Record Reviews

ZBIGNIEW LEWANDOWSKI ~ THE MUSIC OF MY LIFE PSJ WROCLAW 005 (Barcode: 5906492433119) ~ POLAND ~ Big Band Jazz Recorded: 2022 Released: 2025 This is a live album by Polish Jazz drummer / composer / bandleader Zbigniew LewandowskiFind albums by this artist, recorded during the concert, which celebrated the 50th Anniversary of his activity on the local scene. He is accompanied by the Bartosz Pernal OrchestraFind albums by this artist / Big Band and features a long list of guest soloists, which reads like a who’s who of Polish Jazz. The album presents ten tracks, three of which are original compositions by Lewandowski and the rest are standards. Some of the most celebrated guests include saxophonist Piotr BaronFind albums by this artist, who also contributed one composition, organist Kajetan GalasFind albums by this artist, trumpeter Piotr WojtasikFind albums by this artist, pianist Kuba StankiewiczFind albums by this artist and many other splendid instrumentalists and vocalists. The sound quality of the recording is excellent and faithfully reproduces the majestic sound of the Jazz Big Band. The music is absolutely marvelous from start to finish, offering a classic Big Band / guest soloist setting, with the music brilliantly arranged mostly by Lewandowski and Pernal, based on solid melodic compositions by top Jazz composers and great originals. The balance between the orchestral parts and the soloist is as perfect as possible, enabling many musicians to participate and at the same time not turning the performance into a competition. The album is a wonderful tribute to the long career of Lewandowski and shows the great respect and love he richly deserves from his peers as well as the younger generation of local musicians. My autographed copy of the album comes with a “with Jazz Greetings” from Levandek, which of course I send back to him, and considering we are almost the same age, I wish him many happy future years, if possible filled with music. Overall, this is a splendid Jazz Big Band album, which is a great fun listening to and offers some superb soloing and excellent arrangements, which should satisfy every music lover around the globe. Classic Polish Jazz at its best!

Updated: 24/01/2026Posted: 24/01/2026

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