Interview. A fan of breakdance, a model, and a social media star, the Polish countertenor, a true virtuoso, is shaking up the codes of lyrical art, reconciling Handel and hip-hop.
Even if his name doesn’t ring a bell for you, unless you happen to have been present at his career as a model (for a very trendy sneaker brand or a jewelry line) and if you’re not one of the 225,000 subscribers on his Instagram account, you’ve probably seen Jakub Jozef Orlinski. For example, on the evening of the Paris Olympic Games opening ceremony in July 2024. It was him, in puffy shorts and a leotard, on a barge floating on the Seine, combining a breakdance demonstration with a virtuoso interpretation of a Rameau aria. And it was still him at the yellow pieces gala last January, punctuating the title “I Smoked Away My Brain” by rapper ASAP Rocky with angelic vocalizations in front of the ecstatic audience at Paris La Defense Arena.
These days, the thirty-year-old, born in Warsaw (Poland), frequents much more classic concert halls – the Capitole Theater in Toulouse, the Bordeaux National Opera, or the Philharmonie de Paris. He fills the venues with his recital inspired by a new album, “If music…” (Warner Classics), which brings together airs by Purcell and Handel. The program includes some baroque hits (like the famous “Ombra mai fu” by Handel) and seems very tame on paper, except that the accompaniment by Michal Biel on the piano gives the whole a very modern sensitivity.
Le Point: Why interpret baroque music with a classical piano? Are you intentionally trying to annoy purists?
Jakub Jozef Orlinski: Let’s just say it doesn’t scare me. I’ve already sung baroque music to a hip-hop loving crowd, I’ve even rapped on a classical album… I’m used to ruffling some feathers. What scares me is mediocrity, not strong reactions. In any case, I want to bring this music to people with a fresh ear, and for that, nothing beats varying the parameters. The piano offers possibilities that the harpsichord doesn’t have: a dynamism in sound, playing with the pedals, deciding whether or not to open his Steinway… all elements that allow for very different nuances in these Handel or Purcell pieces. In concert, I see that people are amazed by what my piano accomplice, Michal Biel, does, and that makes me happy.
How best to convey the emotions that music evokes in me? I always start from this question.
What limits do you set for experimentation?
The limit is set by the music itself. For me, one of the great beauties of the baroque is the concept of ornamentation: composers like Handel had already planned, integrated the idea that the interpreter would add things, embroider in a way. I take advantage of this freedom… When I was a student, I was obsessed with adding color, embellishments, I overdid it to excess, it shimmered from all sides, it felt like the Rio carnival! In reality, it’s not about adding oddities just for fun. Our tools, Michal and I, are the piano and my voice, a countertenor voice. From there, how can we best convey the emotions that the music evokes in us? We always start from this question… When I return to the interpretation of baroque works with the Il Pomo d’Oro orchestra, for example [an ensemble of period instruments], deviating for a while from the traditional voice brings something, like a new flavor.
Do you feel, like at the beginning of your career, the need to explain the high register of your voice?
The truth is, everyone is used to men’s voices reaching high notes. Take Justin Bieber or Justin Timberlake! This type of voice has always been popular.
Lately, directors have asked you to sing while performing a balancing act on a bike (at the Glyndebourne Festival in England) or a breakdance demonstration (at the Champs-Elysées Theater in Paris)… How do you approach these challenges?
It’s not easy to manage your breath when you have to sing and do acrobatic tricks… For the Paris Olympic Games opening show, the battle we did on the stage of the Champs-Elysées Theater, in ‘L’Olimpiade’ by Vivaldi, served as preparation! And the adrenaline gave me a little boost. Directors know that I have this sports fiber – I was a skateboarder before I even started breakdancing – so they take advantage of it. I can’t blame them.
Faced with AI, we must rediscover what we can do with our hands, our bodies, our voices.
How do you explain the continued success of baroque music?
Since I started my international career in 2014, I’ve been thinking, “Can it continue like this? Will people continue to love this music from so long ago, be moved by the genius of Purcell or Handel?” And yes, it’s possible because, deep down, the audience is like me. I feel such an appetite for this art, for the discovery of forgotten scores, for working on well-known works… and people have that same curiosity. Almost even more so now than when I started. Perhaps because of the geopolitical context…
Is music an escape?
Not only! It’s partially true because we all need a place where we can close the door and forget what’s happening outside, surrendering to the beauty of music. But when you attend a concert, there’s also the possibility of letting the music evoke painful memories, things you can only really think about in solitude, disconnected from your phone and computer. A warm solitude surrounded by all these people who are also experiencing something powerful. And in this era of artificial intelligence, we really need to rediscover what craftsmanship is, what we can do with our hands, bodies, and voices. The true beauty comes from there.
Album “If music…”, Warner Classics, 18 euros.
Recital “If music…”, Jakub Jozef Orlinski and Michal Biel (on piano), at the Bordeaux National Opera on April 25, at the Greniers Saint-Jean in Angers on May 15, at the Philharmonie de Paris on May 19.
