Professor John Rink receives Bene Merito award
17.10.2021
On Sunday, 17 October 2021, Professor John Rink, an authority on the works of Fryderyk Chopin, and a Chopin Piano Competition juror, received the Bene Merito honorary distinction during a ceremony at the Fryderyk Chopin Museum in Warsaw. The ceremony was attended by Head of the Foreign Service Arkady Rzegocki, Director of the Fryderyk Chopin Institute Artur Szklener, as well as the jurors of the 18th Chopin Piano Competition and distinguished guests from the world of culture.
Head of the Foreign Service Arkady Rzegocki delivered an address in which he presented Prof. Rink’s achievements and highlighted the professor’s invaluable contribution promoting the music and legacy of the great Polish composer across the world.
“No doubt the basis of Chopin’s fame was his outstanding talent, sensitivity, virtuosity, and musical innovation, which blazed a trail for the development of European music. But fame also needs its promoters. I have no need here to list the huge number of great artists who remained unappreciated during their lives and after their deaths. That is why we very much need people like Professor Rink. People who are engaged, devoted, and sincere in their love for Chopin,” said the chief of the foreign service.
The speech also emphasised that the award ceremony was hosted at a symbolic place – the Fryderyk Chopin Museum in Warsaw – and on a symbolic date – during the 18th Chopin Competition on the anniversary of Chopin’s death.
After accepting the award, Professor Rink delivered a speech in which he thanked for the distinction and spoke about his long-term ties with Poland.
Professor John Rink is one of the world’s foremost authorities on the music of Fryderyk Chopin. He is a prize-winning author and widely respected expert on the manuscript and printed sources for Chopin’s works, on the performance history of the composer’s music over the past two centuries, on the analysis of the repertoire, on editorial practices, and on aspects of critical reception. (source: The Fryderyk Chopin Institute).
Established in 2009, the Bene Merito honorary distinction is conferred by the minister of foreign affairs in acknowledgement of services that contribute to strengthening Poland’s status in the international arena.
