Mikołaj Trzaska – saxophonist, bass clarinetist, and film music composer, studied fine arts at the Academy of Fine Arts in Gdańsk. He emerged from the yass movement – an artistic and social phenomenon.
He co-founded the most significant yass group, the legendary band Miłość, and also led the ensemble Łoskot. After the yass movement lost momentum, Trzaska became a leading figure in Poland’s avant-garde music scene. His presence in the international improvised music world began in the early 2000s, when he embarked on musical journeys across Scandinavia, Ukraine, Western Europe, and the United States. Through his performances, he honed his craft alongside some of the world’s most renowned artists in this genre, including Ken Vandermark, Peter Brötzmann, Joe McPhee, and many others. His collaborations and original works have been documented in dozens of albums.
For years, Trzaska has also been creating projects linked to literature, forming groups with poets Marcin Świetlicki and Andrzej Stasiuk. His artistic explorations are centered on developing a personal language and unique means of expression, constantly asking himself, “Why do we create?” and “What do we want to convey?” A key source of inspiration for him has been the revival and development of Jewish identity, which he expresses through his solo projects and long-standing collaboration with the band Shofar, performing Jewish music.
Trzaska is also widely recognized as a distinguished film music composer. He has established an ongoing collaboration with director Wojciech Smarzowski, composing scores for films such as The Dark House, Rose, Volhynia, The Mighty Angel, Clergy, and The Wedding 2. His most recent work can be heard in the soundtrack for Paweł Maślona’s film KOS.
He has been nominated several times for the prestigious Polityka Passport award and is a two-time winner of the Polish Academy Award, the Eagles, as well as the Polish Film Festival in Gdynia Award. He also won the Grand Prix at the Kometa Festival. Recently, Trzaska has taken on the role of lecturer at the University of Gdańsk, sharing his expertise in film music with students. Last year, he founded the “Miejsce Uwagi” Foundation, which focuses on the broad concept of memory. He is also the author of an autobiography titled Wrzeszcz.
