Romuald Twardowski

Twardowski worked in many genres, opera and ballet, concertante instrumental music for large and small ensembles, choral music both sacred and secular, chamber music and songs, composing about 200 works. He composed sacred music for the Catholic church, but also for the Orthodox Church, specifically the Chamber Choir Kyiv conducted by his friend Mykola Hobdych. His musical style has been called "developed neoclassicism", and his choral works as "very varied and, although moderately modern, very accessible music", "pure and beautiful". His music has been described as "very clear and communicative, full of internal drama and individual in its character". His major compositions include:

Works by Twardowski were recorded, mostly in anthologies grouped by genre by the Polish label Acte Préalable (AP), including: 2000: Choral Orthodox Works, AP0058 2000: Solo, Chamber and Vocal Works, AP0059 2001: Gaude Mater Festival – 3 – Polish Mass, AP0098 2001: Musica Polonica Nova – Warsaw Composers 1, AP0100 2002: Complete Works for Violin and Piano, AP0089 2003: Missa Regina caeli, AP0090 2004: Complete Piano Works, AP0066 2004: Musica Polonica Nova – Warsaw Composers 2, AP0108 2004: Concertos, AP0110 2005: Works for String Orchestra, AP0120 2006: Chamber Music, AP0140 2008: Complete Organ Works, AP0175 2008: Concertos, AP0179 2008: Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom, Roman Puchko (tenor, priest), Petro Hrekov (bass, deacon), Chamber Choir "Kyiv", conducted by Mykola Hobdych, AP0193 2009: Exegi monumentum, AP0231 2011: Universitas Cantat 1998–2011, AP0295-99 2017: Luctus (Żałość), AP0378 2017: Violin Concerto, Kinga Augustyn (violin), Toruń Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Mariusz Smolij, Naxos 2018: In the Night's Stillness, AP0440 2019: Sacrum · Profanum, sacred and secular choral music, Czestochowa Philharmonic Choir Collegium Cantorum, Janusz Siadlak

Twardowski achieved international prizes for his compositions, including: 1st prize of Polish Young Composers competition for the 1961 Antifone per tre gruppi d'orchestra 2nd prize of UNESCO International Composers' Tribune in Paris (1963) Grand Prix in Monaco, in 1965 for his 1963 Sorcerer's Sculptures and in 1973 for Lord Jim 1st prize of the 1966 Prague Spring International Music Festival for the 1965 Sonetti di Petrarca per tenore solo e due cori a cappella prize of the West European Federation of Choral Societies (AGEC) for Mały koncert in 1994 He was awarded honours of the Order of Polonia Restituta, the Knight's Cross in 1974, the Officer's Cross in 1985 and the Commander's Cross in 2020. He received the American Paderewski Award in 2006, and the Gloria Artis Medal for Merit to Culture in Gold in 2010. Albums with his works were nominated several times for the Fryderyk Music Award. The State Music School in Puławy and the Municipal Music School in Gostynin bear his name.