At the service of the local music scene, Kraków Music was born during the pandemic and grown during the lockdown. Two main factors allowed the idea to come to fruition: (1) the sudden surplus of time due to the precarious job situations many faced after the general shutdown of society; (2) and a short but intensive experience running a small live music venue in the Old Town. With some insight into the needs of local bands, musicians and venues and enough free time to shape a raw concept into a small project, Kraków Music launched a website, carried out two online music initiatives and organised a live stream concert. This is a brief account of how it all began and an opportunity to thank those who were there (and still are here) to help.
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[nk_title like=”” style=””]To the Beat of Covid-19[/nk_title][nk_text]A new year kicks-off! New resolutions and goals! The new 20s are in and by the end of February everything seems normal. Come March and an imminent crisis looms over the world. There’s a virus! It comes from China and has reached Europe! Italy is in a state of emergency! In Poland like everywhere else, people start crowding supermarkets and grocery stores to stock up on canned food and toilet paper. Before the end of March gathering restrictions apply and the general lockdown and shutdown of society changes our lifestyle overnight. All over Europe schools, universities, restaurants, bars, shops, museums and cultural venues begin to close or operate under strict schedule restrictions. (In memoriam parentheses: On March 29, a sad day, one of the greatest contemporary Polish composers, Krzysztof Penderecki, dies.) Mandatory masks. Is it all a hoax? Is the worse yet to come? People #stayathome, mobility is restricted and travel is banned. No more leisure promenades (except to walk the dog and buy food), holidays cancelled and tourism is no more. [/nk_text]
Behind closed doors, everyone wondered and waited. Some plotted, others planned, some complained, others exercised, some cooked while others Ubered, BUT EVERYONE LISTENED TO MUSIC.
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[nk_text]A city that hosted more than fourteen million visitors in 2019, Kraków was empty. Its streets were quiet and the sound waves carrying the Hejnal flowed freely through the backstreets of the Rynek. The sea of people that once streamed down the Wawel Hill was completely dry: a deserted ramp. Behind closed doors, everyone wondered and waited. Some plotted, others planned, some complained, others exercised, some cooked while others Ubered, BUT EVERYONE LISTENED TO MUSIC. The focus shifted from the outside to the inside. From the square to the salon, from the workplace to the home office; from the live shows to the live streams. But there’s another shift, one at an individual level. Apart from Zooming with friends and family, we started to zoom in into our own lives. There’s always a chance for contemplation that comes with isolation and social distancing. Despite the harsh struggle of almost all economic sectors and the imminent threat to small business, there’s a solidarity vibe that took over. The new social-business mantra was altruistic. “You’re not helpless while you’re helping” and two spheres seemed to be the most active: gastronomy and culture.
Everyone needs nourishment! Of the body and the soul. During the lockdown, food made its way to our door on a bike, while art and culture made their way to our computer and phone screens via online broadcasts: operas, music concerts and all kinds of live performances. Musicians started to play at home for the enjoyment of those in lockdown. They shared their music with others and started collaborating online.[/nk_text]
[nk_title like=”” style=””]The Key Out of Lockdown[/nk_title]
[nk_text]This is when and how Kraków Music came up with its first project. Leading to the celebration of Piano Day 2020 on March 28, KM published a call for piano music submissions. Although not abundant, the response was good and allowed local musicians to connect with an audience in lockdown. Scotia Gilroy from Vladimirska shared “Paper BIrds” and a personal story about the song. Thymn Chase from Smingus sent the main theme for the Polish film “Bracia” directed by Szymon Jakubowski; Monika Kamińska from Arbuz Dust gave us a Jack White cover and a musical rendition of a poem by William Blake. My personal favourite is the progressive jazz composition “Morning Rain” (2020) by Artur Michalski. A serene backdrop of piano and atmospheric sounds to a few outbursts of seemingly chaotic drum riffs. [/nk_text]
[nk_text]Piano Day was the key and igniter of what followed. Social media was flooding with the stay-at-home hashtag as an online cacophony of musical expressions spilt over everyone’s feed. Solo musicians in their pyjamas, DJ bedroom sets, FB & YT music throwbacks posts, video montages of individual home recordings and the whatnot. We craved some order and focus and decided to encourage the use of the hashtag #HOUSEBOUNDMUSIC to agglutinate all the local music pouring out online from confinement. Following the same formula as with Piano Day, we concocted the Housebound Music Playlist. This time the response was much better and we gathered collaborations from artists such as Valky, Chłodno, Sold My Soul, Kopernikus Projekt and Galleons & Guns amongst others.
