Conductor Kazimierz Kord was born in Pogórze, Poland on November 18, 1930. Throughout his successful and busy career, he was acknowledged as a champion of Polish composers including Szymanowski, Perkowski, Karlowicz, Panufnik, Penderecki, Pilar and Górecki. He began studying classical piano, organ and cello in Poland before continuing his studies under Vladimir Nilsen at the Leningrad Academy of Music between 1949-1955. It was there that he obtained a first piano prize. In 1956, he began studying composition and conducting at the Krakow Academy of Music. He made his debut with the Warsaw Opera in 1960 as a conductor and choirmaster. Kazimierz Kord conducted at some of the world's most prestigious theaters, including the Gärtnerplatztheater in Munich, Germany and the Metropolitan Opera in New York. From 1969 to 1973, he directed the Grand Polish Radio and Television Orchestra in Katowice. He also served as general and artistic director of the National Philharmonic in Warsaw from 1977 to 2001, touring Europe, the United States, Australia, China and Japan. From 1980 to 1986, he simultaneously served as principal conductor of the Baden-Baden Südwestfunk Symphony Orchestra and became artistic advisor and principal guest conductor of the Pacific Symphony Orchestra, based in Orange County, California during their 1989-1990 season. Kazimierz Kord has made numerous recordings Sibelius: Finlandia - The Swan of Tuonela - Karelia Suite - Valse Triste (1977), Tchaikovsky: Symphony No.6 'Pathétique' (1979), Górecki: Symphony No. 3 (1998), and many more. Kazimierz Kord died on April 29, 2021, at the age of 90.
