Polish Jazz - Freedom at Last
From catacombs to the free society
- the Story of Polish Jazz
Chapter 3: Polish Jazz in 1960's
Part 1
Milestones:
Arts resurgence in Poland in 1960's
Polish Film School and Roman Polanski's "Knife in the Water"
Rock and pop music in Poland in 1960's: Czeslaw Niemen and Ewa
Demarczyk
Polish Dixieland revival
Henryk Majewski
Gold Washboard Traditional Jazz Festival
The decade of 1960's started with great hopes of political freedom and economical reforms.
Unfortunately, by the mid 1960's, Poland was experiencing increasing economic,
as well as political, difficulties. The initial hopes for democratization
with Gomulka in power, were never realized. The communist regime
was really not interested in system change; and Gomulka himself,
despite being a man of great convictions, proved to be a man of
lesser intellectual abilities and vision. Initially very popular
for his reforms and seeking a "Polish way to socialism",
he gradually softened his opposition to Soviet pressures and surrendered
to nationalistic and anti-Semitic fraction in the communist party.
Audio
Clip: Gomulka's March 1968 speech (Polish Original Gangstas) The hopes for democracy were demolished, and the rest of the decade became known as a Gomulka's "little stabilization", basically meaning no progress, no more democratic nor economic changes, and no hope for freedom.
Despite political obstacles of 1960's, the cultural and intellectual
life in Poland continued to thrive throughout this and following
decades. Cultural revival of post-Stalinist era brought many important
works to history of Polish literature and poetry, including creations
from writers like Witold Gombrowicz, Jerzy Andrzejewski, Tadeusz
Konwicki, and many more. In theatre play writers like Slawomir Mrozek,
and directors like Jerzy Grotowski and Tadeusz Kantor expended the
language of European theatre. Two Polish poets were awarded
Nobel Prizes in Literature: Czeslaw Milosz (1980) and Wislawa Szymborska
(1996), making it less likely for other geniuses of Polish poetry
like Tadeusz Rozewicz or Zbigniew Herbert to get the same recognition
which they both deserve. In science, thinkers like philosophers
Leszek Kolakowski or economists like Edward Lipinski were finally
able to express they thoughts freely, at least for some time before
another era of political freeze. In visual art, possibly the most
important development in post World War II era, was "Polish
School of Posters", which have had an important impact
on other forms of artistic expression, Polish Jazz included. In
music, the composers like Witold
Lutoslawski, Krzysztof
Penderecki, Tadeusz
Baird or Henryk
Mikolaj Gorecki wrote some of the most important compositions
of 20th century "Classical music song book". Audio
Clip: Krzysztof Penderecki - St. Luke Passion (Works vol.1)
Polish Film School (Polish Polska Szkola Filmowa) produced
its greatest masterpieces underlining the role of individual as
opposed to collectivity of the official guidelines of Socialist
Realism. There were two trends within the School: one with directors
such as Andrzej Wajda studding the idea of heroism, while another
group (the most notable being Andrzej Munk) analyzed the Polish
character via irony, humor and a dissection of national myths. Directors
of Polish School often used Jazz as a soundtrack for their movies,
with Wajda's "Innocent Sorcerers" (Niewinni Czarodzieje)
with music and staring role by Krzysztof Komeda himself, being probably
the most famous example. Another example of perfect film-Jazz synergy
of that era was Roman Polanski's stunning "Knife in the Water"
(Noz w wodzie). In this movie, making the most of the music of
Krzysztof
Komeda, Polanski was able to masterfully blend languages of improvisation,
cinematography, and Jazz; camera and movie narration tempos; creating
completely new, innovative and consistent film language. For many
"Knife in the Water" remains one of Polanski's greatest
masterpieces and one of the most the most successful exploitation
of Jazz in motion pictures history. When commenting on
"Knife in the Water" Manfred Eicher (ECM) observed that in his
masterpiece, Polanski used Komeda's score to "emphasize music
and sounds as an equal counterpart to images". Unfortunately for Jazz its employment
in Polish cinema throughout next decades was very sporadic. The
next "Polish film school" - "The cinema of moral
anxiety" (Kino moralnego niepokoju) of 1970's with directors
like Krzysztof Zanussi, Janusz Kijowski, Agnieszka Holland
and Krzysztof Kieslowski rarely used Jazz in their pictures. Only
Feliks Falk's 1981 motion picture "And all that Jazz"
(Byl Jazz) which re-created the story of "Melomani" group,
was a notable example.
A decade of 1960's in Poland was of course, like in any other place
in the world, a time of Rock & Roll revolution. Polish rock
& roll, or as it was called in Poland "Big Beat",
initially followed the recipes of its older sibling - Polish Jazz,
coping the music from the West.
From the beginning, one of the most important fixtures on emerging
Polish rock scene was Czeslaw Niemen.
Niemen's multiple artistic personalities: from early Motown-influenced
"Polish James Brown funk", to straight-ahead pop, to his
unique Polish poetry-progressive rock fusion, to Jazz-rock experiments,
to Niemen's own electronica of 1970's, to finally his late "mature
Niemen" period; he was like anybody (and anything) else in
Poland and Eastern Europe. Niemen's music, his style, fashion, clothes,
lyrics, and his personality, made him ever lasting icon of Polish
music, but also influenced countless musicians and music fans in
other Eastern European countries as well as in Soviet Union. The
mastership of Niemen's attracted many Polish Jazz musician, including
Michal Urbaniak, Czeslaw
"Maly" Bartkowski and especially Zbigniew
Namyslowski, who often contributed to various Niemen's projects
during 1960's and 1970's.
