Polish Wedding - Józef Beer

The Polish Wedding is the work of Polish composer of Jewish origin — Józef Beer. The premiere took place on April 3, 1937 in Zurich and was enthusiastically received by the audience. The success of the Polish Wedding is evidenced by the number of performances after the premiere — the operetta was staged on forty of the most important opera stages and translated into eight languages.

Also noteworthy are the first opinions of critics. In the words of one journalist Zürcher Tagesanzeiger in 1937, “... it is music that is not only pleasant, but also enters the blood, delighting the listener with a wealth of ideas, suggestive illustrations, and, most importantly, perfect dance rhythms (...)”. Despite such favorable reviews, the Polish Wedding, after the seizure of power in Austria by the Nazis, was included in the list of banned works, and the composer living in Austria at that time had to go abroad.

The work shows a love story and wedding intrigue, in an extremely original sound robe. Beer combines elements of folklore, jazz, romantic song, giving them an original and eclectically coherent color. In the play we meet Bolesław — a young insurgent who is hiding in Austria, but the longing for his beloved Jadzia forces him to return illegally to his homeland. At the least expected moment, he learns that Jadzia is going to marry his uncle, Count Staszek Zagórski. Can two lovers turn their fate around? The Polish Wedding of Józef Beer is an extraordinary work, balancing between opera, operetta and musical, which for the first time in history will be fully staged in an opera theatre in Poland. After years of oblivion, the work gradually returns to the opera stages of Europe, regaining its rightful place in the history of 20th century music.