traditional dances    /    nonstylized dances    /    solo dances

dzek

nonstylized dancesmap
The dzek is a dance performed solely by men, and according to the Kashubian tradition, it imitatedpirate fights and fishing activities. The Dzek is a very lively and dynamic dance intended as a display of physical fitness of Kashubian fishermen. Among the characteristic features of this dance are high jumps, leg crossing, stumping, and slapping oneself on the calf or the knee. The jumps are accompanied by gestures of the right and left hand resembling cracks of the whip, slashes of the sabre, or imitating the dragging of cordage.
> Read more

In seaside (coastal) areas, the name dzek (dzëk) could mean "wild", or something wild, done in a vigorous fashion. Originally, the dzek may have beeen a dance performed by new sailors settled in the area of Kaszuby a few centuries ago. The dance may have also been adopted by the Kashubians from British (or Irish) sailors. A similar dance called jig is well-known in Britain and Ireland until today. The dzek requires not only extensive agility and jumping ability but also a coordination of movement in the event when a number of dancers perform it simultaneously. High jumps with the simultaneous crossing of legs, stumping, and calf or kneeslapping are the characteristics of this fast dance ( 2/4 metre). The jumps are accompanied by gestures of the right and left hand resembling cracks of the whip, slashes of the sabre, or imitating the dragging of cordage. Dancers often form the figure called the - two rows placed in the shape of the letter V, or stand in two rows, one against the other, where their dancing imitates skirmishes of pirates. At the end of the dance, men are running up to their female partners, and invite them to join them in a partner dance (most often the polka) upon two heavy stomps.

 

Lorentz, Friedrich; Fischer, Adam; Lehr-Spławiński, Tadeusz. Kaszubi. Kultura ludowa i język [Kashubians: Folk Songs and Dances]. Toruń: Instytut Bałtycki, 1934.

Madejski, Zbigniew; Szefka, Paweł. Kaszubskie pieśni i tańce ludowe [Kashubian Folk Songs and Dances]. Wejherowo: Drukarnia Przemysłowa, 1936.

Szefka, Paweł. Tańce kaszubskie [Kashubian Dances] Vol. 1. Gdańsk: Wojewódzki Dom Twórczości Ludowej, 1957.