The polka is originally a Czech dance and genre of dance music familiar throughout all of Europe and the Americas. It originated in the middle of the nineteenth century in Bohemia, now part of the Czech Republic. The polka remains a popular folk music genre in many European and American countries, and is performed by many folk artists.
Brave Combo is a polka/rock/worldbeat band based in Denton, Texas. Founded in 1979 by guitarist/keyboardist/accordionist Carl Finch, they have been a prominent fixture in the Texas music scene for more than thirty-five years. Their music, both originals and covers, incorporates a number of dance styles, mostly polka, but also some Latin American and Caribbean styles like norteño, salsa, rumba, cha-cha-cha, choro, samba, two-step, cumbia, charanga, merengue, ska, etc.
James W. Sturr Jr. is an American polka musician, trumpeter, clarinetist, saxophonist and leader of Jimmy Sturr & His Orchestra. His recordings have won 18 out of the 24 Grammy Awards given for Best Polka Album. Sturr's orchestra is on the Top Ten List of the All-Time Grammy Awards, and has acquired more Grammy nominations than anyone in the history of musical polka awards.
Edward II are an English band which play a fusion of world music, English folk and reggae. Active from 1980, the band broke up after losing several key members in 1999, relaunching as "e2K" in 2000. In 2003, the band dissolved once more, but have since reformed for a one-year reunion tour in 2009 under the "Edward II" name, celebrating the tenth anniversary of the breakup of the original band. They reformed in 2015 specifically to produce the Manchester's Improving Daily project, which includes the release of new recorded material and a book. The project is designed to celebrate a collection of tunes written in Manchester during the Industrial Revolution, published as Broadsides and currently held in Manchester Central Library.
Baby Beluga is a children's music album by Canadian children's entertainer Raffi, released in 1980. The lead song is about a young beluga whale that "swim[s] so wild and [...] free".
Banda is a term to designate a genre of Regional Mexican music and the musical ensemble in which wind instruments, mostly of brass and percussion, are performed.
Those Darn Accordions, commonly abbreviated as TDA, are an American accordion band from San Francisco, California, originally formed in 1989 by Linda "Big Lou" Seekins.
The University of Wisconsin Marching Band is the marching band for the University of Wisconsin–Madison. It was formed in the fall of 1885 to support the university military battalion. Today, it has grown to about 300 members and performs at all home Badger football games.
James Brian Pekol is an American musician originally from Wausau, Wisconsin.
Polka is a music and dance style that originated in Europe in the 1830s and came to American society when people immigrated from Eastern Europe. A fast style in 2/4 time, and often associated with the pre–World War II era, polka remains a dynamic "niche" music in America.
One Shot Deal is an album by Frank Zappa, posthumously released in June 2008.
The Rhythm Orchestra Teraz Rhythm band was a Polish musical group that was active from the early 1970s to early 1990s in New England and eastern Canada. The group performed a wide range of folk and popular music styles including polka, oberek, waltz, rock, country, tango, cha-cha-cha, foxtrot, swing, and rumba. As a favorite among the Polish diaspora or Polonia of the Greater Hartford, Connecticut and Springfield, Massachusetts region, the group played at dances, weddings, picnics, festivals, and anniversaries which were frequently held at venues such the Polish National Home in Hartford, Connecticut, Gen. Haller Post 111 and the Falcons Nest 88 in New Britain, Connecticut, Polish National Alliance Park in Wallingford, Connecticut, and Pulaski Park in Holyoke, Massachusetts. The group's first record album, Our Homeland, was released in 1972 on the Holyoke-based Rex Records label, which was founded by Joe "Papa" and Wanda Chesky, parents of Polka Hall of Famer Larry Chesky. Subsequent albums were released on the group's own record label, Wisła Records, which was based in Newington, Connecticut, and Westfield, Massachusetts. Four out five of the group's original members were born in Poland where their musical interests began.
The Billy Joel Band is the band that backs singer-songwriter and pianist Billy Joel on both studio and live recordings. The band stabilized around 1975 but underwent several lineup changes in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Joel's touring band as a whole did not begin playing on his records until he recorded the album Turnstiles in 1976. This line-up included Richie Cannata on saxophones and organ, Liberty DeVitto on drums, Russell Javors on guitar, and Doug Stegmeyer on bass.
Gone Polka is an album by Jimmy Sturr, released through Rounder Records on September 25, 2001. In 2002, the album won Sturr the Grammy Award for Best Polka Album.
Roman 'Romy' Louis Gosz was a popular and commercially successful polka musician in the upper Midwest. Gosz's music featured the Bohemian brass style and appealed to the many ethnic groups found throughout the region.
Tim Timebomb is a music project by Tim Armstrong, best known as a member of the punk rock band Rancid. Armstrong has recorded a large number of songs – a mixture of cover versions, including Rancid covers, and original songs, including some tracks from his musical film project RocknNRoll Theater – with a variety of supporting musicians.
Larry Chesky, born Lawrence J. Ciszewski, was an American accordion player, Polka band leader, inductee in the International Polka Hall of Fame, and manager of the Rex Records label.
The Chardon Polka Band is an American, Ohio-based, Cleveland-Style polka band. It was started by Jake Kouwe in 2003 when he recruited four other teenagers to form a polka band at Chardon High School, and the group was originally called "The Chardon High School Polka Band" and included an accordion, trumpet, saxophone, clarinet, electric guitar, and tuba. The group got their start in the school's music room and played at local senior centers and nursing homes in the Chardon area. Kouwe cites Weird Al Yankovic as his inspiration for playing the accordion as he started lessons on the accordion after seeing Yankovic in a VH1 special. The popular satirist remains a role model for The Chardon Polka Band. The band had slowly gained notoriety among Polka fans and in the Cleveland music scene in general, but got mainstream attention when they were featured in a reality show named Polka Kings on Reelz in 2015, even though the show was quickly cancelled. The band currently plays over 200 shows a year and has grown to be one of the Cleveland music scene's most recognizable performers playing at a mixture of festivals, schools, nursing homes, and bars, but also tours nationally and headlines many of the nation's top folk festival and Oktoberfest celebrations, playing a mixture of original music, classic polkas, and covers of pop songs. The band was also one of the founding members of the Cleveland revival of Dyngus Day. The band has released eight full-length albums, all independently, four of which were nominated for a Polka Hall of Fame award for either the album or one or more songs.
