From Romania to Serbia there is only one step. Yet the Serbian music is even more misunderstood than its Latin neighbors - that's how! My forays into the former Yugoslavia gave me the opportunity to brief immersion in the musical art of the South Slavs. Only a river separates Romania from Serbia. But suffice it to cross the Danube by road via the Iron Gates dam to noticed that the distance between the two countries is far greater than the width of a watercourse. Here the former Yugoslavia, villages surrounded by beautiful quiets and large villas. The emigration policy of controlled Tito brought wholesome domestic currency and this is still noticeable, especially coming back from Romania where the only buildings that have retained some charm - I do not mean the homes of the nouveau riche - predate the iron grip of totalitarianism. Romanians maintain a sincere admiration for their Slavic neighbors. Such a feeling is all the more remarkable because it is deliberately absent other considerations border, north, east and south. Difficult to understand the Romanians that Yugoslavia was not a land of plenty and represented an altogether less grotesque avatar of communist despotism. But Tito's propaganda, visibly touched his right target, and continues to operate, thirty years after the death of the tyrant.
Sometimes when moving the locks, Romanians and Serbs exchanged a few words.
- Whoa! What will become of you when Tito died tomorrow? said the Romanians.
- And you, what will become of you if Ceausescu did not die? giggling the Yugoslavs.
Little traffic allowed citizens of both countries to cross the border, cars laden with vegetables, bread or chocolate. The minor concession to capitalism so despised yet offered a semblance of well-being to border, and has not been without effect on the feeling of Romanians still alive on their neighbors.
Serbian cities are alien to this mix of rehabilitation and unfinished dirty makes them so boring Romania. I visited Kladovo, Negotin, Belgrade, and I traveled up the Danube valley and crossed from one side Vojvodina. Throughout this effort to provide a space walk, shaded terraces, rich windows away from the din. Not much, no doubt, but this little one has not touched the spirit of the Romanians, for which the exhaust gases can not indulge the luxury of being on the terrace, and over persist in the market that gets your eardrums with silly songs interspersed with advertisements appalling, with lots of cabinets cleverly arranged.
Belgrade resembles
Bucharest, but also the cities of central Europe, with its lively restaurants, winding streets to Belle Epoque charm, and his very wide pedestrian avenue, Ulica Knez Mihailova, connecting downtown to the fortress Kamelegdan, from which we contemplate the confluence of the Danube and the Sava. I've been thinking that the capital would become a destination of choice when Serbia has rejoined the community of nations. Yet he will he confirm the guardianship of extreme nationalism, fueled most recently by the superstition and denial of reality.
there classical music Serb? I find in some stores scattered CDs. Here is an album of 75 years anniversary of the national radio and TV, with works by Petar
Konjovic . First choirs with piano accompaniment:
Oj, za Gorom,
Orošen đerdan ,
Vragolan . Is it an imitation of
Chants of Moravian Dvořák ? Probably, but without the coolness enchanting model. P. Konjovic (1883-1970) who studied at the Prague Conservatory, the descent is not surprising.
Kestenova gora is an orchestral score of the same author. A slight pounding percussion, a sad melody on bass clarinet and orchestra awakens increments. Indeed East; irresistible crescendo, but without haste. Climax at 4'30. Curiously, the language of Konjovic joins that of Prokofiev (Alexander Nevsky
) and Novak (
Continued from South Bohemia ). Return to calm, brief epilogue. Kestenova gora is the name of a Croatian town. Was it the site of a battle with the Ottomans? Mystery. It would be misleading to make this partition a masterpiece unknown, but the arch neo-Romantic writing successful merit its place in the concert.
change of atmosphere with the extroverted
Čočečka igra introduced by the tambourine and the cackling of the woods, quickly swelled the violins. From the 2'30 barrier of Oriental music, before the clarinet offers an adagio poetic hardly troubled by the counterpoint of other woods. At the fifth minute, the strings return to the original melody, fictionalized and pushed to its climax lyric. Vortices carnival cracking of whips, syncopated rhythms, alternating with the dances more placid and always revived from the material already exposed. The scrappy side of this coin keeper unfortunately the pleasure of listening.
