Papers by Mariusz Gradowski
Eastern European Popular Music in a Transnational Context, 2019
This chapter explores several stages and narratives concerning Niemen’s musical career, circulate... more This chapter explores several stages and narratives concerning Niemen’s musical career, circulated in Polish literature, including two that contradict each other: a narrative of Niemen’s failure to conquer the West and of his relative success in this area. The author considers them from the perspective of postcolonialism, focusing on the complex case of Niemen’s cultural identity, especially his fascination with Polish Romantic poet Cyprian Kamil Norwid. In short, after a period of self-colonisation (with Western music) and attempts to conquer foreign markets, Niemen came to the conclusion that a career in Poland and exploring Polish culture through his work was ultimately more important to him than participating in the global music market. His story is thus ‘post-colonial’ in the sense of experiencing both liberation from colonial influences and not caring about colonial powers.
Czas Kultury , 2021
Artykuł przedstawia relację tożsamość wykonawcy – piosenka z perspektywy językoznawczej. Autorzy ... more Artykuł przedstawia relację tożsamość wykonawcy – piosenka z perspektywy językoznawczej. Autorzy wskazują, że świadomy wybór wariantu brzmieniowego śpiewanego języka – w Big Fontaines D.C. to angielski z irlandzkim akcentem – może być istotnym elementem gry tożsamościowej nadawcy, komunikacji z odbiorcą, a także stanowić wartość dodaną do stosowanych środków muzycznych. Kluczowa dla skuteczności tego utworu jest kwestia dublińskiego akcentu Griana Chattena. Analiza socjolingwistyczna ujawnia jej złożoność: z trzech wariantów w realizacji tekstu Big pojawia się mieszanka tradycyjno-mainstreamowa. W efekcie mamy wrażenie autentyczności i dublińskości, ale również wpływu punk rocka. Pozwala to zbudować relację tożsamościową nie tylko na poziomie wspólnoty lokalnej oraz estetyki punka.
This article discusses the relation between the performer’s identity and the song from the linguistic perspective. The authors show that the conscious choice of the sound variant of the sung language – in "Big" by Fontaines D.C. it is English with an Irish accent – can be an important element of the artist’s identity game, communication with the audience, while adding value to the musical means used. Central to the effectiveness of this piece is the issue of Grian Chatten’s Dublin accent. Sociolinguistic analysis reveals its complexity: of the three variants in the rendition of Big’s lyrics, a traditional-mainstream mix emerges. The result is an impression of authenticity and Dublinness, but also the influence of punk rock. This helps to build an identity relation, and not only on the level of local community and punk aesthetics.
Musicology Today
This paper describes the process of establishing rock and roll styles and genres (as defined by A... more This paper describes the process of establishing rock and roll styles and genres (as defined by Allan F. Moore) in Polish musical culture. My Ph.D. research has revealed three phases in this process. Phase 1: imitation (1957-1962), phase 2: Polonisation (1962-1967) and phase 3: artistic re-interpretation (1967-1973). I present the detailed characteristics of each phase (i.e. their socio-political context, the phenomenon of cover versions, the fusion of rock and roll with local folk music, the development of original artistic language) as well as providing musical examples (mostly from Czesław Niemen’s recordings, which remain one of the most interesting examples of Polish popular music).
Musicology Today, 2016
The article presents a survey of research on popular music carried out at the Institute of Musico... more The article presents a survey of research on popular music carried out at the Institute of Musicology, University of Warsaw. It discusses the contents of valuable studies undertaken at the Institute but still unpublished and kept at the Library of the Institute of Musicology. The authors’ aim has been to facilitate the exchange of ideas with other musicological centres conducting research on popular music, as well as providing other musicologists and scholars working in the field with an overview the research undertaken to date.Popular music will be defined here as music composed in the 20Our survey of the library holdings reveals an unexpectedly large body of writings on popular music submitted for a degree at the Institute of Musicology, University of Warsaw. The research has already opened many doors, defined and more than outlined many fields of study, describing them in quite a detailed manner. This is obviously good news: the existing works pose new questions, highlight areas ...
