Paweł Tryba from wpolityce.pl noted:
I especially recommend Alfabet (The Alphabet), where children’s voices chant subsequent letters as Strug replies in a voice that grows increasingly more trembling and frightened. I have not observed such intense terror even in Nick Cave’s work.
Original Music
Strug published his first original album only in 2012. Adieu is a grouping of fifteen songs, which he set to the lyrics by Stanisław Baliński, Yunus Emre, Bolesław Leśmian, and Emil Zegdałowicz, as well as some of his own texts. Strug’s voice and accordion are accompanied by many instrumentalists, including Janusz Prusinowski (mandolin), Wojciech Lubertowicz (darbuka, goblet drum, frame drum), Frank Parker (percussion), Piotr Piszczatowski (baraban), Michał Żak (clarinet, wooden flutes), Szczepan Pospieszalski (trumpet, flugelhorn), as well as the album’s producer, Marcin Pospieszalski (double bass, fretless bass, electronic organ). The recordings also feature guest performances by Mietek Szcześniak and Maniucha Bikont. Agata Kusto commented in Pismo Folkowe bimonthly:
On the plus side, I have to mention the interesting, well-paired sets of instruments; they give the music a good vibe which alludes, at times, to the early sounds of the Polish jazz school. Strug’s work is melancholic, and dark, and some pieces are true thriller-ballads.
Two years later, Strug recorded an album with Stanisław Soyka, devoted to the poetry of Bolesław Leśmian. The artists met through common friends and quickly realised that they cherish one another’s work. ‘I wanted to enter the role of the song author, that is – I wanted others to struggle with what I wrote,’ Strug says. ‘I showed him my songs set to Leśmian and he suggested we do an entire album. At first, I was convinced that this would be an album where he sings my songs. It turned out that he accompanied me.’ Paweł Tryba wrote in a review on wpolityce.pl:
Leśmian is the sole protagonist of the disc. The piano’s there to add a certain songfulness; the voice provides interpretation. There is no added value, a mere service to the word. At times, Strug plays some piano – and it works. In other places, Soyka sings harmoniously, luckily, without his ‘Black’ vocal mannerisms, which wouldn’t fit here at all.
Strug’s next album, Mysz (Mouse), came out in 2015 and was produced by Wojciech Waglewski, who also is featured here as a guitarist and vocalist. This time, the lyrics are the poems of Józef Przerwa-Tetmajer, Vachel Lindsay (translated by Robert Stiller), Jan Zacharasiewicz, Paweł Hertz, Leśmian (a sort of patron saint of the artist), as well as texts written by Strug himself, who plays the accordion, accompanied by the band (percussion, double bass, trumpet, and a mandolin). Wojciech Przylipiak noted in Dziennik daily:
Thanks to the Balkan influence, quite a lot of songs from the album invite one to dance – a special kind of dance, however, one that starts well after midnight, when sadness and nostalgia enter the dancefloor. The clarinet, double bass and trumpet go together really beautifully, with the addition of heavy, raw guitar sounds.
Kaśka Paluch from Onet.pl mentioned:
When it comes to melody, I have to say that the horizontal compositions in Mysz play out lightly, smoothly and nicely. I have never really seen Strug as a melodist, but it seems that I should.
Where does Adam Strug take the strength and inspiration to write his songs?
My focus is traditional music, which means I have a living source of music within reach, giving me a never-ending singerly liveliness. Traditional music does not age, it’s alive. I’ve seen people who, having spent years on stage, seem musically exhausted.
Talking About Music (not only Polish)
Adam Strug's activities are not limited to composing and performing music; the artist also engages in describing and popularizing it. From 2017 to 2019, he was the host of the weekly programme ‘Musical Journey Through Poland’ on the waves of the Polish Radio's First Program. From 2019 to 2020, he hosted the Thursday edition of the magazine Źródła [Sources] at the Radio Centre for Folk Culture on the Second Program of Polish Radio. Since 2022, the singer's podcast Adam's Music, or What Was Listened to in Eden has been published on the SwipeTo portal. Strug's radio broadcasts predominantly revolve around Polish music, but he also eagerly explores music from other parts of the world, from Ukraine and Greece to Syria, Kuwait, and American avant-garde.
He discussed his vision of the state of Polish folk music in the documentary Agonia [Agony], directed by Tomasz Knittel, in which Strug serves as a narrator and screenwriter. The singer's observations are not overly optimistic as he declares; ‘We are, in our mass, cultural apostates,' while painting a portrait of a departing tradition. He meets with musicians from all over Poland, both seniors and younger interpreters. Many of his interviewees do not view the future of Polish music in such dark tones.
It is also worth mentioning Adam Strug's original programme, Indeed Mazowsze, which has been airing on TVP 3 Warsaw since 2020. The programme tells stories about individuals shaping the social and cultural image of the region, including artists, activists, scientists, journalists, and politicians. ‘What unites them is a creative madness they pursue independently of the circumstances’ – as stated in the description of the television programme.
Awards & Distinctions
In 2008, Adam Strug received the Czesław Niemen Award from the President of Polish Radio in the field of vocal art, as well as the award from Polish Television. In 2014, the singer was awarded the ‘Kurpik Prize’ by the Union of Kurpie People for his contributions to promoting the region. In 2019, Strug received the annual Award from the Minister of Culture and National Heritage in the category of ‘Folk Creativity’. The albums Adieu (2012) and Requiem Ludowe (2015) received the Folk Phonogram of the Year award presented by the Radio Centre for Folk Culture. The film Agonia (2020), in which Adam Strug serves as a narrator and screenwriter, received the Audience Award at the Warsaw Film Festival.
Works
- Kapela Brodów – Pieśni i Melodie na Rozmaite Święta (Polish Hymns and Melodies for Holidays and Festivals, 2001) organs
- Kapela Brodów – Kolędy i Inne Pieśni (Christmas Carols and Other Songs, 2002) vocals, pump organ
- Janusz ‘Janina’ Iwański, Stanisław Soyka – Neopositive (2005) lyrics to Złe Sny (Bad Dreams)
- Kapela Brodów – Pieśni Maryjne (Folk Songs and Hymns to Virgin Mary, 2008) vocals, pump organ
- Kapela Brodów – Tańce Polskie (Polish Dances, 2008) vocals
- Monodia Polska – Requiem Polskie (Polish Requiem, 2011) vocals
- Adam Strug – Adieu (2012)
- Muzyka Źródeł - Polskie Pieśni Religijne (Polish Religious Songs, 2012)
- Adam Strug – Strug. Leśmian. Soyka. (2014)
- Adam Strug – Mysz (Mouse, 2015) – nomination for Fryderyk 2016 Award in Album of the Year – Music of the Roots Category
- Adam Strug, Kwadrofonik – Requiem Polskie (Polish Requiem, 2015)
- Adam Strug, Mateusz Kowalski (lyre) – Pieśń o Bożym Umęczeniu (Song on the Passion of God, 2015)
- Adam Strug – Leśny Bożek (2017)
Artist's website: https://adamstrug.pl/