Vocantus was founded in 2020 in Elbląg by Przemysław Piejdak and Tomasz Czypul. There are three people from Elbląg in the band: Urszula Leśniewska, Marcin Skotnicki and Przemysław Piejdak. They are complemented by Eliza Fronszczyk, Kinga Skowronek and Tomasz Czypul from Gdynia.
The group performs historical music from the 13th to 15th centuries on replicas of instruments from the late Middle Ages. The instruments were made by a luthier and member of Vocantus – Tomasz Czypul. What distinguishes them from other bands dealing with early music is undoubtedly their folk approach to its interpretation. The members of Vocantus themselves describe the genre of music they perform as “medieval folk”.
The group’s second music video premiered in July 2023. The Vocantus band performs medieval folk music, co-created by musicians from Elbląg and Gdynia. The presented material is an original arrangement of “Palastinalied”, a song about the Crusades, written at the beginning of the 13th century by minnesinger Walther von der Vogelweide. It is one of the most famous songs from the Middle Ages today. As an interesting fact, it is worth adding that Vocantus recorded “Palastinalied” in Middle High German, and the text was written down from a copy of a 14th-century manuscript by band member Przemysław Piejdak.
The Vocantus band can be heard live mainly during various historical events and festivals. In August 2023, the band performed in Świecin during an event dedicated to the reconstruction of the battle of 1463, and the next day they played in Gniew during “Vivat Vasa!”, one of the largest historical reconstruction events in Poland. They also appear to play as a band under the name Veratus.
