SERBIA: MUSIC AND DANCE

Much of the music from Serbia is similar to that of the larger Balkan region. A large portion of traditional early music is tied to the church, especially music from the Medieval Period. During this time, court music pretty much made up the rest of their music. Later, more secular music used epic poetry as its basis. 

 

The gusle (a 1-stringed fiddle) was often used in the music using that epic poetry. (Skip forward on the video below to about the 1:30 mark to watch an example of the gusle.) Other instruments you can hear include the gadje (bagpipes), several kinds of lutes (tambura, tamburitza, gusle, kaval, bouzouki), different kinds of drums (tarambuke, davul), frula (a 6-holed wooden flute), diple (another woodwind instrument), zurna  (another wind instrument that looks like a small trumpet), the accordion, and the duduk (a double reed instrument made from apricot wood).

Serbia has a long history with its folk music. Generally, they’ve divided it into rural and urban folk music. And unlike many cultures as we enter the modern era of music, Serbia never dissed theirs: they incorporated it into other musical styles. Today, there are a plethora of musicians who integrate traditional folk styles into pop, jazz, and a combo of different genres. During the 1970s and 1980s, many of the lyrics spanned between typical folk poetry themes to more of an edgier political nature (anti-Communism). After the break-up of Yugoslavia and through the 1990s and 2000s, turbo-folk emerged, which brought rock and electronic dance music into the folk genre. And the lyrics got racier as well! Think sex, drugs, and rock-n-roll! 

Although many folk songs were danced to, there is one type of folk dance that stands out: the kolo. It's a circle dance, most often danced to the music of an accordion. And it’s almost done entirely with feet and no movement from the waist up (perhaps a little like Irish dancing in that aspect).

One of the faults of teaching Western classical music is that it generally only covers certain music of certain countries: England, Germany, Austria, Italy, France, Russia, the United States with a few others added in for effect. However, there are whole cultures of classical composers not extensively studied. Serbia has produced many classical musicians and composers alike, many who have studied under some of the top European legends. If you’re looking for something different to perform, try looking up some of these names: Stevan Stojanovic Mokranjac, Petar Konjovic, Stevan Hristic, Miloje Milojevic, Ljubica Maric, and Milan Ristic.

I found quite a few musicians on Spotify. The first ones I listened to were several artists who sung various folk traditions. In some songs, I could definitely tell a modernization to them. For one, they used modern instruments, but with trills and vocalizations that were indicative of folk styles. Some of these musicians include Silvana Armenulic, Lepa Lukic, Vesna Zmijanac, Neda Ukraden, and Lepa Brena.

They also have some dance/EDM/pop representation with MC Stojan. Still including plenty of Serbian flare, he mixes these styles with others like hip-hop and incorporates traditional instruments in with the electronic sounds.

Mile Kitic brings a little more of a pop sound to his music that also clearly incorporates Serbian vocal folk styles. However, compared to the earlier folk music where I felt like I was at an international festival, this one made me think I could probably hear this on the radio. Sanja Dordevic, Tina Ivanovic, and Indira Radic are other singers who also make me think I’d hear their music a little more commercially.

I even found a few rock musicians here as well! Smak is a blues rock band that I very much enjoyed listening to. Van Gogh is another band I listened to (I wonder if they pronounce it as “van goff” like the rest of everywhere-that’s-not-the-US?). The lead singer has a deep voice that sounds like the Serbian answer to that Canadian band from the 1990s, Crash Test Dummy.

As far as Serbian hip-hop goes, I found a few who hold up. I was hoping I would. It was kind of an interesting listen; you can tell they pulled their influences from a variety of places. Beogradski Sindikat uses a lot of strings in their music, which I like. I also listened to two female rappers: Sajsi MC (with DJ Bko) and Mimi Mercedez. Sajsi MC’s music tended to be a little more on the EDM side of things, while Mimi Mercedez had more of a “hardcore” sound to it (not to mention that every song had “explicit” next to it, even though I had no idea what she was rapping about). I’m just happy they have some female rappers.

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MONTENEGRO: MUSIC AND DANCE

Montenegro’s musical traditions are a combination of folk traditions with influences from all over Europe. The earliest forms of music were religious-based musical traditions. Venetian music and Albanian music pretty much dominated Montenegro during the 15^th century. 

 

Montenegro has been highly influenced by the classical music traditions of Western Europe. One of the most prominent composers to come out of Montenegro is Jovan Ivanisevic. From about the 17^th century, most serious musicians studied in Prague, and Ivanisevic was no different. He produced many different kinds of works (including most notably, the national anthem); the tragic part is that he produced so much, yet died at the age of 29. I wonder if he lived longer that more people would be more familiar with his works. Operas and librettos were quite popular during the 19^th century, which followed the trends in other areas of Europe. Even in the 20^thcentury, Montenegrin classical music continued to flourish. The city of Cetinje was a major city for classical music studies, followed by Podgorica, even though music schools opened in many of the major cities across the country.

The main instrument is the gusle, a single-stringed bowl-shaped lyre. It’s held upright between the knees and played with a bow. Vocal music, however, tends to dominate folk music traditions. Many of the lyrics are based on traditional epic poetry. 

