Piotr Lato

Is a recipient of numerous awards and distinctions: he entered the semi-finals of the Prague Spring International Clarinet Competition in 2002, received third prize at the 4th Johannes Brahms International Chamber Music Competition in Gdańsk in 2006, and very recently second prize at the MEDICI International Music Competition for Chamber Music.

In recognition of his artistic and academic achievements, he has been awarded honorary badges and scholarships, such as the Order of Merit in the Service of Polish Culture (2016), the Ars Quaerendi Małopolska Voivodeship ‘for outstanding commitment to dissemination and promotion of culture’ (2019), the Bronze Cross of Merit (2019), creative scholarship of the Minister of Culture and National Heritage (2020) and the Order of Honoris Gratia by the City of Kraków (2021).

He has taken part in many national and international festivals, e.g. the Ludwig van Beethoven Easter Festival, Kraków Film Music Festival, the Music in Old Kraków. He has been involved in numerous CD, television and radio recordings for DUX, Centaur Records, Le Foxx Music, Universal Music and others.

In demand as a teacher, he has served as an assistant professor at the Krzysztof Penderecki Academy of Music in Krakow since 2006. In 2011, he obtained the Doctor of Philosophy degree in instrumental art and the Post-doctoral degree of Musical Arts five years later. Since 2020 he has been the chair of the Woodwinds and Accordion Faculty and was promoted to the position of associate professor. He is also a clarinet teacher at the Władysław Żeleński Secondary State School of Music in Kraków.

Piotr Lato joined the Beethoven Academy Orchestra as principal clarinet in 2004. He appears regularly as a soloist, with many orchestras and ensembles.