From these few scores, the image of Petar Konjovic itself as that of a talented musician, attached to the masters of the past, but this particular genius that would be ranked among the artists scandalously overlooked.
Other dances, a capella choir from
Svetislav Božić :
Homoljska igra . This heavy duty wreath expressionist evokes, by its archaism,
Carmina Burana, but we also think of the Bulgarian Voices and certain evocations of Orthodox worship. Energy perfect setting ranges: to discover.
What about the dramatic opening
,
Dramatična uvertira of
Vasilije Mokranjac ? Actually, not much, a honest partition of the 1880s, this is what transpires from a first listen. Then we rub our eyes, we torch ears V. Mokranjac lived from 1923 to 1984. His score would be the last contemporary Bartók, maturity Stravinskian, and he himself was born the same year that the late György Ligeti? So, we replay the opening, where we find with good will accents Mahler, but also a string of cliches served with pompous emphasis decidedly unpleasant. A leak!
Another Mokranjac, Stevan Stojanović its name. He lived from 1856 to 1914, so it's not the father of the former, and I know even if a relationship between them.
S. St. Mokranjac is a celebrity. It was a bust in the center of Negotin, his hometown, and his face adorns the 50 bills dinars. This glory seems justified. His men's chorus unaccompanied
Prva rukovet changing colors leads to a discovery of a composer whose people like to imagine art fertile.
CD (Item 431692 SOKOJ) also includes the
Ave verum Mozart (written "Mocart") and the
Hallelujah Handel Messiah . Serbian choirs RT, eds. Mladen Jagušt (Konjovic,
S. St. Mokranjac) and Vladimir Kranj
č evic (
Božić ). RTS Symphony Orchestra, dir. Bojan Su
đ ć i
.
Show:
www.pgp-rts.co.yu/katalog/izdanja/431692RadioHor.htm .
Pianist Nada
Kolundžija is a follower of Glenn Gould, which specializes in the music of our time. His only CD, sponsored by Societe Generale, was captured in the synagogue of Novi Sad in October 2004. The
Virdžinal (
Virginal ) of Vuk Kulenovic
(b. 1946) began the recital. The game hammered this page wants to imitate the timbre of the harpsichord. Dreamlike atmosphere: low and slow nimble arpeggios until the seventh minute. Here the piano impose his power and left in ruins, commented in the last epilogue by modal scales of the keyboard - once more virginal.
This piece rather successful contrast with that of
Miloš Raickovic (b. 1956) entitled
BAGHDAD, composed in 2002: "Music on a six-note theme in defense of Iraq." "Defence" against the armed intervention of the coalition, I suppose, and not against the despot who kept his people in an iron fist ... Musically, this piece based on letters of the Iraqi capital (if - the - ground - D - A - D according to enumeration BAGHDAD), improvisation sterile without any inspiration, more reminiscent of the work of a hack for any set Z a work worthy of a concert. Curious
page titled
TiSiN i Nist (and nothing
Silence), for "voice sighing" and piano, composed in 2004 by Irena Popović
age of just 20 years. A female voice whispering a few enigmatic words. Atonal piano responds. Intriguing, esoteric, not unpleasant, the keys would be welcome.
Note: Both performers do that is by Nada Kolundžija person who whispers.
CD (ref. ISBN 86-904693-1-1) also includes pages of L. Andriessen and Mr. Klagel. Site of the interpreter :
www.nadakolundzija.info .
Is it a score of forgotten Vieuxtemps expensive? The first measurements of C
oncerto for violin and orchestra of Stanojlo Rajičić while address and melody, could deceive many. Then the second theme of the Allegro moderato
on a stunning range modal says the personality of this page neoromantic we would date, without more information from the late nineteenth century. One guesses a partition grueling for the soloist (challenging pace for two minutes), although the concern
make music never be stifled by the contingencies techniques. The Andante moderato
central ambitus crosses the violin and is languishing in a long monotone retractions. The wistful second subject, given to the lowest register of the instrument, but no real melodic beauty, drives the final Presto
to dance a bit too effusive agreed. This partition
energetic, highly technically demanding, made by someone who masters the art of course, should appeal to violinists looking for new directories. It would also be misleading to make it pass for a summit failed, especially since it turns out well later that his play would suggest, the author Stanojlo Rajičić was born in 1910. He passed away in 2000.
