Music of Corsica
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Music of France | |
|---|---|
| Styles | classical - folk - popular: hip hop - jazz - rock |
| History (Timeline and Samples) | |
| Awards | NRJ Music Awards - Victoires de la musique |
| Charts | IFOP |
| Festivals | Printemps de Bourges |
| Media | |
| National anthem | "La Marseillaise" |
| Regional music | |
| Alsace - Auvergne - Aquitaine - Pays Basque - Béarn - Brittany - Burgundy - Corsica - Gascony - Languedoc - Limousin - Lorraine - Picardy - Poitou - Provence - Rousillon | |
| Overseas music | |
| French Guiana - French Polynesia - Martinique and Guadeloupe - Mayotte - New Caledonia - Réunion - St. Pierre and Miquelon - Tahiti - Wallis and Futuna | |
Outside of France, the island of Corsica is perhaps best known musically for its polyphonic choral tradition. The rebirth of this genre was linked with the rise of Corsican nationalism in the 1970s. The anthem of Corsica is "Dio vi Salve Regina".
Every June, Calvi is home to a International Jazz Festival and in September there is an annual Recontres de Chants Polyphoniques.
[edit] Folk music
[edit] Polyphonic song
Polyphonic songs (pulifunie) in Corsica are a cappella, and can be either spiritual or secular. Funereal songs (lamentu) are an example of the former, while nanna (lullabies) and the paghjella are examples of secular songs. Traditionally, 4 to 6-voice improvised polyphony was sung only by men, with the exception of the cuntrastu (usually 2-voice) and nanne often sung by women . Brotherhoods of polyphonic singers (cunfraternita) remain, some dating back to the 12th century. Corsical actual tradition of improvised vocal polyphony is more recent, dating to 15th century. It is traced to renaissance practice of falso bordone and the Genoese tradition of Trallalero.
The tradition of Corsican polyphonic singing had nearly become extinct until its revival (riaquistu) in the 1970s. It is now a central part of Corsican national identity, and is sometimes linked with political agitation for autonomy or independence.
Some popular modern groups include the Palatini, A Filetta, Terra, Voce di Corsica, Alte Voce, Barbara Furtuna, Vaghjime, Cinqui So', all-female Donninsulana, Canta u Populu Corsu and I Muvrini. The region of Balagne has emerged as a hot spot for Corsican music, producing groups like U Fiatu Muntese.
[edit] Traditional instruments
The cetera, a cittern of 4 to 8 double strings that is of Tuscan origin and dates back to the Renaissance, is the most iconic Corsican traditional instrument. Its most prominent exponent is Roland Ferrandi (also a lutenist).
- Caramusa - a bagpipe made of wood, leather and reed
- Cialamedda (also cialamella/cialambella) - formerly a reed instrument, more recently with a wooden box body
- Mandulina - a mandolin
- Pirula - a reed recorder
- Pifana (also pivana) - a type of gemshorn generally made from a goat horn
- Riberbula - related to the Jew's harp
- Sunaglieri - mule bells
- Timpanu - a triangle
- Urganettu - a diatonic accordion
