Traditional music and dance
Musical traditions are like landscapes: they vary from region to region, sculpting their identity. In central Poland, for example, in the densely populated Mazovia and Warsaw regions, you'll find dances like the chodzony, better known in France as the "polonaise". This quiet, solemn couple's dance is similar to a pavane, and is distinguished by its three-beat structure and straight-line movements. This same central area is also the birthplace of the legendary mazurka, popularized by some of the world's greatest dancers (including Chopin). Of peasant origin, its marked rhythm and lively tempo are said to be modelled on those of labour. Very much in vogue in European salons in the 19th century, the mazurka was a mainstay of the society dance repertoire of the period. A true region of dance, it also includes the dyny, which resembles the contredanse and sees four couples standing in a square trying to keep up with a tempo that accelerates to the point of impossibility; the kujawiak, derived from the serene and syncopated mazurka, where couples turn around a circle and tap their feet gently from time to time; and theoberek, whose name comes from the Polish verb meaning "to turn", since it consists of rapid steps and constant turns. In fact, it's the fastest of Poland's five national dances.
Speaking of national dances, one of the most popular, alongside the mazurka, is the cracovienne, or krakowiak in Polish. It is, as the name suggests, the great specialty of the Krakow region. A fast, syncopated two-beat dance, the krakowiak imitates the mimicry of the horse - a much-loved local animal. Over time, the traditional dress worn during the krakowiak has become Poland's national costume, especially the rogatywka, an asymmetrical, pointed hat. Since the inclusion of a krakowiak in Mikhail Glinka's A Life for the Tsar (1836), the tune has become a symbol of Polish culture in the world of the former Soviet Union.
Another much better-known Cracovian tradition - and a favorite with travelers: the hejnał. This musical call played every hour on the horn or trumpet from the top of the highest tower of the Church of Our Lady is a ritual, a souvenir of the Tatar invasions in the 13th century.
In the north of the country, in the Wielkopolska region (Wielkopolska), the great local dance is called the wiwat. Performed in pairs, the dancers walk, run or turn in short, fast steps, holding hands, shoulders or waists.
In the Podhale mountain region, which attracts many tourists, traditions such as the two-beat dance krzesany or the zbójnicki (brigand's dance) are still very much alive. The krzesany is an extremely fast and acrobatic dance, usually performed with a shepherd's axe in hand, and recognizable by the clacking of its heels in mid-air. The zbójnicki, meanwhile, is considered to be the most typical Podhale practice, a very masculine and staged war dance, featuring a fight with thieves (hence the name).
Finally, to the south, in the Tatra mountains, polyphonies such as góralska muzyka and shepherd's tunes resonate, while further west, in the Rzeszow region, the Jewish community traditionally plays the cymbaly (a struck string instrument).
It was thanks to the ethnomusicological collection undertaken by Oskar Kolberg in the 19th century (around the same time as in all the former Soviet Union countries) that this folklore material was preserved and passed on. His Lud compiles the traditions of all Polish regions in 33 volumes and some 12,000 folk songs.
Another vector of preservation and transmission is Mazowsze, which is Poland's national choir-ballet and orchestra of folk songs and dances, where troupes like Słowianki have kept folk aesthetics a living practice. Always popular, generation after generation, traditional Polish music has, in the early 2000s, even regained the wind in its sails thanks to groups like Golec uOrkiestra or Brathanki, who have given it a modern, well-traveled reinterpretation.
Apart from these few groups, the best way to get to know local folklore is to attend the " Nowa Tradycja" radio folk festival, the country's most important folk music festival. Alternatively, at the foot of the Tatras, in Zakopane, the International Mountain Folk Festival(Międzynarodowy Festiwal Folkloru Ziem Górskich) is held every year at the end of August, where troupes from all over the world gather to share their traditions, dances and music.
Classical music
In the opinion of music lovers, Poland is Chopin. A luminous composer and pianist, Chopin represents a turning point in Polish music. There is an after Chopin, but there is also a before Chopin. And this "before" is far from uninteresting.
