Sutartinių atlikimo tradicijos

LTAmžių sandūroje vis daugiau tyrinėtojų atsigręžia į praeitį, ieškodami kultūros ištakų. Lietuvių muzikos ištakos, be abejo, susijusios su ilgaamžėmis sutartinių - ankstyvojo daugiabalsumo pavyzdžių - giedojimo tradicijomis. Jų ilgaamžiškumą rodo ne tik nepaprastai didelė atlikimo būdų įvairovė, bet ir plati estetinio vertinimo skalė: nuo sutartinių prilyginimo staugimui vilkų balsais iki žavėjimosi jų demoniška jėga, motorikos tikslumu bei skambesiu, artimu poetiškiausio paukščio - gulbės - "tūtavimui"... Sutartinės tarsi paneigia nuomonę apie lietuvius, kaip lyrikų tautą. Tiesa, daugelis lietuvių dainų iš tiesų yra lyrinės, kupinos melancholijos, o kartais ir liūdesio. Tačiau visiškai kitokios yra senosios lietuvių polifoninės dainos - sutartinės, kurių muzika užvaldo rimtimi, santūrumu bei savotiškai kerinčia monotonija, o ne lyrizmu. Daugeliui kitataučių sutartinės tebėra egzotika, nežinia iš kur atsiradusi tokiame mažame Europos kampelyje. Tiesa, ne mažiau egzotiškai sutartinės šiuo metu atrodo ir daliai Lietuvos gyventojų (ar ne paradoksalu: patys lietuviai "nepriima" savo tradicinės muzikos pasididžiavimo - savotiškos "vizitinės kortelės"?). Beje, šią gyventojų dalį sudaro ne tradicijų nebežinąs jaunimas, o daugiausia pusamžiai žmonės - vadinamoji "pirmoji karta nuo žagrės", kurios muzikinis skonis formavosi specifinėje kultūrinėje aplinkoje. O miesto jaunimui (net ir nesidominčiam folkloru) sutartinės vis labiau tampa savotiška meditacijos forma, o kai kuriems - ir saviraiškos būdu. Taigi sutartinių kolektyvinio giedojimo tradicija, šiuo metu jau visiškai išnykusi kaimuose, pamažu atgyja miestų folkloro ansambliuose. [...]. [Iš Pratarmės]Reikšminiai žodžiai: Atlikimo tradicijos; Lietuvių folkloras; Mediniai pučiamieji instrumentai; Moterų dainavimas; Polifonija; Polifoninė muzika; Senovinė choreografija; Sutartinių atlikėjai; Sutartinė; Sutartinės; Ancient choreography; Lithuanian folklore; Performers of Sutartinės; Poliphonic music; Polyphony; Sutartinė; Sutartinės; The traditions of performing; Women singing; Woodwind instruments.

ENLithuania has been called the "Land of Songs" since olden times. Distinguished foreign scholars, as well have ordinary travelers has described the people of the country as a lyrical nation. Actually, melancholy pervades many Lithuanian lyrical songs, and a note of sadness can at times be heard. However, the ancient Lithuanian polyphonic songs are entirely different. These songs are known ąs sutartinės. The word sutartinės is derived from the verb sutarti - 'to agree', or 'to attune' with another person. Rather than lyricism, this type of music exudes more of a solemn and restrained mood, and a strangely bewitching monotony. These songs remain an exotic mystery for many from abroad. The origins of these songs from this tiny little comer of Europe remain quite inexplicable. The truth is that the sutartinės seem no less exotic to numerous residents of Lithuania today. Paradoxically, Lithuanians themselves have not developed a full sense of pride in their own traditional music - something, which sets them apart from others. Interestingly, it has not been the younger generation, which has lost touch with its own traditions. This is more true of the middle-aged population, sometimes known in Lithuania, as "the first generation away from the plow". Musical preferences of these people formed in a highly specified cultural atmosphere. Meanwhile, young people from urban areas, even those who have no particular interest in folklore, have adopted the sutartinės, as a unique form of meditation. For some time, this music has become a means of self-expression. Thus, although a collective singing of sutartinės is now a lost art in the rural villages of Lithuania, it has slowly returned to life in the repertoires of city folk music ensembles.It has been difficult to determine why or when one attitude or another about the sutartinės formed, and how viewpoints changed. It has equally as difficult to trace the stages of development of the various early forms of polyphonic music. At best, an effort can be made to reconstruct the sutartinės, as a unique musical system of thinking, including both vocal and instrumental polyphonic music. Such a reconstruction of the entire system of second polyphonic music from the fragments, which have been scattered over the centuries, is akin to the research of semiotician Algirdas Julius Greimas. Greimas believed that Lithuanian mythology must be studied, like cultural archeology, which involves a reconstruction of the whole out of "all the pieces of mythological fragments, scattered shards, and loose scraps". The author of this book attempts to accomplish precisely that objective. This is her effort at carrying on the work of earlier scholars, such as A.Sabaliauskas, A.R.Niemi, Z.Slaviūnas, S.Paliulis, and J.Čiurlionytė, among others. This fresh look at the sutartinės is influenced by the author's background, which contains both a practical and theoretical side. The author's background includes nearly 20 years of experience as a leader of Trys Keturiose (Three by Four), a group performing sutartinės songs, as well as that of a musicologist. This combined experience has provided an ability to address certain problematic issues, related to sutartinės. Practical observations are linked with musicological analysis, incorporating ethnographic, archeological, linguistic, and other types of data. The aim of the author is to reveal the essence of the sutartinės, as a phenomenon of culture. A thorough investigation of this type today could assist in reconstructing the full, formerly synchronous form of this music.In recent times, sutartinės has completely withdrawn from their traditional environment - the everyday lives of rural villagers. Therefore, any deliberations regarding their origin, age, and the traditions related to their singing are incredibly difficult. Only one fact can be stated for certain: this formerly strong tradition of group singing has become extinguished, excepting those occasional fragments, which are sometimes provided by some random singer, and can still be documented. Nevertheless, the current renaissance of the sutartinės among urban folk song ensembles is a type of continuation of this tradition. This is precisely the impetus for taking a fresh look at this original mode of singing, and bringing to light certain aspects, which have not been investigated, heretofore. This book makes the effort to discover answers to some perplexing questions: Why was the second resonance between the voices considered a standard of aestheücs, as late as the middle of the 20th century? Did the sutartinės only enjoy a vital life in a small area of northeastern Lithuania? Why were the sutartinės performed exclusively by women (and only rarely by men)? Finally, what factors were responsible for the selecHon of the number of performers, and one or another style of performance? After all, the same two independent melodies could be sung by two, three, and four women, as well as by two groups, or in some other manner. In the attempt to ponder the issue of the genesis of the sutartinės, the author has concluded that the earliest origins of these songs must be sought among the remaining traces of the Sėliai (one of the ancient tribes of BalHc peoples) culture. It may well be that the Lithuanian Tribe proceeded to incorporate the heritage left by the Sėliai. [...]. [From the publication]