Every year, large flocks of migrating species can be spotted in Poznań. Magicians, fairies, vampires, elves, superheroes and even zombies descend in droves onto the city's Trade Fair grounds. What drives them to make the journey?

The fifth year of Spring Break is no time for recapitulations as the event has never stopped growing and gaining momentum. Every year on one weekend in April, music fans from all parts of Europe take over the city. What is there to expect in the upcoming sixth edition of Spring Break?

This April and May, the Zamek (Castle) Cultural Centre will host the exhibition "Out of Town. Sovinec - the Unofficial Czech Culture Centre 1979-1989". This extraordinary display is an unusual case of a peripheral location rising to become a true centre of independent art. It is also a story of a remarkable person who passionately built an anti-state underground scene.

They are integral to every music album. Some, like those for Nirvana's "Nevermind" and The Beatles' "Abbey Road", grow to become iconic. They help interpret the music of some albums and serve as basic graphic form of identification for others. They all have to stand out to attract the buyers of albums either on a shelf or a popular streaming website. They are album covers and this year, for the fifth time, they are going to vie for primacy in the album art contest dubbed Konkurs 30/30.

Both the Piano.pl concert, held two years ago in Warsaw, and the album released to commemorate the occasion, were truly stunning. Now, Dorota Miśkiewicz, the main driving force behind the project, along with an impressive line-up of Polish jazz piano greats, are coming to Poznań.

Interview with ANNA MORYTO, originator of the Costume History Museum of Poznań, conducted by MONIKA NAWROCKA-LEŚNIK

The Death of Ophelia is a little-known monodrama by Stanisław Wyspiański, written when the author was severely ill and physically incapacitated. According to an article by Monika Wycykał published in the Katowice Dziennik Teatralny, the work essentially concerns the question of how one should speak when approaching death. The crossing of the line between life and death became the inspiration for Jerzy Fryderyk Wojciechowski, a 32-year-old composer from Poznań.

The eleventh edition of the Short Waves Festival is around the corner, this time under the motto "Outside The Box". The focus programme will direct our collective gaze to an unexpected place: South-East Asia. Seize the opportunity and delve into a world of stories, documentaries, animations, video clips and experiment.

Don't miss the remarkable exhibition coming to the Poznań Fotoplastykon. Even the venue itself that houses the photoplasticon, an apparatus also known as the kaiserpanorama (or emperor's panorama), is extraordinary. After a brief interruption, the Fotoplastykon is back, set in the historic Arkadia building, serving as a time machine for the enjoyment of all buffs of Wielkopolska history.

The Fotoplastykon, dubbed "the big brown drum" by the poet Zbigniew Herbert, is a device used to display stereoscopic photographs. It converts two nearly identical images into a single 3D picture by means of its optical mechanism. Every visit to the Poznań Fotoplastykon is a journey through time...

So it is possible. Saint Martin (or Święty Marcin in Polish, one of the city's most important streets) is awakening from its coma, after two decades of slumber, as the renovation of the first stretch of the street between ul. Gwarna and ul. Ratajczaka nears completion.

The Narracje. (Narratives) Bohdan Cieślak exhibition in the National Museum is not so much an opportunity to view the artist's stage designs, as a chance to see what is normally hidden from the view of audiences, and what, in fact, begins the scenic visual concept. The exhibition opens on 17 February.

Here is an exhibition that is not to be missed: "Scenes of no importance", a display of collages featuring people in photographs by Jan Kurek, to be held in the Porta Posnania building from January to March.

The Memories of Memories is the crowning event of Bettina Bereś's residency at ZAMEK Culture Centre in Poznań. The Cracow-based artist had long since wanted to get to know Poznań, exploring the places associated with the history of her family.

Algiers are returning to Poland. This is the band's third visit to Poznań, having appeared in various other cities in Poland, too. Don't miss the opportunity to see them live. They are scheduled to play in Poznań's Klub u Bazyla on 18 February.

It would be a simplification to say that Warsaw Sentimental Orchestra plays retro urban folk. It is a team of musicians which literally transfer its fans to the times of twenties, when hits of Adam Aston, Henryk Wars or Jerzy Petersburski reigned on Polish dance floors and in the Polish movies.

Any music lovers who need a lot of cajoling to leave the comfort of their homes on a winter night should check out the February repertoire of the Poznań Philharmonic. In spite of the freezing weather outside, the interiors of the University Auditorium will feel almost spring-like. Audiences are in for a refreshingly uncommon repertoire and a wealth of novel interpretations.

The uncontested world-renowned Israeli music celebrity vocalist Yasmin Levy, known for her sensational interpretations of Sephardic songs and her tango or flamenco performances, will appear in Poznań this April. Tickets for the event are already available.

The premiere of Halka on 31 August 1919, more than a century after the birth of Stanisław Moniuszko, inaugurated the first season of the Wielki Theatre in Poznań. One hundred years on, celebrations of the bicentennial of the composer's birth are set to begin in the Poznań Philharmonic. The choice of Moniuszko as Patron of the Year 2019 is going to make for an extraordinary year for the Poznań Philharmonic itself, as well as the rest of the country.

Definitely one of Poland's most recognised orchestras, with fans who span all age groups and musical tastes. Its declared plan is to keep on playing "to the end of time and one day longer"... The next "performance" of the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity is scheduled for Sunday, 13 January.