FOLKTRAX 625 - SONGS & DANCES OF SARDINIA - Vol 2 Liturgical Songs & Processionals

1. SUMMONS TO THE PASSION - 2'58" - Male voice & five other males rec Aggius, Sassari 1965

2. DOMINE JESU CRISTE - 2'09" - Two male voices & mixed chorus rec Cheremule, Sassari 1967

3. PROCESSIONAL MISERERE - 0'47" - Four male voices rec Castelsardo, Sassari 1967

4. PROCESSIONAL STABAT MATER - 1'59" - Four male voices rec Castelsardo, Sassari 1967

5. LENTEN MISERERE - 3'53" - Four male voices rec Castelsardo, Sassari 1967

6. ANTIPHONE - 3'04" - Five male voices rec Aggius, Sassari 1965

7. MISERERE FROM ALTAR - 2'49" - Four male voices & four otherc alternating male voices rec Castelsardo, Sassari 1967

8. MUTOS A TENORE - 4'06" - Four male voices rec Orune, Nuoro 1968

9. MUTOS A TENORE - 3'38" - Four male voices rec Orgosolo, Nuoro 1969

10. BOGHE LONGA (voce lunga) - 7'11" - Four male voices rec Orgosolo, Nuoro 1969

11. PASU TORRAU - 1'37" - Four male voices rec Orgosolo, Nuoro 1969

12. BALLU TONDU (Round dance) - 2'26" - Four male voices rec Orgosolo, Nuoro 1969

13. BALLU (Dance) - 1'18" - Four male voices rec Mamolada, Nuoro 1953

14. BALLU (Dance) - 1'42" - Four male voices rec Mamolada, Nuoro 1953

MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS

15. CAMPANACCI (Cow Bells) - 0'32" - Cadenzed Walk of the Mamuthones rec Mamolada, Nuori 1964

16. TRUNFA (Dance) - 0'30" - Scacciapensieri (jew's harp) rec Ardauli, Cagliari 1966

17. SULITTU (Dance) - 1'21" - Reed flute rec Ardauli, Cagliari 1966

18. SULITTU (Dance) - 1'28" - Reed flute rec Orroli, Nuoro 1966

19. BALLU (Dance) - 1'10" - Armonica A Bocca (harmonica) rec Orroli, Nuoro 1966

20. BALLU (Dance) - 1'29" - Fisarmonica (accordion) rec Busachi, Cagliari 1966

21. BALLU TUNDU (Round Dance) - 1'48" - Reed flute, triangle & tambourine rec Maracalagonia, Cagliari 1967

22. FIORASSIU IN SI-BEM (Christmas Pastoral) - 1'43" - Launeddas rec Villaputzu, Cagliari 1968

23. MEDIANA PIPIA (Dance) - 1'37" - Launeddas rec Villaputzu, Cagliari 1968

24. PUNTU 'E ORGANU (Procession) - 2'08" - Launeddas rec Villaputzu, Cagliari 1968

25. FIORASSIU IN SI-BEM (Dance) - 1'58" Launeddas rec Villaputzu, Cagliari 1968

All the liturgical songs and processionals belong to the traditional and popular liturgy, some of them have also been received in the official rites of the Church while others are performed only during the Holy Week. The text are in Latin and belong to the official liturgy, usually singers from religious brotherhoods perform these songs.

1. Passio - A chorus of five voices performs it during the reading of the Palm Sunday Gospel: the main voice performs the theme while the chorus breaks in at the word "crugifigator". The Latin text belongs to St. Matthew's Gospel.

2. Domine Jesus Christe - Song of the Good Friday is an adoration of the Holy Cross. It is performed responsively by two soloists of the brotherhood and by a chorus of kneeling shippers.

3-4. Processional miserere, stabat mother - These are two processional songs of the Holy Week, performed on Monday. The first chorus performs the "miserere" in front of a skull laid on a cushion while the second chorus performs the "stabat" while standing around a small chalk statue of Ecce Homo. There is also a third chorus singing at the same time the "Jesus", not quoted here. The three choruses proceed at a distance one from the other and groups of brethern holding the symbols of the Passion walk between them. When they sing the procession stops.

5. Lenten miserere - This song is performed at the altar every Friday during Lent, after Via Crucis. The text belongs to Psalm 50.

6. Antiphone - A chorus of five voices performs this song during church services on Palm Sunday. The patterns belong to popular music.

