Thursday, August 16, 2018

Music and Film Events at the 75th Anniversary Conference in Chicago, September 8, 2018


On Saturday, September 8, at 8 pm. the Polish Studies Program at Loyola University Chicago will present the Lyra Ensemble and Haysung Kang, pianist, in A Concert for the Centennial of Poland's Independence. The program will include Andante Spianato et Grande Polonaise Brillante in E-flat Major, Op.22 performed by Haysun Kang, as well as various Polish songs performed by The Lira Singers Quartet with Anthony Molnaro, piano.

This concert is one of the events of the 75th Anniversary Conference of PAHA, held on September 7 to 9 at Loyola University Chicago. Here's a link to the previous blog with the conference program, and a link to PDF version of the program. All conference events are held at the Polish Studies location, at 1032 W. Sheridan St., as found on the campus map.


The Lira Ensemble  is the nation’s only professional performing arts company specializing in Polish music, song and dance. Its mission is to bring the best of Polish culture into American life. Founded as the Lira Singers in 1965, the ensemble now makes about 50 appearances a year in the Chicago area, across the Midwest, occasionally around the nation, and has made six concert tours of Poland. Lira has produced nine major recordings that are sold nationwide. Lira presents the full spectrum of Polish music and dance, both classical and folk, with informative and witty English language narrations that explain the traditions and history behind the works performed. Lira is based in Chicago as artist-in-resident at Loyola University Chicago, which makes a significant, on-going contribution to the promotion of Polish culture in the United States by donating free office, rehearsal and storage space to the Lira company.

Dr. HAYSUN KANG, pianist

A native of Korea, Haysun Kang won the Asian Young Artist Piano Competition when she was twelve. She obtained her bachelors degree in piano performance from Seoul National University, Korea and her Master of Music degree from DePaul University where she studied with a Chopin International Competition laureate, Dmitry Paperno. She earned her Doctor of Music degree from Northwestern University under the guidance of the renowned pianist and teacher Dr. David Kaiserman. She also received her musical training from Julian Martin at the Peabody Conservatory of Music, and Alexis Golovin at the Academy of Mozarteum in Salzburg, Austria. Haysun Kang was a winner of numerous competitions including the Frinna Awerbuch International Piano Competition, the Young Keyboard Artist Association International Piano Competition, the Verna Ross Orndorff Austrian-American Music Award, the Society of American Musicians Competition, the Cliff Dwellers Arts Foundation Award, and the Hoverson Piano Award. She is currently a faculty member at Loyola University Chicago, where she serves as the director of applied music. 

FILM SCREENING  
THE FOURTH PARTITION: CHICAGO

Adrian Prawica receives 2014 Creative Arts Prize from PAHA's President Thomas Napierkowski

The Film Screening on  Saturday, September 8, at 11 AM at Loyola University Chicago will present "The Fourth Partition: Chicago" - a  documentary film directed by Adrian Prawica who received PAHA's Creative Arts Prize in 2014 for this film.

Mr. Prawica is the director and executive producer of the film The Fourth Partition: Chicago (2013) that tells a unique and rarely talked about history of Chicago's Polish Community at the dawn of the 20th century. Chicago was the second largest city in the United States with over 2,000,000 residents. It was also the center of Polish culture and political activism in America. With Poland partitioned between Russia, Austria and Germany, over 4,000,000 Poles immigrated to the United States between 1870 and 1920 in search of a better life. In Chicago, they worked in some of the most dangerous factories and mills in the United States. In their neighborhoods, they built communities, churches, and most of all, aided their beloved Poland in her fight for independence. The film  examines economic and political reasons for the migration of over 4,000,000 Poles to the United States. Starting with the first Polish settlers in the Jamestown colony in 1608, this documentary focuses on Polish immigrant workers in heavily industrialized Chicago neighborhoods, their community, as well as their political activism, which aided Poland in her fight for independence during WWI.

The Fourth Partition: Chicago features interviews with some of the most known Polish-American historians in the United States [including PAHA's James Pula, Don Pienkos and Dominic Pacyga]. The film shows rare images of Poles in the Unites States and their communities, which they built while working in some of the heaviest industries such as steel and meatpacking. Most of all, it tells a history of one of the largest ethnic communities in Chicago, that is still ever present today. Trailer of the documentary may be seen at: http://www.amerykafilm.com/thefourthpartition/.

