Poland’s inventive Rebel Babel Ensemble (a global big band orchestra comprised of over 11,000 international members) has paired the 1920s with our current ‘20s, in partnership with the New Orleans Jazz Museum, in this globetrotting video — Dialog 3 — capturing performances by famous jazz musicians and beat makers, such as DJ Qbert, in Europe and the U.S. remixing the music of award-winning Polish composers.
It’s pretty spectacular especially when you consider that this was originally conceived as an October 2021 music festival slated to take place in the CoachellaValley. But that didn’t stop the organizers, led by Rebel Babel’s Founder and Conductor Łukasz (aka L.U.C.) Rostkowski. They brought together over a dozen producers, DJs and musicians who have incorporated important works of selected Polish composers from the interwar period (1918 and 1939). Throughout the video, viewers will hear fragments of songs by Hanka Ordonówna, Marian Demar, Henryk Wars, Mieczysław Fogg, and Emanuel Szlachter in new hip-hop and chill-hop versions. The project was co-produced with the Adam Mickiewicz Institute. A traveling concert touching down on different parts of the world beautifully captures each of the musicians in their local environment. Guest artists include DJ Qbert, Alex Hahn, Matthew Ring, Tomas Wischerath (Habitaat), Chase Huna, DJ Eprom, ES.CE, Adam Theis, Kevin Louis, Alf Alpha, DJ Decks, Mateusz Pospieszalski, Estefania Tapia, Geoffrey McManus, and L.U.C. as conductor. Locations in the U.S. included New Orleans, San Francisco, Big Sur, CoachellaValley, and Los Angeles.
L.U.C. explains, “I have an impression of a certain resemblance of the present to the ‘20s of the last century. Not only because of crazy inflation but also due to an overwhelming number of inventions, a change in the perception of reality: then through the new art form of cinema and today through the Internet, bitcoins, and virtual reality. Both eras see huge socio-economic changes, great anxiety, and a burning desire for escape, all in the specter of crisis and wars. At this moment, we want to recall the role of a peaceful dialogue between cultures. With our international concerts, we want to remind people that humanity is one orchestra that plays together in a small, lonely philharmonic hall, which is the Earth. One Planet, One Love, One Ensemble.
Watch on Youtube.com.