Cultural heritage of the Polish-Slovak border; liturgical music, religious and pilgrimage songs. Presov-Sławęcin

Beneficiary: Roman Catholic parish pw. St. Catherine in Sławęcin

Polish partner: Roman Catholic Parish Pw. St. Nicholas in Prešov

Implementation period: 01/07/2020 - 30/06/2021

Realized project value: € 54 738.25, including ERDF co-financing: € 46 527.50

One of the monuments in the district of Jasło is the Roman Catholic church. st. Catherine in Sławęcin. It is there that there is a painting of the Mother of God with the Child from the 14th century and the original 140-year-old organ made by the famous Lviv organ builder, Jan Śliwiński. The master's greatest work was the unpreserved 32-voice organ in the Lviv Philharmonic, while the largest surviving ones are, among others in the churches of St. Catherine in Krakow, the Zamość cathedral and the Latin rite in Lviv. According to experts and musicians, the organ located in Sławęcin is also unique. The researchers confirmed the high evaluation of the organ builder's performance. Due to the poor condition of the instrument, the project started the conservation and renovation of the valuable monument. After the renovation works, the instrument is used during the liturgy and made available to artists to organize cultural events that increase the tourist attractions of the region. In addition, as part of the project, concerts were organized and a book with the history of religious and pilgrim songs from the Polish-Slovak border was published.

The main activities carried out under the project:

• Renovation of the historic organ and the organ prospectus in the church in Sławęcin. The former glory of the ten-voice organ was restored by Marek Gąsior, who specializes in organ intonation. He spent almost a year on renovation. Particular works were carried out in stages, starting from the bellows and windchests, through the renovation of the pipes, to bringing the organ to the church and ending with its installation. Prof. Julian Gembalski, a virtuoso of the organ, who in August, during a special concert, had the opportunity to extract its full potential from the instrument.
• Concert of religious and pilgrim songs. After the solemn mass, there was a concert at the end of the microproject. The ceremony was attended by guests from Slovakia (25 people) and guests from Poland, including parishioners. During the concert, you could listen to the Soli Deo choir from Jasło, the men's choir from the Roman Catholic Parish in Sławęcin and artists from Poland and Slovakia. A renovated organ instrument was used during the concert. Additionally, a group of invited guests from Slovakia, along with a group of Poles, participated in a tourist event, during which churches in Sławęcin, Przysieki and Trzcinica were visited. The open-air museum of Carpathian Troy was also visited.
• Concert of classical music and religious music. Due to the inability to complete the task in the church of St. Nicholas in Prešov, a concert was organized in the affiliate church in Przysieki, which was broadcast live on-line, including to a partner in Slovakia. The concert was performed by the Academic Choir of the University of Rzeszów from the "POCO a POCO" association, which in its repertoire presented over a dozen popular songs divided into periods of their creation, i.e. from the Renaissance to the modern period. The concert also presented pieces of classical music prepared by the Slovak side - soprano singer and orchestra, as well as a publication with texts and notes of religious and pilgrimage songs

We encourage you to watch the footage of the activities carried out as part of the project https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=je2C22j3wmY