Part of what makes Jakub Józef Orliński riveting as a performer is how he embodies contradictions—he’s a countertenor, but often prefers to linger in the rich lower part of his range; his comportment speaks to his well-documented skill off-stage in the hyperphysical world of pro breakdancing, yet he sings ethereally, like an angel without corporeal form. Orliński is praised for bringing vitality and sensuality to centuries-old music, and has enjoyed mining the countertenor repertoire for unrecorded, little-known gems. 

Joined by his one-time Juilliard dormmate and frequent collaborator, the Polish pianist Michał Biel, Orliński performs a wide-ranging program featuring works by Handel and Purcell, and a wonderful selection of Polish songs by such esteemed composers as Henryk Czyż, Mieczysław Karłowicz, and Stanisław Moniuszko. 

“Orliński’s voice is warm and bright, almost clarinet-like in timbre. Exceptional breath control allows him to spin out tensile, buoyant phrases. He swoops across wide intervals with little sense of a break between registers…his feeling for the music was profound” (The New Yorker).

Major Support: The Koret Foundation
Patron Sponsor: Patrick McCabe