I've put together a Muxtape of some zurni music and also music that is associated with it. There are three traditional zurni tracks put along side some Bulgarian chalga music (its like western pop, i'll explain it later), a traditional Ottoman Janissary March Band song and some Roma Kuchek music. Before the powers that be declare the blasphemy of linking Romani Kuchek, Bulgarian Chalga and Turkish Military Music together with Zurni, please keep in mind that I'm doing this for two reasons:
We're hardcore for Balkan Music, but not that hardcore - One hour of solid listening to zurni is bound to give anyone a headache. It gave me one. It so hard explain that zurni is just better in person. I mixed up the muxtape a little bit.
Comparison Shopping - I want you to realize that Turkish/Ottoman military music is similar but not exactly the same. Additionally, you'll see the Bulgarian chalga bastardizing the traditional zurni into a pop song. And, finally, I want you to be exposed to some Bulgarian Roma Kuchek that also utilizes the zurni concept.
You need to double click the first song when it opens into a new window. It should play on its own. This is a practice round using muxtape, we'll see how it goes.
Explaination of the Playlist:
Traditional Zurni used in processions and public celebrations.
Ottoman Janissary Band Music - Mehter Ceddin Deden - This is probably the most popular Mehter song in Turkey. The songs were used like ballads to record history and to impress conquered peoples. Lyrics and English translation
Traditional Zurni, a variation on a theme
Malina - Strast ( Passion) - This Bulgarian pop folk star has "borrowed" the zurni as the theme for her song about passion, love and sex.
More Zurni, notice that its a lot simpler than the Turkish form and easy to do live (it requires three musicians, no electricity and preparation).
Kuti - Haigurski Zurna Kuchek - This is Romani Kuchek from Bulgaria, so it varies from the traditional Serbian and Romanian bands favored in the west and has more a hip-hop feel to it. It has cheesy lines at the begining where he asks "do you speak Romani?, okay we'll do it Romani style", loosely translated, and random inserted horse sounds. This song is more of a tribute to the concept of zurni except the Roma band is using a more versitle and dynamic instrament; a clarinet.
I stumbled upon some really good examples of "zurni" from Turkey. Called Mehter or Janissary March Band Music. These videos are great links between the existing culture in Turkey and the zurni in the Balkans. As you can see, the movements are more militarized and one can get an image of what a whole band would have looked like 400 years ago as it came marching up to a new region of conquest. Scary stuff.
Anyway, I want you to see the link between the "Balkan" Zurni and the Turkish Mehter. I think it allows people to better understand the linkages and also the hidden political tension that is caused years ago with the Communist Party.
So, without further ado . . .
Here is a great example of the historical version of Zurna:
The traditional circle formation:
And this is more local and looks amateurish. But I find its interesting to watch and compare it with the more local versions in Bulgaria. There are similarities but this is much more militaristically focused whereas in Bulgaria there is no underlying aggression with the Zurni playing.
I have yet to make a decision on how to display and list music on this website and I would be interested in what the readers might have to say.
Radio | Streaming Content
So far, I've been tentatively using both Imeem.com and Last.fm as a radio outlet. I don't plan to use both--I'm aware that it create havoc with some of the older computers (anyone in a municipality in Bulgaria?) Last.fm has a more stream-lined approach and has the opportunity to "pull" in unknown content related to my tags. As I personally listen to music on Last.fm, it creates a broader but more detailed profile of my "radio" which is what you can listen to online. But its exactly like a radio, you cannot select tracks to play when you want. Right now it is pretty bare bones and occasionally you will get a strange song or but it will evolve as I listen. Example: I searched for "roma" music so now every once and a while I have Italian music until it filters out.
Imeem.com is similar but allows you to play a track whenever you want and I can also upload mp3s into my radio which gives me much greater control of the radio tracks. The difference is that I must find all the music and add it to my playlist either on Imeem.com or by uploading the mp3s.
So, its either more control for the reader and me (but more work for me) or less control but less access to lesser known artists on the radio (that don't have licensing contracts with Last.fm). Access to Music and Videos
I think if every post has about 6-7 YouTube videos, the blog's performance will suffer. What I'm considering doing is creating a tag called "Music" and will just plainly be youtube videos and mp3 links but with limited explanation. Within this tag (listing of mp3s and videos) there will be subsections like Bulgarian music or Romani Music. This allows the person reading the blog for my content to be able to read without being barraged by continuous postings of mp3s and videos. Some of the longer posts will be lost in the fray. The video and mp3s will then also be easily accessible for those who are there solely for specific audio/video content.
Thoughts | Vote
Is there a program that I've missed? Is there a better way? What do you think? Also vote for which radio player you find a better option. Thanks.
For most foreigners to Bulgaria and the Balkans, their first introduction to Zurni is very much similar to what you are experiencing now--unexpectedly. The music is somewhat abrasive and you've probably turned the volume down slightly . . .
