Zbigniew Rawicz – Morze [The Sea] Tango from Operetta „Panna Wodna” [The Water Maiden] (Tekst & muz. Jerzy Lawina –Świętochowski), Muza 1948 (Polish)

NOTE: The Polish pre-war operetta "Panna Wodna" [The Water Maiden] whose biggest hit is the tango "Morze," was composed by Jerzy Lawina-Świętochowski just before the outbreak of World War 2 and pre-premiered in Warsaw on August 2, 1939. The play was a great success, despite the middle of the vacation season and the growing war atmosphere in Poland. However, the premiere scheduled after the vacations did not take place due to the outbreak of World War II on September 1, 1939 and Luftwaffe bombing raids on Warsaw and other Polish cities.

The operetta had to wait until the 1960s for its postwar premiere, as its bourgeois content did not appeal to the postwar communist dictators. (The libretto is based on a love comedy of misunderstandings, set on the Polish luxury cruise ship "Panna Wodna" sailing from Hawaii to Gdynia.) Also, the tango "Sea" survived the war - one of a couple of lovely songs written by Lawina-Świętochowski together with other well-known authors. I present it here in a 1948 recording made by the rising star of Polish postwar song, Zbigniew Rawicz. He managed to record several hits as a chorus singer for Syrena Records just before the outbreak of war, and his beautiful lyrical tenor, at times passing almost into falsetto, was memorable to many admirers. After the war, he recorded many outstanding performances and is still highly valued by Polish 78 rpms collectors.

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