Biography
Janusz Olejniczak (2 October 1952 – 20 October 2024) was a Polish classical pianist, educator, and actor. He enjoyed an international career as a pianist, particularly known for his performances of Chopin's piano works on both modern and period instruments. Olejniczak portrayed Chopin in the 1991 film Blue Note and performed piano pieces in the 2002 film The Pianist, where he also served as the hand double.
Born in Wrocław on 2 October 1952, Olejniczak began playing piano at age six. His family later moved to Warsaw, where he studied under Luiza Walewska and received training from Ryszard Bakst and Zbigniew Drzewiecki between 1967 and 1969. In 1970, he placed sixth in the VIII International Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw, and in 1972, he secured fourth place at the Alfredo Casella Piano Competition in Naples. From 1971 to 1973, he studied in Paris with Constantine Schmaeling and Witold Małcużyński before returning to Poland to attend the Higher State School of Music in Warsaw, studying with Barbara Hesse-Bukowska. He pursued postgraduate studies from 1977 to 1978 with Victor Merzhanov in Warsaw and Paul Badura-Skoda at the Folkwangschule in Essen.
Olejniczak was part of a chamber orchestra, with a repertoire including works by Beethoven, Schumann, Schubert, Chopin, Ravel, and Prokofiev. He also performed contemporary compositions, such as those by Wojciech Kilar. In 1979, he was the soloist for the world premiere of Giya Kancheli's Valse Boston for piano and orchestra. Olejniczak was noted for performing Chopin’s music on both period and modern pianos, often juxtaposing the two. He recorded and performed on historic instruments like Érard and Pleyel pianos with the Orchestra of the Eighteenth Century conducted by Frans Brüggen.
He taught for four years at the Academy of Music in Kraków and conducted master classes in Poland, Canada, the United States, and Japan. Olejniczak served on juries for international piano competitions, including the Chopin Competition, where from 2018 he also judged performances on period instruments.
Olejniczak frequently recorded for radio, television, and on CD for labels such as Polskie Nagrania, Selene, Pony Canyon, Opus 111, and CD Accord. His recorded repertoire encompassed works by Rameau, Mozart, Liszt, Schubert, Prokofiev, and especially Chopin, including Chopin's piano concertos, Fantasy on Polish Airs, Piano Sonata in B-flat minor, Rondo in E-flat major, and solo piano pieces. A Gramophone reviewer praised his recording of Chopin's 57 mazurkas on an 1849 Érard piano, highlighting his delicate range of color and nuance along with rubato that preserved the dance rhythm.
He also recorded Kilar’s piano concerto and Henryk Górecki’s Piano Concerto, collaborated on violin and piano works with Kaja Danczowska, and recorded Chopin’s Polish Songs with Stefania Toczyska. His recordings earned him seven Fryderyk awards, and his Chopin piano concerto recordings with Sinfonia Varsovia under Grzegorz Nowak were named Album of the Year by Studio magazine in 1995.
