Krakowiak
The krakowiak is a fast Polish folk dance from the area around Kraków. It is in duple time (2/4) and has a syncopated rhythm. The name means “from Kraków (dance)”; in French the dance is called “Cracovienne”.
- Origin
- Polish folk dance from the region around Kraków
- Time signature
- 2/4
- Tempo
- fast
- Rhythm
- syncopated
- Name
- Polish, “from Kraków (dance)”; French Cracovienne
A dance from the area around Kraków
The krakowiak is a Polish national dance in 2/4 time with alternating stress between heel and toe of the boot. In the narrower sense it is a couple dance from the region around Kraków in a fast 2/4 time; besides the alternation of heel and toe, its features include the clicking together of the heels. As the “Cracovienne” it also became a ballroom dance. It is a fast, syncopated Polish folk dance in duple time from the region around Kraków and Lesser Poland.
The rhythm in the notation
The rhythm of the krakowiak is regarded as syncopated. In the archive piece you can see such a displacement in bars 2 and 4: there a quarter note begins on the second eighth, that is, between the beats, and sounds across the second beat.
| Bar | Rhythm of the upper voice | What stands out |
|---|---|---|
| 1 and 3 | eighth, eighth, dotted eighth, sixteenth | even run without accent |
| 2 | eighth, quarter, two sixteenths | the quarter note begins on the second eighth |
| 4 | as bar 2 | accent on the quarter note |
The first notation line shows this pattern with original notes, the second the same notes without the displacement. When you listen you notice how the rhythm springs as soon as the quarter note sits on the second eighth.
Krakowiak rhythm: eighth – quarter – two sixteenths
An original example in A major. In bars 2 and 4 a quarter note with an accent falls on the second eighth. It begins between the two beats of the bar and sounds across the second beat; two sixteenth notes follow.
For comparison: the same notes without syncopation
Here every note falls on an eighth-note position, and nothing sounds across the second beat. The movement is more even and less dance-like than the first line.
A krakowiak for guitar
Horetzky’s piece is labelled “Polnische Weise” (Polish air) and written as a setting for guitar: the upper voice has the melody, with bass and chords below it.
Guitar
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Krakowiak Felix Horetzky (1796–1870), No. 40 from “60 National Airs of Different Nations” · guitar · 1 page
Under the title is “Polnische Weise” (Polish air). Before the first staff are “Nº. 40.” and “VIVACE”. 2/4 time, three sharps, chord symbols A, Bm, E7 and D. The piece has 16 bars with an upbeat; a repeat sign follows bar 8. In bars 2, 4, 6, 10, 12 and 14 a quarter note falls on the second eighth; accent marks above it appear in bars 4, 6, 10, 12 and 14.
Distinction from the mazurka
Polish dances have different time signatures. The krakowiak is in duple time, the mazurka by contrast in triple time, as the page on the mazurka shows. What both share is a rhythm that deliberately displaces the stress: in the krakowiak through the quarter note between the beats, in the mazurka through the accent that usually moves to the second, sometimes the third, beat.
Common mistakes
- Placing the quarter note on the beat: It begins on the second eighth, not on beat two. Striking it too early or too late takes the displacement out of the dance.
- Smearing the two sixteenth notes: They fill the last eighth of the bar and must be equal in length.
- Counting the upbeat as a full bar: The piece begins with an upbeat; the first full bar is bar 1.
Continue on Maikstrings
Related terms
Two-four timeSyncopationAccentVivaceMazurkaPolonaisePolkaDanceDotted note
Editor: Maik Krohm · reviewed on 3 October 2026
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