Farewell for a year

It's such a pity I felt so overworked when EthnoPort was on this year. Except for the first day, when I saw all the bands, I was compelled to rush home before final acts to be able to get up the following day. As a result, I skipped two big concerts - the Saami yoiker Wimme on Saturday and a three-piece project led by a British instrumentalist Andrew Cornshaw.

Despite these irreparable losses, bits and pieces I saw on the second and third days of the festival left me fully satisfied. The Polish band Mosaic oozed some aloofness, but they gave a solid display of traditional Eastern sensibilities. The main stage came alive when Hanggai, a Chinese rock group inspired by Mongolian rhythms, sang their coarse songs. They have become an international star, which became evident when they refused to sign their albums after their energetic show. Later, in a change of pace, Nawal from the Comoros brought in some spiritual, tender touch that resonated ideally with the audience, to a large extent undeterred even by the massive downpour that got unleashed halfway through her set.

The last day was stolen away in my mind by Motion Trio, a group of experimental accordionists from Kraków. There is something powerfully creative in this instrument thath makes it possible to squeeze mind-boggling sounds from it and enchant the audience. The band had to come back on stage a couple of times after raging standing ovations that ceased only when the leader pleaded people to move to the main stage where another performer, a true star, was about to start their gig. It was Speed Caravan, an explosive combination of French, Arabic, Gypsy and many other influences. One more band I saw that day was Fanfara Transilvania, a mad brass band from Romania.

Andrzej Maszewski, dyrektor festiwalu.