Abstract
The huge free summer rock music festival was created by Jurek Owsiak in Poland in the mid-1990s as an extension of an annual national winter charity drive. While presenting musicians often past their prime, the festival attracts people who treat Woodstock Station as a place where they can celebrate their pride about helping others. Indeed, people are respectful toward others there to an extent unseen at other festivals. At Woodstock Station, the attendees take part in discussions with public figures, representatives of NGOs, state institutions, and the Catholic Church, negotiating the ideals of being a caring individual and member of Polish society, in a space they consider their own.
An interesting parallel to Owsiak’s local charity activities receiving significant media coverage is the 1985 Live Aid charity music festival, also discussed in this chapter, created by the Irish rock musician Bob Geldof, which peaked in 2005 as Live 8, the globally televised charity music festival.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Notes
- 1.
Information based on data from The European Festival Association, Yourope, https://www.yourope.org/cms/festival/woodstock-festival/
- 2.
Woodstock Station attendees use internet forums to share information about traveling to the festival, prices of food and beverages at the site, and about the generally welcoming atmosphere of the festival, which is often the main reason why they continue coming back to Woodstock Station each year. Comments such as “I’ve been to Woodstock Station many times already because the people there are wonderful,” are common. See, for example, Uctok forum http://uctok.com/
- 3.
I conducted over forty short interviews with the festival attendees during Woodstock Station in 2012, and several more with regular attendees after the festival. Although, in comparison to the audience of around half a million, it is a number that does not allow for broad generalizations, I believe it provides clues to understanding people’s participation in the Woodstock Station festival.
- 4.
Only two television channels, both state-owned, were available in Poland at the beginning of the 1990s, before cable and regional television channels were introduced.
- 5.
During the first drive in 1993, the Grand Orchestra of Christmas Charity collected almost 2.5 million zlotys (over 1.5 million dollars); in 2018, it was almost 126.4 million zlotys (nearly 34.5 million dollars). See http://www.wosp.org.pl/final/o_finale/finaly_w_liczbach
- 6.
Allegro.pl is one of the most visited sites on the Polish internet, and two-thirds of all online auctions in Poland take place there. In 2001, the website collected over 113,000 zlotys (around 27,000 dollars) for the Grand Orchestra of Christmas Charity; in 2018 the sum was well over 9 million zlotys (2.6 million dollars). See https://aukcje.wosp.org.pl/
- 7.
In 2010, the golden heart pin with the number one on it was auctioned off for a record sum of over 1.1 million zlotys (almost 370,000 dollars). In other years the prices for the first three golden hearts averaged between 100,000 and 300,000 zlotys (33,000 to 100,000 dollars). See https://www.wosp.org.pl/final/wesprzyj/zlote-serduszka
- 8.
Bank transfers are immediately tracked, and volunteers who collect money on the streets bring the tin cans back to the local centers, where the raised sums are counted and reported to the Grand Orchestra of Christmas Charity headquarters.
- 9.
Collecting money, instead of credit card information, is a popular way of raising funds for charity in Poland. For example, each year during All Saints Day, money is raised this way to renovate old cemeteries. It is also customary for people to give money to the Church by putting it on trays that are circulated among the faithful during the Sunday Mass. Furthermore, credit cards are still not very popular among Poles, particularly older people who are unaccustomed to using them.
- 10.
According to Leś, goods sent to Poland by foreign charities from 1984 to 1986 were worth over 100 million dollars. See Leś (2001, p. 109).
- 11.
Although the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity is the most visible charity event in the media, other non-religious charity organizations that emerged in post-1989 Poland have also been raising millions of zlotys. These include the Polish Humanitarian Action, a non-governmental organization focused on providing aid abroad, and the Foundation for Children “Help on Time,” which supports children who require complicated medical treatment. See, for example, Olwert (2010).
- 12.
- 13.
- 14.
Unless otherwise noted, Owsiak’s statements come from an hour-long interview I conducted with him in January 2013.
- 15.
In his article, Kapoor (2012) lists a chart (p. 22) with the post-Live 8 “album boost” in sales at HMV and Amazon stores of musicians who took part in the charity concert.
- 16.
In comparison, the festival in Jarocin organized a year earlier gathered an audience only half that size.
- 17.
