Gusle

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Serbian Gusle
Serbian Gusle

The gusle or gusla (Albanian: "Lahuta", Bulgarian: Гусла, Croatian: Gusle, Serbian: Гусле, Gusle) is a single-stringed instrument used in the Balkans and on the Dinarides area. The name gusle/gusli is common to all Slavs and denotes a string instrument. Therefore it should not be confused with the Russian Gusli or the Czech term for violin.

It has many similarities with Rebab, which was widely used throughout Turkish Ottoman Empire and can still be heard among Arab bedouins, being played in almost exactly the same way.

South-Slavic gusle are typically not played on their own, instead, they are used to accompany the voice of a player (called a guslar) when telling and/or singing an epic story or legend, similar to the use of a guitar in the West. The gusle have only a side role, while they intermix with the players' singing.

The gusle have either one string (in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Serbia and Zagora in Croatia) or two strings (in Bosanska Krajina and in Lika in Croatia), made of thirty horsehairs. A bow is pulled over the string (made of horsetail), creating a dramatic and sharp sound, very expressive and rather difficult to master. The gusle consists of a wooden sound box, the maple being considered as the best material (therefor often the instrument is referred to as "gusle javorove" - maple gusle), covered with an animal skin and a neck with a beautifully carved head. They are held between the legs with the long neck supported on one thigh.

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[edit] Albanian Lahuta

The Albanians, most partically the Northern Highland tribes, have been mastering the Lahuta for hundreds of years now. The Lahuta is played by a "Lahutari", the Lahutari usually plays the Lahuta while singing about the heroic bravery of the Albanians over the struggles of history. The Lahuta is played to catch the attention of the audience by its touching rhythm and sound. The Lahutari sings with such a passion, that even the audience often starts to get emotional. The Lahuta is believed to have derived from the ancient Illyrians, the Albanian ancestors.

[edit] Croatian Gusle

Since centuries, Gusle have been used among the Croats in Herzegovina, Dalmatian Hinterland (Zagora), Lika, as well as among Croats in Bosnia and Western Bosnia as an accompaniment for epic poetry. It is supposed that the Gusle arrived in Croatia between the 8th. and the 9th century, originating from western Asia. Often they were built by the singers and players themselves, shepherds or even by specialized Gusle builders from urban areas. Most lyrics center around people who played an important role in Croatian history (often folk heroes who died tragical deaths) or significant historical events (mostly battles against invaders or occupying powers). Croatia's most famous contemporary guslar (gusla player) is Mile Krajina. He is known for referring to current topics in his songs and for his performances within the scope of political rallies or commemoration days (e.g. commemoration s for the Bleiburg Massacre or the death marches of Jazovka. Unfortunately, Gusle are not a part of Croatian mainstream music and therefore rarely receive airtime in the Croatian media. This might be due to the Croatian media producers' pejorative attitude towards Croatian folklore (especially those folkloristic elements who are native to the Dinaric part of Croatia) and their focus on westernized influences. Although, Gusle managed to regain some media attention, since several pop musicians such as Marko Perkovic Thompson, Mate Bulic or Dario Plevnik started to incorporate Gusle into their Music. Besides that, Gusle recordings can only be heard on several CD compilations published by Croatian ethnologists or music cassettes, which are in most cases distributed locally by the artists themselves.

[edit] Montenegrin Gusle

The gusle is a tradional Montenegrin instrument. The gusle has been used in Montenegro Hinterland as an accompaniment for epic poetry. Themes are mostly heroic struggle and Montenegrin national history.

[edit] Serbian Gusle

Filip Višnjić, (1767-1834) Serbian blind guslar
Filip Višnjić, (1767-1834) Serbian blind guslar

The Serbian gusle (pluralia tantum) has one or two strings and is usually made of maple wood.

There are records of gusle (гоусли) being played already at the court of King Stefan the First-Crowned (early 12th c.) but it is not certain if the term was used to denote gusle or some kind of string instrument. The first sure mention of gusle in present-day meanining of the word is from 1415 when Serb gusle players were performing at the court of Polish king Wladislav Jagelo. Polish poet Miaskowsky from early 17th c. is also familiar with "Serb gusle" (serbskie skrzypki) which he considers a specific instrument, different from the similar string instruments found in Poland at the time.

Guslars (singers) should be individuals capable of committing to memory long narrative texts about heroes and events from the distant past and to improvising new ones in the decasyllabic metre (десетерац/deseterac).

The gusle has played an important role in the history of Serbian epic poetry because the guslar national singers passed on national poems in this way for centuries, until the poems were recorded in writing. Most of their songs are about the era of Ottoman Turkish rule and struggle for independence. With the efforts of Vuk Stefanović Karadžić many of these ballads were collected and preserved early in the nineteenth century.

[edit] Media

[edit] Bibliography

  • Beatrice L. Stevenson, The Gusle Singer and His Songs. (with "Heroic Ballads of Serbia"), American Anthropologist 1915 Vol.17:58-68.
  • Kos, Koraljka, Das Volksinstrument “gusle” in der bildenden Kunst des 19. Jahrhundert. Zum Wandel eines ikonographischen Motivs, Glazba, ideje i društvo / Music, Ideas, and Society. Svečani zbornik za Ivana Supičića / Essays in Honour of Ivan Supičić, ur. S. Tuksar, HMD, Zagreb 1993, 113-124.
  • Kos, Koraljka, Representations of the Gusle in Nineteenth-Century Visual Arts, RidIM/RCMI Newsletter XX/2 (New York 1995) 13-18.
  • Milne Holton and Vasa D. Mihailovich. Serbian Poetry from the Beginnings to the Present. New Haven: Yale Center for International and Area Studies, 1988.
  • Primorac, Jakša; Ćaleta, Joško. "Professionals". Croatian Gusle Players at the Turn of the Millennium Original: Balkan Epic. Song, History, Modernity (2006) (in process of publishing)

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

[edit] Croat Gusle

[edit] Serb Gusle

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