During the 16th century, Krakow was the epicenter of Polish music, since it was here that the composers who led the musical innovation of Poland's Golden Age were based (or originated): Wacław z Szamotuł, Nicolaus Cracoviensis, Marcin Leopolita and Mikołaj Gomółka.
In the XVIIe century, Poland, like many other countries, was swept by the Baroque movement. The most famous composers of this period are Adam Jarzębski (1590-1648), best known for his instrumental works(Chromatica, Tamburetta, Sentinella, Bentrovata and Nova Casa) and Grzegorz Gerwazy Gorczycki (1667-1734). The latter is the emblematic figure of the Polish Baroque, flamboyant in his technical skills, and rumor has it that he was even dubbed the "Polish Handel" during his lifetime.
Of course, it was during the Romantic period that the greatest Polish composer of all time distinguished himself: Frédéric Chopin (1810-1849). An emblematic musician of the Romanticism of his time, Chopin symbolizes both Polish artistic creation in all its perfection, as well as Franco-Polish rapprochement, since the brilliant composer spent many years of his short life in Paris (he died at the age of 39), rubbing shoulders with George Sand, with whom he was to have a nine-year love affair. A virtuoso pianist, Chopin drew inspiration from the Polish folk repertoire (mazurkas, polonaises) to create some of the greatest works in European music. In Warsaw, Chopin is still worshipped through concert cycles, the prestigious piano competition and the brand-new Chopin Museum.
Contemporaries of this fabulous spirit, other talented composers, such as Stanisław Moniuszko (1819-1872), the great benefactor of Polish opera and whose greatest works are the famous Halka and Straszny Dwór, or the brilliant violinist Henryk Wieniawski (1835-1880) - who was musician to the Tsar at the court of St. Petersburg - also left their mark on Polish music, but remain somewhat in Chopin's shadow. Then there's the all-too-forgotten Karl Tausig (1841-1871), a virtuoso pianist and favorite pupil of the great Franz Liszt, whom some still consider the greatest pianist of all time.
At the crossroads of the nineteenthe and XXe centuries saw the emergence of the "Young Poland" movement, associated with Art Nouveau and, in music, composing under the influence of neo-Romanticism, with Strauss and Wagner as figureheads. It was from this movement that Karol Szymanowski (1882-1937), composer and pianist, made his name. His wide-ranging oeuvre is divided between influences from Chopin, impressionism close to Debussy and Ravel and, later, folklore.
In the earlye century, classical music continued to shine in Poland, mainly around the superb and charming figure of Arthur Rubinstein (1886-1982). A native of Łódź, this pianist was synonymous with a perfect interpretation of Chopin and was one of the most beloved of his peers (and music lovers). Erudite, bon vivant, sympathetic, Arthur Rubinstein leaves behind his 6,000 concerts and some 80 years on stage, the image of a giant of his instrument. Less well known than this virtuoso is another who was no less so: Ignaz Friedman (1882-1948). His interpretations were so technically astounding that Rachmaninoff and Horowitz were full of praise for him. Listen to his interpretations of Chopin's Mazurkas to fully appreciate the power of his playing.
After the Second World War, another important figure emerged: Witold Lutosławski (1913-1994). Considered the other greatest Polish composer after Chopin, Lutosławski was particularly committed to the development of contemporary aesthetics, engaging in dodecaphony, serialism and aleatoric music while preserving traditional harmonics. He is also known as the co-founder of the Warsaw Autumn Festival, which has become quite simply the most important Polish event devoted to contemporary music.
It's impossible to discuss Polish contemporary music without mentioning its two most illustrious citizens. Firstly, Krzysztof Penderecki (1933-2020), whose considerable body of work - some one hundred pieces spanning vocal, orchestral, chamber and sacred music - is often compared to that of Iannis Xenakis or György Ligeti, sculpting a powerful aesthetic rich in effects that oscillates between the avant-garde and something more neo-tonal and post-Romantic. Then, of course, Henryk Górecki (1933-2010). A serialist and minimalist often compared to Arvo Pärt, Górecki produced a complex, often contemplative body of work, whose fame is largely due to the success of his Symphony No. 3.
