Spaces of Diversity? Polish Music Festivals in a Changing Society
Spaces of Diversity? Polish Music Festivals in a Changing Society
Contributor(s): Karolina Golemo (Editor), Marta Kupis (Editor)
Subject(s): Anthropology, Social Sciences, Fine Arts / Performing Arts, Music, Sociology, Culture and social structure
Published by: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Jagiellońskiego
Keywords: music; festivals; traditions; folk; cultures
Summary/Abstract: Music festivals offer a chance to experience musical and cultural diversity, much needed in a country which, for a long time, had been separated from much of global culture. As such, they also serve as an opportunity to appreciate the musical traditions and productions from different groups, both those originating from foreign lands, and those situated locally, often created by ethnic minorities. The relatively easy-going atmosphere of music festivals and their focus on art allow for circumstances where conflict is not very likely, thus fostering mutual appreciation among people of various walks of life. All of the essays in this volume refer to and aim to answer two fundamental questions: can music festivals serve as spaces of diversity, that is places where people can get to know other cultures and groups of people; and if so, how? Can music festivals also be a factor of socio-cultural changes?
- E-ISBN-13: 978-83-233-7380-3
- Print-ISBN-13: 978-83-233-5177-1
- Page Count: 220
- Publication Year: 2022
- Language: English
When the Local Community Matters: The Transformation of Polish Music Festivals
When the Local Community Matters: The Transformation of Polish Music Festivals
(When the Local Community Matters: The Transformation of Polish Music Festivals)
- Author(s):Waldemar Kuligowski
- Language:English
- Subject(s):Anthropology, Social Sciences, Fine Arts / Performing Arts, Music, Culture and social structure
- Page Range:15-33
- No. of Pages:19
- Keywords:festivalisation; culture industry; McDonaldization; National Stadium; Jarocin Festival; Rock on the Swamp
- Summary/Abstract:Practically every day Poland hosts around a dozen of festival-like events. The 2010s witnessedfestivalisation taking over all forms of cultural activity in our country. In an attempt to understand this phenomenon, I will situate it in the contexts of culture industry (Frankfurt School) and McDonaldization (Ritzer). These theoretical considerations are illustrated with two case studies. The first concerns “the National Stadium” and allows a diachronic overview of how politics is done through festivals. The stadium was constructed two times, first for the World Festival of Youth and Students in socialist era, and then for European Football Championship in liberal-capitalist era. Both these instances show how major events legitimise spectacular interferences in public space. The second case study focuses on two music festivals—the Jarocin Festival and Rock on the Swamp, with the first exemplifying attempts at commercialisation and sentimentalisation of counter-culture. Conversely, the latter shows how a provincial festival becomes a contact zone and a space of diversity, and evolves from a remembrance of a legendary festival into an intriguing community-based festival.
- Price: 5.00 €
Music Festivals as Global Events: The Case of Major Polish Festivals
Music Festivals as Global Events: The Case of Major Polish Festivals
(Music Festivals as Global Events: The Case of Major Polish Festivals)
- Author(s):Franciszek Czech
- Language:English
- Subject(s):Anthropology, Social Sciences, Fine Arts / Performing Arts, Music, Sociology, Culture and social structure
- Page Range:35-51
- No. of Pages:17
- Keywords:globalisation; mega-festivals; Open’er Festival; Orange Warsaw Festival; Pol’and’Rock Festival; post-communism
- Summary/Abstract:Following the collapse of the Soviet Union, Poland went through a political and economic transition, which included greater openness to global culture. This had an impact on music festivals, which started to involve globally recognised artists, as well as general blueprints of organizing such events. The article has two complementary objectives. Firstly, to explore the relationship between music festivals and globalisation processes. Secondly, to exemplify how the major music festivals in Poland mirror wider social and political changes that took place in this country after the fall of the communist regime. In the first part of the article, the concept of globalisation and its historical context, as well as the democratic transformation in Poland after 1989, are discussed. In the second part, major Polish music festivals (with audiences of over 40,000), namely the Open’er Festival, the Orange Warsaw Festival, and the Pol’and’Rock Festival, are analysed to provide examples of globalisation’s impact on music festivals. The process of globalisation is considered in three different aspects characterizing such events: organisation, artists, and audience.
