Franciszek Walicki (20 July 1921 – 3 October 2015) was a Polish journalist. He was considered the father of Polish

beat Beat, beats or beating may refer to: Common uses * Patrol, or beat, a group of personnel assigned to monitor a specific area ** Beat (police), the territory that a police officer patrols ** Gay beat, an area frequented by gay men * Battery (c ...

and

rock music Rock music is a broad genre of popular music that originated as " rock and roll" in the United States in the late 1940s and early 1950s, developing into a range of different styles in the mid-1960s and later, particularly in the United States an ...

, calling them big-beat as

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It originated from African-American music such as jazz, rhythm a ...

was unacceptable name for the authorities of the

Polish People's Republic The Polish People's Republic ( pl, Polska Rzeczpospolita Ludowa, PRL) was a country in Central Europe that existed from 1947 to 1989 as the predecessor of the modern Republic of Poland. With a population of approximately 37.9 million ne ...

at the time. In 1956 he and

Leopold Tyrmand Leopold Tyrmand (May 16, 1920 – March 19, 1985) was a Polish novelist, writer, and editor. Tyrmand emigrated from Poland to the United States in 1966, and five years later married an American, Mary Ellen Fox. He served as editor of an anti-com ...

organized the first Jazz Festival in

Sopot Sopot is a seaside resort city in Pomerelia on the southern coast of the Baltic Sea in northern Poland, with a population of approximately 40,000. It is located in Pomeranian Voivodeship, and has the status of the county, being the smallest ci ...

. Walicki also founded a number of important Polish bands: *1959 – Rhythm and Blues – the first Polish

big beat Big beat is an electronic music genre that usually uses heavy breakbeats and synthesizer-generated loops and patterns – common to acid house/techno. The term has been used by the British music industry to describe music by artists such as th ...

group *1960 –

Czerwono-Czarni Czerwono-Czarni (; literally: "the Red-and-Blacks") was one of the most popular rock bands in the history of Polish popular music, and one of the pioneers of rock and beat music in Poland (both styles together known as the "Big Beat" in the Eas ...

*1962 – Niebiesko-Czarni *1968 – Breakout *1974 – SBB

Awards and distinctions

*1996 – Officer's Cross of the Order of

Polonia Restituta The Order of Polonia Restituta ( pl, Order Odrodzenia Polski, en, Order of Restored Poland) is a Polish state order established 4 February 1921. It is conferred on both military and civilians as well as on foreigners for outstanding achievement ...

Righteous among the Nations Righteous Among the Nations ( he, חֲסִידֵי אֻמּוֹת הָעוֹלָם, ; "righteous (plural) of the world's nations") is an honorific used by the State of Israel to describe non-Jews who risked their lives during the Holocaust to sa ...

medal *1998 – Grand Prix,

National Festival of Polish Song in Opole The National Festival of Polish Song in Opole ( pl, Krajowy Festiwal Piosenki Polskiej w Opolu, KFPP) is an annual music festival in Opole, Poland. Together with the Sopot Festival it is one of the two most important music festivals in Poland. The ...

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Walicki, Franciszek 1921 births 2015 deaths Musicians from Łódź Polish journalists Writers from Łódź People from Łódź Voivodeship (1919–1939) Officers of the Order of Polonia Restituta Polish Righteous Among the Nations Recipients of the Gold Medal for Merit to Culture – Gloria Artis