Nowowiejski: Sea Songs Vol.1 / Benedykt Blonski, Warmia-Mazury University Choir

Feliks Nowowiejski, if he is known at all outside of Poland, is known for an orchestral piece or two; Dux's Felix Nowowiejski: Sea Songs for mixed choir a cappella would also introduce us to Nowowiejski's patriotic and maritime choral works as well. Seventeen numbers out of a set of 34 are performed by the Choir of the University of Warmia and Mazury in Olsztyn under the direction of Benedykt Blonski, recorded in Nowowiejski Concert Hall in Olsztyn. The texts for all 17 choruses are included, though this reduces the much needed background information to only about four columns of text, the last of which is mysteriously snipped in half. This chorus is one of the most decorated of such organizations in Poland, and they generally sound fine, although the recording is rather bright and it can be a little jarring when the boys join in, as they seem to have trouble staying in tune. Clearly one aspect of this project that may have convinced Dux to prepare it for an international market is the poetry that Nowowiejski used for his cycle, first published in 1935. These are some key nationalistic Polish texts; some of them are addressed to successful Polish naval battles, others to the Baltic Sea itself, and only a couple would be considered shanties and then only vaguely, based on the tenor of the texts. The music throughout is strictly uniform, rigidly homophonic, and usually laid out in a simple verse-chorus format, or in stanzas. Most of the choruses are loud, energetic, and rousing; a few are less so, but there is little depth to these settings. Historically, Nowowiejski's Sea Songs are part of the identity of Poland and deserve exposure, but mainly to Poles, many of whom would already know them from hearing them on the radio, or even singing them in their own choruses. These things, though, simply don't travel. Superficially, they sound like Soviet agitprop choruses, which they are not. These things were motivated by the same xenophobic zeal that was the moving force behind Sergei Eisenstein's film Alexander Nevsky (1938) -- the growing threat of Germany's military might. If you're Polish, a Polish history buff, or speak the language, then you'll get Dux's Felix Nowowiejski: Sea Songs for mixed choir a cappella. If not, you won't.