Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Piotr Damasiewicz & Power Of The Horns Ensemble: Polska

Piotr Damasiewicz & Power Of The Horns Ensemble: Polska

By Chris May
December 8, 2019
View read count

Piotr Damasiewicz & Power Of The Horns Ensemble: Polska

Poland's jazz tradition is perhaps the deepest rooted in all of Europe. Only Britain can rival it. But unlike British jazz, Polish jazz began in part as a declaration of protest against slavery and repression, as did that of its American parent, and this has given it a special quality. The slavery and repression were occasioned by the USSR, which succeeded Nazi Germany as Poland's colonial master in 1945.

The Solidarity Museum in Szcecin gives an idea of the importance Polish people attach to the role jazz played during their fight for independence. Among the exhibits is a copy of a Polish-language concert programme from the

Dave Brubeck

piano
1920 - 2012

" data-original-title="" title="">Dave Brubeck Quartet's US State Department-funded, six-city tour of the country in 1958. Stalinist suspicions that jazz was a subversive force subsequently proved to be entirely on-point. In 2018, the Marius Brubeck Quintet was invited to perform in the same six cities, to commemorate the 60th anniversary of Brubeck p��re's tour.

Few of the many world-class albums which have been made in Poland since the 1950s have penetrated the continuing (but finally diminishing) US-centric mindset of the jazz world. Among the exceptions are composer and pianist

Krzysztof Komeda

piano
1931 - 1969

" data-original-title="" title="">Krzysztof Komeda's Septet's Astigmatic (Polskie Nagrania Muza, 1967). The band on that album included trumpeter

Tomasz Sta��ko

trumpet
1942 - 2018

" data-original-title="" title="">Tomasz Sta��ko, whose own Quintet's Litania: Music Of Krzysztof Komeda (ECM, 1997) is another international break-out.

Komeda and Stanko, along with saxophonist

Tomasz Szukalski

b.1948

" data-original-title="" title="">Tomasz Szukalski and trumpeter

Piotr Wojtasik

trumpet

" data-original-title="" title="">Piotr Wojtasik, are four heroes of Polish jazz to which trumpeter

Piotr Damasiewicz

trumpet
b.1980

" data-original-title="" title="">Piotr Damasiewicz has dedicated Polska. He has done them proud.

The music—which combines through composition with free improvisation—is big, passionate and majestic. It sounds, in fact, rather like Damasiewicz looks. The ensemble is well named: there are five horns, a piano, two double basses and drums. Komeda's presence resonates throughout the four original tunes, but so, too, do echoes from beyond Poland. The opening track is named after US tenor saxophonist

Billy Harper

saxophone
b.1943

" data-original-title="" title="">Billy Harper, with whom Wojtasik recorded Quest (Power Bros) in Warsaw in 1996. Tenor saxophonist

Gerard Lebik

saxophone, tenor
b.1980

" data-original-title="" title="">Gerard Lebik excels here, and does so again with another gutsy solo on the closer, which is dedicated to US bassist

William Parker

bass
b.1952

" data-original-title="" title="">William Parker. The Ensemble's Ksawery Wojinski and Jakub Kcywinski are each a powerful presence, but it is nonetheless appropriate to unleash two bassists when paying tribute to the force of nature which is Parker.

An outstanding album which deserves to make an impression on jazz audiences everywhere.

Learn more about our star rating system

Track Listing

Billy; Kleofas; Polska 1; Polska 11; Psalm For William Parker.

Personnel

Piotr Damasiewicz

trumpet

Piotr Damasiewicz: trumpet; Pawel Niewiadomski: trombone; Adam Pindur: soprano saxophone; Maciej Obara: alto saxophone; Gerard Lebik: tenor saxophone; Dominik Wania: grand piano; Ksawery Wojinski: double bass; Jakub Kcywinski: double bass; Samuel Hall: drums.

Album information

Title: Polska | Year Released: 2019 | Record Label: Astigmatic

PREVIOUS / NEXT

Newvelle Muri
< Previous

Sync! Ned Rothenberg, Samir Chatterj...
Next >

Support All About Jazz

All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who make it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

Go Ad Free!

To maintain our platform while developing new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity, we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for as little as $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination vastly improves your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.