By Troy Hudson

I’m driving down Highland Avenue toward South Portland, my morning coffee quickly losing heat to the still-frigid air in the cabin. My hands are tapping a familiar rhythm on the steering wheel in quick 2/4 time, with a strong emphasis on the second beat that intermittently causes me to activate my windshield wipers, to my embarrassment. My foot is tapping, my head is nodding gently and my face has broken into an easy smile. I’m listening to polka, of course!

Many have tried to identify what it is about polka that arouses such great, unbounded joy in the receptive listener, but for all the academic discourse on the subject (not to mention countless heated discussions at stimulating cocktail parties everywhere), polka has remained an enigma. After all, this traditional Czech (or maybe Polish? It seems everybody wants a piece of the action when it comes to polka) music and dance has lately acquired an unfortunate but unmistakable stink of lameness. Put on a Frank Yankovic record at your next social gathering if you don’t believe me, and watch the faces of your companions transition from bemused good humor to troubled confusion to abject horror. In our modern age, polka, it seems, is not for the faint of heart.

Yet I would argue that we need polka now more than ever. Unlike the often cynical songs that populate the airwaves (or streaming services) today, polka music is optimistic­ — not out of some dopey preoccupation with a utopian future or an idealized past, but founded instead in a basic faith in humanity as we truly are now. Polka is folk music with peasant roots that has come to touch every stratum of society with its universal appeal to simply engage in a few moments of frivolity to help ease the suffering of life. Does it succeed? Considering polka has been going strong since its introduction in the 1830s, it’s difficult to deny that the jolly rhythms, major-key melodies and light-hearted lyrical themes have struck a chord with a diverse audience looking to have fun on the dance floor.

You don’t have to dance to enjoy polka, of course, although the quick skipping dance is said to be one of the most enjoyable steps ever invented. You can listen to polka in the car, while studying or anytime you need a pick-me-up that won’t bring you down. Polka may seem exotic at first listen, but with a few tunes under your belt you’ll be singing along to “Beer Barrel Polka” in no time: “Roll out the barrel, we’ll have a barrel of fun!”