KORNEL WOLAK
ABOUT
Kornel Wolak is an award-winning clarinetist acclaimed for his musical imagination and elegant playing. A recipient of the Presser Music Award, winner of the Royal Conservatory Concerto Competition and nominee for Poland’s prestigious Fryderyk recording award, he has performed internationally as a soloist and chamber musician. His performances have been featured on CBC, Classical 96.3 FM, Public Radio International and NPR.
LATEST RELEASE
MESH
TWO CONCERTOS FOR
CLARINET & ORCHESTRA
KORNEL WOLAK
BURLINGTON NEW MILLENNIUM ORCHESTRA
CHARLES T. COZENS
TANGORIUM
“Watch and be amazed!”
– CBC Music
“Remarkable subtlety in Bridge’s production of sound. Control and a smooth expressivity make Wolak shine.”
– Toronto Star
Tangorium is a multimedia exploration of the evolution of tango by Canadian duo Bridge & Wolak, bringing together orchestra and soloists in a program full of beauty, virtuosity and humour.Pairing clarinetist Kornel Wolak and accordionist Michael Bridge, the duo draws on classical, jazz and world music to create imaginative concerts that cross genres and generations. Their contrasting personalities and shared passion for performance have brought their distinctive musical partnership to audiences across Europe and the Americas.
UPCOMING EVENTS
October 28
Career Moves Lecture presentation
14th European Clarinet Congress in Katowice
October 30
Recital From Romance to Tango
Puszczykowo Public Library
November 6
TANGORIUM
Warsaw-Wawer Cultural Centre
November 19
Author event and a recital
Włocławek Public Library
February 24 - 26 [2027]
Adjudication and workshops
Ontario Music Festival Association
April 20 - 23 [2027]
Adjudication and workshops
Kiwanis Festival, Ottawa, QC
April 26 - 28 [2027]
Adjudication and workshops
Edmonton Music and Speech Arts Festival
Kornel Wolak is a clarinetist, author, and producer whose work spans solo performance, chamber music, music education, production, and research. Acclaimed for his musical imagination and versatility, he has been praised for his “control, and a smooth, elegant expressivity” (John Terauds, Toronto Star).His honours include the Presser Foundation Award, winning the Royal Conservatory Concerto Competition, and two nominations for the Fryderyk Awards, Poland’s highest distinction in recorded music. His international touring has taken him from coast to coast across Canada and to more than 50 U.S. states, as well as destinations throughout South America, Europe, and Asia.Wolak has performed with the renowned Quartetto Gelato and appeared as a soloist with orchestras across Europe and the Americas. His performances have been broadcast on CBC, Classical 96.3 FM, Public Radio International, and NPR. Dedicated to expanding the clarinet repertoire, he regularly champions new music and commissions original works alongside his solo recitals and chamber music performances.As an educator and clarinet clinician, Wolak has led tours and masterclasses throughout Europe, Asia, and the Americas. Since 2015, he has collaborated with scientists in the Department of Speech-Language Pathology at the University of Toronto to investigate tongue movements associated with different types of articulation in clarinet playing. This research, published in scientific journals, has informed his internationally acclaimed books, which advance clarinet pedagogy through a deeper understanding of the instrument’s technical and physiological foundations.Wolak is the founder of Music Mind Inc., a production company dedicated to music production and the advancement of music education through research, innovation, and a deeper understanding of musical performance.
MESH
Released October 2026
MESH presents the world premiere recordings of two landmark Canadian concertos for clarinet and orchestra, showcasing the virtuosic artistry of Polish-Canadian clarinetist Kornel Wolak alongside the Burlington New Millennium Orchestra, conducted by Charles T. Cozens.
Timeless Tales from Central Europe
Released July 2024
The BTW Trio reunites for new arrangements of Schubert’s Death and the Maiden and Stravinsky’s The Soldier’s Tale. Bringing together clarinet, violin and accordion, the recording offers a distinctive instrumental perspective on these major works.
Bach To Benny Goodman
Released February 2024
Bridge & Wolak bring their signature concert repertoire and humour to a recording that alternates musical performances with spoken commentary. Clarinet, digital accordion and piano carry listeners through a program spanning Bach to Benny Goodman.
Dean Burry: The Highwayman
Released October 2023
Kornel Wolak joins mezzo-soprano Krisztina Szabó and a chamber ensemble conducted by Darrell Christie in Dean Burry’s dramatic setting of Alfred Noyes’ poem The Highwayman. Released on Centrediscs, the recording brings its tale of love and tragedy to life through voice and instrumental storytelling.
Symphone de la tempête de verglas
Released January 2023
This recording of music by Maxime Goulet features Kornel Wolak as soloist in Histoire de pêche (Fishing Story), a concerto for clarinet and string orchestra, alongside the Orchestre classique de Montréal under Jacques Lacombe.
Tales from the Dinarides
Released November 2017
Clarinetist Kornel Wolak, accordionist Michael Bridge and violinist Guillaume Tardif journey through the musical landscapes of Central Europe. The trio presents fresh interpretations of classical and original compositions inspired by the Dinaric Alps.
Common Ground
Released September 2013
Kornel Wolak and pianist Chris Donnelly explore the meeting point between classical music and jazz. Released by Alma Records and produced by Peter Cardinali, the album brings their contrasting musical backgrounds together in a program of adventurous arrangements.
CONTACT
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OCTOBER 23
MESH
TWO CONCERTOS FOR
CLARINET & ORCHESTRA
Masterfully performed by Polish-Canadian virtuoso clarinetist Kornel Wolak and the Burlington New Millennium Orchestra, "MESH" bridges Norbert Palej's "Sursum" with
Charles T. Cozens' "Les Petites Danses Démoniques".
