Trallalero

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Trallalero is a kind of polyphonic folk music from the Ligurian region of Genoa, in the north of Italy. It is traditionally performed by men, though there are some female performers in the modern era. The name derives from the monosyllabic vocables (non-lexical vocalizations), tra-la-la.

Though nearly extinct in the 1950s, American musicologist Alan Lomax and Diego Carpitella recorded trallalero. Lomax later claimed he was blown away, and called it the most significant work in his long and storied career. Edward Neill worked to revitalize the tradition in the middle of the 20th century.

Trallalero groups consist of tenor, baritone and bass parts, accompanied by a contralto and a singer whose voice imitates a guitar (chitarra). Nine singers is considered a normal line-up: one each of chitarra, tenor, contralto, baritone and five basses.

Group harmony in Liguria is historically associated with mountain villages, where two voices (usually a tenor and a baritone) sung over accompaniment by bass or drone. A repertoire of traditional songs evolved over time, and the style moved to the docks of Genoa, a noted port city. There, metal-workers, longshoremen and stevedores sang trallalero, with the practice peaking in the first three decades of the 20th century.