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Festum Patrimonium: Between the Festivalisationof Traditional Music Heritage and the Heritagisation of Traditional Music Festivals
Festum Patrimonium: Between the Festivalisationof Traditional Music Heritage and the Heritagisation of Traditional Music Festivals
(Festum Patrimonium: Between the Festivalisationof Traditional Music Heritage and the Heritagisation of Traditional Music Festivals)
- Author(s):Joanna Dziadowiec-Greganić
- Language:English
- Subject(s):Anthropology, Social Sciences, Fine Arts / Performing Arts, Music, Sociology, Culture and social structure
- Page Range:53-76
- No. of Pages:24
- Keywords:festival studies; performance studies; critical heritage studies; heritagisation processes; intangible heritage
- Summary/Abstract:The chapter is an attempt to analyse the phenomenon of broadly understood music heritage festivals from two main perspectives: the heterodox theory of heritage and the interdisciplinary critical heritage studies, as well as performance and interdisciplinary festiwal studies. The titular tension between festivalisation of heritage and heritagisation of festivals will be shown on the examples of different kinds of contemporary festivals based on traditional music that take place in Poland. A cross-section of the most representative examples in these events’ diverse categories will be presented and analysed. Among the festivals considered here there are those belonging to the following genres: folkloristic, folk, ethno, regional, minority, intercultural, neofolk, ethno-fusions, and those focusing on broadly understood intangible heritage. Apart from outlining the general panorama of such events in Poland, the article also aims at showing how music festivals are not only occasions for celebrating cultural heritage, but themselves become its significant part.
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A Siesta in the City of Freedom: The Phenomenon of the Gdańsk Lotos Siesta Festival
A Siesta in the City of Freedom: The Phenomenon of the Gdańsk Lotos Siesta Festival
(A Siesta in the City of Freedom: The Phenomenon of the Gdańsk Lotos Siesta Festival)
- Author(s):Adrian Tyszkiewicz
- Language:English
- Subject(s):Anthropology, Social Sciences, Fine Arts / Performing Arts, Music, Sociology, Culture and social structure
- Page Range:77-99
- No. of Pages:23
- Keywords:Gdańsk; Siesta Festival; world music; Marcin Kydryński; Pomeranian Philharmonic
- Summary/Abstract:This chapter attempts to present the characteristics of the Gdańsk Siesta Festival in terms of interactions between three key elements: the site of the event, manners of arranging and organising the event, as well as its participants. The main research concern revolves around the presence of a phenomenon referred to as the spirit of the place (genius loci) at the location of the festival, which coincides with the multicultural idea of the Siesta Festival. The primary research method applied in the article is the genetic-historical approach in the social sciences, while the techniques applied include critical text analysis and participant observation. The chapter has three main sections analysing the following: the urban space of Gdańsk impacted by historical and cultural elements, the idea of the event, manner of its organisation plus the logistics, and the festival community. As a result of the study, it was established that the unique, multicultural urban space, which glorifies individual freedom, is definitely conducive to the festival’s main idea, which is based on the participants’ openness to experiencing other cultures.
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Articulating Romani Public Identity at Music Festivals: The Case of the International Days of Roma Culture in Krakow
Articulating Romani Public Identity at Music Festivals: The Case of the International Days of Roma Culture in Krakow
(Articulating Romani Public Identity at Music Festivals: The Case of the International Days of Roma Culture in Krakow)
- Author(s):Anna Piotrowska
- Language:English
- Subject(s):Anthropology, Social Sciences, Fine Arts / Performing Arts, Music, Sociology, Culture and social structure
- Page Range:101-117
- No. of Pages:17
- Keywords:The International Days of Roma Culture in Krakow; Romani musicians; Nowa Huta; ethnic music festival; public identity
- Summary/Abstract:The chapter discusses the International Days of Roma Culture organised in Krakow since 2012 as an example of a local ethnic music festival enabling a public articulation of the Romani identity within the framework of an urban context. The festival is argued to primarily foster neighbourly relations between the Roma and non-Roma of Nowa Huta, and generally the citizens of Krakow. The overriding thesis of this chapter is that the Romani self-presentations as endorsed at the festival are meant to stimulate the recognition of the Romani input into the local culture and regional development. The analysis predominantly draws on participatory observations and interviews with the festival organisers to answer the question of how the Roma articulate their public identity in a particular local context. The results of the research are accompanied by photographs, illustrating various elements of the event.
- Price: 5.00 €
The EtnoKrakow Festival: Encounters at the Crossroads of Cultures
The EtnoKrakow Festival: Encounters at the Crossroads of Cultures
(The EtnoKrakow Festival: Encounters at the Crossroads of Cultures)
- Author(s):Karolina Golemo
- Language:English
- Subject(s):Anthropology, Social Sciences, Fine Arts / Performing Arts, Music, Sociology, Culture and social structure
- Page Range:119-145
- No. of Pages:27
- Keywords:EtnoKrakow/Crossroads festival; cultural diversity; encounters; ethnic music; COVID-19 pandemic
- Summary/Abstract:The EtnoKrakow/Crossroads Festival has been held for over two decades, combining in its cultural programme different faces of traditional, ethnic and what is termed “world music” There is room for both a return to one’s musical roots and sources, as well as experimentation with tradition and surprising fusions of genres and styles. In addition to in crudo style creativity, hybrid genres such as ethnojazz, ethnoelectro or ethnorock regularly appear. Since the end of the 1990s each time this event took place, a space has been created for encounters, dialogue, and intercultural exchange. The aim of this chapter is to show the evolution of the EtnoKrakow/Crossroads Festival and the ideas of cultural diversity it conveys. The presented analysis is based in large part on interviews with festival organisers and participant observation carried out during its last three editions, namely: in 2019, 2020 and 2021. A separate part of this chapter is devoted to the challenges raised by the coronavirus pandemic and the resilience strategy chosen by the festival’s organisers during this difficult time.
