From the heart of tradition...
Wassailing with Lunatraktors at Compton Verney
I was invited to take part in a wassailing event at Compton Verney on 8 of December 2023. Led by a broken folk duo - Lunatraktors, and together with other musicians from Birmingham representing different cultures, we created a spectacular performance filled with somatic sounds based on songs representing our different cultural backgrounds, i.e. Poland, Ukraine, Iran, and Roma.
Czech ceremonial bread-making workshops with Tereza Bušková
Throughout November and December I had the pleasure of supporting Tereza Bušková's traditional Czech ceremonial bread making workshops at Nash Dom CIC in Walsall, UK supported by the Walsall Council. The workshops were open to all women from different backgrounds, but we all made wonderful connections through this beautiful tradition, folk music and singing. We will be doing more of these workshops focused solely on singing and dancing in January and February 2024!
Moseley Folk Festival 2023
Had fantastic time playing at Moseley Folk Festival this year. This time I performed as part of the Adults band, a Birmingham (UK) based indie-pop / alternative rock group set up by Alex Townend - Band. I also had the pleasure to meet a Birmingham legend, professor Carl Chinn who was interviewed by The Blind Boy during the festival.
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24 August, Midlands Arts Centre, Birmingham
Together with my band, I will have the pleasure of supporting an amazing traditional Romani band from Slovakia, Julia Kozakova & Manusa at Midlands Arts Centre in Birmingham, Cannon Hill Park on Thursday 24 August; doors open at 7:30pm. My 5-piece band are some of them best musicians in Birmingham, so come and enjoy this fantastic Eastern-European blast of exciting music!
Book your tickets at: https://macbirmingham.co.uk/event/celebrating-sanctuary-j%C3%BAlia-koz%C3%A1kov%C3%A1-and-manusa-project-support-from-karolina-wegrzyn
Migration Matters Festival 2023, Sheffield - singing workshop
As part of our day at Sheffield’s @migmat festival this year, I have led a traditional Eastern-European singing (with a bit of dancing) workshop. With assistance of my wonderful violinist, Ann Jones, our workshop included: voice and body warm-up (good for beginners as well as pros); improvisational sing-shouting and movement (in style of Eastern European shepherds); learning traditional Eastern-European songs (a bit of history and folklore here) and easy barn style dancing, that just gets everyone jolly and cheerful! So if you wish having something as amazing as that at your event, accessible to anyone, doesn’t matter the age, gender nor ability, we’re available for bookings! :)
Beautiful photographs by Nadjet Ben Maghnia @nadjetben.m
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#festival #festivaluk #singing #folksinging #workshop#folkmusic #worldmusic #dancing #barndancing #slavic#easterneuropean #polishmusic #ukrainianmusic#gypsymusic #traditional #muzykatradycyjna #bialyspiew#warsztaty #karolinawegrzyn #sheffield #fun #happy #joy
Migration Matters Festival 2023, Sheffield
Thank you @migmatfest for having us in #sheffield during the #refugee week at @yellowarchstudios . And thank you for everyone in the audience, you were absolutely wonderful.
Thanks to @martamarsicka for curating our show and @irynamuha for joining us on stage. Photos taken by amazing Al-Hussein Abutaleb. @mansearching4meaning #gig #festival #folkband #worldmusic #slavic #polishgirl#ukrainian #folkmusic #folkmusician #powerofmusic
Refugee Festival 2023, Midlands Arts Centre, Birmingham, together with In Her Shoes
Thank you Celebrating Sanctuary Birmingham, Midlands Arts Centre and In Her Shoes for organising such a beautiful day to celebrate refugees, migrants and women from around the world. It was a pure pleasure to be part of it. As part of our performance with In Her Shoes, we have sang (and shouted) songs written by Ukrainian, Afghan and other women-refugees that this amazing organisation works with. In Her Shoes regularly provides music and creative workshops for women in Moseley, Birmingham area. #refugeeweek #worldmusic #folkmusic #folksinger #polishmusic#gypsymusic #ukrainianmusic #balkanmusic #folkdance#traditional #muzykatradycyjna #musicians #folkband#festival #livemusic #birminghammusic #dance
Refugee Festival 2023, Midlands Arts Centre, Birmingham
Join me and my band at Midlands Arts Centre in the outdoor arena on Saturday 17 June at 3pm. It will be an amazing day full of stories, dance and music from around the world, organised by Celebrating Sanctuary Birmingham.
