Mateusz Dobrowolski is a musician and frame‑drum player. He is a co‑founder of the award‑winning Polish‑Belarusian group Hajda Banda / Гайда Банда. He is also a lecturer at the Traditional Music Workshop “Duże Mazurki” at the Praga Cultural Centre in Warsaw, where he leads workshops and practical sessions with students from Poland and abroad.
His frame drum can be heard in the film “Sami Swoi. Początek” as well as in the electronic project Naphta. He has performed with artists and groups such as Kapela ze Wsi Warszawa, U.S. Orchestra (Ukraine), R.U.T.A., Kapela Piotra Kaznowskiego, and the terenNowy collective. He has been playing the traditional frame drum since 2010. He also collaborates with Songlines Magazine (London), Polish Radio’s Folk Culture Centre, the cultural portal dwutygodnik.com, and Jazz Forum magazine.
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Traditional Frame Drum And How to Play It
Join an intensive practical workshop led by Mateusz Dobrowolski, frame drummer of the Polish-Belarusian band Hajda Banda / Гайда Банда.
Open to participants of all skill levels. No music education or percussion instruments expertise required!
How to play the traditional frame drum? This amazing instrument shared in many cultures of Eastern Europe is having its’ comeback i.a. in Poland. Together we’ll attempt to beat a “world record” in learning as many oberek – triple traditional Polish dance – rhythm variants as possible. Our guides will be legendary Polish village drummers — i.a. Stanisław Budzisz, Józef Lipiński, Leon Racis, Stefan Trzpil, Tadeusz Wołosz, and Jan “Bździuch” Zarosiak — whose styles and rhythms once gave life to rural dance floors and folklore festivals. With their content we will be able, step by step, to follow the path of old-school village techniques of playing the drum.
During the workshop participants will
- develop coordination and control through specialised exercises
- learn key frame-drumming elements such as:
- alternative hand and stick grips
- basic and combined strokes
- playing “from behind”
- finger tremolo
- the oberek gallop rhythm
Bring With You
✔️ Energy and curiosity
✔️ Earplugs or headphones – things may get loud!
- Free frame drum rental is available upon registration (quantity limited)
- If you have your own instrument, please check if it has jingles or metal discs on the frame and if it’s tunable in any way
- Special lightweight drumsticks will be available for testing and purchase
Tech-partner: DoubleYouDrums – a Polish workshop specialising in modern synthetic-skin frame drums.
Pre-registration is required
REGISTRATION FORM (available soon)
- Please submit the registration form
- Registration does not guarantee a place in the workshop – please wait for participation confirmation from the organizers
- A festival pass or a two-day ticket is required. If you wish to participate only in the workshop, you can purchase a special add-on ticket
- If possible, please bring your own drum. Drum rental is available on site at no extra cost (number of instruments is limited)
- Please review the materials sent by the instructor and complete the pre-workshop homework