Prof. Włodzimierz Zalewski - singer associated with the Grand Theatre - National Opera in Warsaw and the Grand Theatre in Łódź. In 1976 he graduated at the State Higher School of Music in Łódź at the Faculty of Vocal and Acting in the class of prof. Zdzisław Krzywicki. He has won many vocal competitions and he has got many prizes and awards. He has a repertoire of over 50 opera parties that he presented on the Polish and foreign scenes, including Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France, Greece and the Netherlands. The most important roles are: Gurnemanz in “Parsifal”, the title role in Richard Wagner's “Dutchman wanderer”, Zacharias in “Nabucco”, the title role in “Attila”, Philip II and the Grand Inquisitor in “Don Carlos”, Walter in “Luisa Miller”, Fiesca in Giuseppe Verdi's “Simon Boccanegra” , Scarpia in “Tosca” by Giacomo Puccini, Baron Ochs auf Lerchenau in “Der Rosenkavalier” by Richard Strauss, Don Pizarro in “Fidelio” of Ludwig van Beethoven, the title role in “Boris Godunov” by Modest Mussorgsky, Prince Gremin in “Eugene Onegin”, Kochubey in “Mazeppa” of Peter Iljich Tchaikovsky, Mendoza w “Engagement at the monastery” of Sergei Prokofiev, Creon and the Messenger in Igor Stravinsky's “Oedipus Rex”, the Duke Bluebeard in Bela Bartok’s “The Castle of the Blue-Bearded Duke”, the title role in “Don Giovanni” and Sarastro in “The Magic Flute” by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Van Bett in “Car and carpenter” of Albert Lortzing, Zbigniew and Skołuba in “Straszny dwór” and Stolnik in Stanisław Moniuszko's “Halka”. He participated in the Polish and world premieres of the following works: “Draußen von der Tür” of Sandor Balassy, “Kohlhaas” of Karl Kogler (record and film), “Maria Stuart” and “Lord Jim” of Romuald Twardowski, “Ubu Rex” by Krzysztof Penderecki, “Wyrywacz serc” by Elizabeth Sikora. He has made many recordings, television and radio. The artist also performs extensive oratorio repertoire, which includes the following songs: Georg Friedrich Handel (Messiah), Johann Sebastian Bach (Passion by St. John, Passion by St. Matthew, the Mass in B Minor, Christmas Oratorio, Easter Oratorio), Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Requiem), Gioacchino Rossini (Stabat Mater, Small solemn mass), Giuseppe Verdi (Messa da Requiem), Antonín Dvořák (Requiem, Stabat Mater), Ludwig van Beethoven (Missa solemnis, The Ninth Symphony). His repertoire includes songs of the series: “Schwanengesang” of Franz Schubert, Robert Schumann's “Dichterliebe”, “Vier ernste Gesänge” by Johannes Brahms, “Songs and Dances of Death” by Modest Mussorgsky, “Song of the sonnets of Michelangelo” by Hugo Wolf, and numerous songs of Polish and foreign composers. He collaborated with leading conductors as: Zygmunt Latoszewski, Jerzy Katlewicz , Jerzy Semkow, Henryk Czyż, Antoni Wicherek, Bogusław Madey, Semion Bychkov, Manfred Mayrhofer, Antoni Wit. He has performed in many productions of such directors as: Andrzej Żuławski, Marek Weiss-Grzesiński, Fritz Flieder, Pier Luigi Pizzi, Pier Luigi Pier'Alli, Gilbert Deflo, Christof Loy. He has been working as a teacher since 1980. He is a professor. His students have won numerous awards at Polish and international competitions and they are singing in the best opera houses all over the world. Among his most prominent pupils there are: Mariusz Kwiecień, Daniel Borowski and Piotr Miciński. The artist is the author of a lot of lectures dedicated to the teaching of singing and he is also vocal competitions juror. He leads masterclasses for young singers (in 2003 - at the Royal College of Music in Stockholm) and is the creator of masterclasses in Rheinsberg (Musikakademie). He has supervised and reviewed numerous doctorates, professorships, habilitations and has supervised honorary doctorates of prominent singers: Teresa Kubiak and Christa Ludwig. In 2002-2005 he was a head of the Department of Vocal Music at the Academy in Warsaw and in 2002-2008 he was elected a dean of the Vocal Faculty at Music Academy of G. and K. Bacewicz in Łódź.