“I hope our listeners feel emotionally sated after listening to both works; Sursum for its serenity and joy and Les Petites Danses Démoniques for its mischievous imagery and emotional depth.”
- Charles T. Cozens
THE PROJECT
MESH presents the world premiere recordings of two landmark Canadian concertos for clarinet and orchestra, showcasing the virtuosic artistry of Polish-Canadian clarinetist Kornel Wolak alongside the Burlington New Millennium Orchestra, conducted by Charles T. Cozens. Recorded at Toronto’s Revolution Recording. Edited and mixed by Anthony Mancini and mastered at Wreckhouse Mastering.
The album bridges contemporary classicism and rhythmic dynamism, pairing Norbert Palej’s minimalistic, soaring, and deeply spiritual work Sursum with Charles T. Cozens’ kinetic, theatrical suite Les Petites Danses Démoniques. MESH captures the full acoustic depth, structural precision, and sonic resonance of the modern clarinet concerto.
THE MUSIC
CONCERTO I
Palej: Sursum - I. Sursum (08:27)
Palej: Sursum - II. Amor (08:41)
Palej: Sursum - III. Simul (06:29)
CONCERTO II
Cozens: Les Petites Danses Démoniques - I. Les Vauriens (Cadenza Kornel Wolak) (11:32)
Cozens: Les Petites Danses Démoniques - II. Prélude, La Trance et Un Appel à la Prière (05:37)
Cozens: Les Petites Danses Démoniques - III. Les Danses et Célébration (06:26)
FROM THE ARTISTS
KORNEL WOLAK
Concert Clarinetist. Author. Producer.
MESH invokes (at least in me) a mixture of profound joy, lightness, and hope. It would be wonderful if these were everyone’s takeaways after hearing the album.
MESH also sends another message: one that says that the classical form of the concerto is very much alive and dynamically evolving. It gently plays with listeners’ expectations, showing them its relevance, freshness, and how universal this form can be. It can accompany listeners in everyday life, while commuting in a car or jogging; or be contemplated in the comfort of one’s living room or in a concert hall.
NORBERT PALEJ
Composer. Pianist. Conductor. Professor.
People often think contemporary classical music is difficult to listen to, harsh, and depressing. I don’t blame them: much of it in the 20th century was like this. But this is a new century! And I want beauty, and brightness, and mystery, and a music that draws in any open-minded listener who searches for new emotion.
I believe in luminous simplicity. Like looking into someone’s eyes: the eye is simple, yet infinitely deep, and infinitely complex. You sink into it.
I wrote Sursum for Kornel to perform and for Charles to conduct and produce; I knew they would both bring incredible artistic mastery, each in their field. But maybe even more importantly, I knew they would bring a kind of positive energy, which says: let's make great things happen no matter the challenge!
CHARLES T. COZENS
Conductor. Composer. Pianist.
As a composer, what is most important to me is imagery, whether it be pictorial or emotional. Then there is the challenge of capturing this in musical composition with the hope that it will affect a significant number of listeners in the same way. As a conductor in preparing Sursum, I had to enter the mind of composer Norbert Palej to understand the nature of his writing and translate that information to the orchestra and soloist. As a producer, the responsibility is to make sure the final mix reflects the intent of both composer and conductor.
Kornel was able to bring our musical ideas to life with his incredible lyricism, technique and interpretation. I hope our listeners feel emotionally sated after listening to both works; Sursum for its serenity and joy and Les Petites Danses Démoniques for its mischievous imagery and emotional depth.
CREDITS
Primary Soloist: Kornel Wolak (Clarinet / Clarinetist)
Featured Orchestra: Burlington New Millennium Orchestra
Conductor: Charles T. Cozens
Recording Location: Revolution Recording Studios
Tracking Engineer: Luke Schindler
Editing and Mixing Engineer: Anthony Mancini
Composers: Norbert Palej, Charles T. Cozens
Mastering: Wreckhouse Mastering
Record Label / Distribution: Slammin Media Inc. (via Believe Backstage Enterprise Infrastructure)
Executive Producer: Music Mind Inc.
Cover Art Designer: Peter Berry
Artistic Creative Director, Project and Artist Management: Laura van Leest (Bellefair Artists)
BOOKS
EMBOUCHURE DRILLS for Clarinet
by Dr. Kornel Wolak
This book is designed to encourage further improvement of one’s own embouchure regardless of skill level. I believe that progress happens through searching for innovation as well as through constant comparing of one’s performance to the existing standards of excellence.
ARTICULATION TYPES for Clarinet
by Dr. Kornel Wolak
This booklet is addressed to clarinet teachers who may use it as a teaching tool when instructing on clarinet pedagogy or refer to it when seeking articulation solutions for their pupils during private studio teaching and/or master class setting.
E-Books are emailed directly to you as soon as possible upon receipt of payment. Customers ordering outside US and Canada please contact Kornel directly for accurate pricing. Kornel Wolak’s business operates under the name Music Mind Inc.
POSTERS
EMBOUCHURE DRILLS Poster
35″ x 48″ poster
ARTICULATION TYPES Poster
35″ x 48″ poster
LESSONS
First, contact Kornel via email to arrange and schedule lessons/services. Then pay using the PayPal button below. You do not need a PayPal account to pay using credit card. Click the PAY NOW button, then enter your Amount owing under “Price per Item”, then click Continue.