Artist Faculty Performance Spotlight
Robert Łaguniak, violin
Robert Łaguniak is one of the most acclaimed and recognizable violinists of the young generation in Poland. He began playing the violin at the age of six at the State Music School in Pabianice, later continuing his education in Poznań. He is a graduate of the Mieczysław Karłowicz Secondary Music School in Poznań, where he studied under Dr. Karina Gidaszewska. In 2021, he completed his master’s studies with distinction at the Grażyna and Kiejstut Bacewicz Academy of Music in Łódź, also under Dr. Gidaszewska, receiving the prestigious Primus in Artibus title, awarded to the university’s top graduate. In 2024, he completed the Doctoral School at the same institution.
Since an early age, Robert has won top prizes in national and international violin competitions as both a soloist and chamber musician, with over 100 awards to his name. Notable achievements include: a Gold Medal with highest distinction at the Berliner International Music Competition; 1st Prize and a special award for the best performance of G. Ph. Telemann’s Fantasy at the Telemann International Violin Competition in Poznań; a Special Prize at the 15th Henryk Wieniawski International Violin Competition; Grand Prix at the Polish CEA National Auditions; and 1st Prizes at the Young Paganini International Competition (Legnica), the Groblicz Family Competition (Kraków), and the Bach Competition named after S. Hejzer (Zielona Góra). He also won 2nd Prize and five special awards at the 5th Karol Lipiński International Violin Competition (Toruń).
Since 2019, together with violinist Marta Gidaszewska, he has formed the Polish Violin Duo – one of Poland’s leading young chamber ensembles. The duo has toured Europe, Asia, and North America. In 2021, they released a debut album (DUX) featuring premiere recordings of works by Joachim Kaczkowski. Their second album, released in 2022 (DUX), presents 20th-century Polish music by Bacewicz, Spisak, Paciorkiewicz, and Weinberg. In 2024, the album was nominated for a Fryderyk Award in the “Chamber Music – Duets” category.
The Polish Violin Duo has won over 30 international competitions in countries including Japan, the USA, Canada, Germany, France, Austria, Belgium, Italy, Switzerland, Serbia, Greece, Denmark, Sweden, Estonia, Hungary, and Poland. Key honors include: 1st Prize and six special awards at the Stanisław Moniuszko International Competition of Polish Music (Rzeszów); 1st Prize at the Anton Rubinstein Chamber Music Competition (Düsseldorf); and Grand Prix awards in Paris (Concours International de Musique et d’Art Dramatique) and Kyoto (International Music Competition).
In 2020, the duo was nominated for Poland’s “Coryphaeus of Polish Music” Award in the “Discovery of the Year” category, and in 2021, they received the “Polish Music Eagles” Award. Their performances have been broadcast on TVP Kultura, TVP Polonia, Polish Radio Channel 2, Radio Merkury, and Radio Rzeszów. Seven works have been written especially for the Polish Violin Duo.
Robert Łaguniak performs actively as a soloist and chamber musician in Poland, Germany, France, Italy, Ukraine, China, and the United States. He has appeared at venues such as NOSPR in Katowice, the Krzysztof Penderecki European Centre for Music, the Royal Castle in Warsaw, and the concert halls of many Polish philharmonics, including those in Warsaw, Silesia, Poznań, Kielce, Rzeszów, Kraków, Łódź, and Lublin.
In 2016, he was the youngest Polish participant in the 15th Henryk Wieniawski International Violin Competition in Poznań, where he received a Special Prize from the jury chairman, Maxim Vengerov.
He has developed his artistry under the guidance of renowned pedagogues such as Zakhar Bron, Maxim Vengerov, Igor Frolov, Wolfgang Marschner, Bartosz Bryła, Andrzej Gębski, Krzysztof Śmietana, Robert Szreder, and Nazzareno Carusi.
In 2014, a caprice dedicated to him appeared in Paweł Wójtowicz’s collection Etudes and Caprices (PWM Edition). He is a multiple recipient of scholarships from the Polish Ministry of Culture, the Marshal of the Łódź Voivodeship, the Polish Children’s Fund, and the “Young Poland” program. Starting with the 2025/2026 concert season, Robert Łaguniak will begin his tenure as concertmaster of the Artur Rubinstein Łódź Philharmonic.
