Wòlô bòskô

Hanuszka and Jaśko fall in love after a chance meeting by a stream. Though her parents seem to approve, they delay the wedding. But then Jaśko learns that Hanuszka is marrying another man. She claims it is ‘God’s Will’ (Wòlô Bòskô), and in despair, Jaśko drowns himself. Seeing his body, Hanuszka also takes her own life. They are buried separately, but lilies grow between their graves. When Hanuszka’s mother cuts the stems, they bleed, symbolising the lovers’ undying bond.

The tragic story of ill-starred lovers might sound familiar but Wòlô Bòskô is a rare thing: a dramatic song cycle sung in the Kashubian language. The Kashubians are an ethnic group native to the historical region of Pomerania in north-central Poland. In Kashubia they speak the Kashubian, which is classified as a separate language closely related to Polish. It is the language we hear in this composition for baritone and piano by contemporary composer Łukasz Godyla drawing on a selection of Kashubian texts and traditional melodies made by the baritone Damian Wilma, a native of the region fascinated by its culture. The piece has been adapted for the stage of Polish National Opera by Jarosław Kilian, who puts an emphasis on the metaphysical aspect of the compelling tale of love, fate and death. Kilian sees the cycle as a reminiscence of a woman looking back over a fatal attraction. The young man appears as a ghost recounting his story from the beyond. Is it just a tale of a blighted couple? Or a universal trope repeated for centuries, now set within the scenery of seaside Kashubia?