Featuring Mercan Dede, Jadranka Stojakovi? & many more, Sevdalinka is a collection of Sarajevo Love Songs.
There’s nothing better than a heavy dose of heartache to inspire a good tune. Whether it’s the sadness of a lost love, an unreturned love, a love that can never be, or the exile’s longing for a distant homeland with memories of better days gone by and perhaps never to return. For centuries, all over the world, poets and musicians have tried to express the harsh realties of our transient existence in words and music as a testimony that can assuage, heal and transcend. Soul music. Music of the soul. Think of African-American Blues, Greek Rembetika, Portugese Fado, Argentinian Tango, to name but a few.
Sevdalinka is the musical expression of the Bosnian soul. The name derives from the Turkish word “Sevdah”, denoting “longing” or “amorous yearning”. The music is informed by centuries of the region’s turbulent history, developing through the meeting of Oriental and Slavic cultures, from the influx of Sephardic Jews fleeing Spain in the late 15th century, to the times of the Ottoman Empire. It carries echoes of societal changes in the region. The introduction of Islamic culture led to greater separation of the sexes. Elaborate courting rituals developed involving declamation of poetry and singing of verses that had to carry over the walls that kept young lovers apart. From these sheltered urban compounds to the rugged hills of the countryside, Sevdalinka was composed and sung at all manner of social gatherings: weddings, fairs, the village dance. It grew from the influences brought by itinerant musicians of varied origins and it is imbued with the hopes and dreams of generations of Bosnians.
As Omer Pobri?, one of the musicians featured on this album, says: “Sevdah is not just a word – it is rather an imaginative ambience of beauty, in whose immense expanse, souls feel, find grains of joy, thus forming a mosaic and making their lives beautiful. Unfortunately, life is not just love, and sevdalinka as a peak expression of sevdah is not just a love song. Sevdah is a style, a Bosnian lifestyle, and sevdalinka is a historical note-keeper of the lives of Bosnians.”
The artists on this collection have been brought together by the young Sarajevo label Yaman in cooperation with the local Goethe-Institut. It features some of the great names of contemporary Sevdalinka such as Vesna Hadži? and Emina Zecaj alongside well-known Bosnian musicians from the Jazz, Rock and Classical worlds as well as international artists such as Mercan Dede and Theodosii Spassov. There are also international collaborations such as the fascinating contribution from Bosnian singer Jadranka Stojakovi? who now lives in Japan and performs here with two Japanese musicians on the beautiful traditional ballad, “Sto te Nema”. All these artists have been moved by the spirit of Sevdalinka and come together on this album to celebrate the soul music of Bosnia with their own inspired interpretations. This is especially welcome as, it is true to say, Sevdalinka is not as popular at home as it once was, particularly amongst the younger generation who are more drawn to the Rap, Rock and Pop music that permeates the “globalized” culture of the modern world. But it must surely in time be incorporated into these styles as Sevdalinka has always managed to assimilate new ideas, as illustrated by this collection. The traditional
Sevdalinka performed with just voice and saz (track 11) is an example of the pure form dating back hundreds of years. More modern performers such as Safet Isovi?, Himzo Polovina and Zaim Imamovi? were criticized by purists for introducing instruments such as accordion, guitar, violin and clarinet but their recordings were immensely popular, also throughout the former Yugoslavia. However, on this album, we can hear on the fascinating bonus track how already in 1908 clarinet and accordion were part of the popular music of the area.
Let’s face it, there’s no such thing as “pure” music. It always comes from somewhere and is going somewhere else, changing with time and here Sevdalinka is using its voice of experience to speak the language of today and artists from around the world are joining in the conversation.
