Baran was joined in the move by Ukrainian judge Vladimir Zubitsky and Lithuanian juror Raimondas Sviackevičius.
Baran is a professor at the Chopin University of Music in Warsaw and served as its rector from 2016 to 2024.
Tomasz Strahl, the university's current rector, issued a statement expressing "respect for the position taken" by Baran and the Ukrainian and Lithuanian judges.
"For the peoples of Central and Eastern Europe, and in particular for Ukrainians, many of whom have studied, are studying, or teach at our university, the war waged by Russia against our neighbour is not an abstract matter," Strahl wrote.
He added that while "the legacy of Russian music remains an important part of the world's cultural heritage and is also a lasting element of teaching" at the Chopin University of Music, "a juror has the right to recognise exceptional circumstances in which their conscience does not allow them to evaluate certain contestants."
Such a decision is "a matter of freedom of expression and freedom of conscience," Strahl said.
Castelfidardo Mayor Roberto Ascani criticised the three jurors' decision.
During the competition’s closing ceremony, he apologised to the Russian contestants and publicly declared that he would spare no effort to ensure that the three members of the judging panel would not be invited to serve on the jury of the competition again.
Baran said Ascani read out his statement from his cellphone and did not give him or his Ukrainian and Lithuanian colleagues an opportunity to present their standpoint to the public.
Baran also said a student orchestra from Lithuania, which won the competition's orchestral category, was not allowed to perform at the winners' concert.
The 51st International Accordion Competition was held from September 6 to 13.
Castelfidardo, in Italy’s central Ancona province, is a major centre for accordion building and is known as the "world’s accordion capital."
(mk/gs)
Source: Rzeczpospolita, Chopin University of Music