Polish Music - Research Proposal Example

POLISH MUSIC Order no. 252311 No. of pages: 10 Premium 6530 The musical tradition of Poland is rich with a combination of folk, ical, religious and contemporary music. Therefore the country of Poland is the result of sustained effort and a keen interest in preserving ancient musical traditions. The roots of Polish music can be traced back to the liturgical chants which were prevalent in church practices, and which reached Poland from Rome via Bohemia. This new cultural practice led to a springing forth of religious music. Songs and hymns were sung in praise of the Virgin Mary and Bogurodzica (The Mother of God), one of the earliest songs traces itself back to the 15th century. The hymn was being used as a chant as far back as the 13th century, and also served as a national anthem. It was sung by Polish troops, especially during defensive wars with the knights of the Cross. The “Gaude Mater Polonia” (Rejoice, Mother Poland), a hymn in praise of St. Stanislaus, is to this day, sung at the beginning of every academic year in most of the Polish universities. With the unification of Poland and Lithuania in 1569, the music of Poland integrated the influences of the Germans, Jews, Ukrainians, Byelorussians, Tartars and Scandinavians. The 16th and 17th centuries were periods of economic prosperity coupled with peaceful conditions. This era was conducive to the development of all forms of art and is also referred to as the Golden Age of Polish music. The royal court granted patronage to musicians from all the countries of Europe, while many were employed in the chapels of the aristocracy. This period saw great growth in the musical tradition of Poland when many forms of vocal polyphony (choral music) were created. Music was also an integral part of court life, with its dances and other forms of entertainment, all accompanied by music. Roots and Development The 13th century was the time when Polish music is said to have had its origins and the first known composer named Mikolaj z Radomia lived in the 15th century. Polish music was greatly encouraged in the 16th century by both the king and the Archbishop of Warwel. The 17th and the 18th centuries saw the birth of many great composers like Adam Jarzebski, Grzegorz Gerwazy and many others but even so as \Poland declined during this period the music scene was also impacted due to this. However, some composers such as Jan Stephani and Maciej Kamienski tried their hand at Polish opera while there was others who tried toimmitate foreign composers like Mozart and Haydn. During the 19th century, Poland and other parts of Eastern Europe showed a lot of interest in folklore as it was indirectly connected to their national independence. There always existed symbolic links between folk music and regional politics. Oscar Kolberg (1814 – 90) was a pioneer in being a collector of songs and dances from various parts of the country. His primary interest was in song because music during the 19th century was quite primitive. But gradually some dramatic development took place during the last hundred and fifty years or so. The beginning of the century saw gramophone recordings taking shape and by the year 1939 a good number of archives had been created in Poznań and Warsaw. However, during World War II, both these collections were completely destroyed and once again scholarly material had to be collected. During the post war communist regimes, the annihilation and the transferring of different ethnic minorities in Poland adversely affected the prevalent folk culture and folk traditions. Throughout Eastern Europe, the post war community regimes made an endorsement of its folk culture and portrayed it as being a cheerful espousal of healthy and rustic peasant labor with each regime nurturing and adopting a different approach. Therefore the music in Poland today greatly reflects the various adaptations of the past. A little later Bulgaria to a great extent, encouraged amateur grass-roots music, while Czechoslovakia sanitized its folk music to the point of irrelevance and Poland adopted it into their music but at the same time they encouraged the local bands to play traditional songs too. Poland’s folk culture was traditionally presented by professional folk troupes such as the Mazowsze and Śląsk ensembles – who continue to give grand virtuoso performances accompanied with highly intricate choreographed twirls, whoops and foot- tapping or stomping. These groups were quite popular and were regularly featured on the Television and the radio as they had their own niche audience. There were other specialized groups such as the Słowianki in Kraków who were smaller but yet supported to keep close to their roots. However, due to this sort of borrowing and blending from other groups, the authentic stuff slowly faded away and the image of folk music became dulled and tarnished by the different bland official ensembles. The 18th century though was a period of internal turmoil and instability which led to the division of Poland in 1790’s into Austria, Russia and Prussia. Poland ceased to exist as a separate geographical entity, and this lack of identity impacted upon the musical culture of the Polish nation. Polish composers now created styles which were more in accordance with