Here is yet another outstanding release in CPL-Music’s Folk and Great Tunes series. This one brings us a variety of contemporary folk music from Belarus, which is, sad to say, one of those former Soviet republics that most of us Americans know nothing about. Bordered by Russia, Ukraine, Poland, Latvia and Lithuania, much of its territory has a long history of being ruled by a succession of various other countries, kingdoms, principalities, and empires.
After a few years of political turmoil following the collapse of the Soviet Union, Alexander Lukashenko won the first presidential election in 1994, and has remained in office since then. Widespread protests after his disputed sixth election in 2020 led to crackdowns that affected all segments of society including musicians and other artists, some of whom fled the country while others chose to remain; some continued to make music, others did not. The ongoing war between their neighbors Russia and Ukraine has led to further stress and more immigration.
This situation prompted Daryana Antipova, a member in absentia of the Siberian folk band Vedan Kolod now living in the U.S., to approach Elvira Baranovskaya, a member of the Belarusian ensemble Aratseya. Daryana, who now lives in Indiana where she teaches and contributes to a world roots music radio program — and occasionally writes for Green Man Review — says in the liner notes that she “asked her to recommend Belarusian folk groups for my radio show,” and that’s how this compilation came about. Elvira, she says, based this collection on groups that are still living and working “in and from Belarus.”
Well, that’s more introduction than I usually need in a record review. But things are complicated, these days.
The collection is two discs, each with songs by the same 10 bands, plus a bonus by an eleventh band on Disc 1. There’s plenty of variety within that framework. One thing that surprised me was the presence of bagpipes in at least a couple of the bands. Turns out the use of pipes in Belarus goes back at least to the 15th century.
Elvira’s folk rock group Aratsaya is as good a place to start as any, since it has the opening tracks on both discs. The first is the title track from their superb 2023 album Galki, which I reviewed favorably (and which had the best cover of any album I came across that year). I said then, “Elvira’s clear, sturdy vocals are intoned over an accompaniment of strummed bouzouki and light percussion, punctuated by instrumental choruses of heavy electric guitars and synth keyboards.” The band’s second selection here, ” Na granoj niadzieli” (On the brink of Sunday) is more strictly acoustic with the bouzouki very forward, but with modern touches as well, especially in Elvira’s singing, which veers close to rap a time or two.
In a similar vein with perhaps a bit more folk pop is the music of Roskvit. One of their two selections, “Golub Letau,” is one of my favorites, with some bagpipes, male-female harmonies, a catchy melody and strong beat. The group Paparats, featuring composer and vocalist Tatyana Solovyova, works in many styles, here incorporating chamber folk with lots of flutes and some twangy Jew’s harp on the dramatic “Vucica” and folk-electronic fusion on “Valytai,” which has some kind of droning instrument, either pipes or hurdy-gurdy or a synthesized version. The alt-folk group Nevrida fills the niche of, say, Steeleye Span. They employ very traditional folk vocals and acoustic instruments (including bagpipe) augmented by rock style drums and lots of percussion on “Matylek” (Butterflies) but go full electro-folk on “Vyasna,” (Spring).
Much of the music here blends traditional and modern elements. The “hard ‘n’ folk” band Rokash backs vivacious soprano vocals with a mix of acoustic and rock instruments. Modern folksters Palac set the raw, raspy vocals of Oleg Khomenko against a catchy folk-rock arrangement (electric guitars, hurdy-gurdy, rock drums) on “Dobra Pesnja” (Good Song) and a more fiddle-centric setting on “Vjarba” (Willow), both likely traditional folk songs. If I hadn’t been informed by Daryana’s liner notes that Voka Charota is a medieval fantasy folk band, I’d lump them in with these mainstream folk rockers, playing traditional songs with mostly acoustic instruments with a rock feel. Their “Verasovy Bog” (God of the Heath) is very appealing.
At opposite ends of the folk spectrum are Ales Chumakou & Tacciana Jacnaja, who sing in a very traditional, pure bardic style accompanied only on a strummed zither, and the folk metal band Adarvirog — big dark distorted power chords, sawing electrified fiddle, and lots of shouted guttural vocals. Just the sort of variety that makes for a great compilation.
Most of these musicians are difficult to find online on Western platforms. (Nevrida has a robust presence on Spotify.) I’m hopeful that this album will eventually show up on the CPL-Music Bandcamp page.
(CPL-Music, 2025)
