Vanguard News Network
VNN Media
VNN Digital Library
VNN Reader Mail
VNN Broadcasts

Old August 22nd, 2014 #61
Englisc
Amor Patriae Nostra Lex
 
Englisc's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: England
Posts: 1,382
Default

You are an ethnic Albanian from Kosovo? With your interest in Albanian things I can only guess you are not a Serb...
 
Old August 22nd, 2014 #62
Arbnor
Junior Member
 
Arbnor's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Kosovo
Posts: 228
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by Englisc View Post
You are an ethnic Albanian from Kosovo? With your interest in Albanian things I can only guess you are not a Serb...
Yes, I am Kosovo Albanian.
 
Old August 22nd, 2014 #63
Arbnor
Junior Member
 
Arbnor's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Kosovo
Posts: 228
Default Folk music

Albanian folk music falls into three sylistic groups, with other important music areas around Shkodër and Tirana; the major groupings are the Ghegs of the north and southern Labs and Tosks. The northern and southern traditions are contrasted by the "rugged and heroic" tone of the north and the "relaxed, gentle and exceptionally beautiful" form of the south.

Albanian folk songs can be divided into major groups, the heroic epics of the north, and the sweetly melodic lullabies, love songs, wedding music, work songs and other kinds of song. The music of various festivals and holidays is also an important part of Albanian folk song. Lullabies and laments are very important kinds of Albanian folk song, and are generally performed by solo women.
 
Old August 22nd, 2014 #64
Arbnor
Junior Member
 
Arbnor's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Kosovo
Posts: 228
Default

Gheg

The Ghegs from north of the Shkumbini River are known for a distinctive variety of sung epic poetry. Many of these are about Skanderbeg, a 15th century warrior who led the struggle against the Turks, and the "constant Albanian themes of honour, hospitality, treachery and revenge". These traditions are a form of oral history for the Ghegs, and also "preserve and inculcate moral codes and social values".
Styles of epics also include the "këngë trimash/kreshnikësh" (Songs of brave men/frontier warriors), ballads and "Vajtims maje krahi" (cries).
The most traditional variety of epic poetry is the Albanian Songs of the Frontier Warriors. These epic poems are sung, accompanied by a "lahuta", a one-stringed fiddle.
Though men are the traditional performers, women have increasingly been taking part in epic balladry.
Along with the "def", "çifteli" and "sharki" are used in a style of dance and pastoral songs.
Homemade wind instruments are traditionally used by shepherds in northern Albania; these include the "zumarë", an unusual kind of clarinet.
This shepherds' music is "melancholic and contemplative" in tone.
The songs called "maje-krahi" are another important part of North Albanian folk song; these were originally used by mountaineers to communicate over wide distances, but are now seen as songs. "Maje-krahi" songs require the full range of the voice and are full of "melismatic nuances and falsetto cries".

Last edited by Arbnor; August 22nd, 2014 at 08:35 AM.
 
Old August 22nd, 2014 #65
Arbnor
Junior Member
 
Arbnor's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Kosovo
Posts: 228
Default

Tosk

Southern Albanian music is soft and gentle, and polyphonic in nature. Vlorë in the southwest has perhaps the most unusual vocal traditions in the area, with four distinct parts (taker, thrower, turner and drone) that combine to create a complex and emotionally cathartic melody. Author Kim Burton has described the melodies as "decorated with falsetto and vibrato, sometimes interrupted by wild and mournful cries". This polyphonic vocal music is full of power that "stems from the tension between the immense emotional weight it carries, rooted in centuries of pride, poverty and oppression, and the strictly formal, almost ritualistic nature of its structure".
South Albania is also known for funeral laments with a chorus and one to two soloists with overlapping, mournful voices.
 
Old August 22nd, 2014 #66
Arbnor
Junior Member
 
Arbnor's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Kosovo
Posts: 228
Default

Iso-Polyphony

The traditional Albanian polyphonic music can be divided into two major stylistic groups as performed by the Ghegs of northern Albania and Tosks and Labs living in the southern part of the country.
The term iso is related to the ison of Byzantine church music and refers to the drone, which accompanies the polyphonic singing. The drone is performed in two ways: among the Tosks, it is always continuous and sung on the syllable ‘e’, using staggered breathing; while among the Labs, the drone is sometimes sung as a rhythmic tone, performed to the text of the song. It can be differentiated between two-, three- and four-voice polyphony. Two-voice iso-polyphony represents the simplest form of Albanian polyphony and is popular all over southern Albania.
Iso-polyphony is practised mainly by men, but there is a number of female singers, too. The music is performed at a wide range of social events, such as weddings, funerals, harvest feasts, religious celebrations and festivals such as the well-known Albanian folk festival in Gjirokastra.
Albanian iso-polyphony is characterised by songs consisting of three parts: two solo parts, a melody and a countermelody with a choral drone. Four-part singing is found less often and only among the Labs. This form consists also of two solo parts, but is accompanied by a double drone, one choral and one solo. The structure of the solo parts differs according to the different ways of performing the drone, but there is also a great variety of structures within the two drone types, especially in the pedal style that is popular with all groups performing this music.
 
