Slavic Nations Music Band “balalaikas”

A very long ago in the kitchen of one of Warsaw's dormitories weird things started happening. First a strange Englishman in red shoes and a rubble visited it. He brought a balalaika with him and he started practicing. After a few days he brought another one and he taught me how to play it. Later on, there was a double bass, guitar... but the studies came to an end and I had to go back to Lodz.Is it possible to teach Russian language with satisfaction in Poland when being simply a specialist in Russian studies? I assure you (from my own experience) that it is much easier for a balalaika player (...). I started teaching Russian and at the same time teaching playing balalaika. It was (...) in the High School No.4 in Lodz. And I was taught how to read notes by my students...! This is how the “Balalaikas” band was created.

Andrzej de Lazari, 1989.

It all started half a century ago when two students met in the kitchen of one of the dormitories: Andrew de Lazari and Bibs van Ekkel. The latter one, now one of the world-renowned balalaika player soloists, has Polish-English roots.

In 1971, the Balalaikas still operating at the High School No.4 in Lodz, became associated with scouts and took the following name: Scout Artistic Band “Balalaikas”. For some time the band was sponsored by the Culture Centre of the Workers' Housing Cooperative “Lokator” and finally in 1980 the band went under the patronage of: Institute of Russian Philology of the University of Lodz and Culture Centre of  Łódź-Śródmieście. Mr Andrzej de Lazari was initially the conductor of “Balalaikas” and played the musical instrument himself, but as the band reached an increasingly higher artistic level, professionals took charge of the conducting.

In 1973, an attempt was made to create a dance group. It included the youngest – the scouts. In the spring of 1977, after starting cooperation with the Workers' Housing Cooperative “Lokator” for seven years it was possible to perform together with the dance group working there, gracefully naming it “Tańcuchy”. In 1985 “Balalaikas” already formed their own formation led by one of the team's alumni – Małgorzata Turała.

Over the 50 years of the band's existence, hundreds of people have passed through it. These are people whose life paths are not always intertwined with music: its former members today are directors, doctors, lawyers, but also musicians, conductors - however; all of them still have fond memories of their time in the band and invariably refer to it as their second family.

PRIZES AND ACHIEVEMENTS

• Bronze Fir at the Scout Festival of School Youth Culture in Kielce (1975)
• Golden and Silver Fir in Kielce and Award of the Governor of Kielce (1978)
• Representing Poland at the Baku International Youth Festival (1983)
• 1st place in the 1st Interdisciplinary Review of School Artistic Bands in Lodz (1986)
• Distinction at the 26th Festival of Soviet Song in Zielona Góra (1989)
• Receiving the Honorary Badge for merits for the development of Lodz Voivodeship and Honorary Diploma for achievements in the dissemination of culture of the Ministry of Culture and Arts (1989)
• Participation in the 1st International Festival of Orchestras and Russian Folk Instruments Bands “Strings of Russia” Moscow-Jarosław'91
• Main Prize at the 3rd Folklore Inspired Music Festival Radom Folk'96
• Representing Poland at the 4th International Festival of Youth Folk Creativity in Sevastopol, Crimea (1996).
• Distinction at the 9th Folklore Inspired Music Festival Radom Folk'2000
• Distinction at the International Festival of the Constellation of Champions in Moscow - Gnesina Academy of Music (2012)
• Representing Poland at the Festival da la Creation Universitaire Angers (2017)
• 1st place and Special Award of the Director of the National Philharmonic of Ukraine at the 3rd International Festival of Music of Nations in Kiev (2019)
• 1st place at the 10th International Festival of Youth Creativity “Folk inspirations” in Lodz (2019)
• 1st place at the 11th International Festival of Youth Creativity “Folk inspirations” in Lodz (2021)