We hope one day we’ll be able to thank all of them personally, but we’re confident that the best way to do so now is to encourage you to listen to the whole Housebound & Piano Day Playlists. After all, music is (was) for many the sound and key out of lockdown.[/nk_text]
[nk_title like=”” style=””]Watermelon Face Masks: Live From Nowa Huta[/nk_title][nk_plain_video video=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g92le9Fj_l4″]
[nk_text]Even before the full shutdown, gigs started to be rescheduled or even cancelled. Local bands and artists saw their calendars suddenly emptying and soon, with all music venues closed, the Internet became the main outlet for live music. We saw the opportunity to organise our first live stream concert and decided to do so with Arbuz Dust, a Polish-Scottish band we’ve had the pleasure of collaborating with before and who had a gig cancelled on the same day.[/nk_text]
[nk_text]On March 28, just a few days before the quarantine really kicked in, Magda and Brian invited us to their home in Nowa Huta, where without much preparation and absolutely no experience we put together our first live stream concert. The setup took longer than we expected and experienced countless technical issues. The evening was saved by Arbuz Dust’s performance (they even fashioned watermelon face masks!) and the fact that we were in a very cosy and friendly setting. We even managed to shoot a short interview which we encourage you to watch here. Moreover, we invite you to get to know the band, follow them and keep tabs on their upcoming events. Make sure to go to one of their concerts and once you get acquainted with their music, make sure to get their new album.[/nk_text]
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[nk_title like=”” style=””]An Old New Medium[/nk_title][nk_block_quote author=”” icon_color=”#d6d00c”]
We believe in the value of community and social capital, as well as the power of synergy and collaboration. It’s not a new idea nor a groundbreaking scheme, but it is a localised and focused initiative and a constant effort.
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[nk_text]Live music as an experience was under threat, and although a lot was happening online, it is an arena where muscling for attention is much harder. Acknowledging this fact set Kraków Music on a mission: to support and encourage local bands by providing a platform where they can promote and market their music for free. We believe in the value of community and social capital, as well as the power of synergy and collaboration. It’s not a new idea nor a groundbreaking scheme, but it is a localised and focused initiative and a constant effort. Moreover, live streaming services and projects were starting to boom, as well as new forms of cooperation and use of space. Restaurants and other non-conventional music venues are now using a music programme to amass clientele. Perhaps many of these trends will pass, but we believe some of them are worth rescuing to incorporate into a creative offer of live music that will benefit all, businesses, musicians and promoters.
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Kraków Music and musicians at Klub Buda
[nk_title like=”” style=””]Move On, Move Online[/nk_title][nk_text]I’ve never thought I would ever be behind the steering wheel of a bar, much less in charge of a live music programme. They’re both thrilling, engaging, demanding and tiring jobs. I was (am), however, lucky enough to have a few musician friends and know a few insiders in the bartending world. People to whom I will be forever indebted for their advice, support, encouragement and absolute honesty.
Putting together a programme of concerts means balancing both sides of the equation: looking out for the interest of the venue while being respectful of the work musicians put into to be on stage. As someone working in marketing and directly affected by the forced shutdown of a music venue, I (as many others) experienced first hand the challenges imposed by a new reality: shorter opening hours, less clientele, fiercer competition and more admin work applying for grants and redefining goals and strategies. It wasn’t, however, all bad. Despite businesses running in a lower gear, positive things also came as a result: more will for cooperation and bartering, novel ways of using space and a general predisposition from many to be supportive and collaborative. The only way to survive was to move on together and move online for good. [/nk_text]
Kraków Music & Human Stories Studio live streaming Helaine Vis' concert at Klub Buda
From a business perspective, Kraków Music is an online marketing agency that helps artists, venues and businesses in the music sector with the promotion of events, projects, products and joint initiatives. It is also a source of information about what’s on the local music calendar; and a virtual space to share ideas, opinions and news on all things music. At its core, however, it’s a shared love for music, an adamant belief in synergy and a reaffirmed faith in community. We thank you, Kraków, for it all.
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