Celebration of Freedom and Solidarity
Gdansk is getting ready to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the first partially free elections in Poland. Between 1 and 11 June the city is celebrating Freedom and Solidarity.
Thirty years ago, on 4 June, the first partially free elections took place in Poland. Democracy won and civic society was born: conscious, active and following the principles of solidarity. We want to celebrate this time - together. The activities include breakfast, debates, workshops, concerts, meet-the-author sessions and film screenings, as well as fairy tale and poetry readings. The guest list includes participants of the Round Table talks, MP candidates from the 1989 elections, as well as NGO activists.
This is also an opportunity for representatives of local government to meet and debate on the challenges that small governments have to face over the next few years, and then on 4 June, at high noon, in the squares of cities around Poland we all get together to sing our national anthem, because “Poland is not yet lost!”.
The program of the celebrations includes workshops, meet-the-author sessions and film screenings, fairy tale and poetry readings and, of course, concerts. The concerts form the core of the rich programme.
With 5 scenes, 12 concerts and over 150 musicians - the musical part of the Celebration of Freedom and Solidarity is looking impressive. The Main Concert, “30 Years of Freedom”, forms the climax to the events, and is due to take place on 4 June, in Zebran Ludowych 4 Square.
All events are free.
1 June
The first music event, the Children’s Day Concert, will be hosted by Karim Martusiewicz, the Voo Voo bass player and founder of the Karimski Club. He can be found in the Social Zone, right next to the OHS Room, the place of signing the August agreements, where he will be joined by Wojciech Waglewski with Voo Voo, Tomasz Organek and other artists.
Wojciech Waglewski will also perform during the evening open-air Freedom Concert in Zebran Ludowych square, as well as being the host for the event. Other artists include Wojtek Mazolewski Quintet, Voo Voo Ritmo Bloco, a drum band with 33 drummers, Tomasz Organek and his band, Lech Janerka, John Porter and the Przybysz sisters: Paulina and Natalia.
3 June
Two days later, on 3 June, the Respect Symphony - a concert in memory of Mayor Pawel Adamowicz - takes place in the winter garden of the ECS. The following artists have been invited to perform: Zbigniew Holdys, Gaba Kulka, Tomek Lipinski, Maria Peszek and Natalia Przybysz. They will be accompanied by instrumentalists from the Gdansk young music scene: Piotr Checki, Tomasz Zietek, Michal Zienkowski, Szymon Burnos, Olo Walicki and Jacek Proscinski. The musicians are planning new, original interpretations of songs that partially form the canon of Polish alternative music.
4 June
On 4 June, we will gather in Zebran Ludowych Square for the Main Concert: 30 Years of Freedom, which will be the climax of all the music events. It will be a combination musical and multimedia show, using archives that illustrate Poland’s road to freedom. The concert has been divided into three parts: “Past”, “Present” and “Future”.
Artists from the older, middle-aged and young generations will perform, including Oddzial Zamkniety, Perfect, Dzem, Lady Pank, Mr Zoob, Krystyna Pronko, Maciej Malenczuk, Kayah, Kasia Kowalska, Sebastian Karpiel-Bulecka, Maciej Balcar, Raz Dwa Trzy, Kamil Bednarek, Krzysztof Zalewski, Happysad, Igor Herbut, Piotr Cugowski and Michal Szpak.
Other concerts
Concerts will also take place on two municipal stages, by the ECS fountain, including Remont Pomp (1 June), Tomasz Chyla Quintet (2 June) and Patryk Zakrocki, and on Swietopelek Square, including drewnofromlas (1 June) and Chlopcy kontra Basia (3 June).
Register or add a concert package to your Gdansk Resident Card.
All events are free, although we encourage you to register for free. This allows easier access to the concerts on 1 and 4 June, and help in finding better seats. If you have a Resident Card, add the Freedom and Solidarity Package to it. By adding the Freedom and Solidarity Package to your account, you can enter the concerts through a special gate without the need for any additional cards.
The detailed schedule is available here:
