1. Kroke: Sher 4:05
2. The Saint Nicholas Orkiestra: Malinowa Konopielka 3:45
3. Grzegorz z Ciechowa: Piejo Kury Piejo 3:52
4. Trebunie Tutki w. Sherwood: Joint Zelene 3:36
5. Berklejdy: Kuker 2.19
6. Dziani: Dorokina 4:37
7. Kapela ze wsi Warszawa: Jado Ciebzie 5:24
8. Slawek Wierzcholski: Poniedziaek Rano 3:08
9. Jak Wolnosç to Wolnosç: Podolanka 3:48
10. Chudoba: Hej Rupuni 2:43
11. Ojdana: Krecony 4:20
12. Maria Krupowies: Gdy Wiatr Powieje 2:03
13. Trebunie Tutki: Nutko Moja 5:14
14. The Saint Nicholas Orkiestra: Lemkowska Sobótkowa 6:46

Entdecken sie also mit Weltwunder Records eine musikalisch ungeheuer vielseitige Kultur, die viel mehr zu bieten hat als Klassik und Jazz, Genres, für die Polen international bekannt ist.

 1. Kroke: Sher 4:05

Kroke was formed in 1992 by three friends and graduates of the Cracow Academy of Music. Having studied classical music, the members of Kroke today concentrate on playing and composing within the framework of authentic Jewish music. Using traditional material as the foundation on which to build ingenious arrangements and improvisations, Kroke creates new, unique compositions as well as a sound as yet unheard in Jewish music. The mystical atmosphere of Cracow's Jewish district of Kazimierz and the unshakable dignity of its six-hundred-year old tradition are reflected in the group's four acclaimed albums. The track "Sher" was taken from the 1997 release "Eden".

2. The Saint Nicholas Orkiestra: Malinowa Konopielka 3:45

Founded in 1988, the Saint Nicholas Orchestra grew out of an informal musical venture by students at Marii Curie-Sklodowska University in Lublin and they focus their activities on moribund folklore. Originally their sound was mainly from the Eastern part of Polish Carpatia - later, they incorporated influences from Ukrainian Carpatia as well as highlanders' music from the Polish mountain people.
During their long search for a contemporary formula for traditional Polish folk music they experienced that people who created folk art in the past were immersed in an 'invisible' life of ghosts, phantoms, an existencefilled with strange creatures which whirled around them. The Orchestra's aim is to build a path between customs and beliefs of the past and our 'modern' world.
At the same they are involved in the continuation and contemporary interpretation of their tradition. Their standard line up consists of vocal, violin, dulcimer, mandoline, cello, tar, flute, guitar and percussion. Everything they play - whether it's a love song, klezmer, or even Pogues tunes - is approached with the same joy.

3. Grzegorz z Ciechowa: Piejo Kury Piejo 3:52

Polish rock star Grzegorz Ciechowski a.k.a. Grzegorz z Ciechowa has with great facility compiled fragments of folk songs from various regions of Poland, fusing them with techno synths and rock guitars. In 'Piejo Kury Piejo' ("The hens are cackling on') he has taken a frivolous peasant tune, sung in 1972 by the elderly Anna Malec from Bi?goraj, as the basis for a furious dance track inspired by African roots music.
His most famous project is the rock band Republika, which was founded in 1981. Grzegorz Ciechowski has been its frontman and songwriter ever since. Although now he is involved in many other projects, (his solo career, production work and promotion of new talent), he still considers Republika as a very important part of his artistic life.
' ojDADAna' is one of his many ideas, very different from his previous productions. When he came across original recordings by Polish folk singers, their melodies, phrasings and unconventional approach to sound so fascinated that he decided to incorporate the voices in his compositions. Inspired by former Talking Heads member David Byrne, Ciechowski explains that "Folk music is turning into a museum thing, so I'm trying to revitalise it".

4. Trebunie Tutki w. Sherwood: Joint Zelene 3:36

In a historic meeting in autumn 1991 Jamaican 'Twinkle Brother' Norman Grant entered the hut of the highlanders roots band Trebunia Tutki family. They live in Bia?y Dunajec, below the peak of the Tatra mountains and far away from the urban jungle. The musicians started a three day session of singing and playing together - as the mountain spirit touched the reggae vibe, the Twinkle-inna-Polish-style combo set off for Warsaw to record an unlikely cross-cultural mix. The recording sessions produced the album "Higher Heights - Twinkle inna polish stylee" which caused quite a stir with foreign radio and press. Two sequels of this successful combination followed. The family members of Trebunia Tutki , who still work as painters and hand-knitters, also have a dicography on their own containing about 15 folk albums. "Nutko Moja" is from their last offering.

