Mariusz Smolij
Musician, conductor, violinist
Born May 1, 1962, Siemianowice Slaskie, Poland; came to U.S., 1986; son of Jan and Ewa (Tomanek); married Kamila (Wuwer); child: Beniamin.
Education: Master of Arts (M.A.), Academy of Music, Katowice (Poland), 1986; Master of Music, University of Tennessee, Knoxville (TN), 1991; Dr. of Musical Arts, Eastman School of Music, Rochester (NY), 1994.
Career: founder, violinist, The Penderecki String Quartet, Poland and United States, 1981-87; violinist, Polish National Radio and TV Symphony Orchestra, Katowice, 1983-84; teaching assistant, University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, 1986-87, University of Tennessee, 1987-90; assistant conductor, University of Tennessee Civic Orchestra, 1989-91; associate conductor, Eastman Philharmonic, Rochester, 1991-94; assistant conductor, New Jersey Symphony Orchestra, Newark, 1994 -; guest conductor, numerous symphony orchestras in Europe and North America; violinist, American Sinfonietta and other American symphony orchestras.
Author: recordings (with The Penderecki String Quartet) for Polish Radio, Hessische Rundfunk, Frankfurt (Germany), and public radio in Wisconsin.
Member of: American Conductors Guild; American Symphony Orchestra League.
Honors: Phi Kappa Phi; Phi Kappa Lambda; 1st prize winner (with The Penderecki String Quartet), Polish National Chamber of Music Competition, 1986; Hilton Smith Award, University of Tennessee, 1989,1990.
Languages: Polish, English, Russian, German, Italian.
Home: 22 Rosemary Court, Florham Park, NJ 07932.
From: "Who's Who in Polish America" 1st Edition 1996-1997, Boleslaw Wierzbianski editor; Bicentennial Publishing Corporation, New York, NY, 1996.