Jan Słowiński talks about music journeys from the Carpathians to the Appalachians.
See the EtnoKraków/Crossroads 2021 programme
Bartosz Suchecki, “Kraków Culture” magazine: You’re usually very active. Did last year give you a chance for a breather, or quite the opposite?
Jan Słowiński: We had to fight on several fronts: for the survival of the company and the club, for finance, and for Joanna Słowińska’s concerts which kept being postponed or cancelled. For me and my colleagues, last year meant working twice or three times as hard as before – fortunately not just to keep our heads above the water. In spite of the problems, we managed to produce several fantastic projects, including recording an album by Joanna Słowińska with the AUKSO orchestra and Stanisław Słowiński’s quintet featuring compositions by Zygmunt Konieczny, and holding the EtnoKraków/Crossroads festival in a hybrid format.
There was plenty to fight for – the EtnoKraków/Crossroads festival has come a long way since 1999!
The festival is an element of the artistic reality I inhabit with my wife Joanna. Twenty-two years ago we mainly focused on traditional music from the Carpathians, Poland and Central Europe. After covering the basics, we ventured further afield, towards the Balkan Peninsula and towards monographic editions: The Easter Wind, Arctic Circle, Direction: South, and presentation of music traditions inscribed on the UNESCO list. From the Carpathians to the Appalachians. Over the years, we have had a single, clear mission: we focus on music which is creative and artistically intriguing; on artists speaking with their own, distinct voice, focusing on building an original message and ready to engage in creative dialogue with tradition.
But you haven’t abandoned music from our own region.
The last two decades have been key for Poland’s ethno music scene. It is highly diverse, and I try to follow interesting ideas and present them in the context of what’s happening around the globe as part of the festival. This exchange is supported by the Strefa club where we host concerts and artistic workshops in ethno, improvised and ethno-jazz music throughout the year. The EtnoKraków/Crossroads isn’t just an occasional treat for tourists, but rather a culmination of events held the year over. Last year, during the covid pandemic, we held over 60 concerts at Strefa, including streamed productions.
The pandemic cannot be escaped, though, especially in the context of this year’s festival.
This year’s EtnoKraków/Crossroads features a strong line-up of artists from the ethno scene from Poland and all over the globe who are currently living and working in Poland or in countries accessible at this time of pandemic restrictions. This is important, and during this difficult time we are building the festival around a network of partnerships. On 15 and 22 August, together with Radio Kraków we will launch the stage at the courtyard of the broadcaster’s building at Słowackiego Avenue – we will be transmitting live on Radio Kraków and retransmitting on Polish Radio Channel 2. On 20 and 21 August, we will host large outdoor concerts at Forty Kleparz with a nod towards Poland’s ethno and ethno/electro scene. We will host several events as part of the Kraków Culture Summer, including a programme for kids on 21 and 22 August at the stage at Jordan Park, afternoon workshops of traditional songs and dances from Silesia and Mazowsze and arts and crafts workshops. Some of the events will be streamed on the PLAY KRAKÓW platform. The festival club is based at Strefa; events held as part of EtnoKraków/Crossroads culminate with the premiere of the Symphony from Four Corners of the World featuring music by Stanisław Słowiński, held at the ICE Kraków’s Auditorium Hall on 1 October.
Jan Słowiński – founder and director of the EtnoKraków/Crossroads festival and president of the Crossroads of Culture and Tradition Association. Co-founder of Kraków’s Strefa club with his wife. Nominated for the title of Kraków’s Multiculturalism Ambassador 2020 AD.
A version of this article appears in Summer ’21 edition of “Kraków Culture” magazine.
Photo by Michał Ramus
