Adam Strug - "Leśny bożek" project / Poland
Adam Strug – singer and instrumentalist, ethnomusicologist, songwriter, poet, composer of theatre and film music, documentary film screenwriter. Leader of a music company that performs his original songs and originator of the Monodia Polska song ensemble, which performs Polish songs passed on in the oral tradition.
Performing with his original repertoire, he won the Czesław Niemen First Prize and the TV Polonia Award at the New Tradition Festival in 2008. In 2012, he released Adieu, his debut album featuring that repertoire, which won the title of Folk Phonogram of the Year. He released another album in 2014 – Strug Leśmian Soyka – in collaboration with Stanisław Soyka, who played the piano and sang in the choirs. In accordance with the title of the album, the lyrics were based on the poetry of Bolesław Leśmian, to which Strug composed music and sang the songs. A year later, the artist presented the album Mysz, which was the result of a collaboration with another leading Polish musician – Wojciech Waglewski. The latter was the producer of the album, as well as playing guitar and singing in one track. The other vocal parts belonged to Adam Strug, who composed the entirety of the music and wrote lyrics for some of the songs on the album.
During this year’s festival, the artist will present material primarily from his fourth album, Leśny bożek. The songs it contains speak of the antinomies of human fate: love, death, hope and disappointment. The literary layer, in addition to Strug’s texts, will contain poems by Leśmian, Staff, Asnyk and folk poet Jan Pocek. In the musical layer – composed entirely by the author – we can find fascination with traditional Polish music and the melodies of the Middle East. The album is characterised by lyricism and minimalism. The author often states that his works are intended for joint singing of the poems of Polish and foreign poets.
During this year’s festival, he will also perform solo with Kurpie songs.
Adam Strug – vocals, accordion
Szczepan Pospieszalski – trumpet
Michał Żak – clarinet
Max Mucha – double bass
Mateusz Kowalski – mandolin, washboard, vocals
Wojciech Lubertowicz – percussion instruments
The concert took place in 2018.