What was the sound landscape of Latvia when our ancestors filled it with decoration, rejoicing and other voices in meadows, forests and hills? The answer to this question is provided by the newly released edition of the group “Saucēja”, which is called “Dabā” and is the culmination of the group’s four years of work.
During the project, the group members went to different places in Latvia to record different types of traditional singing in nature. Their invaluable assistants were sound masters Gatis Gaujinieks and Edmunds Račinskis. Recordings of this type of folk songs have been made in Latvia for the first time, therefore the project is noteworthy. Both the recordings and the accumulated experience are now compiled into two audio CDs with 60 recordings and a book that reflects the progress of the project and also includes several studies on traditional singing.
The singers’ long cries, decoration, jubilation once naturally chanted the hills, meadows and forests of Latvia, intertwined with the songs of birds, the hissing of grass, the howling of frogs and other sounds of nature.
Knowing the ancient traditions, the group “Saucējas” has been practicing singing in nature for many years, but the recordings were made in the studio, because in nature it seemed very difficult to do it in nature. Especially because it is necessary to sing in places that are as pristine as possible – far from roads, power lines and other technological sound sources.
Nowadays, the sound technique is such that it can be installed almost anywhere, and thus four years ago “Callers” started the idea cherished for a long time – to record songs directly in nature, as they once sounded naturally.
The recordings were made in different parts of Latvia, mostly in the vicinity of Sāviena castle mound, where there were the most suitable places, because, according to sources, people most often sang by the water, in the forest, in the mountains and on the hills, says Iveta Tāle, the leader of “Saucēju”.
“Our experience shows that the mountain is important for the very reason that it gives you such an aesthetic pleasure. You are above some other things in the landscape, and it is a wonderful sight when you are at that top of the mountain, and then you also feel like the ruler of the world, because I mean, singing in nature, you really feel like you rule over everything. their natural space, landscape. Because when you make your voice heard on such a loud evening, it really no longer seems to be in some way hyperbolized and exaggerated the formulas used by our folk songs that – “mountains tremble”, “forests” or “forest ends” ”Or that the earth wobbles there when you sing. Because that’s the feeling. This kinetic feeling that the whole landscape vibrates, everything moves when you release that voice, ”explains Iveta Tāle.
In practice, it was also often mentioned in folk songs that the songs sound best in the mornings and evenings, as well as the fact that birds sing with human voices, as Iveta Tāle admits – this is not poetics, but really reality.
She says: “The birds undoubtedly took part. Most likely they were worried that someone was in their territory. Either way, they responded, it was clearly to singing. For example, a crow can be frustrated just by imitating her cake. It was the very first time we were recorded in that place – the end of the world – in Rožu mire, Sēlpils parish. And then that crow, because they are the men who cook there, he really came to find out the relationship, he – such a thick crow – flew over our heads and tried to understand what had come here to disturb him. There were also a lot of cuckoos in Sāviena, you can hear in the recording that they cook several at a time. All they had to do was start singing, and then they already felt addressed and started participating. ”
While recording the talks, the involvement of poultry in a country house in Amata parish was very useful.
Iveta Tāle notes: “Yes, there is a funny recording with a turkey who reacted to the sounds of a certain frequency, so when they sounded, he immediately” burst “his song inside.”
Photo: Publicity image
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In addition to the birds, other representatives of nature joined the singing, including the mighty frog choir around the Union, with which the song “Puri, puri, meži, meži” was recorded.
Whether each song once had a specific meaning or function is not entirely clear, but Iveta Tāle invites it to look it up in the lyrics: . We all have an uplifting feeling, and it is clear that everyone wants to take part. And the lyrics show us what those songs are for. The first is to engage in that whole mystery of spring flowering and flowering. Because there is a lot of singing about ivy blooms, apple blossoms. And also in parallel for man. As the daughters bouquet, so does the flower. And, of course, there’s all that love. That you want to run and show your voice and show your costume to young people. Because one of the ways the daughters were once meant to be was after they sang. If she sings well, she can also be a good partner. ”
The newly released edition “Nature” includes two audio CDs with 60 recordings and a book with articles about the experience gained during the project.
The album will be performed in May, June and July with three acoustic concerts in nature; whether and how they will take place will depend on the epidemiological situation in the country.
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