"Przegląd Muzykologiczny" 7/2007, 2009
The three chosen compositions from The Doors allow for discussion of three aspects leading to an ... more The three chosen compositions from The Doors allow for discussion of three aspects leading to an interpretation of the music of this American group. A song "Light My Fire", written by Robbie Krieger, illustrates the process of composing and arranging the music of The Doors, along with their individual experiences and capabilities of the members of that group, as well as their inspirations and compositional choices which resulted from their playing music together. The "Celebration of the Lizard" is an extended composition which allows an analysis of the stage realisations of their music, enriched, as they were, with para-theartical and para-ritual elements which influenced considerably the impact of their particural compositions. "The End" is a distinct example of close connections between the music and the poetry created by Jim Morrison, the leader of the group. In conclusion the author of the article points to the pop-cultural meaning of the myth of Jim Morrison himself and to some functional relationship of that myth with the figure of Dionysus.
[pol]
Termin big beat pojawił się pod koniec lat 40. XX wieku. Na przestrzeni lat zmieniał się za... more [pol]
Termin big beat pojawił się pod koniec lat 40. XX wieku. Na przestrzeni lat zmieniał się zakres jego znaczenia. Autor artykułu, korzystając z definicji stylu i gatunku proponowanych przez Allana F. Moore’a, śledzi znaczeniowe przemiany terminu big beat od pierwotnego kontekstu jazzowego, przez kontekst amerykańskiego rock and rolla lat 50., brytyjskiego rock and rolla początku lat 60., aż do jego funkcjonowania w polskim dyskursie o muzyce popularnej. Zmienność zakresów znaczeniowych przy utrzymaniu tego samego zapisu prowadzi do konieczności każdorazowego doprecyzowania kontekstu, w którym termin big beat jest stosowany.
[eng]
Historical meanings of the term big beat from the perspective of style and genre The term big beat emerged in the late 1940s. Its meaning has changed over the years. Drawing on the definitions of the style and genre proposed by Allan F. Moore, the author of the article follows the semantic changes of the term big beat from its original jazz context, through the context of the American rock and roll of the 1950s, British rock and roll of the early 1960s, to its functioning in the Polish discourse about popular music. The changing meaning of the term means that whenever big beat is used, the context in which it appears must be specified.
"Glissando" 17 (17) / 2011
"Glissando" 13-14 (13-14) / 2007
"Glissando" 2 (2) / 2004, 2004
inbooks by Mariusz Gradowski
Eastern European Popular Music in a Transnational Context: Beyond the Borders, 2019
This chapter explores several stages and narratives concerning Niemen’s musical career, circulate... more This chapter explores several stages and narratives concerning Niemen’s musical career, circulated in Polish literature, including two that contradict each other: a narrative of Niemen’s failure to conquer the West and of his relative success in this area. The author considers them from the perspective of postcolonialism, focusing on the complex case of Niemen’s cultural identity, especially his fascination with Polish Romantic poet Cyprian Kamil Norwid. In short, after a period of self-colonisation (with Western music) and attempts to conquer foreign markets, Niemen came to the conclusion that a career in Poland and exploring Polish culture through his work was ultimately more important to him than participating in the global music market. His story is thus ‘post-colonial’ in the sense of experiencing both liberation from colonial influences and not caring about colonial powers.
"Music, Politics and Ideology in the Visual Arts" (= Ikonografia muzyczna. Studia i materiały, t. 3), red. Paweł Gancarczyk, Dominika Grabiec, Stowarzyszenie Liber Pro Arte, Instytut Sztuki PAN, Warszawa 2015, s. 153-157
"Symphony and Song. The Intersection of Words and Music", ed. Victor Kennedy, Michelle Gadpaille, Oct 1, 2016
"Jazz w kulturze Polskiej", t. 2, red. Rafał Ciesielski
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Papers by Mariusz Gradowski
This article discusses the relation between the performer’s identity and the song from the linguistic perspective. The authors show that the conscious choice of the sound variant of the sung language – in "Big" by Fontaines D.C. it is English with an Irish accent – can be an important element of the artist’s identity game, communication with the audience, while adding value to the musical means used. Central to the effectiveness of this piece is the issue of Grian Chatten’s Dublin accent. Sociolinguistic analysis reveals its complexity: of the three variants in the rendition of Big’s lyrics, a traditional-mainstream mix emerges. The result is an impression of authenticity and Dublinness, but also the influence of punk rock. This helps to build an identity relation, and not only on the level of local community and punk aesthetics.