Mr. Prawica explained: "We'd like the audience to be informed that "The Fourth Partition" to date is the only and most broadcasted film dealing with Polish history on the American market.  It has received 5 awards, and it's presentation is possible through the courtesy of the filmmakers who reside in Chicago. I would like the attendees to know that it's important to support independent films such as this, as they are truly a new way to discuss, promote, and preserve the history of Poles in Chicago and America as technology moves forward and mediums for information change.  We encourage them to visit our website at www.amerykafilm.com, and see other potential films that they may want to purchase, or contact us for more information on involvement and helping create more unique stories of Polish Americans."





Friday, August 3, 2018

PAHA's 75th Anniversary Conference at Loyola University Chicago, September 7-9, 2018


On September 7-9, 2018, PAHA will be celebrating its 75th Anniversary. The Association is planning a three-day event to take place at Loyola University in Chicago.  The director of the Polish Studies Program at Loyola, Bozena Nowicki McLees, will serve as host to PAHA and its guests at the conference venue located right on the waterfront of Lake Michigan. In addition to Loyola University Chicago, the Polish Academy of Arts and Sciences (Kraków, Poland) is a proud partner to this event - which is partially funded by the Senate of the Republic of Poland.  

The three-day conference will begin with the keynote address by Prof. John Bukowczyk of Wayne State University, “PAHA within the field of United States’ ethnic history - past, present and future.”  The Friday program will include academic sessions related to PAHA’s contribution to the fields of migration and ethnic studies (including the association’s journal, Polish American Studies), the association’s current research as well as community outreach projects. You will hear from some of the most prominent PAHA's scholars - of all generations. 

The Saturday sessions will be dedicated to Polish American issues and will include a local Polonia roundtable.  Prof. Dominic Pacyga, the key PAHA expert on the history of Chicago, will chair a session on Polish American history in Museums - both in the USA and in Poland. There will be plenty of opportunities for PAHA scholars to meet, interact and plan future programs with members of American Polonia. The conference will be rounded up with a Chicago Tour, Loyola University special collection tour, and a Saturday night concert at Mundelein Center, Loyola University  Chicago. 

ORGANIZERS: The 75th Anniversary Conference at Loyola University Chicago is partially funded by the Senate of the Republic of Poland. The organizers include: Polish American Historical Association; Polish Studies Program at Loyola University Chicago; Polish Academy of Arts and Sciences (PAU); Institute of American Studies and Polish Diaspora, Faculty of International and Political Studies at the Jagiellonian University; Committee for Migration Studies of the Polish Academy of Sciences (PAN).

All conference events will take on the campus of Loyola University of Chicago. Here's the campus map.








REGISTRATION is free, but you need to register for the whole conference or specific sessions:
http://polishamericanstudies.org/files/public/Registration75YearsPAHA.pdf

PROGRAM: The PDF version of our program brochure is available on the PAHA website: 
http://polishamericanstudies.org/files/public/PAHA75ProgramBrochure.pdf


PROGRAM

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 2018
McCormick Lounge in Coffey Hall 1000 W. Sheridan Road, Loyola University Chicago

9:00–9:35    WELCOME

9:40–10:15 KEYNOTE ADDRESS
John Bukowczyk, PAHA within the field of United States’ ethnic history - past, present and future


10:30–12:30   QUO VADIS POLISH AMERICAN STUDIES:
THE PAHA JOURNAL AS A REFLECTION OF THE SCHOLARLY FIELD
McCormick Lounge in Coffey Hall 1000 W. Sheridan Road, Loyola University Chicago

Chair: Anna Jaroszyńska-Kirchmann
- A Brief History of PAS – James S. Pula
- Labor and Working Class – Dominic A. Pacyga
- Polonia’s Organizations – Donald Pienkos
- Gender and Family – Mary P. Erdmans
- Literature – Grażyna Kozaczka
- Study of American Polonia and Scholars in Poland – Adam Walaszek

12:30–13:50 LUNCH BREAK

14:00–15:20 YOUNG SCHOLARS & NEW TOPICS FORUM
McCormick Lounge in Coffey Hall 1000 W. Sheridan Road, Loyola University Chicago
Chair: Dorota Praszałowicz

