Memento Mori Dance Club

Stories about the lives of saints.

This experimental project, which borders on musical archaeology, focuses on the search for dance rhythms in traditional devotional songs from the Polish lowlands. Polonaise phrases and mazurka rhythms in All Souls’ Day, Marian and even Lenten songs are often covered with a thick layer of local performance styles and rhythmic interpretations, but sometimes (as in the case of many Christmas carols) they lie just beneath well-known melodies. It is not entirely clear where they came from – it is possible that this is due to the evangelising missions of the Jesuits, who, as early as the Renaissance, selected religious texts to accompany popular dance melodies in order to make it easier for the people to assimilate the truths of the faith. Or perhaps it was rather the folk musical sensibility, imbued with tri-metrical dance phrases, that forged the melody of religious songs over the centuries.

Discovering the counterfactual nature of traditional religious songs is a journey into the unknown for us, as most of us have so far been exclusively involved in exploring traditional styles and performance contexts. We are students of rural musicians and singers: Jan and Piotr Gaca, Franciszek Racis, Janina Dyjach, singers from Gałki Rusinowskie, Kocudza, Branwia, Kalinówka Kościelna and many others. It is from them that we know devotional songs and instrumental music, and the experience we have gained from them largely contributes to the sound of this project. It is also thanks to them that the songs to which we add instrumental colour remain songs of prayer.

Dancing is allowed and even encouraged – participating in the dances makes it easier to hear the stories (this is undoubtedly an added value of the counterfactual phenomenon).

Line-up:
Robert Burdalski – vocals
Piotr Fiedorowicz – bagpipes
Antek Hasso-Agopsowicz – vocals and violin
Mateusz Niwiński – violin and vocals
Piotr Piszczatowski – harmonium and dance leader
Janusz Prusinowski – baraban, violin, vocals
Marek Szwajkowski – baraban and vocals
Jan Tarkowski – cello, vocals
Maciej Żurek – violin, vocals