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MUSIC

Classical
Jazz
Popular music

Curiosities

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Classical

Polish classical music was shaped, in large measure, by the Romantic tradition. Its creator was Fryderyk Chopin (1810- 1849), many of whose works linked the Romantic idiom with Polish folk music. This tradition was continued by Stanisław Moniuszko (1819-1852), the composer of national operas and numerous of songs. The Chopin tradition has also entrenched itself in Polish piano playing. Great piano virtuosi, such as Józef Hoffmann, Artur Rubinstein or Ignacy Jan Paderewski, have played Chopin with particular pleasure.

During the interwar period, international competitions were brought to life, including one of the world's oldest, the Henryk Wieniawski Violin Competition (a renowned violin virtuoso) in Poznań (since 1935), or the Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw (since 1927), in which Dmitri Shostakovich, Janusz Olejniczak and Krystian Zimerman, among others, made their debut. In the field of composition, the leading light of the period was Karol Szymanowski (1882-1937), the creator of emotional music, often including folk colourings (e.g. the ballet Harnasie), which has recently become popular in Europe thanks to the efforts of Sir Simon Rattle, famous for conducting the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (including the complete recordings for EMI).

After the Second World War, Polish composers, working under strong political pressure, were forced to write celebratory works. Some emigrated (Roman Palester, Andrzej Panufnik, Roman Maciejewski), while others, not wishing to buckle under to the system, alluded to folk music or the ideals of absolute music. Thanks to this, there arose worthwhile works untainted by political considerations (Lutosławski's Symphony No1, the works of Grażyna Bacewicz and Bolesław Szabelski). The situation changed after 1956, alongside the political "thaw". Poles quickly found their feet in the new artistic reality. Pieces displaying intriguing enlargement on ideas popular in Europe arose with unusual speed; among such were the works of Tadeusz Baird and Kazimierz Serocki. In 1956, these artists founded the "Warsaw Autumn" International Festival of Contemporary Music, which still takes place annually and is one of the most important festivals in Europe.

Equally quickly appeared revolutionary aesthetic ideas related to sonorism, which is the technique of creating music based solely on sound colour. The pioneer of sonorism was Krzysztof Penderecki (1933), who pointed a completely new developmental direction in European contemporary music. Penderecki's avant-gardism was shocking - he used, without scruple, sounds from the interface between art and life - rustles, knocking, the wail of saws or the clatter of typewriters (Fluorescence).

Witold Lutosławski (1913-1994), on the other hand, concentrated on questions of perfection of form and refinement of sound. His music is multi-layered, internally rich and varied, displaying the discrete charm of constellations of sound, at the same time not without dramatic interest ( the 3rd and 4th Symphonies or Piano Concerto).

Wojciech Kilar (1932) also belonged to the peak of the avant-garde, although today he is better known for his film music (see p.39); the composer of orchestral pieces such as: Riff 62 (1962), Generique (1963) and Diphtongos (1964). Among the most popular of his works from that time is the symphonic poem Krzesany (1974), an expression of Kilar's fascination with minimal music, characterised by a parsimony of form and content. This piece has led a fruitful life and is still very much enjoyed by both performers and listeners.

The departure from the avant-garde in order to get closer to the listener found its embodiment in the works of Henryk Mikołaj Górecki (1933). Górecki, in his youth a self-styled supporter of non-compromise, gradually evolved into a mystic, the best evidence of which is his Symphony No3, composed in 1976. Some years later, it finally achieved an improbable media career. This was caused by a release by the American company Elektra Nonesuch with a recording of the Symphony performed by the American singer Dawn Upshaw and the London Sinfonietta. The piece reached the top of the American and British charts and was the fifth most popular piece in Britain in 1993. The British radio station Classic FM, as a result of audience pressure, broadcast sections of Gorecki's piece round the clock. Listeners to the Symphony No3 included classical music lovers as well as people who had no daily contact with such music, young people as well as long-distance truck drivers. Górecki, with his simple and yet intense music, reached everyone, revealing the world of primary emotions.

In the atmosphere of bringing the avant-garde to account, many composers returned to forgotten, traditional ideals. This is particularly apparent in the works of Paweł Szymański and Paweł Mykietyn. Their pieces are characterised by original relationships to the stylistics of Classicism, Romanticism, and even the Baroque (Mykietyn's Sonnets after Shakespeare), a long way from empty imitation. The basis of this aesthetic approach is the attempt to discover new meaning in classical art in the context of contemporary culture, which places both composers in the camp of the musical postmodernists.

This dialogue with tradition is equally strongly apparent in Penderecki's more recent works, reaching straight for cultural archetypes, evidence for which can be found chiefly in his oratorios and operas (e.g. The Devils of Loudun, Paradise Lost, Die schwarze Maske), which are the crowning achievement of Polish operatic composition.