The country boasts a number of notable ensembles, including thePolish Radio Symphony Orchestra, one of the country's most prestigious, based in Katowice, the Krakow Philharmonic, of which Krzysztof Penderecki was one of the tenured conductors, and the Sinfonia Varsovia, which performs regularly in France.
Popular events in Warsaw include the Witold Lutosławski International Cello Competition and the New Town Summer Festival.
In Krakow, the city is punctuated by the Polish Music Festival, featuring the finest classical composers, as well as the Misteria Paschalia festival, one of Europe's best-known early music events, and Sacrum Profanum, a sacred and secular music event featuring artists of local, national and international renown.
Jazz
Jazz is a true Polish pleasure. The genre arrived in the country immediately after the First World War, with the founding in 1923 of The Karasiński & Kataszek Band. But it was only after 1945 that jazz really took off in the country. Under the yoke of Stalinist Russia - a regime not very fond of American forms of expression - Poland saw its jazz scene flourish underground. This was the era of the "catacombs", the beginning of the golden age of Polish jazz.
It was during this period that the pioneering Polish jazz group Melomani emerged, featuring the hyper-famous Krzysztof Komeda. While the general public knows him for his soundtracks to Polanski films, he was also a key figure in the Polish jazz avant-garde and had a lasting impact on the genre in the country, particularly on Tomasz Stańko, the virtuoso Polish trumpeter, a major figure in free jazz and worldwide improvisation who frequently publishes his work on the benchmark ECM label. Stańko's close collaborator, violinist Zbigniew Seifert, is the great Cracow name in jazz and a major voice in his discipline in Europe. Marked by the brevity of his life - Seifert died at the age of 32 - the career of this child of Coltrane's jazz tells the story of one of the most sophisticated improvisers the violin has ever known.
In one way or another, all these jazz greats have had an impact on the current generation of jazzmen, whose figures include Włodek Pawlik, Adam Makowicz, Leszek Możdżer and Michał Urbaniak.
Any jazz lover already knows: Kraków is a major European capital of the genre. The city has no shortage of places to enjoy a good concert, starting with the city's best-known jazz club, Piec Art Acoustic Jazz Club, a typical stone-vaulted hall renowned for its excellent acoustics. The Harris Piano Jazz Bar, also housed in a cellar and just as famous, stands out not only for its programming but also for its candlelight, giving it a uniquely intimate atmosphere. An equally intimate atmosphere can be found at the Jazz Club U Muniaka, located, once again, in a cellar (this one from the 14th century), and often considered Krakow's jazz venue par excellence. A more whimsical venue is Piwnica Pod Baranami, a surprisingly decorated beer bar offering cabaret shows on Saturday evenings and jazz concerts on Thursdays.
In addition to its stages, the city also offers a number of dedicated events that contribute to making Krakow a hub for jazz. These include: Jazz in Krakow, ten days of jazz concerts at various venues around the city; the Summer Jazz Festival, held in the cellars of the aforementioned Piwnica pod Baranami brewery; Krakow Jazz Autumn, a series of concerts in the Alchemia club in Kazimierz; Jazz Night, held outdoors and in museums during the local equivalent of Museum Night; and, last but not least, Zaduszki Jazzowe, quite simply the oldest jazz festival in Europe.
While Krakow concentrates much of Poland's jazz offering, Warsaw is not to be outdone. These include events such as Warsaw Summer Jazz Days, open-air concerts on Zamkowy Square, Jazz Jamboree, also one of Europe's oldest jazz festivals, and Jazz in the Old Town.
Contemporary music
Although the Polish contemporary music scene hardly crosses national borders, some of its players have gained international notoriety, such as Hania Rani and Wacław Zimpel. The former is a fabulous pianist who moves between contemporary classical and electronic music, while the latter is an avant-garde clarinetist. Like these two, many of the country's experimental musicians are beginning to make a name for themselves in this field. They often perform at Krakow's incredible Unsound festival, which describes itself as follows: "Unsound focuses on a wide range of contemporary music - emerging, experimental and marginal - outside the beaten codes and paths." One of the most renowned, watched and anticipated festivals of its kind, offering Krakow (and Poland) a special place in the geography of contemporary music.
