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Polka

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Street musicians in Prague playing a polka

Polka is a type of dance, and also a genre of dance music. It originated in the middle of the 19th century in Bohemia, and is still a common genre of Czech and Slovenian folk music; it is also common both in Europe and in the Americas. In classical music, many polkas were composed by both Johann Strauss I and his son Johann Strauss II; a couple of well-known ones were composed by Bedřich Smetana and Jaromír Vejvoda, the author of Škoda lásky ("Roll Out the Barrel").

The name comes from Czech word půlka, which means a half, and is related to a half rhythm in the music. Due to its name it is often mistakenly attributed to Poland. It should also not be confused with the polska, a Swedish 3/4-beat dance with Polish roots; cf. polka-mazurka. A related dance is the redowa.

Styles

There are various styles of contemporary polka. Of the US types, the North American "Polish-style polka" has roots in Chicago, and can be identified as 'Chicago honky' and 'Chicago push' styles. This 'push' version or style of Polka features accordion, Chemnitzer concertina, bass, drums, and (almost always) two trumpets. The 'honky' variation of this style uses clarinet and one trumpet. North American "Slovenian-style polka" is fast and features piano accordion, and is associated with Cleveland. North American "Dutchman-style" features an oom-pah sound, often with a tuba, and has roots in the American Midwest. "Conjunto-style" has roots in Northern Mexico and Texas, and is also called Norteño. In the 1980s and 1990s several bands began to combine polka with various rock styles, sometimes referred to as "punk polka", "alternative polka" or "San Francisco-style". Irish traditional music has also adopted the polka into its repertory and there it has come into its own distinct flavor. There is even Peruvian Polca.

In the pampas, there is another kind of polka (that is called polca). It is a very very fast beat, with a 3/4 compass. Instruments used: acoustic guitar (usually six strings, but sometimes seven strings), electric or acoustic bass (sometimes fretless), accordion (sometimes piano accordion, sometimes button accordion), and sometimes some percussion is used. The lyrics always praise the gaucho warriors from the past or tell about the life of the gaucho campeiros (provincial gauchos who keep the common way).

The polka in the classical repertoire

While the polka is Bohemian in origin, most dance music composers in Vienna (the capital of the vast Habsburg dynasty which is the cultural centre for music from all over the empire) composed the polka and included the dance in their repertoire at some point of their career. The Strauss family in Vienna for example, while probably more well-known for their waltzes also composed polkas which have survived obscurity. Josef Lanner and other Viennese composers in the 19th century also wrote many polkas to satiate the demands of the dance music-loving Viennese. In France, another dance-music composer Emile Waldteufel also wrote many polkas in addition to his chief profession of penning waltzes.

The polka evolved during the same period into different styles and tempi. The feminine and graceful 'French polka' (polka française) is slower in tempo and is more measured in its gaiety. Johann Strauss II's Annen Polka op. 114, Demolirer polka op. 269, the Im Krapfenwald'l op. 336 and the Bitte schön! polka op. 372 are examples of this type of polka. The polka-mazurka is also another variation of the polka, being in the tempo of a mazurka but danced in a similar manner as the polka. The final category of the polka dating around that time would be the 'polka schnell' which is a fast polka (also known as a 'galop'). It is in this final category of which Eduard Strauss is better known for as a composer as he penned the 'Bahn Frei' polka op. 45 and other examples. Earlier, Johann Strauss I and Josef Lanner wrote polkas which are either designated as a 'galop' or as a regular polka which do not fall into any of the categories described above.

The polka was also a further source of inspiration for the Strauss family in Vienna when it was written only for plucked string instruments (pizzicato) resulting in the well-known 'Pizzicato Polka' jointly written by Johann II and Josef Strauss. Johann II also wrote a later 'New Pizzicato Polka' (Neu Pizzicato-Polka) op. 449 for his operetta 'Fürstin Ninetta'. He also wrote a 'joke-polka' entitled 'Champagne-Polka' op. 211 which hints at the uncorking of champagne bottles and its subsequent popping sounds.

Organizations

The International Polka Association based in Chicago works to preserve the cultural heritage of polka music and to honor its musicians through the Polka Hall of Fame.

The United States Polka Association based in Cleveland, Ohio serves to promote polka music and honor musicians. This organization is similar to the IPA.

Grammy Awards were first presented for polka in 1985. The first award went to America's Polka King, Frank Yankovic, for his "70 Years of Hits" album on Cleveland International Records, produced by Joey Miskulin and Dragutin Razum. Cleveland International Records had another Polka Grammy winner with Brave Combo's Polkasonic in 1999. Other Polka Grammy nominees on Cleveland International Records include Frank Yankovic's "America's Favorites" (1986), "Songs of the Polka King Vol. I" (Produced by Joey Miskuln and Slavko Slivovitz, 1996), "Songs of the Polka King Vol. II" (1997), and Brave Combo's "Kick Ass Polkas" (2000).

Samples

Some polka artists

Polka Radio

Many communities have a dedicated polka station or a station that plays a daily/weekly polka show. If you live in the US or Canada, to find polka music on the radio in one's own city, a good site to visit is http://www.radio4polkas.com/

See also

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