Fred Ziwich was born in Cleveland, Ohio on March 10, 1954. He began taking accordion lessons at the age of 5, and could read music before he could read English. Fred started taking clarinet lessons in the 4th grade, began playing the tenor sax in the 8th grade, and learned to play the button box by his senior year in high school. Upon his graduation from Indiana University in 1977, he formed Fred Ziwich…
Dean Hansen was born in Ithaca, Ne in April of 1933 into a farming family of German ancestry. He was stricken with polio at the age of four and suffered paralysis of his right leg. Fearing his condition would prevent dean from ever farming, his parents introduced him to music by buying him an accordion. After several surgeries, he was able to walk and take music lessons from various teachers including Fritz Poppe, who influenced…
Carl Finch was born in Texarkana, Tx on November 29, 1951. He began performing at the early age of 4 years old by singing in church choirs and later spent his high school years forming and playing in rock bands in northeast Texas. Carl minored in music at the University of North Texas and formed Brave Combo in Denton, TX in 1979. This began a 35-year legacy of playing original and innovative arrangements of…
Stanley “Stas” Golonka was born in 1944 into a polish family in Chicago. He was raised in a Polish neighborhood, attended a Polish school, and listened regularly to Polish radio programs. Inspired by the music of Li’l wally, Stas developed his vocal and drumming skills and formed his first band, the Polka Diamonds, in the late 1950s. After his return from service in the U.S. Army in 1967, Stas resumed his musical career and performed…
Born on November 3, 1956 in Buffalo, NY, Mark Trzepacz was 15 years old when he started taking trumpet lessons. Remarkably, he was performing in his first band only seven months later. Growing up in Buffalo’s heavily-Polish East Side, Mark’s passion for polka music was a foregone conclusion. First playing in smaller combos, he quickly became an in-demand commodity, graduating to some of the nation’s biggest bands. It was during his tenure with The Dynatones,…
Randy Koslosky has made significant contributions to the polka industry as a performer, songwriter, studio musician, producer, and creator of unique polka productions. Born in Pittsburgh in 1962, Randy has been actively performing polka music since 1976. He started with a band formed along with his brother that later became known as Energy. He also performed regularly with The Sounds and later joined Henny & the Versa J’s. With these bands, he has been…
Kevin Adams is an accomplished musician, composer, producer and recording artist, having recorded on Trumpet, Clarinet, Guitar and Piano. His work is featured on over 40 recordings of which 11 have received Grammy® nominations from the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences. Kevin has been performing polka music across the country for nearly 40 years with numerous nationally touring polka bands including lengthy stints of extensive road work with the band of IPA Hall…
Eddie was born in Toledo, Ohio to a musical family. Mother Gina is a trained clarinetist and vocalist while father, Dionysius “Danny” Biegaj played trumpet and sang. With the help of “Busia” Helen (his maternal grandmother) at a young age Eddie started his love for polka and Polish culture and heritage by singing along to the 78 RPMs and 45’s of such greats as Frank Wojnarowski, the “Connecticut Twins” and “The Naturals”. He started…
Music has always played an important part of Frank Borzymowski’s life. His first professional gig was at the ripe old age of 14 and it wasn’t long after that all of Baltimore’s Polonia wanted to book Joe and Anita’s boy for their functions. Frank’s high school and college years were filled with great memories playing polkas at Baltimore’s Polish Home, Blob’s Park and all the many Polish parishes through-out the east side of the…
John (Foo) Furmaniak (pictured at right with daughter Christy), was born on August 7, 1948 to Thaddeus (Ted) and LaVerne Furmaniak. He is the oldest of their five children. John became infatuated with the accordion at the young age of 10 when a representative of the Mort Herald Accordion School of Music appeared at his grade school and demonstrated the sound of the accordion. John came home from school that day and asked…
Craig Ebel has been involved in polka music all his life. Craig grew up in a musical family with his mother, LaVay, singing and playing guitar in country western bands and his father, Elhart, building and operating the Bel-Rae Ballroom in Mounds View, Minnesota, from 1964 to 1971. The Bel-Rae became one of the most popular dance spots in the country and the foundation of Craig’s musical career. Craig has been playing…
Wally Dombrowski’s journey into music began when he started taking trumpet lessons at five years of age. Once he got the basics of the instrument down, it was evident that he could play by ear and would play along with recordings at home without the aid of any written music. His perfect pitch assisted him in teaching himself how to play concertina at the age of six. At the age of nine, Wally’s…
John Gora was born on July 27, 1959, in Poland and emigrated to Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, with his parents in 1974. He learned to play clarinet and saxophone in 1977. John formed a musical group “Gorale” catering to “Continental” music crowds and they played their first polka engagements in the Catskills and at Erie Polka Days. The band has performed throughout Canada, the United States and Europe. As a DJ heard on…
Henry David (Henny) Jasiewicz was born in McKeesport, Pennsylvania, on May 22, 1945. He has performed professionally since he was nine years old and started his polka career playing trumpet for Leo Gibala & The Bell Hops. Henny performed with this group for several years. In 1979 he started his own band known as Henny & The Versa Js, which is in its 39th year and has performed locally, nationally and in Poland.…
Richie Gomulka was born on February 6, 1942, in Chicago, Illinois to first generation American-born parents, Ted and Mary (Owca) Gomulka. Richie is the oldest of four children. He has two sisters, Angie Gomulka and Dianne (Steve) Paliga, and one brother Lenny (Estelle) Gomulka. Richie is happily married to his polka sweetheart of 35 years, Suellen. Together they have five wonderful children Gary, Ronnie, Michelle, Karen and Mary Sue. They boast…
It all started at the age of seven when Stephanie was being taught the accordion by her mom, Wanda, and the Polish vocals by her grandmother, Stephanie. This created an interest in listening to Polish music. While Henry her father was off bowling, Wanda took Stephanie to see Li’l Wally when he was in town. When Stephanie saw Li’l Wally play the concertina and sing “Hello My Kejda,” she was fascinated with this…
Ed Guca was born on August 7, 1944 to a very musical Polish family in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. His uncle played clarinet in a popular wedding band and was of particular influence in Ed’s love for Polka music. It was in his youth that Ed learned how to play the accordion from a teacher who showed him how to play from the heart. Ed formed his first band, The Polka Aces, in…
As a toddler, Joe Oberaitis was already the polka promoter herding the neighborhood kids together and making them listen to his polka records. By kindergarten, Joe was taking accordion lessons. At age seven, he had already appeared on the local television talent show, “The Gene Carroll Show,” playing Eddie Zima’s “Meet The Missus Polka,” which he learned by ear. Through grade school, he regularly played at school functions and then graduated on to Rubbermaid Parties.…
Stanley “Stas” Bulanda’s love for polka music started at a very early age while listening to the music of his fathers’ and uncles’ polka band. They would let him sit on the stage and started his musical education. After a few years, they even allowed him to sit in on the drums at some of their engagements. It was in high school that he teamed up with a few of his friends…
Michael T. Matousek was born in 1956 into what would become one of Baltimore’s most prominent polka families. His father Al was regarded as one of Maryland’s most celebrated polka accordionists, and his mother, Connie, was recognized as one of the noted polka dance instructors who helped bring the “polka hop” to Charm City. Because of their influence, at the age of eight Mike was already singing in Polish and dancing the polka along with…
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