15:30–16:50 PAHA’S NEW PROJECTS
McCormick Lounge in Coffey Hall 1000 W. Sheridan Road, Loyola University Chicago
Chair:  Neal Pease

- PAHA’s communication media, challenges and opportunities of
the digital age – Maja Trochimczyk & Stephen Leahy
- Adjusting to the New Reality: Good Management Practices in Academia – Pien Versteegh
- PAHA and Polish American Community – Joint Projects: Polish American Travel Guide; Memoirs Project; Objects that Speak; Teaching Resources – panel discussion (Anna Jaroszyńska-Kirchmann, Ewa Barczyk, Anna Muller, Anna Mazurkiewicz)

18:00 BANQUET AT THE POLISH CONSULATE, CHICAGO
(Prior registration required. Polish Consulate 1530 N. Lake Shore Drive, Chicago.



SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2018

9:00–11:00    POLISH AMERICAN HISTORY IN MUSEUMS
McCormick Lounge in Coffey Hall 1000 W. Sheridan Road, Loyola University Chicago
Chair: Dominic A. Pacyga; Discussant: Anna Muller

- The Polish Museum of America, Chicago –Małgorzata Kot
- Polish History Museum, Warsaw – Anna Piekarska
- Chicago History Museum, Chicago – John Russick
- Emigration Museum, Gdynia – Sebastian Tyrakowski
- Józef Piłsudski Institute of America, New York – Iwona Korga

11:15–12:45  CONCURRENT EVENTS

a) LOYOLA ARCHIVE TOUR with Nancy Freeman
Loyola Archives Tour starts at 11:15 at McCormick Lounge in Coffey Hall 1000 W. Sheridan Road


b) FILM SCREENING  of The Fourth Partition: Chicago by Adrian Prawica
Damen Student Center Cinema on ground floor, Loyola University Chicago

13:00–14:00  LUNCH BREAK

14:00–15:00  PAHA 2018 HALECKI BOOK PRIZE 
McCormick Lounge in Coffey Hall 1000 W. Sheridan Road, Loyola University Chicago
Joanna Wojdon, White and Red Umbrella – presentation of the Haiman Medal and discussion of the prize-winning book 

15:00–17:00 POLONIA ROUNDTABLE ON THE ADVANCEMENT OF POLISH AND POLISH AMERICAN STUDIES 
McCormick Lounge in Coffey Hall 1000 W. Sheridan Road, Loyola University Chicago
Chair: Bożena Nowicka McLees. Discussants:  Members of Chicago & Great Lakes Polish-American social and cultural organizations. 

17:30  RECEPTION FOR  REGISTERED PARTICIPANTS
Crown Center Lobby, Loyola University Chicago

20:00–21:30  CONCERT of LOYOLA CHAMBER SINGERS AND  HANSUNG KANG at Mundelein Center, Skowronski Hall, 2nd floor, Loyola University Chicago. 


SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2018

9:30–13:00 SPECIAL PROGRAM FOR REGISTERED PARTICIPANTS 
Tour of North Side of Chicago with Victoria Granacki 
Bus tours pick-up and drop off at the Hampton Inn.

8:30–12:30 PAHA BOARD MEETING–PAHA Council and Officers only,  Crown Center 200 East
12:30–13:30 Working Lunch for PAHA Council and Officers only,  Crown Center 200 East
13:30–16:30 Bus Tour of South Side of Chicago for PAHA Board members with Dominic A. Pacyga


PROGRAM COMMITTEE: Anna Mazurkiewicz, PAHA President, University of Gdańsk; Zygmunt Kolenda, President on behalf of PAU; Bożena Nowicka McLees, Chair of the Polish Studies Program, Loyola University Chicago. Members: Mary P. Erdmans, Case Western Reserve University; Neal Pease, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee; Dominic Pacyga, Columbia College Chicago; Dorota Praszałowicz, PAN Committee for Migration Studies; James Pula, Purdue University Northwestern, Adam Walaszek, Jagiellonian University.
To find out more about PAHA's history and achievements, please have a look at our Anniverary Book, edited by James S. Pula and available here [click].