Music that „was created on its own, as if accidentally“ in the Polish Carpathian Mountains. The album sounds shamanic, archaic - ancient sounds closely interlinked with nature. Between Jarek Adamow, a graduate of the Polish Conservatoire in Lodz, and Marcin Kozak, who played for a while with the Warsaw Village Band, they play interesting instruments: a finger-holed pipe, a pipe without finger-holes (short and long), hurdy gurdy, jews harp, foot tapping, clarinet, frame drum and darbuka. What we hear on this album is perhaps less music - although it has deep roots in Polish traditions - it is more of a soundscape, of sounds deeply rooted in the landscape and culture.

With just two musicians - the pipes, clarinet, hurdy-gurdy and bass drum of Jarek Adamów and the jews harp, pipes and frame drum of Martin Kozak - a simple, spacious sound world is created using mystical drone-like songs, pipe duets and some lively interchanges. Inspired by a wide range of musical sources, the album is mystical and beautiful in equal measure

In Search of Sources brings together two highly respected multi-instrumentalists from the Polish folk music scene. Although both artists have researched ancient folk ballads and dances in the past, In Search of Sources presents original pieces rooted in tradition, composed and performed by Adamów and Kozak on a wide range of musical instruments.

The album was conceived away from cities, in the Polish Carpathian Mountains, inspired by rivers and other sources in nature.

Throughout the album, Jarek Adamów plays soundscape duets and solos using various types of evocative and mesmerizing flutes along with hurdy gurdy and clarinet. Meanwhile, Marcin Kozak provides the shamanic-style percussive support using hand drums, jaw harps, frame drums and some flutes as well.

Jarek Adamów says: "The music from this recording wasn't written in big city agglomerations. It wasn't composed as a result of strenuous analyses of a folklorist. It was created on its own, as if accidentally. It was warmed with care by the fire somewhere in the Polish Carpathian Mountains or in winter in an old wooden hut by a stove, where it is the warmest then".

Er ist Bewahrer und gleichzeitig Suchender. Seit seiner Abschlussarbeit am polnischen Musikkonservatorium in Lódź beschäftigt sich der vielfach ausgezeichnete Musiker mit der Wiederbelebung traditioneller Folklore. So versucht er in zahlreichen Projekten alte Lieder vor dem Vergessen zu retten oder die Traditionen etwa auf der Basis der Drehleier in neuen Kompositionen fortzuführen. Jetzt sind gleich zwei neue Alben erschienen, die der Multiinstrumentalist während der Pandemie aufnahm. Die Zusammenarbeit mit dem seit 35 Jahren bestehenden Gesangsensemble Sami Swoi ist der zweite Teil der Entdeckungsreise in die reiche Welt traditioneller polnischer Folksongs. Vierzehn Jahre nach der Liedersammlung „Winter“ folgt nun der Teil „Frühling“. Zehn Monate lebte Adamów in der ländlichen Region von Kopylów an der ukrainischen Grenze, um die Lieder über das Alltagsleben und die Natur und ihre Hintergründe zu studieren, die die drei Sami-Swoi-Mitglieder vor rund achtzig Jahren von ihren Großeltern gelernt hatten. Das von Akkordeon und Percussion begleitete Ergebnis sind authentische Aufnahmen, die vom ersten Ton an zutiefst berühren. Ebenfalls unter die Haut geht sein zweites Projekt. Dabei handelt es sich um eine Kooperation mit dem ehemaligen Mitglied der Warsaw Village Band Marcin Kozak. Die zwölf instrumentalen Improvisationen entstanden mitten in der Natur in den Karpaten und im Winter in einer Hütte am warmen Feuer. Auf ihrer Reise zu den Quellen der Musik ist dem Duo ein intensives Album gelungen, das Zuhörende in unbekanntes Land führt. Mit seinem starken rhythmischen Akzent ähneln die auf verschiedenen Flöten gespielten Melodien der Tiefe der Musik der Völker im Himalaya. Inspirierend.

Unlike the Jarek Adamów album that follows this one, In Search of Sources features two Polish musicians interested in the tradition creating new music from the various sources they’ve heard. Jarek Adamów plays clarinet, hurdy-gurdy, pipes and bass drum, while Marcin Kozak, who played in the early days with Warsaw Village Band, plays pipes, jaw harp and frame drum. It sounds like there are some electronics too.

‘Klabejar’, featuring clarinet and percussion, is super lively and although I’m sure it’s not a traditional tune, the energy of folk music permeates it. But with just two players, the music is inevitably very stripped down and mostly there’s not really enough going on. ‘Lirdru’, with nearly ten minutes of hurdy-gurdy drone and jaw harp, is soporific, likewise ‘Lirkrot’. There’s something about these long minimalist tracks with mysterious titles that feels simply pretentious, although the closing ‘Niepar’, an ethereal duet of two breathy-sounding pipes, which refers back to the opening ‘Dwipar’, is indeed beautiful.