benefit of the young Belle (1978)
Tijana Milošević , discreetly supported by the Belgrade Philharmonic and its conductor Angel Šurev. The same CD PGP RTS 430589 can hear the soloist in a music that is supposed to have been composed for her, Muzika za
Tijanu of
Aleksandra Djokic (born 1969), impressionistic ballad with piano accompaniment , softly acclaimed by the public - what we can understand. The third piece
Slavic CD suggests
Hameum Svita , following stylized folk plays by clarinetists
Božidar "Boki" Ante Milošević and
Grgin here flawlessly defended by the mastery of the violin. It would be a shame not to mention the piano Pečvari Istra. Other works
CD:
Chausson Poème,
Sonata by Debussy. See its description on
www.pgp-rts.co.yu/katalog/izdanja/430589.html .
Artist website:
tijanamandworldcontakt.com .
"
Заnucaно ςγслама "is the title of an album highly recommended by a friend of Serbia. On the cover, a bird, overlaid with a stylized lyre. I return the object. The nine titles are written in Cyrillic. I understand that these are national songs, "ballads of the time of the Ottoman wars," I said the seller, delighted to promote its skinny window to a foreign visitor. It is very likely epics: the basso continuo of the harp is used to support a very precise declamation. It feels every second the desire to share a speech, probably poetic. So we remembers that the heirs of Homer had been identified, not so long ago, among the storytellers of the Croatian coast, able to recite for very long periods of epic stories and cruel - the memory of a people. But without understanding the speech, music, based on Byzantine ways, is too monotonous to be sufficient unto itself. One thinks of some oriental songs based on the same utility, unbearable to the uninitiated. It therefore set aside this CD for Serbian-speaking. CD 406621 SOKOJ.
Another album that presented in Cyrillic, the result of same harvest:
TEOДУΛИЈA , Teodulia. Mixture of folk and modern arrangements (drums, piano ...), very "world music" and, in the genre, successfully. It tastes here and there a sweet languor East, some violin solos, almost flamenco accents. Overall, some groups of Breton music at home, do nothing.
The band members explain how they like their roots, contemporary music and God: here is the explanation of the name they chose, Theodulia meaning "servant of God." Include the participation of a certain "Mrs. piano that seems to have some notoriety among the Southern Slavs. CD 10261 SOKOJ. The official website (http://www.teodulija.co.yu) meeting absent, information can be found here:
www.myspace.com / teodulia .
must have the sharp eye to distinguish this CD, Memorial three quarters of a century of Radio Belgrade, the previous comments above. Same colors sadly military, even number 75 in large print. But here it is popular music. The
Narodni Orkestar (
National Orchestra) invites you to dance. His music is delightful, happy, well polished. It differs from the Romanian by the presence of less systematic regional instruments (
caval ,
nai, etc..) and perhaps a more smoother, Vienna (listen to the incipit
Svilen Konaci , lane 8 ), the role of the clarinet solo (not the
taragot ) and harmonica.
The second part of the disc invites the
ansambl Narodni (National Ensemble
), closer tarafs Romanian. We even hear klezmer inflections in the demonstrative
Splett iz Srbije (lane 14), and the beginning of the declaimed
Šopska igra (Lane 16) conjures up the way Bregović.
The third and final band of the CD is called
Eksterni ansambl Boron Dugic , named
Boron Dugic , flutist and leader of the group. The first piece,
Tren , offers a stark contrast to the effervescent dances
Narodni ansambl . Is it pop, or a piece for New Age relaxation frames? Seen in this light, why not, otherwise you may skip without regret languor of four minutes and thirty-three seconds. Follows
Badinerie by Johann Sebastian Bach, beautifully whistled by Dugic. Too bad the next track finds a New Age tone and uninteresting. The last part calls, strangely enough, the symphony orchestra and chorus of women of radio, all for a while and done well trussed and leaping, seduction certain. CD "75 GODINA Radio Beograd" 406348, described here:
www.pgp-rts.co.yu/katalog/izdanja/406348RadioNarodni.htm .