5. Berklejdy: Kuker 2.19

The young Polish folks of Berklejdy perform all sorts of polkas, marches or waltzes from family celebrations in their own distinctive style, with influences from rock, reggae and world music. The cymbaly, a hammered dulcimer, brings a folk character reminiscent of the Polish landscapes of Mazury or Zulawy, while bass and drums provide a rhythmical base for youngsters who have grown up with rock and reggae. Percussion and steel drum add a global flavour to one of the most promising new acts in Poland today.

6. Dziani: Dorokina 4:37

Dziani is a 19 year old descendant of famous gypsy musicians, his clan emigrated from India 1000 years ago. During his childhood he lived in several cities all over Poland and with his family he travelled across Europe. At the moment he is graduating from musical secondary school on his major instrument, the violin. Dziani's music is an explosive combination of Gypsy folk with dynamic Balkan and Latin dance rhythms. On his CD "Czarny Kon" (Black Horse) Dziani is accompanied both by well- known professional musicians and by young Gypsies from the Bergitka Roma tribe.

7. Kapela Ze Wsi Warszawa: Jado Ciebzie 5:24

Kapela Ze Wsi Warszawa - The band from the village Warsaw was founded in 1997 by six young people who play violin, suka (the ancient Polish fiddle), cello, and traditional Polish drums. The band digs deep into folklore and into the archaic sounds of their ancestors. They travel to small villages and visit old musicians to learn about traditions and habits. They select folk dance melodies, ballads and rural songs and perform them in a unique manner which is closer to a modern asthetic, calling it "bio-techno" or "hip-hopsasa". Their first album was recorded direct-to-disc by W. Kleszcz.

8. Slawek Wierzcholski: Poniedziaek Rano 3:08

Slawek Wierzcholski from Toruµ is one of the most popular bluesmen in Poland. As a master of the harmonica and leading member of "The Blues Nightshift" he has played with such distinguished musicians like Charlie Musselwhite and Louisiana Red. He is the author of harmonica method books and he works as an instructor at harmonica clinics. Wierzcholski is certain that blues is a true citizen of the world . "You don't have to be black, poor and drunk to have the right to sing the blues." His latest release incorporates the dulcimer, hurdy gurdy, bagpipe and accordeon in his interpretation of the 'Polski Blues'.

9. Jak Wolnosç to Wolnosç: Podolanka 3:48

The music of Jak Wolnosç To Wolnosç ("If Freedom then Freedom") has been described as 'downtown folk' and is fueled by three different sources: A spontaneous reinterpretation of traditional folk styles as in 'Podolanka', the songs of the 'singer of the streets' Maciek Pietraho, a legend in the Polish underground of the 80', and finally by the poetic world of Wiesiek Orlowski, the leader and main vocalist of Jak Wolnosç to Wolnosç. His music and lyrics are primarily a very personal reading of Polish reality, and the band's energetic approach on folk and rock is strongly influenced by British folk heroes? like the 'Pogues` and the 'Ukrainians'.

10. Chudoba: Hej Rupuni 2:43

The folk ensemble Chudoba (= meagre possessions) was formed in 1993 by students from Wroclaw who search for the musical cross-roads at which Polish, Lemkish, Slovakian, Ukrainian and Bulgarian music might meet. The eight members of Chudoba try to update this music for younger generations with fresh and sometimes surprising arrangements. They use only acoustic instruments (accordeon, flute, mandolin, dulcimer and guitars), and some of them work at a research center for the traditional arts at the University of Breslau. After winning various prestigious prizes at folk festivals and from radio programmes, they performed at international festivals in Austria, Germany, Hungary and Belgium. "Hej Rupuni " is a gipsy song taken from their second cassette recording "Our Polka", issued in 1996.

11. Ojdana: Krecony 4:20

The Ojdana trio was founded at the beginning of 1999, yet these musicians began to get together much earlier. They live in different cities and don't meet up on any regular basis, but are nonetheless one of the few Polish bands to progress from the former socialist approach to folk music. The band's repertoire consists of folk themes from northern and central Poland and they concentrate on forgotten or underrated ritual music. What attracts them are its sophisticated form and its trance qualities. The musicians see themselves as musical archaeologists searching for ancient forgotten melodies which they can bring into the light after many years. They also create their own compositions like "Krecony" ("Whirling"), inspired by both Polish ritual and dance music. Some of their instruments are made by the members of the band.

