Polish pop music coming into its own
Polish popular music is finally establishing its own identity after years of imitating or importing Western hits. A group that illustrates this coming of age is Brathanki, which has sold 170,000 copies of its debut album, so becoming one of the most successful acts on the Polish charts this year.
Brathanki's brash mix of Hungarian folklore, reggae, funk and country gives its music an appeal far beyond the young buyers who usually follow new pop acts. The band was formed in 1998 and consists of accordion player Janusz Mus, Jacek and Piort Krolik, Adam Prucnal, Grzegorz Pietak, Stefan Blaszczynski and lead singer Halinka Mlynkova, a Czech of Polish descent. The group's hit song, "Czerwone korale" (Red beads), has been one of the most popular tunes on the airwaves during the past few months and has resulted in the band playing more than 100 sell-out gigs.
But it's not just Brathanki that is selling records. According to the Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry (ZPAV), five of the top 10 best-selling records of 2000 so far were recorded by Polish bands and singers. "A Gu gu," a song by child Christian band Arka Noego, has been this year's No. 1 record. Budka Suflera, a still-popular band created 26 years ago, is in the No. 3 spot with "Bal Wszystkich Swietych" (All Saints' Ball).
Meanwhile, Brathanki's "Ano!" is No. 4 and a compilation of Polish rock ballads is at No. 7. Kayah's "Jakajakayah" is at No. 9. Last year's greatest hit was "Abba Pater," an album of religious songs by John Paul II, which sold 240,000 copies, according to the List.
But overall, 1999 music sales in Poland didn't meet the expectations of many pundits. Sales of zl. 610 million ($156 million) in nominal terms were up by only 2% from the 1998 figure of zl. 598 million ($171 million). In dollar-adjusted terms, sales were down by 8.8%. An average Pole spent $3.97 on CDs and cassettes in 1999, or 10% less than in 1998, when he spent $4.40.
The market has been stagnant for the past two years, said Piotr Mackowiak, head of the marketing department at Sony Music Entertainment Polska. The lack of growth is illustrated by sales figures for gold and platinum records, which have dropped by half since 1998. Before 1997, bands had to sell 100,000 records to earn a gold disc and 200,000 for a platinum one; now they have to move only 50,000 and 100,000 copies, respectively.
Such a dearth in sales has made recording companies increasingly cautious about launching new Polish bands. Brathanki, for example, was rejected several times before being accepted by Sony Music Entertainment Polska.
Although the music industry has been in the doldrums for two years, the share of Polish records in overall sales increased between 1998 and 1999. While Polish music accounted for 14.8% of overall record sales in 1998, that figure rose to 25.2% in 1999, according to ZPAV. Meanwhile, sales of foreign acts, classical music and compilations fell.
One of the biggest problems facing both Polish musicians and the recording industry is piracy. Illegal copying accounts for 40-50% of sales, compared to the European average of 10%.
"It is a fact that piracy hits mainly Polish artists," said Andrzej Puczynski, head of ZPAV and general director of Universal Music Poland, the country's biggest recording company. Puczynski offered the example of one Universal act, Gabriel Fleszar. "Out of 10 people queuing for his signature, nine have illegal records at home," Puczynski said.
Polish artists are mainly for domestic consumption and if double of what they sell is pirated they stand to lose a substantial amount of money, according to Marek Staszewski, also with ZPAV. He said foreign artists lose only a small portion of their overall sales if they're pirated in Poland.
Polish artists also suffer badly from a lack of promotion. "There is only radio promotion. TV promotion is practically nonexistent," Staszewski said. He said there are only two major commercial radio stations that recording companies are interested in, RMF FM and Radio Zet. Each reaches only 30% of the record buying public.
MTV, which has been broadcast in Polish since July, may help develop the country's music. Some 20% of its programming is devoted to Polish artists, said Jaroslaw Burdek, music programming director at MTV.
But Burdek admits there's no particular slot for Polish music. "I didn't want to create a sole spot for Polish musicians," he said. Consequently, domestic and foreign artists battle for the same airtime.
That MTV has appeared at all is a sign that things are getting better, Mackowiak said. "On the local market, MTV generates an average increase of 20% for local music sales," Burdek said. He said singers like Sylwia Wisniewska, who recently launched her first album, "Cala Ty"(All You) and Reni Jusis, who had a 1998 hit with "Zakrecona" (Crazy) have both profited from MTV exposure.
