Ludwik Konopko
Ludwik Konopko (born December 7, 1970 in Lviv) is a Polish guitarist, composer, and arranger. His guitar music incorporates elements of blues, jazz, flamenco, and world music. He is the leader of the ZOA Band and a member of the Pilar group. He also collaborates with the well-recognized Polish flamenco group Que Passa. Earlier, he was a leader of Acoustic Travel Band and a co-founder of the Cocotier band. His independently produced records, covering mostly his own compositions, were sold in tens of thousands of copies. Musical biography. Konopko was born in Lviv in western Ukraine . He had his first public appearance as a guitarist at the age of 19, when he performed in an orchestra conducted by the composer Virko Baley at the Lviv National Philharmonic. In 1989 together with Oleh Suk he created his first band Tea Fan Club (TFC) in Lviv. The art-rock group quickly became very popular and attracted other well-recognized musicians, like Oleksandr Ksenofontov or Vlad DeBriansky. In 1990 the TFC band performed during the youth festival of alternative culture Vyvych. Tea Fan Club is still considered today a legendary musical project in Ukraine. Since 1991 Ludwik Konopko has  been living in Poland. In 1999 he created the band Cocotier together with Andrzej Krośniak and in 2002 Ludwik Konopko founded his own Acoustic Travel Band. Both groups performed all over Europe for several years and participated in many musical festivals, among others, in Ferrara, Novara, Olegio, and Orte. Their records, including primarily compositions and arrangements by Ludwik Konopko, were sold in tens of thousands of copies. In 2005 Ludwik Konopko performed with Acoustic Travel Band as support before the world acclaimed guitarist Al di Meola at the Non-Stop Festival in Wroclaw.From 2014 to 2016 Ludwik Konopko collaborated  with the integrative entertainment group with theatrical and musical background Drzewo a Gada in Katowice. Between 2016 and 2018 he cooperated with one of the best Polish flamenco fusion groups Que Passa. They performed together on many tours and participated in several festivals, among others, in Landshut, Rudolstadt or Lund. Since 2012 Ludwik Konopko is a part of the Pilar band frequently performing both in Poland and abroad. In 2019 he founded his own ZOA Band and remains its leader until today. Ludwik Konopko invited to the group very experienced musicians, who inspire each other and enjoy playing together. They  perform original compositions by Ludwik Konopko and guitar covers of other authors. The guitar music of Ludwik Konopko combines several styles, among others blues, jazz, flamenco, and world music. Moreover, in his compositions and arrangements, he often uses complex multi-instrumental layouts. His creativity, musical feeling, extraordinary guitar technique, and freedom of improvisation gained him many fans. Ludwik Konopko performs solo and with other musicians and bands for more than three decades. Often, he can be spotted unexpectedly outdoors in different cities of Poland where he promotes his records among people.