Russian folk music
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Russian folk music specifically deals with the folk music traditions of the ethnic Russian people.
Ethnic styles in the modern era
The performance and promulgation of ethnic music in Russia has a long tradition. Initially it was intertwined with various forms of art music, however, in the late 19th century it began to take on a life of its own with the rise in popularity of folkloric ensembles, such as the folk choir movement led by Mitrofan Pyatnitsky and the Russian folk instrument movement pioneered by Vasily Andreyev.
In
In the 1960s, folk music in Russia continued to receive significant state support and was often seen as the antithesis of Western pop music. The fact that numerous Soviet folkloric ensembles were invited for foreign tours raised the prestige of the folk performer to that of academic musicians, and in some cases even higher because access to the West and Western goods was very desirable.
Ethnic (folk) music in Russia can often be categorized according to the amount of authenticity in the performance: truly authentic folk music (reproductive performances of traditional music), folkloric and "fakeloric" performance.
Russia is a multi-ethnic country with some 300 different ethnic groups, many of them non-Slavic, living within its borders. This article deals specifically with just Russian ethnic music.
Authentic folk music
This music is closely tied in with village life and traditions. It was usually not performed by professional musicians. From the Central Committee's resolution of 1932,[2] which prescribed musical literacy (in parallel to the drive to industrialise the Soviet Union), there has been a marked decline in authentic folk performance practice. Festivals, competitions and the work of ethnomusicologists have made attempts at preserving what has survived. In recent times there has been a movement by musicologists to study and reproduce authentic folk music in an authentic performance style on the concert stage. This movement in Russia is spearheaded by members of the faculty of folk music at the Moscow Conservatory under the direction of Dmitri Pokrovsky. More recently, Russian folk songs with strong religious (spiritual) components have been performed by singers like Zhanna Bichevskaya, Olga Arefieva[3] and Elena Frolova[4]
Folkloric music
This category includes music by groups led by music professionals, past and present, who have taken authentic musical material, and then arranged and performed it in a manner formulated by Vasily Andreyev and subsequently refined under Stalin's regime, yet widely accepted as 'authentically Russian' by Western audiences (conditioned, for instance, by performances by the
Artistic folklore music
This article needs additional citations for verification. (August 2013) |
This includes music composed by city intelligentsia and professional composers in a folkloric manner. Much of the music of the Russian folk instrument orchestras can also be categorized in this group as it is based on academic music traditions and playing techniques only taking a folk element as its inspiration.
As in all western folklore traditions, the distinction is difficult to draw, as in the 19th century, intellectuals would both collect folk music (not always being accurate about their source material) and conflate it with original compositions.
In recent times music professionals who have completed diplomas in noted conservatories performing on Russian folk instruments are now questioning their "folkiness" when they perform, as none of their music was ever really performed originally by the (village) folk. Some now refer to their music as being academic folk music which to many academic musicians is an oxymoron.
Vocal music
Authentic Russian folk music is primarily vocal. Russian folk song was an integral part of daily village life. It was sung from morning to night, and reflected the four seasons and significant events in villagers' lives. Its roots are in the Orthodox church services where significant parts are sung. Most of the population was also illiterate and poverty-stricken, so musical instruments were rare, and notation (which is more relevant for instrumentals than vocals) could not be read.
Authentic village singing differs from academic singing styles. It is usually done using just the chest register and is often called "white sound" or "white" voice. It is often described as controlled screaming or shouting. Female chest register singers have only a low diapason of one octave to 12 notes.
Chest register singing has evolved into a style used by many of Russia's folk choirs and neighbouring countries. It was pioneered by Pyatnitsky and Ukrainian folk choir director Demutsky in the early 1900s.
Notable ensembles include the
Instrumental music
Instrumental music for a long period was suppressed in Russia. In 1648, Tsar
In the late 19th century,
From a simple unsophisticated three-stringed instrument, combined with an awakening 'Russianness' in the last phases of the Tsarist Empire, the movement led to the development and implementation of many other Russian folk instruments. The Russian folk instrument movement had its resonance in the cultures of other ethnic groups within Russia, the Soviet Union, and the Soviet Bloc countries. Folk instrument orchestras appeared in Belarus, Ukraine, Kyrgyzstan, Yugoslavia, Bulgaria, Moldavia, and Romania.
Traditional instruments
Chordophones
- Balalaika, a three-stringed, triangular sound-board, played with the fingers. It comes in many different sizes, prima being the most common. Two of the strings are tuned alike in descant, prima, secunda, and alto balalaikas.
- Domra, a small three- or four-stringed Russian variant of the mandolin with a rounded soundboard, plucked or strummed with a plectrum. It is also made in various orchestral sizes. Originally they were all three-stringed (E-A-D). The four-string variety was developed by in the early 20th century and became popular in Ukraine.
