David Keetley conducting The Widnjammers

John Hospodaryk produced two songs about Kosciuszko

This travelling exhibition prepared by the Warsaw Municipal History Museum had been already presented in Canberra, Jindabyne, Hobart, Melbourne and some other places like Cowra. In January this year it was hosted by the NSW Parliament at Macquarie Street in Sydney.

From Macquarie Street it moved to Macquarie University, where at the opening the guests were welcomed by Prof. Bruce Kercher, the Vice President of the Academic Senate.

Welcome to Macquarie University and to the Kosciuszko exhibition. We of course mispronounce it as 'Kosciosko'. Australian kids, primary school kids, romantically think Kosciuszko might be a gigantic mountain. We do not think of a person after whom it was named. When we see it ,we discover that the mountain is neither so big nor so impressive. What we discover by reading this exhibition is that person after whom the mountain was named, was very much more impressive person. So I invite the Consul General of Poland, Mister Ryszard Sarkowicz to open the exhibition.

Consul General Ryszard Sarkowicz (left), Prof. Bruce Kercher (right)

The Consul General started with a funny story. Some years ago, working as a consul in Chicago, he was preparing a Kosciuszko function. Of course he wanted to find out what Americans know about Kosciuszko. So he conducted a little street poll. He asked the first kid he met. - Do you know the name Kosciuszko? - Of course I do – he replied and Mr Sarkowicz felt delighted. But the delight turned to an amusement when the boy completed the statement. - Kosciusko is a small town in Mississipi where Oprah Winfrey was born.

A couple of months later – continued Mr Sarkowicz – I had an occassion to meet Oprah at a charity ball and, of course, asked her the same question.

- Do you know the name Kosciuszko? - And she surprised him by saying. – Of course, he was a Polish general and American hero as well.

Watch the opening of the Kosciuszko exhibition.

Mission of Association Friends of Kosciuszko at West Point states in the first point:

The sole mission of the Association(...) is to spread to all Americans via the internet as well as to both domestic and foreign visitors to West Point the inspiring and enduring story of Tadeusz Kosciuszko (1746 - 1817), a Polish and American Patriot and Hero, Altruist, and Champion of Freedom, Independence, Democracy, and Equality.

Thomas Jefferson, who later became the third President of the United States, wrote about Thaddeus Kosciuszko: "He was as pure a son of liberty as I have ever known and of that liberty which is to go to all and not just a few or the rich alone."

Indeed, Tadeusz Kosciuszko greatly contributed to the victory of the American democratic Revolutionary War and later led Poles to a fight for independence, lost to its imperial neighbours Russia and Prussia. Both Russia, led by tsar Catherine, and Prussia were hostile to the democratic Constitution of the 3rd May approved in 1791 by the Polish Parliament (Sejm). It was the second democratic constitution in the World, following the American Constitution and the first democratic constitution in Europe, for which Poles payed dearly by loosing their independence to mighty neighbours.

At the entrance to the exhibition made of 37 panels there is a portrait of Kosciuszko wearing a Phrygian cap of liberty”. One might wonder what a Phrygian cap has to do with a hero of the American independence war? The explanation is given in the Appendix below.

Next to the Visitors Book one can pick up a booklet about Kosciuszko, published in English (in May 2004) by Romuald Morawski the curator of the Warsaw Municipal History Museum. The title page features Kosciuszko wearing – of course – the liberty cap.

Two glass showcases exhibit items belonging to the Library of Macquarie University. They have been found by Mr Robin Walsh who, along with the Vice Consul Grzegorz Jopkiewicz, has organised this edition of the Kosciuszko exhibition. Amongst the items there is a Bulletin published by The Council of Polish Organisations in Australia, featuring an article Who was Taduesz Kosciuszko. Its bright red title attracted attention of Aussie students, as I observed some days later.

Next to the Bulletin we find a book published in Chicago Autograph letters of Thaddeus Kosciuszko in the American Revolution. There is also a book telling a story of 7 American monuments of Kosciuszko. And next to it we have a book by professor Longin Pastusiak Kosciuszko, Pulaski i inni.

In the second showcase there is a book In a Dark Glass. The Story of Paul Edmond Strzelecki by H.M.E. Heney. The book Sir Paul Edmond de Strzelecki by Lech Paszkowski (a renowned Melbourne historian) also comes from the collection of the Macquarie University Library.

Even dry data stimulate our imagination. The daily schedule of the Military Academy in Warsaw, where young Thaddeus was a student: 6:45 am - 8 am Holy Mass and breakfast, 8 – 12 lessons, noon – lunch, 12 noon – 2 pm free time, 2 – 5 pm lessons. What would Thaddeus have eaten for lunch and what he would have done in his free time after lunch?

One of the panels tells the story of the Virtuti Militari Cross awarded to Kosciuszko. He was one of the very first awardees of the Cross, which was established to commemorate the battle of Zielence which brought Poles a victory over the imperial Russian army.

There is also an item called Title page of the Kosciuszko Polonaise with a military scenery The scenery shows what is described in German as Polnische Truppen 1794.” This relates to Polish troops and the National Uprising under the leadership of Thaddeus Kosciuszko in 1794. In view of this item and such a date one begins to wonder when exactly Kosciuszko composed his two polonaises and a waltz. Experts still argue. So, did he compose his music after the uprising while imprisoned in St Petersburg? Or much earlier in 1777 in America, as suggested by Maria Wacholc?

The exhibition reminds us that Kosciuszko had been to America twice. It was during his second visit that Kosciuszko handed over to Thomas Jefferson his will, where he wrote: should I make no other testamentary disposition of my property in the United States thereby (I) authorize my friend Thomas Jefferson to employ the whole thereof in purchasing negroes from among his own as any others and giving them liberty in my name in giving them an education in trades ... One wonders: had fate brought Kosciuszko to Australia, surely he would have become a supporter of the cause of the Aborigines?