For example, despite close financial monitoring of non-governmental organizations in Poland, in 2012 the founder of a well-known Polish non-profit, KidProtect.pl, admitted to having stolen well over 430,000 zlotys (over 140,000 dollars) from the organization. More recently, Mateusz Kijowski, the leader of the largest anti-government organization, The Committee for the Defense of Democracy (Komitet Obrony Demokracji; see the following chapter), which has been organizing pro-democratic demonstrations all over Poland since the Law and Justice government began undermining the rule of law, was accused of stealing the organization’s funds, which are based on voluntary donations. See Deja (2017).
- 18.
While there is no specific data on charity engagement in Poland, it is smaller than the European average (see Charities Aid Foundation’s World Giving Index 2017). Thus, one can also argue the opposite: the Grand Orchestra of Christmas Charity encourages this type of activity among people who would otherwise not participate in charities.
- 19.
In 1981, the musician Ozzy Osbourne, a member of the heavy metal band Black Sabbath, bit the head off a dove, while intoxicated, at a meeting with the representatives of his record label. In the following year, he bit the head off a bat during a live concert, thinking it was made of rubber. Critics of rock and metal music often referred to these acts of brutality as proof of the genres’ intrinsic moral corruption. See Sullivan (2004), Munson (2007).
- 20.
- 21.
A study from 2017 showed that Poles consider Owsiak the person with the most authority (30%). Behind him were president Andrzej Duda (12%) and the Solidarity hero, Lech Wałęsa (7%). See https://wiadomosci.wp.pl/sondaz-jerzy-owsiak-i-andrzej-duda-najwiekszymi-autorytetami-dla-polakow-6086495330681473a
- 22.
The topic of social distrust in Poland is discussed, for example, in Czapiński and Panek (2015).
- 23.
A round-trip bus ticket costs around 120 zlotys (35 dollars), while a second-class train ticket costs up to 90 zlotys (25 dollars), depending on the length of the trip.
- 24.
Leaving Kostrzyn by car after the festival is difficult, and it is not unusual for cars to be stuck in traffic jams on the small local roads for over four hours before being able to get to the highway.
- 25.
From a historical and geopolitical perspective, it is interesting that, together with the Polish audience, people from these countries form a music festival version of the Visegrád Group.
- 26.
For example, rock music concerts were an important element of the 2004–2005 Orange Revolution, which led to the annulment of falsified presidential elections and, as a result, brought the pro-Western presidential candidate, Viktor Yushchenko to power.
- 27.
- 28.
In my hour-long interview with a musician who rejected the offer to play at Woodstock Station, the artist argued that the reason was financial: the massive festival audience does not justify the expenses of the trip, additional staff, and not being able to rest in the privacy of one’s own room.
- 29.
This comment was also made by the locals I talked to in the town of Kostrzyn, who did not attend the festival but who saw the thousands of festivalgoers in the town center. They came there to buy food and alcohol at the local stores, and to eat home-style meals in the few bars. Still, it is worth noting that the enthusiasm of Kostrzyn residents was also financial. As the employees of the bars and stores openly stated, these establishments make most of their annual income during the festival.
- 30.
Nosowska’s band, Hey, gained instant fame after performing at the festival in Jarocin in 1992.
- 31.
For example, unlike other festivals, Woodstock Station does not hold bag checks, and people can bring food and alcohol with them. This is a policy seldom found at other such events, which make money on tickets, liquor, and food sales. Data on safety based on police official press releases; see, for example, http://wiadomosci.gazeta.pl/wiadomosci/7,114,883,22,198,672,przystanek-woodstock-policja-podsumowuje-ponad-150-przestepstw.html
- 32.
I had short conversations with ten members of the Peace Patrol at the festival. In addition, I conducted a separate hour-long interview with a former member of the Peace Patrol. See also: https://www.wosp.org.pl/uczymy-ratowac
- 33.
The aspect of community was particularly emphasized by one of my interviewees who merges these two worlds: he lives in a big city, attends expensive festivals, and is at the same time a huge fan of Woodstock Station because of the atmosphere of “being together with others” he finds there.
- 34.
It is worth noting that a slightly more nuanced newspaper article about the festival was published by the popular Polish non-fiction writer, Ziemowit Szczerek (2017).
- 35.
Tocqueville describes “habits of the heart” as customs, or “ideas which shape mental habits,” that make individuals part of a larger community. See Tocqueville (2003, p. 336).
- 36.
Open’er, often mocked by Woodstock Station attendees, is another big Polish music festival that invites non-governmental organizations.
- 37.
The name is a play of words on the academy of fine arts.
- 38.