Old August 22nd, 2014 #67
Arbnor
Junior Member
 
Arbnor's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Kosovo
Posts: 228
Default North

 
Old August 22nd, 2014 #71
Arbnor
Junior Member
 
Arbnor's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Kosovo
Posts: 228
Default South

 
Old August 22nd, 2014 #72
Arbnor
Junior Member
 
Arbnor's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Kosovo
Posts: 228
Default

 
Old August 22nd, 2014 #73
Arbnor
Junior Member
 
Arbnor's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Kosovo
Posts: 228
Default Folk music in Kosovo

RAPSODI

Rapsodi are poetry mainly about homeland,war and famous warriors. They are always accompanied with instruments such as "Ciftelia" or "Sharkia".

SOFRAT

Sofrat represents a group of male artists and singers who sing together siting around the table. Their songs are mostly folklore with different social topics which are followed by generations.These songs are accompanied with many instruments.The musicians are also part of sofra. Sofrat, organized into traditional orders represent a precious treasure of cultural heritage in Kosovo.Lots of traditional artists have become famous from their interpretations in Sofra. Depending from the rhythm, sofra songs can be accompanied with various traditional dances. Nowadays, sofra continues to be very popular and present almost in every wedding.It happens to be organized also as a part of cultural program in some cities.

WEDDING SONGS

These songs are characteristic for weddings. They're separated on two parts. The first part are Songs for the bride before she gets married. They're usually accompanied with "Def" - a traditional instrument and are similar to poetry. Most of those songs are original creations that are a moment dedication for that person getting married.
The second part are songs for the couple. They are accompanied with lots of instruments and have interesting topics. Some of them express congratulations for the couple, characteristics of living together etc. Wedding Songs usually goes together with specific traditional dance, therefore they are interesting and important because represents also lots of general Kosovar tradition information.

DIRGE (Kenge Vaji)

They represent an original and very emotional creations which are dedicated to a close and beloved person after their death.It is specific because its an art born from the suffer. This genre is almost the oldest.It has many variations and it is very popular because it has to do with a special condition that people confront in their daily life. Dirge can be created from one or more persons. The most difficult and rarest variation is The polyphonic Dirge because it needs four participants to be in a harmony.

LULLABIES

Lullabies are short poetic monologues, where the parents express their wishes about their children before sleep. The most usual artistic and literary figures that are used are comparison and personification. They're too lyrical. Their characteristic is that most of them start with "Nani-nani djalin/vajzen" or "Nina-nana". Lullabies are the finest representative about expressing parental love and the irreplaceable role of family in Kosovo tradition.

Last edited by Arbnor; August 22nd, 2014 at 08:30 AM.
 
Old August 22nd, 2014 #74
Arbnor
Junior Member
 
Arbnor's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Kosovo
Posts: 228
Default

 
Old August 22nd, 2014 #77
Arbnor
Junior Member
 
Arbnor's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Kosovo
Posts: 228
Default Montenegro

Albanians of Montenegro are Ghegs who mainly live in South-Eastern Montenegro, in the region commonly known as Malesija as well as in the municipality of Ulcinj.

 
Old August 22nd, 2014 #78
Arbnor
Junior Member
 
Arbnor's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Kosovo
Posts: 228
Default Macedonia

The Albanian minority lives mostly in the north-western part of the country. The largest Albanian communities are in the municipalities of Tetovo, Gostivar, Debar, Struga, Kičevo, Kumanovo and Skopje. Except for a small Tosk population around lakes Prespa and Ohrid, all ethnic Albanians in Macedonia are Ghegs.

 
Old August 22nd, 2014 #79
Arbnor
Junior Member
 
Arbnor's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Kosovo
Posts: 228
Default Chameria

Cham Albanians, or Chams are a sub-group of Albanians who originally resided in the region of Epirus in northwestern Greece, an area known among Albanians as Chameria.

 
Old August 22nd, 2014 #80
Arbnor
Junior Member
 
Arbnor's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Kosovo
Posts: 228
Default Arbereshe / Arvanites

The Arbëreshë are a linguistic and ethnic Albanian minority community living in southern Italy, especially the regions of Basilicata, Molise, Apulia, Calabria and Sicily.They settled in Southern Italy in the 15th to 18th centuries AD in several waves of migrations, following the death of the Albanian national hero George Kastrioti Skanderbeg and the gradual conquest of Albania and throughout the Byzantine Empire by the Ottoman Turks.


Arvanites are a population group in Greece who traditionally speak Arvanitika, a dialect of the Albanian language. They settled in Greece during the late Middle Ages and were the dominant population element of some regions of the Peloponnese and Attica until the 19th century.Arvanites today self-identify as Greeks.

 
Reply

Share


Thread
Display Modes


All times are GMT -5. The time now is 09:57 AM.
Page generated in 0.60967 seconds.