Colours of Poland in Walewice: Tango Attack and Krzysztof Jakowicz

Artists:

• Krzysztof Jakowicz – violin 
• Tango Attack:
  • Grzegorz Bożewicz – bandoneon, accordion
  • Piotr Malicki – guitars 
  • Hadrian Filip Tabęcki – piano

Program:

• the most beautiful tangos of the Polish interwar period in new arrangements by Hadrian Filik Tabęcki

Compere: Karol Furtak (The Polish Radio)

Tango had to come a long way in order to reach the salons and the floors of dance competitions. Its roots stem from central Africa and the expressive slave dances of that region. In Cuba, the African rhythms combined with the Spanish ones, creating the habanera and then subsequently changing into the tango Andaluz in the south of Spain. In turn, the Argentinian tango had its inception in Buenos Aires and Montevideo. The new dance reached Europe in the beginning of the 20th century and quickly conquered it, but not without controversy. The physical closeness of the dancers and a clear dose of eroticism invoked objections: even Pope Pius X voiced his opposition to the “barbarian gymnastics”. Despite this, the tango became one of the most popular dances of the interwar period, conquering Paris, Berlin, Rome, Vienna and….Warsaw. Near the banks of the Vistula river, the tango resounded at dance parties, cabarets and on the radio. Each year, composers created around 400 new Polish tangos! These pieces were also sometimes written by classical music composers, such as Andrzej Panufnik and Feliks Rybicki. The melancholic songs full of fierce emotion such as “Tango milonga” or “Ta ostatnia niedziela” (“This last Sunday”) also gained popularity abroad. The most beautiful Polish tangos of the interwar period will be performed by maestro Krzysztof Jakowicz – an unmatched virtuoso of the violin, the author of several valuable recordings and an accomplished pedagogue. During “Colours of Poland” he will once again prove his versatility, performing such pieces as “Odrobina szczęścia w miłości” (“A little luck in love”), “Chryzantemy złociste” (“The Golden Chrysantemums”) or “Całuję twoją dłoń, madame” (“I kiss your hand, madame”) which received new arrangements created by Hadrian Tabęcki. A hundred years ago, those pieces may have resounded in places such as the interior of the Walewice palace.

top photo: Tango Attack, ensemble promotional materials

The Walewice palace gained fame thanks to the romance between Maria Walewska and Napoleon. Along with the park that surrounds it it is among the most interesting classical country estates built in the second half of the 18th century in Poland. As a typical manor residence it surely resounded with music on a daily basis. It was an element of everyday life, accompanying guest visits, holidays and hunts. As such, it was usually not documented in any way. It is possible that Cecylia Walewska, a trained pianist and music teacher, visited the manor. The interwar period, from which come the pieces performed during the concerts, brought on many changes, including a new lifestyle element for the elites: it popularized balls and dance parties. The participants danced to the rhythm of tangos and foxtrots, incredibly popular in Poland during the 20s and the 30s.