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2024:WikiOrchestra

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The WikiOrchestra playing Karliku at Wikimania 2024.

The WikiOrchestra performed two short pieces of Polish music at the Wikimania 2024 closing ceremony.

What is the WikiOrchestra?

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The WikiOrchestra is an international group of musician Wikimedians who come together to perform at Wikimedia events and was proposed by Lukas Mezger (User:Gnom).

Why is there a WikiOrchestra?

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Traditionally, the Wikimania opening and/or closing ceromonies include a 'cultural exhibition' of music and/or dance typical to the location hosting Wikimania that year.

In the spirit of this year's Wikimania theme, "Collaboration of the Open", there was a conference proposal by User:Gnom for an orchestra to bring a new and collaborative approach to this tradition by inviting members of the community to join the 'WikiOrchestra' to perform during the closing ceremony together.

a performance of the WikiEulenOrchester at the German-language WikiCon in 2021

The WikiOrchestra is based on the 'WikiEulenOrchester', which has already become a tradition at WikiCon, the annual conference of the German-language Wikimedia community, since its first performance in 2017.

The WikiOrchestra also tried to honour the city of Katowice, which was formally recognised as a "City of Music" through the UNESCO "Creative Cities" scheme in 2015.

What music was played?

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Nocturne in E-Flat Major

We played the following two pieces:

We decided that we wanted to choose a piece of Polish music to honour the host nation of Wikimania 2024 – and when you look at the history of Polish music, there is one name that really stands out: It's the Polish-French pianist and composer Frydéryk Szópen, known in French as Frédéric Chopin. Many of his works draw on traditional Polish folk dances like the polonaise and the mazurka. However, during his short life in the first half of the nineteenth century, Chopin composed almost exclusively for solo piano. But we did manage to find an old arrangement of his famous second Nocturne in E-flat major for chamber orchestra that we then re-arranged for our little ensemble. We tried it out during our first-ever rehearsal last night, and we hope that you can recognize and enjoy this famous melody.

Karliku (Silesian folk song)
  • Karliku (Silesian folk song)

For the second piece, we wanted to draw from the inspiring performances of the Silesian miners' band at the start of the opening ceremony and from the folk dance group that joined us all the way from Warsaw.

If you listened closely during the Opening Ceremony, you will recognise the melody that we are about to play, because the band also included it in their selection. It is a traditional folk song from Silesia about a young miner called Karlik – or Charlie in English.

The song tells the following story: A group of townspeople see Karlik walking down the street and they ask him what he has in his basket, and he responds that he is carrying pidgeons, but most importantly his hammer, which he of course needs as a proper Silesian miner. The townspeople then press on to ask about what Karlik did the night before, and he then boasts that he went dancing in the town of Rybnik, which is just an hour South of Katowice. And it would not be a proper folk song if it did not end with with Karlik revealing that he may have stolen a kiss from a girl at the dance.

How did it happen?

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All coordination for the WikiOrchestra happened over a private Telegram group, which included a core set of classical instrument musicians and singers. As word of the WikiOrchestra spread, new members were added who played electric bass, percussion, ukelele, and more.

Bringing instruments was a complication that was addressed by the generosity of the local Silesian Music Center, who loaned instruments and music stands to the group. They provided instruments such as a violin, viola, cello, double bass, and a drum set.

The score was prepared by User:Gnom, making sure the arrangements were not copyrighted. The first practice for the group was in-person in Katowice, just a few days before the performance.

Gereon Kalkuhl (User:Gereon K.) had submitted a presentation for Wikimania: “Music about Wikipedia and at Wikipedia events”. It was accepted for a 40-minute session. Shortly before the conference began, organizer told him that his presentation had been scheduled for the key note at the closing ceremony and that he should please shorten it to 15 minutes. He rewrote it.

Who played in the WikiOrchestra?

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The WikiOrchestra featured 19 musicians from 13 different countries on 14 different instruments:

What about next year?

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If you would like to perform with us at Wikimania 2025 in Nairobi, or if you have any ideas about what we should sing or play, please leave a message on the talk page.

Documentation

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