1. Music of Poland
Polish composers
Frédéric François Chopin, in Polish Fryderyk
Franciszek Chopin (1 March 1810– 17 October 1849) –
composer, pianist
Stanisław Moniuszko (born May 5, 1819 – June 4, 1872) -
composer, conductor and teacher. His output includes many songs and
operas. He is generally referred to as the father of Polish national opera.
Krzysztof Penderecki (born November 23, 1933 in Dębica) - composer
and conductor. His works include music for string orchestra, choral St. Luke Passion,
four operas, eight symphonies and other orchestral pieces, a variety of instrumental
concertos, choral settings of mainly religious texts, as well as chamber and instrumental
works.
 The origin of Polish music can be traced as far back as the 13th century, from
which manuscripts have been found in Stary Sącz, containing polyphonic
compositions related to the Parisian Notre Dame School.
 Traditional, regionalized folk musicians, create a lively and diverse music scene.
Traditional Polish dances
Krakowiak - a fast, syncopated Polish dance in duple time from the region of
Kraków and Lesser Poland.
Kujawiak - a dance from the region of Kuyavia in central Poland. The dance
usually involves couples moving in a circle, although versions involving only
women are also performed. The music is typically in triple meter.
‘Mazurka’/ Mazur in Polish - usually at a lively tempo, and with an accent on
the second or third beat.

2. ‘Polonaise’/ Polonez – called also a walking dance - a slow dance in 3/4 time.
Oberek - consists of quick steps and constant turns. The beauty of the oberek
depends on each individual dancer's talent of spinning at the fast tempo of the
Oberek, which shares some steps with the Mazur.
By regions
 Kashubians are a West Slavic ethnic group of Pomeranian region in north-
central Poland. They speak Kashubian, classified either as a language or a Polish
dialect.[cultivate their traditions and culture, sing songs in Kashubian and play
traditional home-made instruments such as diabelskie skrzypce or burczybas.
Kashubian flag Kashubian coat of arms
burczybas
photo from: http://www.zshsopot.pl

3. Diabelskie skrzypce/ ‘devil’s violin’
Photo by: Jamaka, from: http://fotoforum.gazeta.pl
Other instuments played by Kashubian musicians are accordion and bazuna
Picture from
http://www.interklasa.pl/portal/dokumenty/r086/strony/SGang.html
Kashubnian dances ‘are mostly gentle, joyful and graceful.(…) they reveal
obvious Swedish and German influences both in music and in dance steps. They
can be divided into dances of the rural population and of people of the sea - the
sailors and the fishermen.’ Some of the Kashubian dances are: Koseder, Dżek and
Cenar.
Kashubian songs include ‘simple tunes which accompany the Kashubian
dances are written mostly in 2/4 and 5/4 meter and often in major tones.’
Citations from: http://szkola.interklasa.pl/f019/strona/ang/music.html#4
Podhale – south of Poland

4. Podhale has retained its traditions. Local ensembles use string instruments like
violins and a cello to play a distinctive scale called the Lydian mode.
The Lydian musical scale is a rising pattern of pitches comprising three whole
tones, a semitone, two more whole tones, and a final semitone. This sequence of
pitches roughly describes the fifth of the eight Gregorian (church) modes, known
as Mode V or the authentic mode on F, theoretically using B♮ but in practice more
commonly featuring B♭ (Powers 2001). Because of the importance of the major
scale in modern music, the Lydian mode is often described (or learned) as the
scale that begins on the fourth scale degree of the major scale.
 The distinctive singing style used in this scale is called lidyzowanie. The lead
violin (prym) are accompanied by several second violins (sekund) and a three-
stringed cello (bazy).
 Duple-time dances like the krzesany, zbójnicki (Brigand's Dances) and
ozwodna are popular in the southern regions of Poland.
 The ozwodna has a five bar melodic structure which is quite unusual.
 The krzesany is an extremely swift dance, while the zbójnicki is well-known and
is perceived as being most "typical" of Podhale.
 Other instruments played by the musicians of Podhale are also bagpipes.
 Koza ("goat" or kozioł /buck/, or gajdy) is the generic term for Polish
bagpies .
Koza – photo from http://dudygraja.webpark.pl/podhale.html
They are used in folk music of Podhale, Żywiec Beskids, Cieszyn Silesia and mostly in
Greater Poland, where there are known to be four basic variants of bagpipes:
 Dudy wielkopolskie (Greater Polish bagpipes) with two subtypes: Rawicz
and Kościan-Buk
 Kozioł biały (or kozioł biały weselny)
 Kozioł czarny (or kozioł czarny ślubny)
 Sierszeńki
photo from:
http://dudygraja.webpark.pl/wielkopolska.html
Source: Wikipedia and Wikimedia Commons