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#birminghammusic #livegig #festival #midlandsartcentre#folkmusic #folkdance #storytelling #worldmusic#celebratingsanctuary #polishmusic #gypsymusic#karolinawegrzyn #ukrainianmusic
Migration Matters Festival 2023, Sheffield
We are very excited to play at Sheffield’s Migration Matters Festival on 18 June in Yellow Arch Studios.
I will also be leading a traditional Eastern European singing workshop before the concert which will be open to beginner’s of all age.
Playing on violin will be the amazing Ann Jones and on drums and guitar, Stephen Plummer.
#karolinawegrzyn #folkmusic #worldmusic #festival#migmat2023 #polishmusic #gypsymusic #ukrainianmusic#balkanmusic #carpathian #folksinger #accordion #violin#percussion
Symphony Hall Lunchtime Concert, 23 Feb 2023
What a joy it was! Thank you so much @celebratingsanctuarybirmingham for arranging this beautiful event. Thank you to everyone in the audience for coming and enjoying yourselves, and 💯 times thanks to all my friends for your love and support ♥️🙏 You filled us with so much happiness and energy 💚 Thanks to Andrew, it sounded amazing 🎶 Hope to see you all soon again!
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Violin - Ann Jones
Guitar + Percussion- Stephen Plummer
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#karolinawegrzyn #concert #gig #symphonyhall#philharmonic #birmingham #westmidlands #livegig#folkmusic #worldmusic #polishmusic #lemko #carpathian#easterneuropean #polishinuk #musician #band #tradition#folk
Symphony Hall Lunchtime Concert, 23 Feb 2023
Together with amazing musicians from Birmingham, Ann Jones on violin and Stephen Plummer on guitar and drums, we will play our favourite and most beautiful Eastern European folk songs at Symphony Hall Birmingham on 23rd February 2023 at 1pm. Booking free entry is advisable at: https://bmusic.co.uk/events/celebrating-sanctuary-karolina-wegryzn-2
Please come and enjoy yourselves!
Concert at ST Andrew's Church in Rugby, Jan 2023
I feel so blessed being invited to play in such beautiful places Last Saturday night at St.Andrew's Church Rugby was just beyond amazing, church filled with such fantastic warm audience giving us standing ovations Thank you so much to everyone who was there, Ben Jennings for organising and sound, Gabriel Kolanka and Ben Foster for beautiful lighting and smoke effects, and Chris Reading for taking these beautiful photos. Stephen Plummer on drums and guitar; Ann Ka on violin.
Candle Lit Concert
Together with amazing musicians from Birmingham, Ann Jones on violin and Stephen Plummer on guitar and drums, I will play our favourite and most beautiful Eastern European folk songs at St. Andrew's Church in Rugby on Saturday 21st January 2023.
Song Collecting with Mr Kazimierz Rzemyk
During December 2022, I have gone back to Poland to meet with my teacher and master of old folk songs from my native village in Sub-Carpathia, Ujezna. Mr Kazimierz Rzemyk is a man of great in-depth knowledge of local folklore and history. He has won many awards at traditional music festivals around Poland and has been mentioned in ethnographical books, e.g. by Bartosz Gałazka. It was a pleasure to learn and record some of the oldest known Christmas carols from our region with him.
"Neighbours / Sasiedzi Exhibition, Lublin, PL
Photographs of the exhibition about the past of several neighboring villages in the vicinity of Jarosław, from before World War II. Presented video, in which artist Magdalena Ciemierkiewicz reaches places that testify to the Polish-Ukrainian past and meet their contemporary inhabitants.
As part of the project, I performed folk songs from Ukraine in locations related to the Ukrainian past, and her voice encouraged contemporary residents to share their memories, often passed down by their mothers and grandmothers.
"Neighbours" Video
In the summer of 2022, together with artist Magdalena Ciemierkiewicz, we recorded a video to support a project an exhibition about the remaining history, buildings and memories of Ukrainian citizens that used to live on Polish lands of Sub-Carpathia. I am so proud to be part of the video, singing an old Ukrainian song from Sumka Oblast/Komyshi.
Muzikstan Concert on YouTube
Our video from Muzikstan concert is on YouTube!
Thank you Muzikstan family and everyone in the audience for such a warm and lovely welcome. We absolutely loved you all, the energy you gave us beyond words. Thank you everyone for such wonderful words after the show, they are so appreciated. Hope to see you all again some time. Opa!
Muzikstan 2022
On November 17, together with accomplished musicians - Ann Jones on violin, Stephen Plummer on guitar and percussion, and Mike Bethel on double bass, Karolina will open a new season of world music events for Muzikstan - an organisation established by Kurdish musician Zirak Hamad in 2012.