It is also worth recalling the recent premieres of Mykietyn's An Ignoramus and a Madman, Zygmunt Krauze's Balthazar (on repertoire in Paris) and Bernadetta Matuszczak's Antigone. Contemporary Polish works for the stage are, in common with classics of this variety, presented by such leading directors as Mariusz Treliński, Ryszard Peryt or Krzysztof Nazar. Great vocal-instrumental works guest at the annual Wratislavia Cantans festival - from Gregorian chant to Gospel & Negro Spirituals, from classical to avant-garde composers, and all in wonderful performances by world class orchestras, choirs, groups and soloists, interpreted by such conductors as Antoni Wit, Kazimierz Kord, Jacek Kaspszyk or Tadeusz Strugała. Jerzy Maksymiuk, one of the most colourful characters among Polish conductors, tours abroad in the main, ever eager to attempt new and hitherto unknown works. He has conducted, among others, one of the world's best orchestras, the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra from Glasgow, receiving, at the end, the esteemed title of Conductor-Laureate of that orchestra.

Among the artists present on the Polish concert stage, the leading positions are occupied by singers - Teresa Żylis-Gara, Ewa Podles, Kira Boreczko, Wiesław Ochman and Romuald Tesarowicz. While it is true that many of them live abroad, similarly to the composers Zygmunt Krauze and Hanna Kulenty, the violinist Bartłomiej Nizioł, the harpsichordist Elżbieta Chojnacka, and the pianists Krystian Zimerman and Piotr Anderszewski, they have strong links with the Polish cultural inheritance, as may be heard in their repertoire.

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Jazz

The post-war history of Polish popular music began with jazz. And that is the way it stayed until 1950. Then, the Communist authorities decided that jazz was an expression of sympathy with a hostile ideology. Shortly after, it was officially denounced and its performance and promotion prohibited. Only during the second half of the Fifties, together with the "ideological thaw", did some signs of artistic freedom appear. In 1956, jazz enthusiasts under the leadership of the outspoken writer Leopold Tyrmand (later an émigré) organised Poland's first international jazz festival, which is today, going under the name Jazz Jamboree, the oldest in Europe.

Among the pioneers of the Polish jazz scene was Krzysztof Komeda (1931-1969). A doctor by education, a pianist and composer by desire, he was the leader of many groups, the author of countless jazz themes, and one of the most original composers of film music during the

The greatest concentration of artistic activity towards the creation of an individual musical identity took place in Poland during the Sixties. During this period, young artists - searching for their own space in literature, film, theatre, the visual arts, popular music and jazz - all made their debuts. These searches are most fully and colourfully reflected in the jazz discographies of the violinist and composer Michał Urbaniak, the vocalist Urszula Dudziak, the pianist Adam Makowicz, the trumpeter Tomasz Stańko, the saxophonist Jan "Ptaszyn" Wróblewski and the pianist, trumpeter and trombonist Andrzej Kurylewicz. They all began their careers during the Sixties, but gathered their artistic momentum in the Seventies. Presently, in a musical landscape densely populated by styles, fashions and trends, their music is an extravagant individuality, recognised by the world's artistic authorities.

Polish jazz, by using a universal musical language, quickly and efficiently found its place on the world stage. The one condition necessary for Polish songs to cross geographical borders was to break through the language barrier. This only happened at the beginning of the Nineties, when the multinational record companies started to appear in the Polish music scene.

 

 

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Popular music

Poland has always been a very open country to new music genres and even before the fall of the communism, music styles like rock, metal, jazz, electronic or New Wave were well-known. Since 1989, the Polish scene has exploded with new talents and a more diverse style. To the contrary of most European countries, pop music is not dominant in Poland.

 

It is completely overshadowed by rock and to a lesser degree hip hop . Alternative music styles like black metal, Gothic rock, trip hop, EBM and post-rock are also popular.

Poland has also two indigenous styles of popular music: sung poetry and disco polo. The latter is completely ignored by the mainstream media, while the former has its own radio stations and TV channels.

Poland is a huge producer of the hip hop music. Hip hop is usually most popular in large urban centres. Rock is usually more dominant in smaller cities and rural areas but the radio rock stations are by far the most listened to radio stations in Poland. Every year a huge gathering of young Poles meet to celebrate the rock and alternative music in Jarocin or Zary. These events often attract more than 250,000 people and are comparable to Woodstock or Roskilde rock gatherings.

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Hip-hop

Polish hip-hop music has developed since the 80s. It is more and more popular among young people in Poland. Special clothing companies, music stores devoted only to hip-hop music came to existence.