the European style, such as symphonies. But in the midst of all this gloom, came Chopin, who with his Polonaises and Mazurkas lifted the spirit of his people. He was not only a symbol of resistance, but also emblematic of Polish culture, and successive composers were inspired by him and thereby encouraged to create compositions based on the folk music and songs of Poland. Composers like Stanislaw Moniuszko created music specifically for a Polish audience, while Henryk Weiniawski who traveled through Europe, was a violinist virtuoso, whose music is marked by technical brilliance and difficulty. After the First World War, Poland regained its identity as a separate nation and music flourished in the new found freedom. Exchange of cultural ideas flowed freely between the nations of Europe and several giants of Polish music enriched the centuries old tradition of songs. Szymanowski, considered to be the father of modern Polish music nudged his students towards the Paris school of music in an effort to break away from the overt dependence on German traditions. Between 1945-1989, Poland was in the throes of socialism and the music of that era tended to favor “folk-oriented, simple, neo-romantic” songs which could be sung by the masses as well as used to praise the government. The 60’s saw the creation of a Polish school of composition and this resurgence was led by Gorecki , Kazimierz Serocki , Penderecki, Lutolawski , Kilar and several others. This period also saw the rise of several women composers, chief among whom were, Graznya Bacewicz and Marta Ptaszynska. The fall of socialism led to a resurgence in musical traditions and today Poland is one of those countries where music competitions, festivals and concerts are a way of life. These events take place in the biggest cities as well as the smallest villages, safe-guarding the centuries old tradition of Polish music. Musical Instruments in Polish Music Poland is richly endowed with a very wide variety of both music and dance and as such its instrumentation spans across a good variety of musical instruments that have been created and developed over the years. Polish music is rather attractive with a good aesthetic sense. Poland’s most characteristically popular folk instrument is the fiddle. In preferring to reach up to the ancient tradition Zespół Polski used what is called as "knee instruments," that was played on by making use of the nails. Other ancient instruments included the "fidel płocka," a 16th century stringed instrument and the suka biłgorajska," from late 19th century. This six stringed “fidel” that was discovered in 1985, was unique because its bridge was quite rare as it had two legs whose length was unequal and its conservative design suggests that the instrument belonged to the Medieval period. The four stringed “suka” is one instrument that has not survived today. The “suka” is an exceptionally decorative instrument that had features of a folk chordophone and that of a classical violin. Other Polish instruments include bag- pipes, pipes, carved violin, hurdy – gurdy, drums, dulcimer, lutes, trumpet, and pianos, and stringed instruments such as the violin and cello. CHOPIN The history of Polish music is enriched by the genius of Chopin, whose brilliance and virtuosity are seen in his enormous output. Chopin began his musical journey as a romantic composer, but the revolution in Poland soon roused his nationalistic feelings and much of his work composed after the ‘November Uprising’ is full of nostalgia for the motherland. “The theme of Polands glories and sufferings was constantly before him, and he transmuted the primitive rhythms and melodies of his youth into enduring art forms” says Arthur Hedley especially in the “Scherzo in B Minor, Op 20” and the “Revolutionary Etude”. Chopin wrote a large number of polonaises, mazurkas, nocturnes, waltzes, etudes and ballads and eschewed the composition of concertos and sonatas. The polonaises and mazurkas have a distinct Polish folk style and are imbued with the rhythm of its folk culture. The Dances of Poland Karol Szymanowski (1882 – 1937) was a great composer who composed music for some of Poland’s best dances. His ‘Four Polish Dances’ for piano became quite famous after being published by a London Publishing house who gave it the title of “Folk Dances of the World. Danses populaires de tous pays". The Mazurika and the Krakowiak comprised of the first two pieces in the series. These two pieces were simplistically stylized with a rare clarity of sound and texture because it was intended only for children. The third and the fourth pieces were the Oberka and the Palonaise which were much more complicated and technically difficult. Below are the four important dances of Poland. POLONAISE The stately Polish processional dance accompanied by singing is a great favorite to be performed at public ceremonies as well as marriages. It is a simple structured melody in triple meter and is made up of short phrases often without an upbeat. This dance derives from the 17th century “walking dance” also called the chodzny. It was often performed as a court dance in accompaniment to instruments and became a symbol of Polish national spirit. The polonaise saw a stylization in the 18th century by composers such as Bach, Mozart, Schubert, and