Other important Polish rock music acts in 1960's-1970's included
rock groups Niebiesko-Czarni, Czerwono-Czarni, Czerwone Gitary,
Nurt, and Dzem; folk-rock groups No To Co and Skaldowie; and legendary
prog-blues-rock band Breakout.
In Polish pop music one super star - Ewa
Demarczyk, obscured the music horizon, and after four decades
still need somebody else to be able to make stronger impression
on pop music fans. Not bad for Demarczyk - considering the fact
that during her career she recorded only one album and practically
retired from the music in late 1960's. Her own fusion of expressive
pop, lyrical moods, Polish poetry, theatrical pathos, tenderness,
religious-like pray, French chanson, world music and Jewish music
reminiscences, makes music of Demarczyk unforgettable, and immediately
recognizable to anybody who ever listen to her.
Many traditional bands played their own version of "the Original New Orleans style", basically mimicking the Dixieland revival that had taken
place earlier in Western Europe. They toured frequently, recorded
many popular albums and helped Polish Jazz gain acceptance amongst
the wider public. Audio Clip: Warsaw Stompers -
Warsaw Ragtime No. 1 (Warsaw Stompers, Polish Jazz vol.1). As time passed, Dixieland Jazz became more professional
and produced many excellent bands and players, such as
Baranowski Alfred (Ragtime Jazz Band, Royal Jazz Band), Audio
Clip: Ragtime Jazz Band – The Ragtime Boy
Bazynski
Marian (HighSociety), Boba Jan, Brudko Grzegorz (Hagaw), Dobrowolski
Wladyslaw, Eyssmont Wieslaw, Fedorowski Tadeusz (Old Timers),
Galinski Jerzy (Ragtime Jazz Band, Old Timers), Ignatowski Bogdan
(New Orleans Stompers), Kaminski Wojciech (Old Timers), Kozlowski Janusz, Krupa Antoni (Jazz Band Ball Orchestra),
Kudyk Jan (Jazz Band Ball), Kurzawa Julian (Sawmi Swoi), Marszalek Krzysztof (Vistula RiverBrass Band),
Mazur Mieczyslaw, Oferta Tadeusz (Old
Metropolitan Band), Piecha Jan (High Society), Podkanowicz Marek
(Jazz Band Ball Orchestra), Rosner Jerzy (Beale Street Band), Rosner
Marek (Old Metropolitan Band, Beale Street Band), Sorski Jerzy (Sami
Swoi), Stefanski Henryk (Old Timers, Prowizorka Jazz Band),
Styczynski 'Styka" Bohdan (Pinokio, Modern Dixilanders, Vistula
River Brass Band),
Audio Clip: Vistula River Brass Band –
The Entertainer Tartanus
Pawel (Old Timers, Gold Waasboard), Uminski Andrzej (Vistula River
Brass Band), Wichary Zygmunt, and Zabieglinski Zbigniew, Zydron Wiktor (Gold Washboard).
Audio
Clip: Hagaw – Do you love HAGAW? Dixieland style reached the peak of its popularity in
Poland in the 1960's and 1970's. Since 1965 especially important for its
development and popularity of traditional Jazz in Poland was festival
Old Jazz Meeting "Zlota Tarka" (Gold
Washboard). Between 1965 and 1990, the festival was organized at
Warsaw club "Stodola", and since 1994 to this day in Louisa
Armstrong Amphitheatre in Ilawa.
Audio Clip: Jazz Band Ball Orchestra – St. Louis Blues
Henryk
'Papa' Majewski
(born 1936) is considered by many to be the most distinguished
artist and leaders of Polish Jazz in its traditional, Dixieland
style. He studied accordion and clarinet in school, and taught
himself to play trumpet. As a trumpeter and the composer;
he co-operated with the New Orleans Stompers (1958-1965). In 1965
along with the pianist Wojciech Kaminski and trombone player Jerzy
Kowalski he created Old Timers, the longest existing and probably
the most eminent Polish band performing traditional jazz. During
they still continuing carrier, Old Timers traveled widely around
Europe. Among their other activities, they accompanied world famous
soloists such as Albert Nicholas, Sandy Brown, Buck Clayton or Wild
Bill Davison. For many years Henryk Majewski has been managing a
number of projects at the same time. Without giving up leadership
of Old Timers, he also was the co-founder of the Stodola Big Band
(1968-73);
Audio
Clip: Stodola Big-Band – Appendix and the originator of the
idea and the founder of the Swing Session "Super band"
(as it was called). He was also the founder of countless small formations
(duets, trios) created for individual recording sessions or concerts.
Majewski was an indefatigable jazz activist and teacher at annual
Jazz Workshops in Chodziez and Pulawy. In 1985, along with Jan Ptaszyn
Wróblewski, he established concert band SOS (Sitwy Ogromnie
Swingujacej) and was frequently performing at major Polish Jazz
festivals (Old Jazz Meeting, Jazz Jamboree, Jazz nad Odra) and touring
abroad. The lineup of his last band Henryk Majewski Sextet, included
his son Robert Majewski (trumpet); the band moved beyond borders
of Dixieland and was exploring the essence of modern bebop. Henryk
Majewski passed away on June 17, 2005 in Pulawy.