The polish hip-hop music scene is heavily focused on the capital city of Warsaw, where the two most recognized groups originated from: Molesta/Ewenement and Trzycha/Warszafski Deszcz (both of them use two names). Warsaw is not only these two groups strong, there is also enormous number of other phat teams. Group Ewenement and mutli-emcee Zip Sklad are popular in Poland representatives of so called "Thug/Reality Rap" on the polish soil. They rhyme about everyday street struggles of contemporary urban/project youth. Rough style is also represented by other Warsaw groups like Proceder, Hemp Gru, Mor W.A. and solo recording artist Chada. All these artists (except for Trzyha) are strongly promoted and produced by the artist who is probably the most important person for polish hip-hop music. He is DJ 600 V (a.k.a. DJ Volt), the best polish producer who's cooking beats on a regular basis for almost all top notch groups in Poland. His unique skills combine with hardware that any NYC producer would not be ashamed of (He is one of the two people in Poland who own SP-1200 beat machine). This is a selection of other polish producers worthy of mention: O$KA of OMP, Janmario of Trzyha, DJ M.A.D of RHX, and solo recording artist Jajonasz. The Warsaw scene is extremely active and there is a number of other groups lyrically touching on softer issues and separating themselves from harsh "street style". These who scored debut albums: Grammatik, Plomień 81 and Stare Miasto. Apart from Warsaw, we have to bring up the city of Kielce, since this city is a stomping ground for Wzgorze Ya-Pa-3, which happens to be the oldest polish active hip-hop group (three albums scored and fourth one coming soon). Wzgórze often teams up with Kielce's other group - V.E.T.O. Sklad.

On the other end of the polish hip-hop scene stands Kaliber 44. Basing on hip-hop trax they provide hermetic alternative poetry which meets warm embrace by high-school and college students and lack of interest from die-hard hip-hop fans. Kaliber 44 happens to be the best selling group in Poland (50.000 copies of their second album sold). Kaliber 44 comes from another hot spot on the map of Poland. Its Katowice and the industrial area of Silesia region. Other groups from Silesia: Gie-Gie and Czarne Złoto which are soon to release debut albums. Another city to I'll mention here lies close to German border - the city of Szczecin ( 125 km to Berlin), which spawned groups of Snuz and Wiele-C.T. Also the city of Lodz is known for Thinkadelic who debuted in club/party style and city of Poznan with groups of Slums Attack and Da Blaze who enjoy mostly local popularity.

Major Label-hyped rap artist Liroy (who was noted in VIBE magazine) who sold over 400.000 copies of his 1995's debut, due to accusation of commercialism and lack of authentity is now rejected by vast majority of crews mentioned in this article. As a matter of fact he enjoys this alienation in public.

The polish DJ/turntablists scene consists of Janmario and Deszczu Strugi of Polfejder Crew (the latter is official Polish DMC Champ), DJ Twister of Snuz, DJ Niewidzialna Reka (NR), DJ Feel-X of Kaliber 44 and DJ Krime from the city of Cracow.

Radio shows have played (and still play) a major part in the polish hiphop movement. First, it was Bogna Swiatkowska/DJ Volt radio shows since 1993. Bogna's news and selection of music familiarized Warsaw hiphop fans with new releases and classics as well with U.S. Black Community issues. Before she retired her career in 1997 due to starting a family life, she introduced almost all the major players in Warsaw and Polish HipHop Scene to each other. These days we got one and only Radiostacja ( www.radiostacja.pl with Streaming Real Audio Server!), which provides new urban music (HipHop, Drum'n'Bass, House, Minimal) on a daily basis as well other not popular tunes as future and acid jazz, punk, ska and raegge. Radiostacja has three (!) separate HipHop shows: Polfejder Crew Show (DJ Mix), DJ600V/Tytus Show (DJ Mix + hiphop news) and Druh Sławek Show (presentation of music plus polish unsigned groups).

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Rock

The least success on the international scene has been achieved by Polish rock, it being difficult to compete with the British giants. In the last decade, however, much has changed. The English language version of one of the group Myslovitz's albums was promoted with concerts in London. The group's stage presence was also recognised when they received an MTV European Music Award in 2002 in the category Best Polish Act. This category, it is worth remembering, appeared just three years ago.

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Death Metal

The Death Metal group Vader is one of the few Polish groups of its type known and valued on the world music scene. The group was formed in 1985, and five years later began their international career, supported by the English record company Earache Records. Since 1993, they have played in Poland at the more important rock festivals as well as abroad, in Europe, Japan, the USA and Canada.

