Jedliniok’s Mid-Atlantic U.S.A. Tour
By Richard P. Poremski
Text & Photos
BALTIMORE, Md. – The Academic Folk and Dance Band Jedliniok has been performing on a professional level since 1975 across the wide U.S., Europe, and many points around the globe, including: Canada, Thailand, South Africa, Cuba, China, Japan, Mexico, Indonesia, Brazil, Argentina, Morocco, South Korea, India, Australia, etc., etc. The performers are students at the Wrocław University of Environmental and Life Sciences and Wrocław University of Technology, under Director Henryk Brzezicki. This particular troupe consisted of 13 students, who danced and sang, along with 3 musicians.
In photo: Traditional Folk Dancing Performed. Depicted are the Polish Folklore groups that performed at the Holy Rosary Polish Fall Festival. Jedliniok is from Wrocław, Poland, Ojczyzna and Wiślanie are from Baltimore, Md.
During their 2023 recent 19-days Mid-Atlantic U.S. tour, Jedliniok visited 4 states and 8 cities, gave 15 concerts, and had driven over 1,000 miles to fulfill a grueling but most rewarding schedule. They were very well received, and supported, by the Polonia in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Maryland, in their respective cities and towns. For almost all the 13students it was their first visit to America and they fully enjoyed every moment of the new experience, and really appreciated the Polonia’s heartfelt familial reception and endless generosity.
Jedliniok’s tour ended on September 25th after spending 5 days in Baltimore. They were domiciled by parishioners of Holy Rosary Church. Polish National Alliance Council 21, Ojczyzna Polish Dancers, and Richard Poremski, Honorary Consul of Poland for Maryland, at Baltimore, were the primary hosts of the group, attending to all their ancillary requirements and general overall reception. In PHOTO: Jedliniok received at the Embassy of the Republic of Poland in Washington, DC.
During Jedliniok’s sojourn here, they were transported to Washington, DC for an all-day tour, walking a total of 12 miles. It included being formally received at the Embassy of the Republic of Poland! In Baltimore they visited The National Katyń Memorial, the impressive General Casimir Pulaski Monument, the Fort McHenry birthplace of our national anthem – “The Star-Spangled Banner.” Also included were a mini-harbor cruise and walking tours of Harbor Place, Harbor East, and Fells Point.
In photo: Jedliniok with a replica of the Star-Spangled Banner at Ft. McHenry in Baltimore, birthplace of the National Anthem.
Most fittingly, Jedliniok’s U.S. tour ended with outstanding folk performances over two days at the Holy Rosary Church Fall Festival – it finally having come full circle, folk dance-by-folk dance, while singing all the way.
Richard P. Poremski
Polish American Journal
Washington, DC Bureau
October 10, 2023
In photo: Jedliniok posing on the U.S. Capitol lawn.
