Leszek Cichonski

ALL ARE WELCOME TO COME AND PLAY WITH US MAY 1ST 2009.
You are invited to the Wroclaw Rynek and to play "Hey Joe" with TOP Polish guitar players Leszek Cichonski, Krzysztof Jaworski, Marek Raduli, Sebastian Riedel and his group Cree, Mietek Jurecki, Ryszard Sygitowicz, Andrzej Malcherek, Jacek Krzaklewski, Radek Chwieralski, Krzysztof Misiak, Zygmunt Janiak, David Price (USA), and Chicago's own Stan Skibby.
Also joining us this year are Todd Wolfe (USA - guitarist with Sheryl Crow), Feedback Family (Sweden), Egon Poka (Hungary), Massimo Ormea (Italy) and Steve Morse of the legendary band DEEP PURPLE - you can play "Smoke on the Water" with us! This is a free event, open to all, in the beautiful historic center of Wroclaw.GUITARISTS OF ALL COUNTRIES UNITE!!!
My World Visitor Map!
Leszek Cichonski was born 25 Nov., 1957 in Wroclaw, Poland.
He started playing guitar at twelve years old on a battered acoustic. He progressed from standards such as House of the Rising Sun to spending years focusing on B.B. King and, in particular, Jimi Hendrix. For over 10 years Leszek has been and is considered the best Polish blues-rock guitar player.
He was the first in Poland to prepare modern, blues and rock based instructional materials with audio tapes for guitar players. He hosted a guitar instruction series on Polish national television which continues to be rebroadcast. He is the publisher of his own and other education products. His instructional projects and workshops together with MIDI-MAX - his publishing house - were awarded with the Bronze Medal at the International Music Fair INTERMEDIA '94 in Wroclaw
In 1989 he played on Tadeusz Nalepa’s (the “Polish father of the blues”) album To mój blues vol. II He performed extensively with Nalepa which included international touring and his first visit to the United States.
Since 1991 he has led his own group GUITAR WORKSHOP that has employed top Polish musicians (Wojciech Karolak, Jerzy Piotrowski –SBB, Krzysztof Scieranski and others) as well as being a blues promoter for Poland. In 1996 he had recorded an album "Leszek Cichonski & friends - LIVE" with some of the best Polish guitarists: Grzegorz Skawinski, Jerzy Styczynski, Dariusz Kozakiewicz and Carlos Johnson from Chicago.
?Leszek Cichonski is a laureate of the Maria Jurkowska Award, which is granted each year by the Polish National Radio Programme 3’s musical journalist for his “propagation of the blues and musical education among young people”. According to "Gitara i Bass" and "Twoj Blues" magazines’ readers’ and critics’ polls, he is the best Polish blues-rock guitarist of 2001, 2004 and 2003 (voted "Best Blues Guitar Player" in polls for 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, and 2004 and "Best Rock Guitar Player" 2001.)
?Over the last ten years, he has organized and played well in excess of 200 concerts in Poland and the Czech Republic with Chicago based blues players. Chicago's greats, Carlos Johnson, Sammy Fender, Pistol Pete came to Poland at different times and played with his band, “Guitar Workshop”.
Cichonski's CD, “Thanks Jimi" is his tribute to Jimi Hendrix. It features Chicago's Stan Skibby and Anika - a very talented singer from Wroclaw, Poland. “Thanks Jimi” has received international radio play as well as prestigious awards from Poland’s top music magazines as “Best Polish Blues Album” and “Best Polish Rock Guitar Album” of 2001. The largest guitar band lead by Leszek so far is the ensemble he coordinates to play in the center of the gorgeous Polish city, Wroclaw. This has occurred every year since 2003. During the “Thanks Jimi Festival” he attempts- with a little help from his friends - to set the new Guinness Record in for most guitar players simultaneously playing the same song. He selected Jimi Hendrix's hit "Hey Joe". The Guinness jury has officially confirmed 1581 guitarist taking part in this unique event in 2006, which is the standing world record.
http://www.myspace.com/thanksjimifest
His most recent CD, "Come Together – Live” issued in May 2005 was recorded with Mississippi born bluesman John “Broadway” Tucker and has received warm reviews and international radio airplay. As a result of this recording Leszek was officially invited by the Directors of the Monterey Bay Blues Festival to perform with John “Broadway” Tucker at the 2006 Monterey Bay Blues Festival (on the same stage as the legendary 1967 Monterey Pop Festival.) Tucker was presented with the Monterey Bay Blues Festival’s 2006 Artist of the Year award.
Leszek graduated from the Wroclaw Technical University in 1982.
www.cichonski.art.pl
Some related sites:
http://www.hendrix-links.de/guitarrecord.html
http://www.mnblues.com/cdreview/2001/leszekcichonski-hendrix -vi.html
http://www.grooveyardrecords.com/leszek.html
http://www.fanclub.cichonski.art.pl/start.php
Discography :
OZZY?Obcy raj, obce niebo / Budzi mnie bicie serc?(1983, Tonpress) SP
TADEUSZ NALEPA?To mój blues vol. II?(1989, Muza) CD
JOINT VENTURE?Live?(1992) MC
BLUES-ROCK GUITAR WORKSHOP?Jam Session?(1991, Midi-Max) MC
SLODKO GORZKI?Soundtrack?(1996, PolyGram Polska) CD
LESZEK CICHONSKI & FRIENDS?Blues-Rock Guitar Workshop Live?(1996, Midi-Max) CD
PRZYSTANEK WOODSTOCK?Dzien Trzeci?(1997, Polskie Nagrania) CD Krzysztof Cugowski Integralnie ( Poligram 2001)
LESZEK CICHONSKI featuring STAN SKIBBY Thanks Jimi (2001 , Tomi) CD
Siona Neal A Blue Bite (Butterfly Records 2003)
John “Broadway Tucker and Leszek Cichonski "Come Together - Live" (Omerta 2005) http://www.cometogether.it-self.pl/
Educational Products:
Leszek Cichonski?Blues-Rock Guitar Workshop?kompleksowy kurs dla gitarzystów?/ book and instructional tapes/ (1996, Midi-Max)
Leszek Cichonski?Video-Kurs „Blues-Rock Guitar” (POLTEL 1998)
Thanks Jimi Festival Story from 2003 till 2006 y.
Foxy Lady from "Thanks Jimi" CD with Stan Skibby & Anika
Leland Mississippi Blues from Dekada Club in Warsaw