 

One of the most common folk dances for Montenegrins is the oro. It’s also danced among Herzegovinian Serbs. The oro is thought to have originated from the Crmnica region. Although it’s a dance, it’s also a game. This circle dance is danced by both men and women; one person starts mocking someone on the other side of the circle through song, trying to get them to come dance in the center of the circle. Usually a young man will enter first, dancing the dance of the eagle and clearly trying to impress the others. Second, a girl will enter, imitating his movements but more gracefully. (Of course.) When they get tired, they give each other a kiss, move back to the circle, and another couple enters. 

As far as modern commercial music goes, I was surprised to find quite a few Montenegrin hip-hop artists and groups. One group I came across was the strangely named group Monteniggers. I’m not sure who advised them that name is perfectly cool, but, no. I see where they were trying to go with it, but again, no. Not to mention, that one dude is wearing a Confederate flag bandana. (Sigh.) I listened to the album Allboom; their music is highly influenced by the musical styles of the early 1990s or so. 

If you’re into that style, you’d probably also like Rade Rapido’s album Kamo Sjutra. There are a few catchy songs mixed in the album, but otherwise, the style isn’t settling well with me as much. But I can’t quite place my finger on it. It almost sounds like a “you had to be there” kind of band/album. 

Rambo Amadeus’ sound is a combination of metal and funk and classical. Like someone took the vocals from Rammstein and put it on top of early Red Hot Chili Peppers. And there is one song that sounds like an avant-garde opera. It’s not quite doing it for me. 

I liked the flow and instrumentals of the group Who See. It kind of reminds me a little of Australia’s Bliss N Eso at times or even Croatia’s Elemental at times. It’s got quite a chill feel to it, sometimes almost a reggae beat underneath it. Several of the songs utilize upbeats and some syncopation to keep it interesting. 

If I were to pick a favorite Montenegrin artist, Sivilo might be toward the top. I really liked the album Tamna strana srece. His use of strings and piano, pop and electronica influences, and melodic vocal lines underneath his rhymes are what makes this so attractive and quite dramatic. It’s quite chill in places. There’s just so much to love about this album. 

One of the most well-known rock bands is Perper. They aren’t quite what I would categorize as rock, though. Well, to me, it’s more of a combination of soft rock and indie rock, and at times they remind me of Crash Test Dummies.

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BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA: MUSIC AND DANCE

One of the most traditional forms of music from Bosnia and Herzegovina is ganga music. It originated in the rural areas, especially in Herzegovina and the Croatian region of Dalmatia (the namesake of the famous black and white spotted dog breed). It mostly consists of a lead singer singing one line and then the other singers coming in, some describing it as a “wail.” It also utilizes dissonant harmonies, often having different singers singing half-steps from each other. In most Western and European classical music traditions, especially  before WWI, it’s often recommended to not to have half-steps against each other because these are tendency tones and need to be resolved. But here, it’s desired to have that dissonance, probably something that takes a while for Western ears to listen past. However, this dissonance was used for a purpose: ganga was performed in the fields, and used as a means of communicating with people in distant fields.

Common instruments found in ganga and other related forms are the droneless bagpipe, wooden flutes and the šargija (a long-necked, fretted string instrument that is plucked). The gusle is a single-stringed instrument with a long neck which is bowed that is really similar to the Albanian lahuta (mentioned earlier when we did Albania).

Another style of folk music in Bosnia Herzegovina is called sevdalinka, some thought of as the most traditional (or most “Bosnian”) of musical forms. It has more emotion and melancholy in the melody line, the subjects being mostly about lost loves and death, especially of a loved one. Originally, it was performed with a saz (a type of stringed instrument originating from Turkey), but now accordions are used far more, along with the help of clarinets, violins, upright bass, and snare drums. Not only are the sevdalinkas a merge of Bosnian and Turkish music, but it also incorporates certain musical styles of Muslim music as well.

As far as modern music goes, I found a ton of music available on Spotify for free and iTunes if you want to buy it (most priced around $10). Rock music is really popular, even though many groups sound like the rock from the late 1980s/early 1990s US rock groups a la Journey or Rush, or some of the hair band anthem rock sounds of Def Leppard or Poison. (Don’t get me wrong, I like that style.) And then there are several groups I found who have more of an indie rock feel by bringing in folk music into the music. Some of the groups that I found that I liked are Dino Merlin, Laka, Igor Zerajic, Letu Stuke, Zoster, Monolit, Zabranjeno Pusenje, Indexi, Bijelo Dugme, Divlje Jagode.

Hip-hop music is starting to make its way into Bosnia Herzegovina as well. It’s not quite as popular, but there are a few artists making a name for themselves, and it’s growing in popularity. Two that I like are Edo Maajka and Frenkie.

The kolo is a dance that is danced in many of the Balkan countries, including Bosnia and Herzegovina. The dancers will gather in a circle (sometimes as a single or double line) and hold hands or put their hands around each other’s backs, and practically all of the dance steps are complicated steps with just the legs and feet. Each region and even each city has its own kolo. Both men and women dance the kolo, and typically wear traditional dress while doing so.

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