Termin big beat pojawił się pod koniec lat 40. XX wieku. Na przestrzeni lat zmieniał się zakres jego znaczenia. Autor artykułu, korzystając z definicji stylu i gatunku proponowanych przez Allana F. Moore’a, śledzi znaczeniowe przemiany terminu big beat od pierwotnego kontekstu jazzowego, przez kontekst amerykańskiego rock and rolla lat 50., brytyjskiego rock and rolla początku lat 60., aż do jego funkcjonowania w polskim dyskursie o muzyce popularnej. Zmienność zakresów znaczeniowych przy utrzymaniu tego samego zapisu prowadzi do konieczności każdorazowego doprecyzowania kontekstu, w którym termin big beat jest stosowany.
[eng]
Historical meanings of the term big beat from the perspective of style and genre The term big beat emerged in the late 1940s. Its meaning has changed over the years. Drawing on the definitions of the style and genre proposed by Allan F. Moore, the author of the article follows the semantic changes of the term big beat from its original jazz context, through the context of the American rock and roll of the 1950s, British rock and roll of the early 1960s, to its functioning in the Polish discourse about popular music. The changing meaning of the term means that whenever big beat is used, the context in which it appears must be specified.
inbooks by Mariusz Gradowski
This article discusses the relation between the performer’s identity and the song from the linguistic perspective. The authors show that the conscious choice of the sound variant of the sung language – in "Big" by Fontaines D.C. it is English with an Irish accent – can be an important element of the artist’s identity game, communication with the audience, while adding value to the musical means used. Central to the effectiveness of this piece is the issue of Grian Chatten’s Dublin accent. Sociolinguistic analysis reveals its complexity: of the three variants in the rendition of Big’s lyrics, a traditional-mainstream mix emerges. The result is an impression of authenticity and Dublinness, but also the influence of punk rock. This helps to build an identity relation, and not only on the level of local community and punk aesthetics.
Termin big beat pojawił się pod koniec lat 40. XX wieku. Na przestrzeni lat zmieniał się zakres jego znaczenia. Autor artykułu, korzystając z definicji stylu i gatunku proponowanych przez Allana F. Moore’a, śledzi znaczeniowe przemiany terminu big beat od pierwotnego kontekstu jazzowego, przez kontekst amerykańskiego rock and rolla lat 50., brytyjskiego rock and rolla początku lat 60., aż do jego funkcjonowania w polskim dyskursie o muzyce popularnej. Zmienność zakresów znaczeniowych przy utrzymaniu tego samego zapisu prowadzi do konieczności każdorazowego doprecyzowania kontekstu, w którym termin big beat jest stosowany.
[eng]
Historical meanings of the term big beat from the perspective of style and genre The term big beat emerged in the late 1940s. Its meaning has changed over the years. Drawing on the definitions of the style and genre proposed by Allan F. Moore, the author of the article follows the semantic changes of the term big beat from its original jazz context, through the context of the American rock and roll of the 1950s, British rock and roll of the early 1960s, to its functioning in the Polish discourse about popular music. The changing meaning of the term means that whenever big beat is used, the context in which it appears must be specified.
This article discusses the relation between the performer’s identity and the song from the linguistic perspective. The authors show that the conscious choice of the sound variant of the sung language – in Big by Fontaines D.C.
it is English with an Irish accent – can be an important element of the artist’s identity game, communication with the audience, while adding value to the musical means used. Central to the effectiveness of this piece is the issue of Grian Chatten’s Dublin accent. Sociolinguistic analysis reveals its complexity: of the three variants in the rendition of Big’s lyrics, a traditional-mainstream mix emerges. The result is an impression of authenticity and Dublinness, but also the influence of punk rock. This helps to build an identity relation, and not only on the level of local community and punk aesthetics.