Roots of the Balkan

Roots of the Balkan
Studio album by Ensemble Renaissance
Released 1 January 2002 (2002-01-01)
Genre Early music
Length 68:34
Label Classic Produktion Osnabrück
Ensemble Renaissance chronology
Journey through Dalmatia
(1999)
Roots of the Balkan
(2002)
A spark from the darkness
(2008)

Roots of the Balkan is the 15th album by Ensemble Renaissance, released in 2002 on the Classic Produktion Osnabrück label in Germany and Serbia. It is Ensemble's fifth album with early music of Serbia. It is also their most complete and mature work on the theme of early Serbian ethnomusicology. Presented on this album are secular and ritual dances, songs and melodies from the entire territory of Serbia, the oldest being from the time of Nemanjić dynasty, Ottoman period, up to the 19th century. Just like Renaissance's previous works from the same field, most of the material was taken from the books by famous Serbian ethnomusicologists Dimitrije Stefanović (Old Serbian music, 1975), Živojin Stanković (Folks songs and dances from Krajina, 1946), Kosta Manojlović (Folk melodies from the Eastern Serbia, 1950), Stevan Stojanović Mokranjac, Đorđe Karaklajić (unpublished), and others.

Content

The documented musical history of the Serbs can be traced back to the medieval era.[1] Music had its place in battle, at the royal court and among the common people. In the state of the Nemanjić dynasty it was part of the court ceremonies. It was performed, as it was in countries all over Europe, by musicians, entertainers and dancers, who were called sviralnici, glumci, and praskavnici in the language of the day. There were also singers, actors, magicians, and jesters, musicians who played the flute, lute, trumpet, bagpipes, drums and other instruments. They were those who entertained when the sovereign was crowned (the nobles listened to music on the drums and gusle when Stefan the First-Crowned was crowned), they would greet kings with songs (like King Stephen Uroš II Milutin of Serbia) and despots with bugles (Stefan Lazarević). Despot Stefan had a music chapel at his court, and his musicians played on the boats when he hosted the Turkish Emperor. When Stefan Dušan, who also had musicians in his lands, would grant someone rule over a territory, he would also give him musicians. Likewise, he exchanged musicians with the town of Dubrovnik for various kinds of celebrations. Dragan of Prizren, a highly famed Serbian musician, was the town musician in Dubrovnik in 1335. The ruler known for the musical patronage was also Đurađ Branković. With the fall of Serbia under the Ottoman rule came instruments that would further cause Serbian music to flourish. Medieval musical instruments included horns, trumpets, lutes, psalteries, drums and cymbals. Traditional folk instruments include the gajde, kaval, dajre, diple, tamburitza, gusle, tapan (davul), sargija, ćemane (kemenche), zurla (zurna), and frula among others.

Track listing

All tracks produced by Ensemble Renaissance.

Roots of the Balkan
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Sitan biber (Tiny peppercorn)"  wedding song and dance from Eastern Serbia2:43
2."Putnička melodija noću (The traveler's melody by night)"  melody for cow horn from Eastern Serbia2:57
3."Visoko drvo, lad nema (High tree gives no shade)"  traveler's song from Eastern Serbia3:44
4."Tri igre: Ostroljanka, Polomka, Cigančica"  three dances from Eastern Serbia3:53
5."Marijo, deli, bela kumrijo (Ah! Mary, my sweet dove)"  a song from Kosovo and Metohija3:19
6."Crna zemljo, sestro moja (Black earth, my sister)"  a song from Kosovo3:16
7."Oj, jabuko, zeleniko (Hey-ho, you green appletree)"  a song from Kosovo3:56
8."Izvor-voda izviraše (Spring-water)"  a song from Kosovo2:22
9."Soko bira gde će naći mira (The hawk decides where to reside)"  a song from Kosovo2:58
10."Oj, mori vrbo zelena (Alas, my green willow)"  a song from Kosovo2:24
11."Svu noć mi sanak ne dođe (All night I haven't slept a wink)"  a song from Kosovo5:01
12."Kiša pada, trava raste (Come the rain, grow the grass)"  a song from Kosovo2:08
13."Gusta mi magla padnala (There came a dense fog)"  a song from Kosovo2:22
14."Četiri igre: Stara šetnja, Zavrzlama, Šiljčići-Opančići, Poljanka"  four ritual round dances from the Central Serbia4:13
15."Tri igre: Cigančica, Stara Vranjanka, Zavrzlama"  three ritual round dances from the Central Serbia2:46
16."Dve igre: Gajdica, Šareno oro"  ritual dances from central Serbia for bagpipes2:30
17."Igre iz Levča"  written down by Stevan Stojanović Mokranjac6:34
18."Sadila moma lojze (The maiden has dibbled grapevine)"  a song from the Southern Serbia3:12
19."Kasapsko kolo (The Wheel dance of the Butchers)"  a ritual wheel dance from the Southern Serbia2:47
20."Skomraška igra (The dance of the jongleurs)"  a very old Medieval Serbian dance2:15
21."Devojačko kolo (The Wheel dance of the maidens)"  a ritual wheel dance from the Southern Serbia2:31

Personnel

The following people contributed to Roots of the Balkan

  • Ljudmila Gross soprano
  • Vojka Đorđević – soprano
  • Zoran Kostadinović violin, vielle
  • Vladimir Ćirić – vielle
  • Miomir Ristić fiddle
  • Georges Grujić pipe, ocarina, diple, gemshorn, zurna, kaval, bagpipe
  • Darko Karajić bağlama, šargija
  • Svetislav Madžrević – šargija
  • Dragan Mlađenović – bağlama, pipe
  • Ljubomir Dimitrijević – pipe, ocarina, diple, gemshorn, zurna, kaval, bagpipe
  • Veljko Nicolić percussions
  • Jovan Horvat – percussions

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