- Colin Bass
Colin Bass aka Sabah Habas Mustapha is a musician, record producer, writer/ presenter of a weekly radio show on RBB Radio Multikulti and WDR Funkhaus Europa in Germany and a contributor to the Rough Guide to World Music and other publications. www.colinbass.com
Titles/Musicians:
1. Mercan Dede feat. Zerina Cokoja: Moj dilbere kud se še?eš (trad./arr. M. Dede, S. Kari?) 4:06 - Z. Cokoja: vocals / M. Dede: Ney and programming / Aykut Süto?lu: clarinet, trumpet / Sanin Kari?: bass guitar / prod. by M. Dede and Samir Šestan Droga / rec. in Munich (Germany) and Istanbul (Turkey)
2. Avdo Lemeš feat. Theodosii Spassov: Sino? sam ti, Safo, dvoru dolazio (Muhamed Mešanovi?- Hami?/Safet Kafedži?/arr. A. Lemeš, T. Spassov) 5:15 - A. Lemeš: vocals, saz / T. Spassov: kaval / / prod. and mixed by Tayfun Kesgin and Atila Aksoj / rec. by A. Aksoj and T. Spassov at Baraka studio in Mostar (BiH) and Acoustic Version in Sofia (Bulgaria)
3. Jadranka Stojakovi? and Natsuko Kido Duo feat. Naoki Kita: Što te nema (trad./arr. J. Stojakovi?) 5:31 - J. Stojakovi?: vocals, additional guitar / Natsuko Kido: electric and acoustic guitar / Naoki Kita: violin / prod. by J. Stojakovi? / rec. and mixed by Akimi Tani at GOK studio in Tokyo (Japan)
4. Quattro Bassi: L’jepi li su Mostarski du?ani (trad./arr. Quattro Bassi) 5:23 - Sanin "BassoloGuy" Kari?: bass / Bodan Arsovski: bass (by courtesy of Ezgija Records) / Henry Radanovi?: bass (by courtesy of Dallas Music) / Vlada Samardži?: bass / prod. by Quattro Bassi / rec. in Skopje (Macedonia)
5. Muammer Ketenco?lu: Pokraj vrela plo?a b’jela mermera (trad./arr. M. Ketenco?lu) 4:49 - M. Ketenco?lu: accordion, vocals / Seda Hosses: violin / Engin Gürkey: percussions / Cengiz Onural: guitar, base programming, recording engineer / prod. by M. Ketenco?lu / rec. in Istanbul (Turkey)
6. Vesna Hadži?: Sini jarko sa istoka sunce (trad./arr. D. Mckewitt) 4:25 - V. Hadži?: vocals / Tatjana Romani?: viola / Boris Lon?ar: violin / Almir Nejži?: double bass / prod. by Tayfun Kesgin / rec. and mixed by Željko Skari? at the MP JS BiH studios, Sarajevo
7. Damir Imamovi? feat. Vlatko Stefanovski: Što li mi se Radobolja muti (trad./arr. D. Imamovi?, V. Stefanovski) 8:04 - D. Imamovi?: vocals, acoustic guitar / V. Stefanovski: electric guitar / prod. and mixed by Tayfun Kesgin, Atila Aksoj / rec. by A. Aksoj at Baraka studio in Mostar (BiH)
8. Jadranka Stojakovi? feat. Miroslav Tadi?: Kad ja poñoh na Bentbašu (trad./arr. J. Stojakovi?, M. Tadi?) 4:05 - J. Stojakovi?: vocals, harmonica / M. Tadi?: guitars / prod. by J. Stojakovi? / rec. in L.A.
9. Markus Burger - Dave Pozzi Duo: Theme of Nit’ ja sanjam nit’ ja dr’jemam (trad./arr. M. Burger, D. Pozzi) 7:32 - M. Burger: piano / D. Pozzi: tenor saxophone / rec. and prod. by Markus Burger, Jim Linahon at LMP Studios, L.A. (USA)
10. Omer Pobri? feat. Hasna Kašmo: Kraj tanana šadrvana (Der Asra) (trad./Heinrich Heine/arr. O. Pobri?) 6:19 - H. Kašmo: vocals / O. Pobri?: accordion / Enes Mujanovi?: violin / rec. and prod. by O. Pobri? at the Institut Sevdaha studio, Visoko (BiH)
11. Emina Ze?aj and Mehmed Gribaj?evi?: Knjigu piše Tahir-Beže (trad./arr. O. Pobri?) 5:46 - E. Ze?aj: vocals / Dr. M. Gribaj?evi?: saz / prod. by O. Pobri? / rec. at the Institut Sevdaha studio in Visoko (BiH)
Bonus: Trio Mustafa Sudžuka i Merkuš: Kad ja poñem na Bendbašu (trad.) 3:00 - M. Sudžuka: clarinet / possibly Merkuš Alkalaj: accordion and possibly vocals / Unknown Artist: def and possibly vocals / archive recording from 1908 kindly provided by Dr. Risto Pekka Pennannen (Finland) / mat. 5689L / cat. Zonophone X 100657 Kad ja poñem na Bendbašu
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