dozens of albums to her name.
Mila Rozmysłowicz
A talented young harpist, multiple award winner and scholarship recipient, with a repertoire encompassing both classical and contemporary harp literature.
“French Piano Chamber Music” – Piano Concert
Villa Decius, 30 November (Sunday), 5:00 PM
The final Sunday of November brings a programme featuring French piano music, including Debussy’s Petite suite, Ravel’s Ma mère l’Oye, Poulenc’s Sonata, Fauré’s Dolly, and Tansman’s En tournant la TSF. Performers Olga Michałowska and Szymon Paruzel will enrich their interpretations with commentary revealing the character and background of each piece.
TICKETS:
15 PLN / 10 PLN – available online or on-site.
https://bilety.willadecjusza.pl/
Performers
Olga Michałowska
A pianist specialising in 20th- and 21st-century music, performer of numerous premieres, participant of festivals and artistic residencies, and co-founder of the contemporary music ensemble NewTone.
Szymon Paruzel
A pianist, conductor and educator dedicated to 20th-century and contemporary repertoire, performer of premieres, collaborator with international music projects, and deputy director of the Non-Public Music School in Bibice.
Conclusion
November’s concerts at Villa Decius are more than musical events—they are encounters between people, cultures and emotions. From a poetic performance inspired by Emily Dickinson, through a harp tribute steeped in memory, to a French dialogue of sounds, each evening reaffirms that the Renaissance ballroom of Villa Decius still lives and breathes music. Music that connects generations and reminds us that beauty—like art itself—knows no borders.