Śląsk Song and Dance Ensemble (full name: Polish National Song and Dance Ensemble "Śląsk" in memory of Stanisław Hadyna, in Polish

Polish language

Polish is a language of the Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages, used throughout Poland and by Polish minorities in other countries...

: Zespół Pieśni i Tańca "Śląsk" im. Stanisława Hadyny) is one of the largest Polish

Poland

Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...

 folk ensembles. It was founded on July 1, 1953 by Stanisław Hadyna and is named after the Silesia

Silesia

Silesia is a historical region of Central Europe located mostly in Poland, with smaller parts also in the Czech Republic, and Germany.Silesia is rich in mineral and natural resources, and includes several important industrial areas. Silesia's largest city and historical capital is Wrocław...

 ("Śląsk") region. It is based in Koszęcin

Koszecin

Koszęcin is a village in Lubliniec County, Silesian Voivodeship, in southern Poland. It is the seat of the gmina called Gmina Koszęcin. It lies approximately south-east of Lubliniec and north of the regional capital Katowice...

.

Śląsk originally focused on the folk traditions of Upper Silesia

Upper Silesia

Upper Silesia is the southeastern part of the historical and geographical region of Silesia. Since the 9th century, Upper Silesia has been part of Greater Moravia, the Duchy of Bohemia, the Piast Kingdom of Poland, again of the Lands of the Bohemian Crown and the Holy Roman Empire, as well as of...

, Cieszyn Silesia

Cieszyn Silesia

Cieszyn Silesia or Těšín Silesia or Teschen Silesia is a historical region in south-eastern Silesia, centered around the towns of Cieszyn and Český Těšín and bisected by the Olza River. Since 1920 it has been divided between Poland and Czechoslovakia, and later the Czech Republic...

, and the Beskids

Beskids

The Beskids , ) is a traditional name for a series of Eastern European mountain ranges.- Definition :The Beskids are approximately 600 km in length and 50–70 km in width...

. It was later expanded to include all Polish regions. The ensemble has performed more than 6,000 shows for over 20 million people worldwide. It has performed in the United States, Canada, Australia, France, Germany, Italy, Belgium, Sweden, the Netherlands, China, Mexico, and many other countries, as well as the Vatican.

The Śląsk ensemble has worked with such notable Polish composers as Wojciech Kilar

Wojciech Kilar

Wojciech Kilar ; b. 17 July 1932 in Lwów, Poland) is a Polish classical and film music composer.-Biography:Wojciech Kilar is one of Poland’s esteemed composers. Born in 1932 in Lwów . His father was a gynecologist and his mother was a theater actress...

.

Some of its most notable songs are Szła dzieweczka, Helokanie, Ondraszek, Głęboka studzienka, Karolinka.

Awards

• Music and Art Award of Silesia
• Honorary award from the President of the United States
• Honorary award from the ministry of culture of the Soviet Union
  Soviet Union
  The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
  
  
• Award from the Silesian Voivodeship
  Silesian Voivodeship
  Silesian Voivodeship, or Silesia Province , is a voivodeship, or province, in southern Poland, centering on the historic region known as Upper Silesia...
  
  

External links

• Official site (in Polish)