7. Miserere from the altar The text is taken from Psalm 50 as well as in the lenten miserere. It is performed on Good Friday after a performance of the deposition. At Castelsardo and in several different location of Sardinia this old performance is very common and followed by lots of people. A big cross of Christ is placed in front of the altar and two brethern disguised as Jew perform the stages of the deposition, soon afterwards during the cross-worshipping ceremony is sung the "miserere".

8-14. Tenore is the name given to the various types of four-part choral songs (bassi, contra, boghe and mesa 'oche) found throughout Barbagia. The leading voice (tenor) sings the tune adapting it to the lines of the text which he freely arranges to suit himself. The other three voices (sometimes also including the leading voice) join in soon afterwards with a highly rhythmical musical pattern based on some typical nonsense syllables, such as bim-ra-bim..., bim-bo..., ba-ril-la...etc The choice of metre and literary structure is free: mutos, octaves, battorinas (quatrains), triplets, ballad and so on. This musical style is widespread and is wemployed on many different occasions. The Ballu tundu and the Passau Torrau are among the best known dances or balli.

8. A group of four Mutos torrados which are performed polyphonically; the entire text being sung by the leader with the chorus joining in at the end of each stanza.

8a. Lambkins when they play/ Run wirthout restraint/ Then return to the flock/ Bim barim bam bim/ lambkins when they play/ I wish I could hear/ This from your own voice/ You really love me//

8b. What lovely tunes/ A guitar can produce/ In the merry-making/(b) What lovely tunes/ I am in transport, darling/ I am happy, honey/ For I love you//

8c. I put a winter pear/ Which is white as snow/ A pear into my pocket/ I put a winter pear/ May you be dragged in chains/ For the wrongs I have suffered/ To the village square/ A pear into my pocket/ For the wrongs I have suffered/ May you be dragged in chains//

8d. St John he can heal/ St John of our Kord/ St John from Mara/ St John of our Lord/ Those colours you have got/ Were painted through magic/ On your face, o my darling/ St John he can heal/ On your face, o my darling/ Were painted through magic/ Those colours got...etc

9a. The daughter of the doctor/ She is a lovely teacher/ Goeas through the books of Homer/ No less than three times/ What am I doing tonight?/ It is no serenade/ It is for you, my dove/ An avowal of love/n For no less than three times/ ...etc//

9b. Frine, the courtesan/ The queen of beauty/ Was immortalised/ In Athens town/ Frine the courtesan/ Endowed with many a gift/ In orgosolo village/ You bewitch any man...

9c. Notes written down/ In a dark cell/ By a wise man/ Enlighten the world/ Life is ever so hard/ As the exploited can't/ Carry to the end/ The fight for their rights...etc

10. Look you have no bread/ Tired and hungry and naked/ You cannot even raise a cry of indignation/ Worse than a dotg is/ A vile and silent servant/ You lick the ungrateful hand/ Giving your joyous welcome/ To him who laughs at you/ While he beholds you beg/ Your hand outstretched for pity/ Lo the prodigal waste/ Your opulent master/ Can do on your hard labour/ People, you are slaves/ Your pains and your sweat/ Are for their fancies and whims/ And for those haughty people/ You shout hooray in your hunger

11. Today, the twentieth of May/ In my village/ You feel it is already full Spring/ the shepherds who spent tne winter in Baronia/ Along the coasts and in Campidano/ Following the fold, return/ Laden with sacks and mantles/ To their native land/ They milk not far away/ And the milk is saved for their presents/ And everybody seems anxious to know/ How they spend their wintertime/ They reply sadly in a tired voice/ We have hardly succeeded in paying off/ The rent we owed for the grazing grounds/ All of the profits were left to the master.

12a. Three apples and three lemons/ I am putting on the table/ To make a lemonade/ How that glance of yours/ Can drive me to dancing/ To dancing more and more/ And throw me into ecstasy//

12b. It is better, rich people/ For you not to tyranise/ Otherwise in faith/ You shall come off your horse/ War is declared already/ Against your arrogance/ Patience beginas to falter/ In the exploited people/ Mind you, a fire already/ Is blazing against you/ Be aware, it's not for joking/ My threat will come true/ Be aware as the sky/ Is threatening a storm/ Ill-advised people/ Come listen to my voice//

12c. At Trento, Trieste and Poa/ Gianetta fought bravely/ But with a machine-gun/ In order to be happy/ I keep waiting for/ One glance from you/ Since there is attraction/ I feel comforted/ When I think of you

MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS

Only some thirty-odd years have passed since the publica tion of Giulio Fara's L'anima della Sardegna (Udine: 1940, pp. 15-80), and yet, practically all the instruments illustrated and described in that book are now obsolete. The first victim of the continuous dissolution of Sardinian popular music, in fact, was the instrument-toy which had been utilized for long-impoverished ceremonial functions. This part of the anthology is, therefore, an indication of the actual state of Sardinian musical instruments, based an both the writers' information and research, with no omissions of importance. Together with those instruments of more recent date, such as the guitar and the organetto (melodeon), also included are those of decidedly archaic origins, such as the launeddas, sulitto, triangle and tambourine. Instrumental music is usually dance-music; only the launeddas repertoire consists of compositions for various other functions; such as processional pieces (usually variations of goccius motifs), pastorals, and others. The accordion has almost completely replaced the organetto (sonettu), and is not used for dance pieces but to accompany monodic songs, otherwise played by the guitar (Mutu, Boghe in D, etc.), The sulittu is a small, stopped vertical bamboo or wooden flute. Its size varies: it can be found in lengths of from 10 to 15 cm., with a diameter of circa 1.5 c/m. It has four finger holes and can emit six or seven natural tones and one harmonic of each of the first two holes. A very primitive example of this instrument was found dating some archeological excavations near Palmavera (Alghero) and is now preserved in the Cagliari Archeological Museum. The triangle, which is the Maracalagonis (Cagliari) example is utilized together with the Basque tambourine and the sulittu, is made of steel, with a beater of the same metal which strikes it at its base; the instrument does not appear to exist in any other parts of the island and is not even mentioned by Fara. In Maracalagonis the player holds two triangles of the same size (circa 20 cm. per side) suspended by a string. The trunfa is a small ideophone very similar to the Sicilian jew's harp, also found in various other parts of Europe in its present form, which dates back to the ]4th century circa. The launeddas is believed to have been prominent in all of Sardinia up until two or three centuries ago; today it can be found only in certain areas of Campidano: Cobras, Villaputzu, Orfacesus and a few others. It consists of three single-reed pipes of various lengths, which, according to their size, form a certain type of cunzertu (consort), i.e., contrappuntu, florassiu, puntu 'e organu, bagadia, mediana pipia. The single reed places it in the clarinet family. The longest pipe (tumbu), without holes, produces a pedal tone, and is lashed together with the canna mediana (mancosa manna), while the smallest pipe (mancosedda), played by the left hand, is free. From a musical point of view, the pieces played on the launeddas are two-part counterpoint over a fixed bass pedal tone. The two parts are played by the mancosa manna (five holes) and the mancosedda (six holes) over the pedal tone of the tumbu which has no holes. 'I'he sound is continuous, as that of the bagpipes the result of a special beathing technique through the nostrils. Its wealth of repertoire includes instrumental pieces of extraordinary beauty including dances, pastorals etc as well as accompaniments for the voice, mutettos, goccius, a curba songs The example of instrumental music included in this collection are preceded by a recording of of the sound of campanacci or cow-bells, wehich forma part of the costume worn by the mamuthones (a fur jacket on which are sewn campanacci of various sizes, a wooden mask and a kerchief to cover the face). The mamuthones go through the streets at Carnival time followed by the issocadrez (wearing red jackets, black berrets tied under the chin with a kerchief, and a gold embroidered scarf which crosses from the left shoulder to underneath the riglt arm, on which are fixed several round bells), who try to "capture" the mamuthones with a lasso-type rope. This tradition is supposed to have once been part of some "earth" rites.

The Editors.

DIEGO CARPITELLA is a university teacher of ethnomusicology, a subject that he teaches at the University and at St. Cecilia Conservatoire in Rome. Since 1952 he has carried on his research into Italian popular music, recording more than 5000 documents above all in central and southern Italy and in the islands. From 1954 to 1962 he took part in the interdisciplinary inquiries directed by Ernesto Demartino. He also did research in Northern Africa and South America. In 1957 he published, together with Alan Lomax, the first collection of recordings on Italian folk music.

PIETRO SASSU is associate professor of the History of Music at "L. Canepa" Conservatoire in Sassari. In 1962 he began his ethomusicological research in Sardinia with Diego Carpitella and then he went deeper into it, publishing specific studies. He did recordings for C.N.S.M.P. and State Discography also in other Italian regions.

LEONARDO SOLE is a teacher of Italian Literature in secondary schools and also collaborator of Cultural Antropology at "facolta' di magistero" in Sassari. He deals in verbal expressiveness at a folkloristic level, even with "on field" research. He published some essays in co-operation with Pietro Sassu. 1. SUMMONS TO THE PASSION - 2'58" - Male voice & five other males rec Aggius, Sassari 1965