Bio


Jaroslaw Kapuscinski is an intermedia composer and pianist whose work has been presented at New York's MOMA, Zentrum für Kunst und Medientechnologie in Karlsruhe, Museum of Modern Art Palais de Tokyo in Paris, National Reina Sofia Museum in Madrid, and many other venues. He has received numerous awards, among others, at the UNESCO Film sur l'Art Festival in Paris in 1992, VideoArt Festival in Locarno in 1992 and 1993, Manifestation Internationale Vidéo et Art Éléctronique in Montréal in 1993, and International Festival of New Cinema and New Media in Montréal in 2000.

Kapuscinski's primary interest is creation and performance of works in which musical instruments control multimedia content. He was first trained as a classical pianist and composer at the Chopin Academy of Music in Warsaw and expanded into multimedia at a residency at Banff Centre for the Arts in Canada (1988) and during doctoral studies at the University of California, San Diego (1992-1997).

Kapuscinski is actively involved in intermedia education. He was a postdoc and lecturer at McGill University in Montreal, has taught at the Conservatory of Music at the University of the Pacific, and has lectured internationally. Currently, he is an Associate Professor of Composition at Stanford University.

Academic Appointments


  • Associate Professor, Music

Administrative Appointments


  • Chair, Department of Music, Stanford University (2016 - 2022)
  • Associate Professor, Department of Music, Stanford University (2015 - Present)
  • Assistant Professor, Department of Music, Stanford University (2008 - 2015)
  • Visiting Lecturer, Conservatory of Music, University of the Pacific (2004 - 2008)
  • Postdoctoral Fellow, Faculty of Music, McGill University (2001 - 2001)
  • Research Assistant, Center for Research in Computing and the Arts (CRCA), University of California, San Diego (1996 - 1997)
  • Research Assistant, Center for Research in Computing and the Arts (CRCA), University of California, San Diego (1993 - 1995)
  • Teaching Assistant, University of California, San Diego (1992 - 1993)

Honors & Awards


  • First Prize, Fresh Minds Festival, Texas A&M University (2014)
  • Most Inspirational Professor Award, University of the Pacific (2007)
  • Best New Media Work, Festival of New Cinema and New Media, Montréal, Canada (2000)
  • Audience Prize, Manifestation Internationale Vidéo et Art Électronique, Montréal, Canada (1993)
  • Grand Prix Cita di Locarno, Performance Category, VideoArt Festival, Locarno, Switzerland (1993)
  • Special Mention, Research Category, Film sur l'art festival, UNESCO (1993)
  • Monte Verita Prize, VideoArt Festival, Locarno, Switzerland (1992)

Boards, Advisory Committees, Professional Organizations


  • Board Member, International Society for Contemporary Music (ISCM), Polish Section (1987 - 1990)
  • Board Member, Youth Section of the Union of Polish Composers (1986 - 1988)
  • Founder and Artistic Director, Artystacje Interarts Student Festival, Warsaw, Poland (1986 - 1988)
  • Member, Society for Electro-acoustic Music in the United States (SEAMUS)
  • Member, International Society for Electroacoustic Music (ISEM/CIME)
  • Member, International Society for Contemporary Music (ISCM)
  • Member, ZAiKS, Polish Society of Authors, Composers and Music Publishers
  • Member, Union of Polish Composers

Program Affiliations


  • Center for East Asian Studies

Professional Education


  • M. Mus., Fryderyk Chopin Music Academy, Warsaw, Poland, Piano Performance (1987)
  • M. Mus., Fryderyk Chopin Music Academy, Warsaw, Poland, Music Composition (1991)
  • Ph.D., University of California, San Diego, CA, Music Composition (1997)

2023-24 Courses


Stanford Advisees


All Publications


  • Noh as Intermedia http:noh.stanford.edu KAPUSCINSKI, J., FUJITA, T., ROSE, F. 2020
  • Japanese Traditional Orchestral Music: Correlation between Time and Timbre Proceedings from the Conference of Interdisciplinary Musicology Rose, F., Kapuscinski, J. 2010
  • Orchestration in Gagaku Music, http://gagaku.stanford.edu KAPUSCINSKI, J., ROSE, F. 2010
  • Interfacing graphic and musical elements in Counterlines Proceedings from New Interfaces for Musical Expression Conference Sanchez, J., Kapuscinski, J. 2009
  • McLaren: Synergist Widok. WRO Media Art Reader 1, “Od kina absolutnego do filmu przyszlosci,” Kapuscinski, J. WRO Art Center, Wroclaw, Poland. 2009: 66–71
  • Counterlines: Studies in Interfacing Graphic and Melodic Lines Proceedings from the International Conference for Computer Music Sanchez, J., Kapuscinski, J. 2009
  • McLaren: Synergist WRO99 Media Art Biennale Catalog Kapuscinski, J. Open Studio/WRO Foundation, Wroclaw, Poland. 1999: 164–173
  • Composing with Sounds and Images Monochord. De musica acta, studia et commentarii Kapuscinski, J. Adam Marszelek Publications, Torun, Poland. 1998: 43–50