Orchestral Heirloom

Adam Twardowski and his handmade violinConcertmaster Adam Twardowski ’13, Minneapolis, plays a one-of-a-kind violin.

It was handmade in Poland by his great-great grandfather.

His great-grandfather played it in a jazz band between the two world wars. During the turbulent years of WWII and the beginning of communism, family members hid the violin away for safekeeping.

Twardowski’s parents – both physicians – grew uncertain about their future in Poland after the fall of communism and came to the United States in 1985, eventually settling in Minneapolis. For nearly 50 years, there was no mention of the violin.  

Then in 2009, Twardowski’s grandmother had the heirloom restored before asking him to play it at his sister’s wedding. He’s been playing it and loving this violin ever since.

“It’s beautiful,” he says. “I’m always excited to play this instrument, not only for the great sound it produces, but also for the emotional connection I have with it.”

Twardowski soloed on the violin in “Petrushka” by Stravinsky during The Concordia Orchestra's fall tour.  

Twardowski chose to enroll at Concordia to fulfill three goals – study with a strong political science faculty to prepare for law school; play serious ensemble music; and study abroad in China, which he did last fall semester at Sichuan International Studies University, where Concordia has a student exchange agreement.

“I studied Chinese language and history, but I also taught English on the side,” he says. “Coming from the United States, I was in demand because young Chinese are eager to learn English. They see it as their way to prosperity.”

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