This album combines one type of music that I love, Balkan folk, with one type of music I’m not so crazy about, Christmas carols. The Balkan folk music wins this battle of the genres. Lado, the Folk Dance Ensemble of Croatia, has produced a gorgeous album that’s bound for heavy rotation in my CD player for many winters to come.
That said, this music is hard to describe. Choral music in a very foreign language and from a non-Western musical tradition doesn’t lend itself to neat descriptions that are the stock in trade of music reviewers. So, here’s some background from the group’s Web site and from the English translation of the liner notes. Lado is an archaic Slavic word that can mean “good,” “lovable,” or “dear.” It is often used as a refrain in “old ritual songs” of Northwest Croatia. The group Lado was founded in 1949 as a professional folk song and dance ensemble, and has performed in concert halls and theaters worldwide. The group adapts authentic folk song (vocal and instrumental) and dance for its stage show.
For the past several years, the ensemble, under director Ivana Lusic and artistic director Ivan Ivancan, has been applying its modus operandi to the sacred folk music of Croatia and Dalmatia. This sacred folk music is different from the official liturgical music of the region’s churches, drawing instead on the rituals and songs of various regions and their observances of holidays from around the entire sacred calendar. This recording collects just the Christmas songs that have become part of the ensemble’s repertoire through this process.
The ensemble on this recording has 35 members — 17 men and 18 women — and is conducted by composer Josko Caleta. The album comprises five suites, each with several related songs from one or another region or coastal island.
The music is simply majestic and replete with spine-tingling moments. Even though it is filled with the kind of close harmony for which Balkan music is known, and which is rare in Western religious choral music, somehow these songs are recognizably Christmas songs. Or perhaps they’re recognizable as wintertime sacred songs. One clue comes in the liner notes: “The most impressive thing about the sound of this opus is the colour. The colour of detail and the colour of the whole. Maybe this is why, when searching for the visual solution of this release, we came across the luxurious monograph The Croatian Coast and Sea by Ivo Pervan, and his colours.” The outer cover features a photo of a church, tree and rocky shore, all swathed in a fog that leaches out all but the grey tones; inside is a simple photo of sky and sea in shades of blue ranging from brilliant turquoise to cool slate. The images do, indeed, relate to the sounds.
As the liner notes also point out, each region of Croatia has retained its own particular singing styles, which are often reflected in different arrangements of similar songs. This is illustrated by four different versions of a widespread Christmas song, “U se vrime godisca,” from the regions of Polaca, Vrana, Vinisce and Murter.
But don’t get too hung up on the details. Put down the booklet, turn up the music, and let its magic fill the corners and spaces of your room. This music is an uplifting experience for music lovers of all countries and creeds. If you enjoy sacred music, or if you like Balkan singing, Christmas Songs and Carols of Dalmatia is worth seeking out.
(Aquarius, 2003)
