Pokrzyk / Poland

 

They met in Krakow and although each one of the musicians comes from somewhere else, they stick together. They were united by their fascination with traditional dance and ritual music from Poland and other countries. The band shares its name with the Polish name for deadly nightshade – wolfsbane, a mysterious plant related to the mandrake.

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According to folk medicine, when appropriately used, it brought extremely colourful, lively and deep dreams. Shakespeare wrote that it “takes the reason prisoner”. It is said that it was thanks to nightshade that witches could fly on their brooms. So what will you hear in the dance trance? Melodies from the places the band members come from, dug up in old records or collected in villages. The near-far stories from Belarus; songs from the swampy Masurian landscapes; lively and touching melodies from the Rzeszów region; a dusty repertoire from the Krakow areas, as well as... Well, they don’t want to give everything away. Try to guess for yourself. And if you want to do a little howling of your own as you spin around, you’re welcome to do so!

Daria Butskaya – violin
Ania Walkowiak – basolia, frame drum, vocals 
Michał Biel – baraban drum, frame drum 
Paweł Iwan – cymbals, vocals

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The concert took place in 2019.