12. Maria Krupowies: Gdy Wiatr Powieje 2:03

Maria Krupowies was born in Vilnius but spent her childhood in Pupiszki, a tiny village on the verge of the Rudnicka forest. The smell of flowers, the singing of birds and the rustle of leaves merged in her childhood memories with the sound of borderland Polish and Belarussian, her mother tongues. Maria Krupowies' soul was filled with the music of her people, which she sings with her sweet voice on "Calling from East", her mainly acapella debut cassette recorded at Polish Radio.

13. Trebunie Tutki: Nutko Moja 5:14

14. The Saint Nicholas Orkiestra: Lemkowska Sobótkowa 6:46

Booklet Einführung:

Weltmusik aus POLEN ?

Die Vorstellung, dass Künstler aus Polen einen aufregenden Beitrag leisten können für den 'Swimming-Pool' der Weltmusik, ist ziemlich neu und wird bisher nur von einer kleinen Gruppo Enthusiasten wahrgenommen. Dies könnte das Resultat sein aus Versuchen des früheren sozialistischen Regimes, eine kraftvolle Folkmusik auf das Niveau eines Postkartenklischees für Touristen zu reduzieren. Glücklicherweise haben diese Enthusiasten viele Hindernisse und Begrenzungen aus dem Weg geräumt. Sie sind es, die dafür sorgen, dass es immer eine Bandbreite interessanter folk-inspirierter Projekte geben wird.

Erste Experimente mit traditioneller polnischer Musik - mal abgesehen von den Arbeiten solcher Komponisten wie Chopin und Szymanowski - entstanden in den 60ern und 70ern. Diese Projekte waren allerdings eher kurzlebig und erst in der Mitte der 1980er rückte das Interesse an Folktraditionen wieder mehr in den Mittelpunkt, als Musik aus den Anden und keltische Musikformen populär wurde. Viele junge Bands spielten nun Musik aus Bolivien, Peru, Schottland und Irland. Dadurch begannen die Musiker auch wieder verstärkt ihr eigenes Erbe wahrzunehmen. Viele von ihnen wechselten hinüber zu innovativer Musik, die auf slawischen und polnischen Traditionen basiert. Polen war schon immer ein Land, das offen war für Einflüsse aus ganz Europa und Dank dieser Mischung ist die polnische Folktradition sehr vielseitig. Trotz allem haben die polnische Musiktraditionen aber nie ihren kulturellen Kern verloren, sodass sie trotz der verschiedenen Einflüsse einfach zu wiederzuerkennen sind.

Charakteristisch für den polnischen Folk sind so interessante wiederentdeckte traditionelle Instrumente wie die "Suka" aus Bilgoraj, deren Spieltechnik der indischen Sarangi ähnelt. Abgesehen von der rein polnischen Musik ist es vor allem die Musik der Minderheiten im Südosten Polens (Lemkos, Boykos, Hutsuls), die immer populärer wird bei Musikern und Bands wie z.B. Chudoba.

Obwohl relativ klein, ist die polnische Folkszene sehr vielseitig. Kapela Ze Wsi Warszawa und das Saint Nicholas Orchestra zum Beispiel sind zwei Projekte, die die alten Traditionen originalgetreu reproduzieren, ihnen allerdings eine ganz eigene Geschmacksnote hinzufügen.

In der Musik von Ojdana kann man hören, wie der polnischen Musik Elemente aus anderen Kulturen beigefügt werden. Und dann gibt es da die komplett neuen, oftmals kontroversen Projekte, für die Folk nur als Ausgangspunkt dient wie z.B. bei Grzegorz Z Ciechowa, der Elemente von Pop und Techno in seinen Stilmix einbaut. Klezmer Musik von arrivierten Bands wie Kroke spielt ebenso eine bedeutende Rolle auf dem Musikmarkt Polens. Vermutlich die bekannteste Folk-Musik Polens ist die der Highlanders im Tatra-Gebirge. Für sie sind die musikalischen Traditionen immer noch stark lebendig und wird von Generation zu Generation weitergegeben. Das beste Beispiel für die Musik aus dem Hochland ist die Trebunia Tutki Familie.

All diese Versuche, den polnischen Folk wiederauferstehen zu lassen, ihn zu kultivieren und zu entwickeln, beeinflussen sich gegenseitig und tragen dazu bei, ein neues Bild dieser Musikform entstehen zu lassen.

PIOTR PUCYLO

Musiker & Produzent