The Kwartesencja (Quartessence) Chamber Music Festival is broadening its remit to take in pop music. For the first time, DJs will take part in a concert devoted to the work of classical Polish composer Karol Szymanowski.

The fourth Kwartesencja Chamber Music Festival will be held Oct. 3-7 in the Fabryka Trzciny arts center in Warsaw. Many events will be the first of their kind at the festival. There will be a vocal performance by British tenor Mark Padmore. He will perform songs by Franz Schubert and Ralph Vaughan Williams, the eminent English composer of the last century. The British embassy will be a patron of the festival for the first time.

The ¦l±ski Quartet, one of the best in Poland, will, together with the hosts of the event, the Royal String Quartet, perform the Violin Octet in E Minor, Op. 64, by Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy. The finale concert promises to be most interesting. The Royal String Quartet's classical musicians will perform with musicians from the world of modern pop. Top Polish DJs Lenar and Smolik will play electronic arrangements inspired by the music of composer Karol Szymanowski. One has a fanciful title-"ShyManOfSky Inspirations." Additionally, the festival program will include chamber music works by Haydn, Beethoven and by contemporary composer Sofia Gubaidulina.

As in past festivals, the main role is played by the festival founders, the Royal String Quartet. Izabella Szałaj-Zimak, Elwira Przybyłowska, Marek Czech and Michał Pepol have given concert performances in the world's most prestigious venues. In 2006, they accepted the position of resident quartet in the famous Wigmore Hall in London. The quartet has performed for Queen Elizabeth II and the British royal family. They have won numerous international awards. They are also part of the BBC New Generation Artists program, which promotes musical talent. In Poland, their recordings have been nominated for the prestigious Frederyk recording industry awards several times, recently for the The Best of Zarębski and Polish Chamber Music albums released last year.