The Choir of the Teatr Wielki – Polish National Opera has operated almost since the theatre’s inception. It was highly praised by the press already in the nineteenth century.
The rebuilding of the Teatr Wielki and its reopening in 1965 provided a fresh stimulus for the ensemble’s development, and its large forces became an essential element of productions on the main stage. The Choir has been led by Józef Bok, Zofia Urbanyi-Świrska, Henryk Wojnarowski, Lech Gorywoda, Bogdan Gola, Jan Szyrocki, and Mirosław Janowski, and since the 2024/2025 season – by Łukasz Hermanowicz.
The ensemble takes part in operatic productions and symphonic concerts, and also pursues its own concert activity. At the Teatr Wielki – Polish National Opera, it has appeared in productions including Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte (dir. Barrie Kosky), Mozart’s La clemenza di Tito (dir. Ivo van Hove), Andrzej Czajkowski’s The Merchant of Venice (dir. Keith Warner), Giuseppe Verdi’s Rigoletto (dir. Gilbert Deflo), and Georges Bizet’s Carmen (dir. Andrzej Chyra), as well as in productions by David Pountney (including Stanisław Moniuszko’s The Haunted Manor, Krzysztof Penderecki’s Die schwarze Maske, and Mieczysław Weinberg’s The Passenger) and by Mariusz Treliński (including Giacomo Puccini’s Madama Butterfly and La bohème, Giuseppe Verdi’s La traviata, and Stanisław Moniuszko’s Halka).
The Choir has also taken part in numerous international tours of the Teatr Wielki – Polish National Opera, appearing on Europe’s prime musical stages.