Sieradzkie is a small but interesting region situated in central Poland with Sieradz and Wielun as its main cities. According to 19th century sources, Sieradzkie was inhabited mostly by Polish people, with some groups of German, Jewish and Gypsy minorities. The traditional peasant costume worn by men in this area was a dark blue overcoat bordered with a colored ribbon. Women wore striped woolen clothes and navy blue or black waistcoats with glittering buttons. The dialect of Sieradzkie is close to that of Malopolska (Little Poland) with elements of the Silesian. The vocal traditions of Sieradzkie, like those of Silesia, are characterized by singing in the middle register, in slow tempo and with soft dynamics. Instrumental music is represented by the simplest music bands composed of two instruments: a violin with a drum of a violin with a bass. The instrumental music consists mostly of dances.
The music tradition of the region is in decline. Musicians and singers can but vaguely recall old wedding customs and other rituals. Christmas and Easter customs have been preserved relatively well, but as to the wedding ceremony, only some of its stages have survived in songs - especially the blessing and capping ceremony. Harvest songs have disappeared entirely but the harvest festival has been saved thanks to the activities of village theatres. The music presented here comes from villages situated within a few dozen kilometres from Sieradz and from the neighborhood of Wielun. The oldest recording - an improvised oberek (ex. 27) performed by the fiddler Wawrzyniec Pietrzak - was made in 1977, but most of the others are much newer, from 1992 - 98. Many examples, especially ritual songs, were registered for this CD during during field-recordings in the musicians' homes. Recent though they are, they reflect an old performance practice, both in the vocal and instrumental repertoires. English-Polish booklet enclosed with details about the region and the musicians.