On the Dance Floor, on the Screen, on the Stage. Popular Music in the Interwar Period: Polish, Jewish, Shared

This chapter examines the Polish Jewish cultural frontier as the cradle of Poland's first mass culture. It identifies Polish Jewish intellectuals and artists that was connected to the entertainment industry, such as in music, film, theatre, and cabaret. It also describes the developments in America during the main centre of popular culture and the entertainment industry, which was mostly shaped by immigrants and several Jews from eastern Europe. The chapter reviews the beginnings of the Polish record industry that dated back to the early twentieth century and mentions the Jewish entrepreneurs that saw both its potential. It discusses Syrena Record as the first record label in Poland that was founded in 1904 in Warsaw by Juliusz Feigenbaum, who drew upon his family's generation-spanning tradition in the music business.