The Never Again Foundation’s so-called Olympics organized at Woodstock Station are inspired by “Rock Against Racism,” a British campaign created in the 1970s, which used rock concerts to combat racism, particularly within soccer stadiums. The Olympics hosted by the anti-racist non-governmental Never Again Foundation refer to that idea by placing its own event in a music festival context, and treating it is a vehicle for promoting peace and mutual respect. See Pankowski (2003).
- 39.
According to recent data, 86.4% Poles drink alcohol, compared to 84.6%, which was EU average. See RARHA SEAS (2016).
- 40.
In 2016 the police were trusted by 72% of Poles; see CBOS (2016).
- 41.
The fines usually range from 50 to 500 zlotys (15–145 dollars).
- 42.
For example, in 2017, around 500 people came specifically to Jesus Station, compared to 250,000 at Woodstock Station that same year. See PAP (2017).
- 43.
- 44.
Nevertheless, critics of this open approach can be found among priests as well as conservative sympathizers with the Church. They would rather see the institution as solid, not giving in to the contemporary ills Woodstock Station exemplifies for them. For these critics, even the slightest welcoming gestures of Jesus Station toward Woodstock Station pose a threat to the unquestionable authority of the religious institution. See, for example, Raczkowski (2012), TOK FM (2012), Morciniec (2013), and Terlikowski (2013).
- 45.
- 46.
People working at Jesus Station were not only priests and nuns, but also lay volunteers, usually from nearby parishes.
- 47.
Despite the often-heard accusations made by critics of Woodstock Station that the festival promotes Satanism, I did not find anyone who claimed to believe in Satan there. Instead, most of the people I talked to at Woodstock Station said they believed in God, and often declared themselves as Catholics.
- 48.
For example, Janina Paradowska, one of the most respected Polish political commentators who was invited for a talk at the Academy of Exceptionally Beautiful Arts, described her positive surprise in her weekly column. See Paradowska (2012).
- 49.
According to biannual polls conducted since 2000, more than 70% of Poles have been consistently claiming that “one has to be very careful when maintaining relations with others.” See Czapiński and Panek (2015).
References
Bacon, J. (2014, November 26). Is Band Aid’s fundraising model flawed, 30 years on? Marketing Week. Retrieved from https://www.marketingweek.com/2014/11/26/is-band-aids-fundraising-model-flawed-30-years-on/
Biccum, A. (2007). Marketing development: Live 8 and the production of the global citizen. Development and Change, 38(6), 1111–1126.
CBOS. (2013). Ocena obecnej sytuacji Kościoła Katolickiego. Warsaw: Author.
CBOS. (2016). Oceny instytucji publicznych. Warsaw: Author.
Charities Aid Foundation. (2017). World giving index 2017. A global view of giving trends. London: Author.
Czapiński, J., & Panek, T. (Eds.). (2015). Social diagnosis 2015. Warsaw: The Council for Social Monitoring.
Darmoros, K. (2013). Rzecznik WOŚP: Jeśli ktoś przekaże Orkiestrze dowolną darowiznę, to ma pewność, że kwota zostanie wydana zgodnie ze statutem. Retrieved from http://iktomaracje.pl/2013/rzecznik-wosp-jesli-ktos-przekaze-orkiestrze-dowolna-darowizne-to-ma-pewnosc-ze-kwota-zostanie-wydana-zgodnie-ze-statutem/
Dayan, D. (2005). Mothers, midwives and abortionists: Genealogy, obstetrics, audiences and publics. In S. Livingstone (Ed.), Audiences and publics: When cultural engagement matters for the public (pp. 43–76). Chicago: Intellect Books.
Deja, M. (2017, April 4). Magdalena Filiks: Ludzie w KOD płaczą przez Mateusza Kijowskiego. Polska The Times. Retrieved from http://www.polskatimes.pl/fakty/polityka/a/magdalena-filiks-ludzie-w-kod-placza-przez-mateusza-kijowskiego,11952644/2/
Dobroczyński, B., & Owsiak, J. (1999). Orkiestra Klubu Pomocnych Serc, czyli monolog-wodospad Jurka Owsiaka. Kraków: Znak.
Dyczewski, L. (2006). Kultura grup mniejszościowych i marginalnych. Lublin: KUL.
Fatyga, B. (2005). Dzicy naszej ulicy. Antropologia kultury młodzieżowej, wydanie drugie poprawione. Warsaw: ISNS UW.
Fatyga, B., & Szymańczak, M. (Eds.). (1992). Raport o młodzieży. Warsaw: Interpress.
Geldof, B. (1986). Is that it? London: Pan Books.
