Silesian Chamber Choir Ad libitum

The Silesian Chamber Choir Ad libitum was founded in 1999 in Wodzisław Śląski. Its singers live in towns across Silesia, dozens of kilometres apart — which is why they call themselves a “Silesian ensemble”. The choir is made up of musicians with university music degrees and many years of choral experience. Today Ad libitum is the ensemble of the Music Without Borders Foundation.

The choir is known for taking on interesting challenges — from early to contemporary music, from large vocal-instrumental works to multimedia shows. It has given many premieres of works by Polish and foreign composers, and has performed at the NOSPR concert hall, the National Forum of Music, the National Philharmonic in Warsaw, the State Philharmonic and Opera in Košice and the Royal Albert Hall in London.

With stars of the stage

Ad libitum singers have worked with leading classical, opera and popular artists, including Andrea Bocelli, Roberto Alagna, Aleksandra Kurzak, Krzesimir Dębski, Garou, Dawid Podsiadło, sanah, Anna Maria Jopek, Andrzej Lampert, Urszula, Kayah, Beata Kozidrak, Krzysztof and Piotr Cugowski, as well as Artur Żmijewski, Jan Frycz and Józef Broda.

The choir took part in “Bankiet u sanah” — 15 concerts in Poland’s most prestigious philharmonic halls for about 35,000 listeners — and in the “Uczta nad ucztami” stadium tour for nearly 200,000 people. Together with sanah it was nominated for the 2024 Fryderyk award for Best Live Recording.

The choir has performed in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Lithuania, Russia, Georgia, Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Ukraine, Thailand, South Korea, Spain, Gibraltar and the Philippines. It has won about 50 awards at international competitions, recorded for Polish Radio, TVP and Polsat, works as a session choir and has released 9 albums.

Conductor: Prof. Izabella Zielecka-Panek

The choir’s founder, conductor and manager is Prof. Izabella Zielecka-Panek — choirmaster, professor at the Institute of Music Arts of the University of Silesia, member of the Main Board of the Polish Association of Choirs and Orchestras, president of the Music Without Borders Foundation, and founder and director of The Prof. Józef Świder International Festival of Music in Cieszyn.

Her achievements include 75 awards at international choral competitions, 18 albums and over 1,000 concerts. She prepared the choir that accompanied Andrea Bocelli at Tauron Arena Kraków and the choir for “The Lord of the Rings in Concert” tour. She is also a riding instructor and a breeder of Anglo-Arabian horses.

Contact the choir: adlibitumchor@gmail.com