Our Name

Who Is Janosik? The ensemble gets its name from an 18th-century part-legendary, part-historical hero, JURAJ JANOSIK, an extraordinary outlaw, leader of a band of robbers who roamed the Tatra Mountains in the Robin Hood tradition, robbing the rich to give to the poor. He was a hero to both the Polish mountaineers on the north and to Czechs on the south.

Every expedition he made was preceded by looking for inspiration in music and song. After a successful exploit he would traditionally dance and jump over the fire, an action that no one could rival. He would bestow the wealth on the people of his settlement and even an impoverished Polish king. The Empress of Austria even received a golden hen and twelve eggs from Janosik as a reward for dancing with him in the inn. He was the leader of 12 faithful comrades but was executed in 1713 at the hands of traitors.