On one of the world’s most important stages, the young Piotr Pawlak prepared himself by praying the rosary and making the sign of the cross. A simple gesture that went viral.

---

 

When a sign of the cross goes viral.

It happened on October 11th just before the start of the XIX International Chopin Piano Competition at the Warsaw Philharmonic in Poland.

In the foyer of one of the world’s most prestigious stages, the Polish pianist Piotr Pawlak, during a moment of silence heavy with tension before his performance in the semifinals, took his rosary, made the sign of the cross and prayed.

A simple and spontaneous gesture by a young artist that was, however, captured by cameras and broadcast live on television, immediately becoming viral worldwide.

 

Below the video (also published on our YouTube channel)

 

Piotr Pawlak: “I do not hide my faith”

Surprised by the commotion, the 27-year-old Pawlak explained that it was an action “absolutely natural, I pray before every performance”.

The reason? “I always ask for support, because what we do as musicians somehow goes beyond our human abilities. I simply did what I always do. I do not hide my faith, and I am not ashamed to ask God for help.”

The competition, established in 1927, is considered one of the most prestigious in the international music scene and features the best pianists in the world. It takes place every five years in Warsaw and is entirely dedicated to the music of Frédéric Chopin (1810-1849).

This year’s winner was the American Eric Lu, who received a prize of $70,000 and a gold medal funded by the President of Poland. Although Pawlak did not manage to reach the final, he nonetheless consolidated his international reputation.

Born in Gdańsk, Pawlak is famous for his ability to combine technical precision and emotional depth and is also connected with Italy. Since 2024, in fact, he has been studying at the International Piano Academy at Lake Como.

Raised in a Catholic family, he explained that “faith has always been present. Above all thanks to my mother who used to take me to church every Sunday and taught me how to pray”.

Surely Pawlak knows very well that this is what happened to Chopin himself, raised as a devoted Catholic precisely thanks to his beloved mother. But then, with success, the world’s sirens prevailed over faith.

Just a few days ago we published the testimony of his priest friend, Father Aleksander Jełowicki, who helped bring him back to God and administered the Sacraments a few moments before his death on October 21, 1849.

 

The famous pianist still plays at his parish

For now, however, Pawlak does not seem to be distracted by success.

Despite his busy concert schedule, he still finds time to lend a hand at the parish in Gdańsk, dedicated to Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus.

“Even today”, he reveals, “sometimes I play the organ at church. We do not have a permanent organist, so if I am there and see that no one is at the organ, I go and play during Mass. Our parish priest often mentions it, so everyone knows who plays. It is always a joy to lend a hand”.

It is interesting Pawlak’s emphasis on the difference between music in church and music on the stage: “On stage, in a certain sense, I am the center of attention, together with the composer and the work itself. It is almost like theatre. But liturgical music is completely different. Its purpose is to help people pray, not to distract them. It supports singing and prepares the faithful to live the liturgy”.

In the interview the famous Polish pianist also tells an anecdote that links Chopin to sacred music: “He also used to play the organ. Once, during Mass, he began to improvise during Communion and kept playing for so long that the priest sent an altar boy upstairs to tell him to stop, because the Mass had to continue”.

Returning to the sign of the cross that made him viral these days, Pawlak reiterates that “there is nothing wrong with publicly showing our faith. Even small gestures demonstrate that Christians are still here and we continue to believe that Someone above us always supports us”.

 

Below the video (also published on our YouTube channel)