Most foreigners are introduced to zurni by happening upon a wedding procession or during festivals. In person, the zurni penetrates through your whole body and deafens the ears. Its music for dancing, varying between traditional Bulgarian folklore dances or Roma Kuchek (or in some people's eyes Turkish belly dancing). It guides the dancers in celebration and is simplistic and without lyrics.
Zurni is comprised of, in its simplest of forms, a Tupan (the drum), and an ensemble of clarinet/oboe like instruments called Zurni.
The drum is played on both sides at the same time, one side with a small stick that acts a snare and the other side with a large bass inducing stick (pictured here).
This is the high pitched zurna that creates the melody. It is muted (see the chain in at the horn) and its a reed blown instrument. The player usually moves continuously with his ever-changing notes becoming part actor, part musician. The other essential zurna is pitched much lower and plays one or two notes creating a non-stop low hum/buzz that harmonizes the higher Zurna.
Traditionally, zurni is used (probably because of its unbelievable loudness) as a way of announcing publicly a procession of some sort. This ranges from high school graduates marching through the town square to weddings as the bride and groom approach the church/municipal building. I've actually seen zurni work as a way to gather people to public event, in this particular case it was a graduation party. Everyone waited for the zurni to come by their house and they joined the entourage as it passed with everyone finishing at the banquet hall. Obviously, in larger towns this practice of zurni being a klaxon (if you will) is tapering off. But deep rooted tradition still remains.
Zurni has a marred and complicated history like a lot of music in the Balkans. It has historical traces back to the Ottoman Empire or as the Bulgarians say it, the "Turkish Yoke" as the part of the Turkish Military Bands. The word and instrument "zurna" is actually a Turkish one. Historically, the military of the Ottoman Empire were Janissaries, local conscripts from the native peoples has played Zurna music as a military processional music [Recommended Link: Janissary Music "Mehter"] In the past, whole marching bands would be playing similar music that would announce their arrival as the marched. Imagine, for a moment, 50 uniformed Janissaries all playing in time in an ear-obliterating unison. Some even claim zurna or Janissary March Music is the origination of military marching music (food for thought, I'm not ready to fully research the history of military marching bands)
The Balkans, since the removal of the Ottoman Empire, has spent a hundred years rewriting history to accommodate for the newly formed political countries; what is "Bulgarian", what is "Macedonian"and how each country has a different cultural identity than the other (because if it were the same culture, then why not the same country?). In this process of historical revival of old states, zurni was considered Turkish by the Bulgarian revisionist historians. Especially during communist times in Bulgaria, Zurni was outlawed and looked as a cultural invasion from Turkey. Somewhat understandable if it was the music used by the Ottomans while fighting the revolutionaries.
As is a common theme throughout the Balkans, the Roma in Bulgaria didn't listen to the new Great Historians and the Communist Party. They continued with their lives by ignoring the current authorities in power because playing zurni was a form of livelihood. The Roma in Bulgaria have traditionally kept the zurni tradition alive because the Bulgarian community desires it for the weddings, processions and festivals. This is just one example of the soft contradictions that happen in the Balkans. Now in the Balkans, especially in Bulgaria and Macedonia, there is a intrinsic tradition for using this old Turkish military music (distorted over hundreds of years) played by Roma musicians for Bulgarians/Macedonians. Zurni isn't Roma music, just like rap isn't black music. But is just seems that the irrevocably tied to each other.
Zurni is in the Balkans. People in the Balkans play it and love it. So, is it Balkan music? I mean, people in the Balkans like death metal but does that make death metal Balkan music? In my very unscientific method, I would have to say yes because of the proliferation throughout the region and its use during public and official cultural events (weddings, festivals, celebrations). It's historically Turkish music but so are a lot of other things in the Balkans. A 500 year imprint by the Ottomans has added to the Balkan landscape and now parts of the Ottoman Empire are part of the general culture.
My flight into Bulgaria from Germany in 2006 was an uneventful two and half hour journey filled with tension, anxiety and hope of starting a new "life experience". I had glanced over someone else's flash cards for the Bulgarian Alphabet called Cyrillic and I prepared for the landing in what would be my first European country. Using Bulgaria as a marker, I feel as though my "European Experience" is slightly different than the Wombat's Hostel summer break kids that come through on museum and drinking tours. Slighted as it might have been, the clouds broke and I was able to see the biggest city in Bulgaria of about 1.5 million. Nestled in a plateau surrounded by the Balkan mountains and the end of the Rila mountains, Sofia is a small place and placed at a high altitude. The capital was relocated to this more defensible outpost by the Ottomans or Turks (I've yet to understand fully the differences in phraseology other than one distances the Ottoman Empire from Turkey and the other directly links the Empire to the current state). Some claim it to be a beautiful city, and it can be in the throes of spring, but in general I find it bleak, unfriendly and without cultural magnetism.