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Original sound

Fans of an original sound may be pointed in the direction of the Cracow Klezmer Band, an unusual quartet of young virtuosi playing such instruments as accordion, violin, clarinet, double bass and percussion. Their dynamic compositions and surprising arrangements make them one of the most interesting exponents of the contemporary radical stream in the rebirth of Jewish music. The group do not limit themselves to purely Jewish influences, however, but also incorporate elements of the Balkan, Arabic, Romany and Slavonic traditions. They have successfully toured with such famous names as Brave Old World, Anthony Coleman & Sephardic Tinge, The Klezmatics, and Dave Krakauer Klezmer Madness. The Cracow Klezmer Band's music enchanted John Zorn himself, one of the most creative artists on the contemporary music scene. In 2000, the group's debut album, entitled De Profundis, was released by his famous New York company TZADIK, followed a year later by the second - The Warriors.

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Ethnic music

More and more frequently, independent releases promoting ethnic music, fashionable the world over, are appearing abroad. For enthusiasts of ethnic-folk music, there should be a place in the collection for recordings by Trebunie Tutki. This Polish Highland group is the continuation of a century-old musical family tradition. They began their professional stage career in 1991 with a concert with legendary Jamaican roots-reggae group, Twinkle Brothers. The album they recorded together, (Janosik) in Sherwood, was recognised as one of the best World Music albums released during the 10-year existence of the World Music Charts Europe, an organisation of radio producers from the 11 countries gathered together in the European Broadcasting Union (EBU). Similar popularity was achieved by the album Best Dub/Greatest Hits. The trance-inducing fiddles, catchy melodies and rhythmic swagger of the multi-talented Norman Grant create a remarkable fusion of two musical cultures.

It is also worth getting to know the music of De Press, a folk-punk group founded in 1980 in Oslo ( Norway) on the initiative of Andrzej Dziubek and the Norwegian musicians Jorn Christensen and Ola Snortheim. The repertoire consists of songs inspired by Polish highland folk music, liberally besprinkled with elements of punk, hardcore and ska. The group have collaborated with musicians from Sweden, Belarus and Russia.

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Film music

The picture of Polish popular music would be incomplete without mention of composers of film music. Their achievements, known for years, have been recognised with many awards. After Bronisław Kaper, the late Henryk Wars made his mark in Hollywood during the 50s. In the 1960s, the glittering Hollywood career of Krzysztof Komeda was ended by a tragic accident. Nowadays, the musical ornamentation of many a well-known film is provided by Jan A.P. Kaczmarek, Wojciech Kilar and Zbigniew Preisner, co-creators of successes in American and European cinema.

The Best Known Polish Film Composers

  • Wojciech Kilar - The Pianist (2002), Death and the Maiden (1994), dir. R. Polański; The Portrait of a Lady (1996), dir. J. Campion; Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992), dir. F.F. Coppola
  • Zbigniew Preisner - Three Colours (1993-4), The Double Life of Veronica (1991), dir. K. Kie?lowski; Secret Garden (1993), dir. A. Holland; Damage (1992), dir. L. Malle
  • Jan A.P. Kaczmarek - Unfaithful (2001), dir. A. Lyne; Bliss (1997), dir. L. Young; Washington Square (1997), dir. A. Holland
  • Michał Lorenc - Bandit (1997), dir. M. Dejczer; Exit in Red (1996), dir. Y. Bogayewicz; Blood and Wine (1996), dir. B. Rafelson
  • Krzysztof Komeda - Knife in the Water (1961), Cul-de-sac (1966), Rosemary's Baby (1968), dir. R. Polański; Kattorna (1965), dir. H. Carlsen
  • Bronisław Kaper - wrote the music for over 150 films; Oscar laureate (Lili, 1953, dir. C. Walters); the composer of famous jazz themes (including Green Dolphin Street and You Are All I Need)

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Curiosities

  • The world's longest symphony is Bogusław Schaeffer's Symphony-Concerto, composed in 1997 and lasting over two hours. Schaeffer is also well known (particularly among German-speakers) as a theoretician and historian of contemporary music and as the author of avant-garde and very amusing plays (including Script for Three Actors).
  • Polish pianists are sometimes gifted in unusual ways. Ignacy Jan Paderewski, having already achieved fame as a musician, did not hesitate before accepting the top job in the first independent government of the Polish Republic in 1919. Artur Rubinstein and Mieczysław Horszowski were successfully touring at the age of nearly 100. Józef Hofman invented windscreen wipers and paper clips, and Janusz Olejniczak played Chopin's role in Andrzej Żuławski's film La note bleue.
  • The record for the highest number of sales garnered by a single CD release of a performance of a contemporary music work (in the classical music category) - over 1 million copies - belongs to H.M. Górecki's Symphony No3, released by Elektra Nonesuch.
  • At the end of the Fifties, Krzysztof Penderecki sent three compositions to one competition, although only one was allowed. The first he wrote left-handed (his usual hand), the second right-handed, and the third he asked another person to copy, all to have the greatest chance of gaining a prize. It turned out that all three compositions won awards: the First Prize, and two Seconds.

Source: http://www.poland.gov.pl;

http://enigma.art.pl

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