"I feel appreciated"

From Rzeczpospolita.
translation: Krysia Szurek

Original Polish link.

She still remains the only Polish vocalist that can be proud of a worldwide career. She will sing in Zabrze at Dom Muzyki i Tanca (5.10), Warsaw at Sala Kongresowa (6.10) and Aula UAM in Poznan (7.10). She will record a live album here. And before the concerts she tells RZ about her meetings with stars.

In NY I was very happy to see Danny de Vito, who came with his wife, Rhea Perlman, also an actress. They entered my dressing room. It was fun. In Santa Barbara, Michael Douglas came for our concert. He brought his entire family and friends. But he didn't come to greet us. Maybe he didn't like it?

He presence caught me off-guard. I was told he was there when I was going onstage. I stressed out. I love Gloria Estefan's visits. When I'm in Miami she always comes to see us. She says she's my fan. She's an extremely modest person. She's a good sort!

During an interview in Paris I got a phone call. "Hi, it's Liza Minnelli," she introduced herself. I thought that someone was making fun of me. But it was really her. She absolutely wanted to meet. I was even more surprised. She came to the hotel where I was meeting with journalists. As a greeting she sang one of my songs to me, "Baby you're mine." That was a fantastic experience.

I don't want to offend anybody, but the most austere one was in Parisian Olympia, which was surprising if you consider the great fame of that place and the prestige of the stars that it hosts. I think that back-up facilities in Polish cultural centers are better. I was really shocked. I talked to many artists later and they shared my opinion. I couldn't have imagined Edith Piaf performing there. I never sung in Carnegie Hall, but I've heard that it's also quite indigent. Maybe it's because those halls are all quite old.

I was honored to get the invitation to Radio City Music Hall in New York. Everybody wants to perform there and it's really hard to find an opening. So we only could play two concerts there. Tickets sold out quickly and before the concert I was shown a newspaper with ads from scalpers selling my tickets at really expensive prices. I felt appreciated. I was also very happy with the invitation to the Budokan in Tokyo.

It has great acoustic conditions and houses 10,000 people. I will also never forget the Broadway shows. In one of the theaters we had a contract for 2 weeks of performances. The hall was for 1,200 people, the atmosphere was rather intimate, almost domestic, some faces we saw several times. We recorded our live album there. It was fantastic to work on Broadway for two weeks. I felt like a New Yorker.

The most exotic and full of contrasts was at Manila in the Philippines. I didn't know what to expect, the market was not showing any sales of our albums. Sometimes I was horrified and sometimes I felt like I was in a fairy tale. We were driving through the streets among people living in cardboard boxes, while I was received in an exclusive suite, where all the things had my name engraved with golden letters. We performed in a hall without air-conditioning. It was horribly airless. But it appeared that Filipinos are very smiling and musical. They sung all our songs from the very beginning to the end. So loud that sometimes I could keep quiet. After the concerts Time and Tide sold very well and went Gold there, which was a huge surprise. After the shows in Poland I'm going to Manila again. I'll see what has changed there.

My group was really surprised with the reaction at some of the Japanese halls, where the audience always comes very elegantly dressed, and the reactions are very sober, 'cause it doesn't befit the other way. The behavior of young Japanese fans is also sometimes quite surprising. Girls burst into tears when they see their idol. It comes from huge emotions, that they can't show, cause you have to keep a physical distance.

Knock on wood, never. But reserved reaction does not necessarily mean a lack of acceptance. Four years ago I managed to encourage my sister to participate in our tour as a backing vocalist. Her voice is very similar to mine. And I was encouraging her for three years. In Dallas we were performing in a very prestigious place. It seemed that the audience is clapping their hands more quieter than usual. I felt as if I was performing in a philharmonic. And my sister was really humped, she was asking me what happened? Having more experience, I knew that they liked it. And I was not wrong. It was in Dallas where we got our best, most enthusiastic reviews.

I don't know. It definitely gives satisfaction and encourages further work. We know that somebody listens to us, that our work makes sense. I think that's enough. You always need to think to record something better, to surprise your audience, and give them even more joy. I now know fans' reactions better than before. In this internet era they write us e-mails. We immediately have our album's reviews. We know exactly what people think, what they are looking for and what is most important to them. Sometimes it's hard to believe to me, that a simple song can help someone in solving their problems. They lift one's spirit, help in surviving difficult moments. That's why, even if I write about sad things, I try to make people aware that it's not the end of the world and there is always hope for a better future.

If you come from Poland and have numerous family and friends that's impossible. It's only now when everything in Poland changed for the better.

You could say that. Anyway, saving what I've got just for myself never made much sense to me. I must, and want to, share. The only thing I allow myself is buying paintings. But I don't spend crazy money on that. I mostly choose Polish artists. I like Halina Tymusz very much. A few of her works are on the cover of my album The Sweetest Illusion. I like Professor Stanislaw Kluska's graphics. My dream is to have my own gallery. It won't be Zacheta [famous Polish art gallery in Warsaw], but I would like to show my collection, share it with the others. And maybe help artists sell their work?