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From Shtetl to Zion: 30 Years of Krakow’s Jewish Culture Festival
From Shtetl to Zion: 30 Years of Krakow’s Jewish Culture Festival
(From Shtetl to Zion: 30 Years of Krakow’s Jewish Culture Festival)
- Author(s):Elżbieta Wiącek
- Language:English
- Subject(s):Social Sciences, Fine Arts / Performing Arts, Jewish studies, Music, Sociology
- Page Range:147-170
- No. of Pages:24
- Keywords:Jewish Culture Festival; Kazimierz district in Krakow; klezmer; Ashkenazy; boutique multiculturalism
- Summary/Abstract:The first edition of the Jewish Culture Festival in Krakow was inaugurated in 1988. From a small, local event, it has grown to an international phenomenon. Now it is one of the most important events of this kind in the world, presenting contemporary Jewish culture created both by Jews in Israel and the entire Jewish Diaspora. Currently, it is probably the only Jewish festival in the world founded and run by non-Jews. It is also one that is largely attended by non-Jews. Even more striking is the fact that it is held in a country virtually bereft of Jews. The aim of this chapter is to examine the evolving and expanding character of the festival and its main purposes and themes. The main goal of the festiwal is to educate participants about Jewish culture, history and faith (Judaism), which flourished in Poland before the Holocaust, as well to make them familiar with modern Jewish culture (music, cuisine, dance, calligraphy and other aspects).
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Nostalgia and Lost Authenticity: Evolution of the nternational Picnic Country & Folk Festival in Mrągowo into a Tourist Attraction
Nostalgia and Lost Authenticity: Evolution of the nternational Picnic Country & Folk Festival in Mrągowo into a Tourist Attraction
(Nostalgia and Lost Authenticity: Evolution of the nternational Picnic Country & Folk Festival in Mrągowo into a Tourist Attraction)
- Author(s):Anna Duda
- Language:English
- Subject(s):Anthropology, Social Sciences, Fine Arts / Performing Arts, Music, Sociology, Culture and social structure
- Page Range:171-190
- No. of Pages:20
- Keywords:Mrągowo; Picnic Country; country music; tourist attraction; performance
- Summary/Abstract:Mrągowo, as one of the most recognisable cities of the Mazurian region, is most often associated with the International Picnic Country & Folk Festival, which has been organised continually since 1982. Over decades, the city has been changing under the influence of the festival. Hotels and restaurants have been constructed according to an American blueprint and a western-style Mrongoville Family Town has been constructed to specifically reflect a 19th-century village of the Wild West. The purpose of this chapter is to show how the Picnic Country Festival has changed over the years—from a country music centre compared to Nashville to a festival losing its musical identity. For this purpose, the contents of Gazeta Olsztyńska, Gazeta Warmii i Mazur and Gazeta Wyborcza Olsztyn were analysed. In addition to the historical perspective, anthropological research was conducted, relying on participant observation during the 40th edition of the Picnic Country festival. The aim was to show how the authenticity and nostalgia of the country-festival-goers clash with the inauthenticity of Mrągowo’s space and random tourists.
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Festival Agora? The Academy of the Finest Arts as a Case Study of the Festivalisation of the Public Sphere
Festival Agora? The Academy of the Finest Arts as a Case Study of the Festivalisation of the Public Sphere
(Festival Agora? The Academy of the Finest Arts as a Case Study of the Festivalisation of the Public Sphere)
- Author(s):Marta Kupis
- Language:English
- Subject(s):Anthropology, Social Sciences, Fine Arts / Performing Arts, Music, Sociology, Culture and social structure
- Page Range:191-209
- No. of Pages:19
- Keywords:Pol’and’Rock Festival; Station Woodstock; Academy of the Finest Arts; Jerzy Owsiak; Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity
- Summary/Abstract:The Academy of the Finest Arts is an initiative that was introduced to Pol’and’Rock Festival (formerly Station Woodstock) in the year 2006 and has since become a stable element of this largest music festival in Poland. Its main purpose is to serve as an arena for discussions with people playing major roles in Polish public life. The initiative can serve as a case study for how festivals are changing and how they change various aspects of social reality, in this case public discussions.The theoretical frameworks used here include festivalisation, understood as the increasing role festivals play in contemporary reality, and deliberative democracy. The first of those approaches should help to understand how festivals encroach on public life, whereas the latter may aid in understanding how the content of discussions in music festival circumstances changes in comparison to more formal environment. Hopefully, this case study will serve as a basis for general reflections on the festivalisation of politics—and the politicisation of festivals.
- Price: 5.00 €
