Karpathia. Ukrainian ethnic music.

Я собі думаю, скільки етнографів по всій Україні записали етномузики? Захистили свої кандидатські й все. А аудіофайли з безцінним скарбом десь припорошуються пилом. А деякі навіть прослухати нема чим, бо апаратури такої вже немає. Дослідники сидять на них як дракони на золоті й не показують широкому загалу, міркуючи про можливі вигоди (?). Якось звернувся до відомого фольклориста Миколи Мушинки щодо лемківських пісень. Так, каже, щойно Академія наук Чехії видала кілька CD обмеженим накладом і що далі? А як я, пересічний шанувальник, зможу їх дістати? А майже ніяк. Навіть по знайомству не зміг. Отак воно у добу інформаційного суспільства виявляється непросто знайти потрібне.

Добре, що у серії "Етнічна музика України" видали дещицю.

Un verdadero trabajo antropologico, simplemente brillante. Es la esencia del folklore del sudoeste de Ucrania. Decir como algunas personas sostienen que es musica rumana y solo eso es negar la historia, la hisoricidad del pueblo ucraniano. Es obvio que el sudoeste de Ucrania recibe influencias del folklore rumano, como lo hace de otros paises, pero podria hablarse extensamente de la influencia del folklore ucraniano en la musica rumana (de hecho las tradiciones musicales rumanas tienen mas contenido eslavo que latino o dacio). Pretender que la musica y los estilos musicales son patrimonio de un solo pueblo es una falacia; precisamente al ser un producto cultural el folklore es historico, social, mutable, y refleja las intracciones de un pueblo con sus vecinos, y esto comprueba que son pueblos vivos, activos, verdaderos sujetos, y no objetos, de la historia.

This CD is a valuable piece of Maramorisian folklore. The instrumental pieces included here compile some of the best recordings of north-carpathian music. I am a listener of traditional romanian music, of Taraf des Haidouks, and others. This musics seems to me as romanian as the Taraf de Haidouks. The melodic lines are so Romanian, more Romanian than the Romanian traditional music from regions like Moldavia and Transylvania. I would say that in the hole estern-european regions, two areas are the most Romanian, Valachia and Hutsulshkina. I think that from these two areas the Romanian people spread throughout its ethnic teritorry of today. I heared of different documents, like the place in Nestor's Chronic, where it is said that before the hungarian conquest, the Romanians occupied the contry of the Ruthenians, of the conties of the "bolohoveni'' or ''brodnici'' that were romanian feudal states in Gallitia, and of the numerous villages runed by ''iux vallahicum'', that were romanian still in the 16th century. I herded that Maramures was in 80% of its population romanian till the 16th century, when Ruthenians were colonised on the feudal estates of the romanian Cnezi, lords. Maiby this music is a testimony to the Romanian influence in what is today Transcarpatia and Ivano-Frankivsk, of those volosky shepherd people who gave the names of all the mountains in the region, and from whom Dragos and Bogdan settled the Moldavians in what ios today the eastern region of Romania and the Republic of Moldavia.

I got this CD because I was specifically seeking Hutsul trembita music after seeing the film, Shadows of Our Forgotten Ancestors. This cd did not have as much Trembita as I would have liked, but nevertheless this is a truly wonderful and rare cd of authentic and pretty raw folk music, with real (nonprofessional) people singing in all their glory! I am always horrified by folk music getting commercialized, slicked-up for popular consumption, or mixed up with other world music or modern / electronic instruments - which is NOT the case here, to my great relief.

Karpathia is the ultimate ethnic adventure. The selections, all played on authentic folk instruments (pipes, tsymbaly, trembita) and sung by natives who do justice to the repertoire, transport me to the rough, beautiful mountains. I dance along to the happy and sly kolomyjka tunes, feel nostalgia listening to the wedding songs, the Christmas and New Year's greetings. The past lives through these recordings. I am also impressed by the research and thoroughness in the notes. Some of the words are purely regional and translations are needed. Certain local customs are also explained. There is a good description of the three groups, the Lemki, the Bojki and Hutsuly. I do think that it was a good idea to arrange the selections according to the region. I recommend for those who enjoy Karpathia to purchase the Kosmach Musicians CD. One reason for my loving this type of music, I should add, is that my father is from the Carpathian region and I always heard these types of tunes during my earliest years.