- Gudok (also hudok), a three-stringed, pear-shaped Russian bowed instrument tuned in fifths which is usually held vertically.
- Gusli, one of the oldest known Eastern Slav musical instruments, described by the Greeks as early as the 6th century AD. Many different varieties of this plucked string instrument exist.
- violoncellobody.
- Semistrunnaya gitara (Semistrunka, Russian guitar), a seven string version of the acoustic guitar with its own preferred method of construction and unique open G major tuning.
Aerophones
- Bayan, a chromatic button accordion
- diatonic Russian button accordion, featuring a unique unisonoricdesign
- Kalyuki (Russian: Калюки), a hollow pipe with no additional air holes, used for whistling sounds
- panpipes
- Svirel, a Russian flute
- Vladimirsky rozhok, a type of horn made in Russia's Vladimir Oblastby shepherds who composed melodious calls on it. It has a range of two octaves and a very distinctive idiosyncratic sound.
- bagpipe
- hornpipe
Idiophones
- Buben, an equivalent of the tambourine
- Bubentsy (Russian: бубенцы)
- Vargan, an equivalent of the jew's harp
- korobochka , an equivalent of the wood block
- Derevaynnie Lozhki, an equivalent of spoons
- Rubel, an equivalent of the washboard
- Treshchotka, an equivalent of the clapper
- Zvonchalka[citation needed]
Recurring elements in singing
The "Ahy luli luli lui” or "Ohy loli loli loi" phrase is characteristic for Russian folk songs and is sung by women.
Whistling is very common in Russian folk songs.
The exclamation "Opa", also "Op op" and sometimes "Ota" is also a common characteristic of Russian folk music and is used by female and male singers.
Also, various exclamations of the Cossacks are represented in many Russian folk songs.
See also
- Sergey Nikolaevich Starostin
- Ivan Kupala (band)
- Pelageya
- Zhanna Bichevskaya
- Olga Glazova
- Oleg Gazmanov
- Music of Russia
References
- Laura J. Olson, Performing Russia: Folk revival and Russian identity (2004), pp. 58–59
- ^ Olson (2004), p. 58
- ^ "Ольга Арефьева. Концерт "Песни о смерти"". Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 19 May 2015.
- YouTube)
- ^ Olson (2004), p. 164
- ^ Botticelli, Peter (1988). "Czar Alexis: Between Old and New". people.loyno.edu. Loyola University Student Historical Journal. Retrieved 2022-08-01.
- ^ "The Society of Folk Dance Historians (SFDH) - Russian Dance and Music". sfdh.us. Retrieved 2022-08-01.
- ^ "Summer music shines in Dubrovnik". TodaysZaman. Archived from the original on 21 May 2015. Retrieved 19 May 2015.
- ^ Jim Owston (12 July 2011). "Reading between the Grooves". Retrieved 19 May 2015.
- ^ "404".
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: Cite uses generic title (help) - ^ "America Magazine". Retrieved 19 May 2015.
- ^ "Kolyosnaya Lira (hurdy-gurdy)". Mitya Kuznetsov.[permanent dead link]
Further reading
- Maes, Francis, translated by Arnold and Erica Pomerans (2001). A History of Russian Music: From Kamarinskaya to Babi Yar. University of California Press. ISBN 0-520-21815-9.)
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link - Abraham, Gerald E. (1988). Studies in Russian Music. Reprint Services Corp. ISBN 0-317-90761-1.
- Ralston, W. R. (1970). Songs of the Russian People: As Illustrative of Slavonic Mythology and Russian Social Life (Studies in Music, No 42). Haskell House Pub Ltd. ISBN 0-8383-1224-1.
- Veryat, I. (1994). Russian Songs: Text in Romanized Russian, English, and Music. Aspasia. ISBN 1-882427-23-8.
- Abraham, Gerald E. (1976). On Russian Music. Scholarly PR. ISBN 0-403-03757-3.
- Ho, Allan and Dmitry Feofanov (eds.) (1989). Biographical Dictionary of Russian/Soviet Composers. Greenwood Press. )
External links
- A concert of authentic Russian folk song by Taisia Krasnopevtseva on YouTube
- Golosá: Russian Folk Choir of the University of Chicago
- Official Website of the Osipov State Russian Folk Orchestra(in Russian) – one of Russia's leading folk orchestras with about 80 members. Some mp3 clips can be downloaded.
- Music from Russia and Nearby Regions
- Russian folk music
- Andreyev State Russian Orchestra
- Chicago Cossacks – Russian Folk Group in Chicago
- State Academic North-Russian Folk Ensemble / www.sevhor.ru