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mazurek / mazurka

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The mazurka rhythm is the base of many songs, dances, instrumental and vocal pieces in Mazovia, the region of Lublin, Kujawy, and in the region of Łęczyca. The mazurek is a fast dance, yet a little bit slower than the oberek. Mazurkas are danced by pairs whirling around a circle, with turns being made on the entire foot. Sometimes the change of the direction of movement and turns are accented with stamps.
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Mazurkas
are indigenous dances of Mazovia. The name of the dance derives from the name of the residents of this region, the Mazurians. Mazurkas were danced also in the regions bordering with Masovia. The mazurek is a fast dance (3/4 or 3/8 metre), but a little bit slower than the younger oberek. Also, it was danced more "smoothly" than the oberek. The differences between both dances follows from the fact that old mazurkas were danced to songs, while the oberek was danced to instrumental music. Mazurkas are performed by pairs whirling around a circle, with the dancers moving on entire feet. The pairs whirl once to the right, once to the left, from time to time moving around a circle without whirling. After a moment of such "walking" comes a stamp and a change of direction, and once again, the whirling begins. A distinct accent "on two" is a distinctive feature of the mazurka step as well as it is typical for the music accompanying the dance. The mazurka remains one of symbols of the Polish folk music.

 

Baudouin de Courtenay-Jędrzejewiczowa, Cezaria. O tańcach ludowych w Polsce. „Teatr Ludowy”, R. 27, nr 8, s. 112–119, 1935.

Bieńkowski, Andrzej. Mazurki do wynajęcia. Warszawa: Muzyka Odnaleziona, 2011.

Dąbrowska, Grażyna W. Taniec ludowy na Mazowszu. Kraków: PWM, 1980.

Dekowski, Jan P.; Hauke, Zbigniew. Folklor regionu opoczyńskiego. Warszawa: Centralny Ośrodek Metodyki Upowszechniania Kultury, 1974.

Kwaśnicowa, Zofia. Polskie tańce ludowe. Mazur. Podręcznik tańca ludowego. Warszawa: Wydawnictwo Sport i Turystyka, 1953.