Gierej, M. (2013). Wielka Orkiestra Codziennej Pomocy Caritas. Uważam Rze, 2, 14–17.
Godnarski, A., & Ziółkowski, M. (2012). Jezus pojechałby na Woodstock. Idziemy, 32(361). Retrieved from http://www.idziemy.pl/kosciol/jezus-pojechalby-na-woodstock/
Goffman, E. (1959). The presentation of self in everyday life. New York: Anchor Books.
Hague, S., Street, J., & Savigny, H. (2008). The voice of the people? Musicians as political actors. Cultural Politics, 4(1), 5–24.
Harvey, O. (2004, October 6). They’re STILL hungry and I’m STILL angry says Bob Geldof – Band Aid 20 Years On. The Sun, p. 12.
Hebdige, D. (1988). Subculture: The meaning of style. New York: Routledge.
Hiatt, B. (2005). Live 8’s global uprising. Rolling Stone, 979, 32–34.
Hume, D. (1888). A treatise of human nature. London: Oxford University Press.
Jandziński, T., & Owsiak, J. (2013, January 11). Nie zarabiam na WOŚP. Wprost. Retrieved from http://www.wprost.pl/ar/383789/Owsiak-nie-zarabiam-na-WOSP/
Jasiewicz, K. (1990). Polityka fundacyjna w II Rzeczypospolitej. Polityka Społeczna, 18(2).
Jawłowska, A. (1975). Drogi kontrkultury. Warsaw: PIW.
Kapoor, I. (2012). Celebrity humanism: The ideology of global charity. New York: Routledge.
Kealey, H. (2014, November 24). Band Aid 30: the celebrities who are turning against it. The Telegraph. Retrieved from http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/celebritynews/11250602/Band-Aid-30-the-celebrities-who-are-turning-against-it.html
Krzyżak, T. (2017, January 26). Raport o kryzysie Kościoła w Polsce. Rzeczpospolita. Retrieved from http://www.rp.pl/Plus-Minus/301269948-Raport-o-kryzysie-Kosciola-w-Polsce.html
Leś, E. (2001). Zarys dobroczynności i filantropii w Polsce. Warsaw: Prószyński i S-ka.
Lesiakowski, K., Perzyna, P., & Toborek, T. (2004). Jarocin w obiektywie bezpieki. Warsaw: Instytut Pamięci Narodowej.
Levin, J-C. (2010, July 14). The failure of the Live Aid model. Wall Street Journal, p. A17.
Molga, T. (2013). Owsiak, żona i doktor zarabiają 149 tys. zł rocznie. Zdecyduj czy chcesz ich finansować?. Wprost. Retrieved from https://www.wprost.pl/blogi/tomasz-molga/8002190/Owsiak-zona-i-doktor-zarabiaja-149-tys-zl-rocznie-Zdecyduj-czy-chcesz-ich-finansowac.html
Morciniec, P. (2013, January 14). Dałem na Orkiestrę, więc na rok mam spokój z pomaganiem?. Gazeta Wyborcza. Retrieved from http://opole.wyborcza.pl/opole/1,35086,13200581,Ksiadz_prof__Morciniec__WOSP_rozgrzesza_nas_z_dobroczynnosci.html
Munson, K. (2007, December 19). Ozzy left his mark. Des Moines Register. Retrieved from https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/2015/06/03/ozzy-left-his-mark/28436509/
Nowak, S. (1981). Values and attitudes of the Polish people. Scientific American, 245(1), 45–53.
Nowak, S. (2004). Postawy, wartości i aspiracje społeczeństwa polskiego. In S. Nowak (Ed.), Społeczeństwo polskie czasu kryzysu (pp. 337–380). Warsaw: IFiS UW.
Olwert, P. (2010, January 10). Nie tylko WOŚP. Ukłony należą się Caritasowi, PAH i wielu innym. Newsweek Polska. Retrieved from http://www.newsweek.pl/polska/nie-tylko-wosp--uklony-naleza-sie-caritasowi--pah-i-wielu-innym,51483,1,1.html
Owsiak, J. (2011). Róbta co chceta, czyli z sercem jak na dłoni – 20 lat grania. Warsaw: Świat Książki.
Owsiak, J., & Skaradziński, J. (2010). Przystanek Woodstock. Historia najpiękniejszego festiwalu świata. Warsaw: Świat Książki.
Paleczny, T. (1998). Sekty: w poszukiwaniu utraconego raju. Warsaw: Universitas.