Song and Soil 2022
On September 17 Karolina, Ann Jones and Dominic O'Sullivan played at the Coventry Cathedral Ruins for the Song and Soil Harvest Festival run by the Food Union Coventry.
Moseley Folk Festival 2022
Together with Ann Jones and Stephen Plummer, Karolina opened the main stage at the Moseley Folk Festival 2022. This year the audience saw such stars like Kurt Vile, John Francis Flynn, Seasick Steve and Supergrass.
Song Collecting with Gacoki, 2022
During the summer, Karolina has met with Mrs Lucyna Skawina and Mr Ryszard Hanejko to record and collect folk songs from the Gać village. Folk Dance and Song Group Gacoki are established and renowned across Poland, achieving many awards at national competitions, such as Kazimierz Dolny.
Summer School of Traditional Music / Tabor Lubelski 2022
During summer 2022, Karolina has participated in a week long Summer School of Traditional Polish Music in Piotrowice village, near Lublin, PL. She has taken lessons in singing, dancing and inter alia on a traditional drum made by Mr Zbigniew Butryn - a legendary instrument builder who recreated a medieval "suka biłgorajska", or as he like to call it "suka kocudzka".
Refugee Festival 2022
On June 18, Karolina performed at Symphony Hall Birmingham during the Refugee Festival organised by Celebrating Sanctuary Birmingham. The festival introduced amazing performers from Morocco, Sudan and Slovakia.
Little Queens 2022
In June 2022, Karolina has taken part in Tereza Buskova's, a renowned Czech artist's performance that retold the traditional ritual from Moravia. Buskova's interpretation celebrated migrant and refugee women and mothers. Karolina has impersonated the role of a "king" while singing ancient Eastern European songs throughout the streets of West Bromwich.
Watch the video: https://vimeo.com/734654239
CSB recording 2022
In May 2022, Karolina took part in a recorded performance of Eastern European folk songs in a beautiful barn in Clun, Shropshire, England. The performance has been recorded by Celebrating Sanctuary Birmingham.
Drowning the Winter 2022
In March 2022, representatives of 7 different Eastern European communities have performed an ancient Slavic ritual of Drowning the Winter in Birmingham, UK, for the first time in English history. Together with a group of established musicians, such as Natalie Mason, Maja Pluta and Dani Blanco Albert, Karolina has played spring folk songs from such countries like Ukraine, Czech Republic, Romania and Russia.
Vigil for Ukraine 2022
Following the terrible news of the invasion of Ukraine, Polish friends, Magda Breitkopf and Beata Zaborniak, decided to hold a vigil in Birmingham in solidarity with Ukrainians suffering on Sunday 27 February. This was not a Polish-only event. We wanted to involve all communities to show the widespread support. We invited the Coventry Ukrainian Association and other Eastern European communities, as well as our friend, singer Karolina Wegrzyn, to sing some Ukrainian songs and lift spirits.
True Musician's Tournament, PL 2021
In September 2021, Karolina took a third prize in a singing category, in True Musician's Tournament, one of the most important folk music competitions in Szczecin, Poland.
Ethnographic workshops 2021
In September 2021, Karolina has taken part in a series of ethnographic workshops at the Szczecin Philharmonic, run by journalists, ethnographers and theatre writers, such as Agnieszka Obszanska from Polish Radio and Ewa Grochowska.
Ikon Gallery Migrant Festival 2021
In August 2021, Karolina has featured Eastern European folk music during the Ikon Gallery's Migrant Festival held at Central Art Space Birmingham. She played among such musicians as Sam Slater, Edwin Podolski and Katie Stevens.
Singing workshops 2021
Karolina has led a series of folk singing workshops organised by Centrala Gallery in Birmingham.
Hidden Mothers 2021
Hidden Mothers video was recorded as part of a public art project by Czech artist Tereza Buskova which is inspired by the cultural customs from Great Britain, Central and Eastern Europe. Its focus is the empowerment of women, in particular mothers, who experience isolation and routinely face stigma in the UK.
Karolina has sang traditional Eastern European folk songs during this street performance in London, outside of Copeland Gallery.
Caroling at TVP Rzeszów, 2019
In December 2019, along with a group of traditional performers from Ujezna village, Karolina has sang folk carols from "Herody" display during the Rzeszow TV Breakfast show.
Nonsuch Dulcimer workshops 2018
In October 2018, Karolina has taken part in weekend-long workshops by Nonsuch Dulcimer Club in Malvern, UK.
Read more: https://www.dulcimer.org.uk/