As my flight came to its close, circling around the small outpost-turned capital of Bulgaria, we hit turbulence and the plane spasticly yoked to the left and then the right, dropping stomach churningly every few seconds. And then I hear over the intercom, forgotten by the stewardesses and the pilots, my first song in the Balkans (Play it, it helps the mood):
So, as the old punch line goes, "there I was" sitting in the aisle seat bobbing and weaving as we were attempting to land in a post-communist bloc country and Shakira is cracking over the intercom almost discernible through the roar of the engines. And I'm thinking to myself, "Well, I'm going to die while landing a place that's the end of the earth and I'll die listening to Shakira . . ." I contemplate the inert humor of the situation, assess my life ambitions and desires and then decide that if that's the way its going to be, then so be it. As we land roughly at the airport and taxi to our stop, Shakira continues softly over the intercom until we exit. This begins my introduction to Bulgaria and the Balkan beat--Shakira's Latino/Americano Pop that no longer has a regional or stylistic characterization.
Shakira actually gives a pretty good cultural snapshot of the music in the Balkans. The younger generations have fully embraced the MTV culture and have improved by eliminating all rock and roll and hard core rap to leave just dance music. Be it techno, hip hop or rap with a beat, Balkan youth have taken the music of west and hand picked for its ability to dance with. Of course this leads to humorous selections such as this one I've heard on more than one occasion in many discos and night clubs:
The Balkans is a cultural mixing ground that has had European, African and Asian influences for centuries. Any discussion about Balkan music and/or culture has to come with the understanding that it doesn't operate in a vacuum. They know about MTV and they know about the coolest and most bad-ass artist coming from the music industry and its factories in LA, NYC and London. They know. And they love it--if you can dance to it. They don't have any social qualms about playing Shakira, 50 cent and effortlessly switching to Balkan Brass Band music or Roma Music or Traditional Folk Music. While the youth of Bulgaria are becoming more westernized and those in the cities are shying away from what is traditionally considered Balkan music, it is still thriving in a market of Shakira and Madonna.
One can possibly start the discussion of Roma music and the Balkans with Djelem Djelem which roughly translates from Romani to "I have travelled, I have travelled". This has become the makeshift anthem of the Romani people. For someone wanting to understand Roma music and the different styles, the anthem provides a good example of the diversity of Roma music.
Symbolically, even the anthem of the Romani people has different versions and different styles. Written by Jarko Jovanovic in the 1960s, the song became popular by the 1967 film I Even Met Happy Gypsies. There has been some discussion about the historical origin and whether the song is an old Romanian song but the water is too murky for me to be able to interpret. What probably is more telling is the lack of accessible and reliable information on the internet for Romani anthem and its historical origin. The best resources i have been able to find were updated in 1998 (Romani.org), a Geocities?!?! page from 2000 (The Patrin Web Journal) and many other google based copies of these sources. Here is an English translation of Djelem, Djelem
I have travelled over long roads I have met fortunate Roma I have travelled far and wide I have met lucky Roma Oh, Romani adults, Oh Romani youth Oh, Romani adults, Oh Romani youth Oh, Roma, from wherever you have come With your tents along lucky roads I too once had a large family But the black legion murdered them Come with me, Roma of the world To where the Romani roads have been opened Now is the time - stand up, Roma, We shall succeed where we make the effort. Oh, Roma adults, Oh, Roma youth Oh, Roma adults, Oh, Roma youth.
The prevalence of the use of Djelem, Djelem as the Roma anthem can be directly traced back to this film from 1967. After the filmed overwhelming international success, it was adopted as anthem at the First World Romani Congress in London, England, April, 8, 1971. Here is the clip from the film that supposedly make "Djelem Djelem" famous:
Film: "I Even Met Happy Gypsies" Director Aleksandar Petrovic Golden Palm Award in 1967 Cannes Film Festival
My personal favorite is by Macedonian singer Esma Redzepova. It doesn't introduce the famous "Djelem Djelem" lyrics until further on in the song and it is somewhat slower, more mournful. And most would agree that Esma Redzepova is one of the best singers that captures a feeling of the song.
1999 New Year's Concert in the Concertgebouw, Amsterdam." Esma Redzepova and the Nederlands Blazers Ensemble with special guest François Castiello (Bratsch)
The anthem is able to describe some of the recurring themes of the Romani people--A feeling of great sadness for the past while also there being no historical or physical reference point and through this common theme; moving forward, living.
On October 10th, I will finish my service with the United States Peace Corps. I will depart, fittingly, by by train to Istanbul and then fly home to Richmond, Kentucky after an extended sabbatical from the American Life. As much as I miss my days going to chinese buffets (i'm not going to capitalize something that really isn't Chinese), I have realized that I'm going to miss my time in Bulgaria.
So, to continue my interest in the region and also with roma music, I hope to sporadicaly update a blog that raises awareness about the region. I wouldn't consider my self a DJ or on the music avant-garde. I just think music is a great way for my friends to understand the region better.
I don't want to classify music and frankly I encompass quite a lot when by saying Balkan music. Please feel free to listen to my Last.fm pop-out player on the right side. As time passes I will fill it with a broad base of influences throughout the region.
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