wojtek

Wojtek

for symphonic band

Wojtek ['voj.tɛk] is a musical telling of the story of a Syrian brown bear born in 1942. As a cub, this bear was orphaned and found alone in a railroad station in Hamadan, Iran.The young boy who found him sold the cub to members of the Polish Army, who were passing through. The cub was then donated to the 22nd Artillery Supply Company, with whom he would spend the majority of his life. It was here, amidst soldiers of the Second World War, where the bear received his name: Wojtek, meaning "Happy Warrior." The soldiers found fast friendship with Wojtek. They fed him milk and fruit, and gave him beer and tobacco. Wojtek only knew the company of these men, and showed them nothing but love and affection. The soldiers wrestled with Wojtek, marched with Wojtek, and even slept with Wojtek. In a time of fear and fighting, Wojtek became a beacon of companionship and spirit.Traveling with the 22nd, Wojtek was soon granted the rank of private, and eventually, corporal. He lived his life with these men, living what they lived, enduring what they endured. After the war, Wojtek retired to a zoo in Edinburgh, where he was visited by his compatriots until he passed away, peacefully, at the age of 21.

Young men, displaced from their families and homes, found comfort in a bear. A bear, separated from his mother and without a home, found comfort in the men. The situation they found themselves in was not in the nature of either bear or man, and despite being placed in the environment of war, these two species found common ground not in violence, but in friendship.Wojtek became a symbol for the 22nd Artillery Supply Company, not only because he provided affection and companionship, but perhaps also because he was an embodiment of the soldiers themselves. The incongruousness of a wild animal in a group of men runs parallel to that of men in a war. During the Battle of Monte Cassino in 1944, Wojtek spots the sea, and breaks from the battle. In this moment, Wojtek glimpses a different life, that of a wild animal, but he stays with the men. The men and the bear are trapped together, in a war in which they don't belong. "Happy Warriors" in someone else's war.

Wojtek begins with the din of war already under way. Eventually, the racket dissolves, and we enter the stillness of the trainyard. The soldiers and the bear come together, and the excitement kicks off. The music explores collages of Wojtek's life with the soldiers, including wrestling, marching, and drinking. A bittersweet lullaby plunges us into a dark but cozy night with Wojtek, spent huddled close around a fire and then sleeping in the warmth of each other's bodies. This rest is interrupted by more excitement, launching us into another tableau. Although distracted by the fun and thrill, the presence of war has not disappeared, and it soon spills over into the forefront once again. Amidst the frenzy, echoes of Wojtek's beginnings interrupt the ruckus, reminding of the discontinuity of his presence. In the end, although the fever of war is omnipresent, the nature of Wojtek, and the men, persevere.