In the words of President Arkadiusz Kubica:
There immediately arises the question of the validity of this goal. The answer can be found in the latest book of T. A. Zielinski titled Szymanowski: lyricism and ecstasy. The author writes: “Without a doubt, Karol Szymanowski is one of the underrated composers who in fact is not very well known even in his own country. A composer of great talent and breadth, he was an unmatched master of harmonic language and lyrical expression in his day. One of the most singular personalities in 20th century music, he is not – or at least was not – known on the world music scene to a degree befitting such a great artist. Needless to say, our organization does not aspire to restore Szymanowski to the world. Rather, our objective is that his music be ever-present and not merely on occasions of more or less significant anniversaries. We also wish to present his works in the context of those of other European composers, so that we can fully recognize, discern, and appreciate his style.

Thus was born the Evenings with the music of Karol Szymanowski and... – Festival whose guiding principle is to juxtapose works of Szymanowski with those of other prominent composers of the 20th century, and to reveal in the process the broad spectrum of trends and mutual inspirations at work in the previous century. This format of programming creates the opportunity for comparing compositional techniques in the treatment of similar genres; it also allows us to familiarize the audiences with works rarely performed in public.
Each edition of the Festival presents Szymanowski’s works side by side with those of one other composer.

The following composers have been presented so far:

• 1998, Evenings with the music of Karol Szymanowski and Leoš Janáček
• 1999, Evenings with the music of Karol Szymanowski and Grażyna Bacewicz
• 2000, Evenings with the music of Karol Szymanowski and Maurice Ravel
• 2001, Evenings with the music of Karol Szymanowski and Bela  Bartók
• 2002, Evenings with the music of Karol Szymanowski and Richard Strauss
• 2003, Evenings with the music of Karol Szymanowski and Sergei Prokofieff
• 2004, Evenings with the music of Karol Szymanowski and Sergei Rachmaninoff
• 2005, Evenings with the music of Karol Szymanowski and Silesian composers
  (celebrating 75 years of Music Academy in Katowice)
• 2006, Evenings with the music of Karol Szymanowski and Dmitri Shostakovich
• 2007, Evenings with the music of Karol Szymanowski
  (commemorating 125th anniversary of the composer’s birth)
• 2008, Evenings with the music of Karol Szymanowski and Carl Nielsen
• 2009, Evenings with the music of Karol Szymanowski and Claude Debussy
• 2010, Evenings with the music of Karol Szymanowski and Fryderyk Chopin
  (commemorating 200th anniversary of the composer’s birth)
• 2011, Evenings with the music of Karol Szymanowski and Manuel de Falla
• 2012, Evenings with the music of Karol Szymanowski and Zoltán Kodály
• 2013, Evenings with the music of Karol Szymanowski and Witold Lutosławski
  (commemorating 100th anniversary of the composer’s birth)

Today, The Evenings count among the most important musical events held at the Music Academy in Katowice. Notable artists who have appeared at the Festival and who contributed to its prestige are, among others:
 Pianists: Andrzej Jasiński, Józef Stompel, Andrzej Tatarski, Joanna Domańska, Magdalena Lisak, Beata Bilinska, Wojciech Switala, Zbigniew Raubo;
Singers: Urszula Kryger, Ewa Biegas;
Violinists: Piotr Pławner, Szymon Krzeszowiec;
and premier chamber music ensembles: Silesian Quartet, Camerata Quartet, Prima Vista Quartet, Camerata Silesia