Andrzejki (St Andrews Day) is a popular celebration with many Polish people. This year the
annual event in Brighton was organised by local Polish events organiser Zabawa Brighton, with music from popular Polish music group Partyzanci, also from Brighton. There was a tasty buffet, and a great crowd of people who danced the night away. The audience was almost entirely Polish, and everyone seemed happy that couple of non Polish people had taken an interest. Its been a while since we've been to a Polish cultural event in the city, and its great to be feel welcomed and be asked to dance. Its was a warm reminder of how much fun Polish parties can be. Some of the first musicians I met and worked with when starting Best Foot Music where from Poland, so those concerts hold a special place in my heart.
Partyzanci played several sets throughout the night and kept the dance floor busy with a mix of well know folk and pop songs. They are Asia (vocals, keys) Michał (keys, vocals) Jan (drums) Piotr (bass) and Wojtek (guitar). Wojtek recently made his own valve amp, entirely from scratch, it has a great sound.
The only dampener to the evening was hearing stories from a few Polish friends that they had felt unwelcome in Britain after the EU referendum and that quite a few people had now moved back to Poland.
Overall it was an enjoyable night and we hope plenty of people will stay, as many have built lives here and are a positive contribution to the UK, and it would also be a real shame if these events were to slowly start disappearing.
In the meantime the band will likely be playing the Great Orchestra Of Christmas concert in Bognor, which is an annual charity fundraiser organised by Polish communities around the world.
We recorded the gig for the British Library, recordings will be online soon.