Beethoven, who followed the typical rhythm set out by Chopin. MAZURKA This is a stylized version of the Polish Folk dance created in triple meter which gained popularity in the 19th century as a ballroom dance. The tempo of this dance is very lively with the accent on the third or second beat and Chopin is credited with 57 mazurkas. The national anthem of Poland too has a mazurka rhythm. This dance is typical of the Mazowsze region of East-central Poland. On important fact in history about the Mazurka dance was that it made its appearance in the Polish National Anthem. It was created as a song of the Polish Legion, for General Jan Dąbrowski troops in 1797in the hope of acquiring Poland’s independence. Due to the popularity of this dance and in addition to the many variants from many different regions, there was always confusion in distinguishing one from the other. Among the five national dances of Poland, the Mazurka Folk dance, as an exhibition dance is considered to be the "most exciting and intricate of the five national dances of Poland" (Ada Dziewanowska: Polish Folk Dances and Songs, p. 509). Considering the costumes for the Mazurka dance, it varies because there are at least four different socio-historical versions and hence there is a variety of costumes. Some of the costumes worn by them are Empire gowns, light flowery scarves, long gloves, special square hats. The folk version would have a more regional costume such as dark or boldly colored striped skirts and capes. KRAKOWIAK The Krakowiak is one of the great dances of Poland and initially came from the region of Krakow which was Poland’s old capital. This is the national dance of Poland performed by men and women attired in traditional Polish dance costume. The men wore heavy embroidered vests, knee length striped pants, boots with metal tips and square hats, while the women are garbed in wide flowery skirts topped by white shirts with broad sleeves and a collar that was decorated with lace. Over the skirts they wore white laced aprons and used colored ribbons or wreaths for their hair. She also had a colorful headgear and boots on her feet. This is a double time galloping dance that originated in the 16th or the 17th century. According to the entry in The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians (1980 ed.), "in its origins, the Krakowiak seems to be connected with courtship ritual." As time passed by and this dance slowly moved to the concert hall, its popularity among the gentry and the peasants began to slowly fade away. PODHALE The Podhale was the smallest Polish Folk Dance Company of the Americas that was founded in January 1983. This music for this dance gets its name from the region of the same name around the city of Zakopane in the Tatra Mountains and shares many common features with the peasant tradition of Carpathians in Ukraine and Transylvania. It has a distinctive melody and a unique style of playing known as the "Lydian mode". A Podhale group consisted of a string band made up of a lead violin (prym), a couple of second violins (sekund) who play chords, and a three-stringed cello (bazy). The Podhale music has a stiff, angular style because of the way in which the fiddlers play their instruments. The dance tunes are typically sung by men in a high pitch. A Podhale repertoire consists of krzesany and ozwodna dances and the zbojnicki or the Brigand’s dance. The latter dance involved men dancing in a circle holding small metal axes which they hit together. This dance is used to celebrate the briganding tradition of the gorale. These dances depict the robberies, escapes and the life of the renegade heroes and some of the most popular songs tell of the life of Janosik, a brigand who lived in the 17th century. The Podhale’s original costumes were made from pure wool or linen, but came from a variety of sources. All the dancers are meticulously groomed uniformly. Their hair is combed away from the face and is worn in two long braids with hair pieces. Men are also dressed uniformly and are not permitted to have facial hair, pony tails or earings. This uniformity that was rigorously enforced gave the group a professional identity of their own. Some of the other dances were the Polka, the Chodzony, other triple time dances and other five beat forms. REFERENCES Essays On Polish Music Polish Music Center. Copyright 1997 by Maria Anna Harley (Maja Trochimczyk Chopin - MIDI and more http://www.geocities.com/Vienna/4279/ Poland: National Geographic World Music http://worldmusic.nationalgeographic.com/worldmusic/view/page.basic/country/content.country/poland_876?fs=travel.nationalgeographic.com Syrena Polish Folk Dance Ensemble - Góralski http://www.syrenadancers.com/content/view/27/2/lang,en/ Polish music http://www.roughguides.com/website/travel/Destination/content/default.aspx?titleid=95&xid=idh225723800_0685 Polish Culture – Karol Szymanowski “Four Polish Dances.” www.culture.pl/en/culture/artykuly/dz_szymanowski_cztery_tance_polskie Polish Music - ATPC www.freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~atpc/heritage/culture/music.html Polish Folk music www.gadki.lublin.pl/pfm/artists/ensemble_polonais.html Roots and Development www.roughguides.com/website/travel/destination/content/default.aspx?titleid=95&xid=idh22571669 Read More