page_title: Pol'and'Rock Festival
section_title: Background
hierarchical_section_title: Pol'and'Rock Festival / Background
caption_attribution_description: Polski: Joachim Gauck i Bronisław Komorowski na Przystanku Woodstock w 2012 r. Deutsch: Joachim Gauck und Bronisław Komorowski auf der Haltestelle Woodstock 2012. 中文: 2012波兰总统布羅尼斯瓦夫·科莫羅夫斯基和德国总统约阿希姆·高克参观波兰伍德斯托克音乐艺术节.
context_page_description: Pol'and'Rock Festival, formerly known as Woodstock Festival Poland is an annual free rock music festival in Poland, inspired by the Woodstock festival. The festival has been held since 1995. In 2009 Woodstock Festival Poland gathered an audience of over 400,000 people, in 2011 the attendance was above 700,000, in 2012 about 550,000 people, in 2013 about 500,000 and in 2014 the attendance reached a record high of about 750,000. The average attendance for the past four years is 625,000 people. Since the 11th edition of the festival, the promoters have dubbed the event to be "the biggest open-air festival in Europe".
context_section_description: The festival's motto is "Love, Friendship, Music". The event is held by the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity as a way of thanking its volunteers. Generally a weekend-long event, its two stages are in continuous use from early afternoon to dawn, featuring performances by around 30 bands every year. Many Polish bands have made several appearances, including IRA, Myslovitz, Dżem, Acid Drinkers, Lessdress and 2TM2,3. International bands are also invited every year - Sabaton (band), The Stranglers, Papa Roach, The Prodigy, Guano Apes, Kontrust, Clawfinger, Nigel Kennedy, Gentleman, Korpiklaani among many others. Festival promoters also aim to promote emerging talent - and a competition is held prior to the festival, and the winners are given a chance to perform at the festival. The main musical theme is generally rock, but genres range from folk through experimental to metal. Recent years has also seen reggae, electronic music and even classical music represented. 
  The name Przystanek Woodstock - "Woodstock Station" refers to peace and friendship symbolized by the Woodstock Festival and the TV series Northern Exposure, aired as Przystanek Alaska (Alaska Station), immensely popular in Poland at that time. The name of the festival has been changed to PolAndRock Festival on March 8th, 2018. The change has been motivated by licensing dispute with the agency representing Michael Lang. New name reflects the both the rock'n'roll roots of the event and the strong ties to the heritage of Polish democratic and freedom fighting movement. The organizers of the festival claim that even though the name of the festival has changed, the ethos behind the event remains unchanged. 
  Along with the concerts on two stages there are many other events organized during the festival. The Academy Of The Finest Arts is a place where young people meet with well-known politicians like Lech Wałęsa, a former Polish president, artists, journalists, musicians, actors and religious leaders including Kesang Takla - the Dalai Lama's Northern European representative. The festival also showcases dozens of NGO organizations such as Greenpeace, Polish Humanitarian Action, animal rights activists and many other third sector organizations and initiatives.
caption: Presidents Bronisław Komorowski and Joachim Gauck at Woodstock Festival Poland 2012
exif: {"Image Make": "Canon", "Image Model": "Canon EOS 600D", "Image Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Image XResolution": "72", "Image YResolution": "72", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image Software": "QuickTime 7.7.1", "Image DateTime": "2012:08:03 09:55:45", "Image Artist": "Ralf Lotys", "Image HostComputer": "Mac OS X 10.7.4", "Image Copyright": "Ralf Lotys", "Image ExifOffset": "284", "GPS GPSVersionID": "[2, 2, 0, 0]", "GPS GPSLatitudeRef": "N", "GPS GPSLatitude": "[52, 184/5, 0]", "GPS GPSLongitudeRef": "E", "GPS GPSLongitude": "[14, 81/2, 0]", "GPS GPSAltitudeRef": "0", "GPS GPSAltitude": "15054/281", "GPS GPSTimeStamp": "[10, 34, 2600]", "GPS GPSMapDatum": "WGS-84", "Image GPSInfo": "750", "EXIF ExposureTime": "1/80", "EXIF FNumber": "5", "EXIF ExposureProgram": "Aperture Priority", "EXIF ISOSpeedRatings": "400", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0220", "EXIF DateTimeOriginal": "2012:08:02 12:13:55", "EXIF DateTimeDigitized": "2012:08:02 12:13:55", "EXIF ComponentsConfiguration": "Y", "EXIF ShutterSpeedValue": "51/8", "EXIF ApertureValue": "37/8", "EXIF ExposureBiasValue": "-4/3", "EXIF MaxApertureValue": "1976/453", "EXIF MeteringMode": "Pattern", "EXIF Flash": "Flash did not fire, compulsory flash mode", "EXIF FocalLength": "35", "EXIF SubSecTime": "22", "EXIF SubSecTimeOriginal": "22", "EXIF SubSecTimeDigitized": "22", "EXIF FlashPixVersion": "0100", "EXIF ColorSpace": "sRGB", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "2222", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "1481", "EXIF FocalPlaneXResolution": "97379/17", "EXIF FocalPlaneYResolution": "331079/57", "EXIF FocalPlaneResolutionUnit": "2", "EXIF CustomRendered": "Normal", "EXIF ExposureMode": "Auto Exposure", "EXIF WhiteBalance": "Manual", "EXIF SceneCaptureType": "Standard"}