Pankowski, R. (2003). Muzyka przeciwko rasizmowi. In A. Jawłowska & G. Woroniecka (Eds.), Kultura w procesie zmiany: z badań nad kulturą w Polsce lat dziewięćdziesiątych. Olsztyn: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Warmińsko-Mazurskiego.
Panton, J. (2007). Pop goes politics. The World Today, 63(6), 4–6.
PAP. (2006, September 26). TV Trwam ma przeprosić Owsiaka. Retrieved from http://muzyka.interia.pl/news/tv-trwam-ma-przeprosic-owsiaka,795122
PAP. (2017, August 4). Przystanek Jezus tętni życiem wraz z Przystankiem Woodstock. Retrieved from http://info.wiara.pl/doc/4078780.Przystanek-Jezus-tetni-zyciem-wraz-z-Przystankiem-Woodstock
Paradowska, J. (2012). Byłam na Przystanku. Polityka, 32, p. 7.
Raczkowski, W. (2012). Owsiak, czyli diabeł. Tygodnik Przegląd, 1. Retrieved from https://www.tygodnikprzeglad.pl/owsiak-diabel-wosp/
RARHA SEAS. (2016). Comparative monitoring of alcohol epidemiology across the EU. Warsaw: Author.
Riding, A. (2007, July 8). Stars join their voices to support live earth. The New York Times, p. A10.
Rojek, C. (2013). Celanthropy, music therapy and ‘big-citizen’ Samaritans. Celebrity Studies, 4(2), 129–143.
Skarżyńska, K. (2012, January 17). Dlaczego prawica nie może znieść Owsiaka. Gazeta Wyborcza. Retrieved from http://wyborcza.pl/1,76842,10978855,Dlaczego_prawica_nie_moze_zniesc_Owsiaka.html
Street, J., Hague, S., & Savigny, H. (2008). Playing to the crowd: The role of music and musicians in political participation. British Journal of Politics and International Relations, 10, 269–285.
Sullivan, J. (2004, October 12). Ozzy bites head off bat!. Rolling Stone. Retrieved from http://web.archive.org/web/20080822012126/www.rollingstone.com/Mythozzy
Świda-Ziemba, H. (1987). Młodzież licealna schyłku lat 70-tych. In J. Koralewicz (Ed.), Społeczeństwo polskie przed kryzysem w świetle badań socjologicznych z lat 1977–1979 (pp. 183–224). Warsaw: PWN.
Szczerek, Z. (2017). Woodstock w czasach atmosfery wzajemnego zrozumienia. Polity, 32, 92–97.
Terlikowski, T. (2013, January 15). Odpowiadam na zaproszenie Owsiaka na Woodstock. Fronda. Retrieved from http://www.fronda.pl/a/terlikowski-odpowiadam-na-zaproszenie-owsiaka-na-woodstock,25405.html
The Economist. (2005, June 2). Good rocking. Has a G8 summit ever been so hip?. The Economist. Retrieved from http://www.economist.com/node/4033476
Tocqueville, A. (2003). Democracy in America. New York: Penguin Books.
TOK FM. (2012, January 9). Warzecha u Lisa: Wielka Orkiestra Świątecznej Pomocy, czyli dlaczego nie popieram Owsiaka. Retrieved from http://wiadomosci.gazeta.pl/wiadomosci/1,114873,10937024,Warzecha_u_Lisa__Wielka_Orkiestra_Swiatecznej_Przemocy_.html
Turner, V., & Turner, E. (1978). Image and pilgrimage in Christian culture. New York: Columbia University Press.
Wertenstein-Żuławski, J. (1990). To tylko rock’n roll! Warsaw: ZAKR.
Wertenstein-Żuławski, J. (1993). Między nadzieją a rozpaczą. Warsaw: Instytut Kultury.
Westley, F. (1991). Bob Geldof and Live Aid: The affective side of global social innovation. Human Relations, 44(10), 1011–1036.
WOŚP. (2013). “Wprost” o fundacji i Złotym Melonie. Retrieved from http://www.wosp.org.pl/fundacja/aktualnosci/wprost_o_fundacji_i_zlotym_melonie
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2019 The Author(s)
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Chmielewska-Szlajfer, H. (2019). Woodstock Station Festival: Practicing Recognition. In: Reshaping Poland’s Community after Communism. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-78735-0_3
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-78735-0_3
Published:
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-78734-3
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-78735-0
eBook Packages: Social SciencesSocial Sciences (R0)