Old Polish Waltz "Lena", 1949

LENA – Walc (Adam Lewandowski) – Zespół harmonistów Tadeusza Wesołowskiego (Tadeusz Wesolowski’s Accordion Band), Muza c. 1949 (Polish)

NOTE: This film joins together three beautiful elements. One is the pensive waltz “Lena” written long before 1939 by my favorite composer of old Polish waltzes, Adam Lewandowski (not long ago I presented in this channel another beautiful waltz composed by him, the “Romantik”    • Old Polish English Waltz : Walc Romantik, ...   ) Second: is Jan Bułhak, master of Polish prewar photography, and third is the city of Wilno, one of the most beautiful places in prewar Poland, the city called by many as “too beautiful to be real”. The region of Wilno (today: Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania) was in 1876 the birthplace of Jan Bułhak, who through all his life – albeit traveling a lot – remained faithful to his birthplace and left behind the rich collection of stunning photographs of his beloved town. In this clip I have made a blend of all that: the beauty of the music, the legend of Bułhak and the breathtaking beauty of Wilno.

Tomorrow is the religious holiday in Poland: All Souls’ Day, which is celebrated in Poland in the meditative atmosphere, quite opposite to the anglo-saxon habits, with their Halloween street festivals. I hope, this movie captures the atmosphere of reflection and contemplation, which embraces today Poland and the Poles.