John Hospodaryk: songs about Kosciuszko & Strzelecki.

Pleasant murmur, people talk and chat. Nice atmosphere here at Macquarie but it is not easy to concentrate on the exhibition. Many of us declare that we will come back here some other day to visit the exhibition at our own pace. I personally came back on the 14th of August. With interest I read what people wrote in the Visitors Book.

Somebody, full of praise for the exhibition, suggested there should have been more information about the historical background. I personally think that one fundamental component is missing: information as to how relevant is Kosciuszko to Australia and democracy. It is a pity that the link between the Polish-American hero and Mount Kosciuszko had not been explained. I am not the first one to point out this oversight. Dr Maria Wronska-Friend wrote about this in Puls Polonii on 27th of January 2006 in a review (in Polish) ¯yciorys na planszy”

But let's go back to the event on Thursday, 27th of July. After the official opening ceremony we were invited three floors up, to the Mollie Thompson Room, for a short concert related to Kosciuszko. Unfortunately, due to illness, Ernestyna Skurjat, who inspired both John Hospodaryk and The Sydney Windjammers with Kosciuszko’s music, could not come to this opening to introduce the musicians.

John Hospodaryk, a singer, lyricist, composer and a teacher produced two songs : one about the Polish explorer Sir Paul Edmond Strzelecki who discovered and named the mountain after the Polish and international hero, and also his brand new ballad about General Kosciuszko who, imprisoned by the tsar, composed a waltz and polonaises dedicated to the patriotic army of Poland.

You can read the lyrics on John's website - click here.

Kosciuszko's polonaises played by The Sydney Windjammers

These polonaises and the waltz were then played by The Sydney Windjammers ensamble, conducted by David Keetley. As David wittily said, he considered conducting in a uniform of Major General of the Polish Army but he has been told that impersonating a foreign officer would be a criminal offence.

David reminded us that the Kosciuszko harpsichord music has been arranged for wind instruments, and in particular for the Windjammers, by Jo and Mark Walton. John Hospodaryk commented later: “it was certainly a bloody good arrangement”. The Windjammers, made of amateur musicians, have rehearsed the music for several months. Now, dressed in ensamble’s blue shirts, they could eventually perform the Kosciuszko music in public. We realized that it was the World premiere of the Kosciuszko music on wind instruments!

Watch David and the Windjammers performing.

The Windjammers is an ensamble made of amateur musicians, but these amateurs are otherwise professionals: engineers, teachers as well as scientists like Prof. Graham Wood of Macquarie Uni and Robinson Quezada of CSIRO.

We have written about the Windjammers in Puls Polonii on 19th & 21st July 2006.

Anette Kydrynski & Matthew Iglinski of the Lajkonik ensemble. Kosciuszko was also very fond of Polish national costumes.

Exhibition “Hero of the Nations” will be opened until 27th of August. Some visitors said (also in an interview for the SBS Radio Polish Program) that such an exhibition is very useful. We have learnt things we did not know of Kosciuszko. I did not know about the music, but Poles have music in them so it was not surprising that Kosciuszko also composed some.

Somebody else said: I love the exhibition. It was so interesting to learn about the person I did not know anything about him before. Another lady stated: I particularly enjoyed that bit about background history and the song with guitar accompaniament. I think it was educational and informative Yet another opinion: I just wanted to say I am so terribly impressed by the versatility of the gentleman and particularly that he was so talented in so many fields.

We hope that many Australians would share the opinion of one visitor who said: I thought it was remarkable. As an Australian you hear about the mountain, and actually to hear about the man who generated the name for our mountain, but really his history, the way the Polish people and the Americans so revere him, and the impact he made, and all that is absolutely amazing, so I am pleased to have our mountain named after him. He deserves it.

Young Poles were also impressed. Marysia Kowalczyk who just recently arrived from Poland was surprised that the Polish community in Australia promotes the Polish history here. Pawel Mazur, a PhD student at Macquarie Uni was surprised: It was a great idea to organize an exhibition like this. I have lived in Poland for over 20 years and did not know as much about Kosciuszko as I have learnt just here. And I was totally amazed by the fact he composed some music!

Another Pole, Karol Binkowski, like Pawel a Phd student at Macquarie, made a video from the opening of the exhibition and kindly allowed Puls Polonii to present some footage avialable from this article via links.

Even two weeks after the opening I am receiving email inquiries if the exhibition is still open. Yes, it will be open till 27th of August, in the Library, next to the Information Desk, straight on from the main entrance and then have a look to the left.

It is amazing how important his music can be in bringing Kosciuszko closer to Aussies. Let me recall that this music was brought to Australia, and played on harpsichord, by Monika Kornel at the memorable series of concerts “Eight Centuries of Polish Music” in the Sydney Conservatorium of Music in years 2004-2005. You can listen to Monika Kornel playing a polonaise in the audio section of Puls Polonii called NAGRANIA.

APPENDIX

The Phrygian cap or Liberty is a soft conical cap with the top pulled forward, worn by the inhabitants of Phrygia, a region of central Anatolia in antiquity.

The Phrygian cap was worn during the Roman Empire by former slaves who had been emancipated by their master and whose descendants were therefore considered citizens of the Empire. This usage is often considered the root of its meaning as a symbol of liberty.

During the 18th century, the red Phrygian cap evolved into a symbol of freedom, held aloft on a Liberty Pole during the American Revolutionary War.

It also appears on the State flag of West Virginia, New Jersey and New York, as well as on the official seals of the United States Army and the United States Senate.