Dagestan Music Folklore: Structure and Artistic Features

Abstract

Traditional folk culture and musical folklore, due to its multielement syncretic nature, use several symbolic systems as a language. Undoubtedly, the cult of the craftsman existing in Dagestan and the wide development of decorative and applied art pushed folklore to the periphery. It can be stated that the shareholder ritual or material culture takes a bigger place in life of Dagestan people than musical and poetic forms of creativity. There are a lot of things that, contributed to the formation of relatively closed cultural centers, such as the geographic conditions in which the peoples of Dagestan traditionally live, the location of villages separated by mountainous terrain – isolation, ethnic and linguistic disunity, the tying of economic activity to a certain place (agriculture, crafts), as well as the structure of the community. The peculiarity of the “locality” phenomenon in the culture of Dagestan is associated, first of all, with a varying degree of its manifestation of ethnic cultures and of “dialect” features in them, expressed in different genres. The Dagestan musical folklore is characterized by a variety of musical traditions genetically related to the cultures of other peoples of the Caucasus and Transcaucasia. In the process of studying the musical and folklore traditions of Dagestan, two different trends are revealed: one towards localization – the “dialect division” of traditional musical culture, and the other – towards mutual influences due to the peculiarities of the social structure.

Keywords: Musical folkloretraditional culturegenre compositionclassificationstylistics of song genres

Introduction

The musical culture of Dagestan is of considerable interest. The rich and many-sided creativity of the peoples that have long inhabited this region has centuries-old traditions embodied in various forms and means of musical expression. Folk music is an integral component of spiritual culture. Songs and instrumental tunes are popular among the people. Unfortunately, to this day musical folklore remains a local phenomenon, being shadowed by the wide popularity of original crafts. While history, archeology, ethnography is characterized by significant achievements and discoveries that have been deeply and comprehensively reflected in the works of Dagestan scholars, the tendency to collect, accumulate and publish material has prevailed in the field of musical folklore for a long period. The theoretical understanding of the original traditional musical culture of Dagestan today is quite timely. Because the musical folklore of Dagestan as an integral phenomenon has not yet been studied, the study of its structure seems logical on this stage.

Problem Statement

Historically, good-neighborliness has always played a consolidating role in difficult domestic and foreign political situations. The result of multi-level interethnic ties, of each nation, and even of a single village with neighboring peoples, was the mutual influence in folklore, manifested in the presence of common genres and their characteristic stylistic features. The interaction of traditions can act as a factor in the localization of folklore. At the same time, genre classification has been and remains the most important form of streamlining folkloric collections. Despite significant achievements in its development, each researcher that study a specific ethnic or regional tradition must try “on” the classifications created by their predecessors with their own material or, considering the local specificity, try to create their own classification. Therefore, when describing a national folk songwriting, it is important to consider not only the functions, substantial and structural features of folklore patterns, but also a specific understanding of the genre by a folk musician themself.

Research Questions

The economic and cultural integration that has embraced all spheres of modern life raises certain concerns in society related to the possible loss of cultural and ethnic identity. A well-known opposition to this trend is expressed in increasing interest in traditions, in the original manifestations of national culture. The article attempts to analyze the multi-component musical folklore of Dagestan in its complex variety of genre and art systems in the context of traditional culture. Preservation of authentic forms, their development and translation in the modern cultural context in the long term can contribute to the preservation of national specifics in the age of globalization.

Purpose of the Study

The purpose of the article is to establish the genre composition of the multi-ethnic musical folklore of Dagestan and its identifying style attributes. To achieve the goal, it is necessary to present a panorama of the multi-component Dagestan musical folklore with its potential and adaptive capabilities in modern times, with a great demand for its scientific study (Abdullaeva, 2007; Fataliev, 2008; Magomedov, 2008; Yakubov, 2003), and as a component of developed folklore culture in whole (Adzhiev et al., 2018).

Research Methods

In the study of the topic, a comprehensive approach was used. It follows from the nature of the object and one of the most important qualities of folklore – its “inclusion” in the vital system of the ethnos. This quality is expressed in the applied functions of the folklore. The methodology defined in the works of Russian scientists (Rakhaev, 1996; Rudichenko, 2008; Zemtsovsky, 1994). In the study of folk music, we also proceeded from the inherent musical ethnography of the approach to culture as a holistic phenomenon and examined the genres of folklore in the context of their existence in diverse relationships with other phenomena of traditional culture. The musical material that served as the basis for this study was recorded in expeditions by the method of field collection, research and its cameral processing. The description of the material is carried out mainly in the synchronous aspect. To identify stereotypes of the traditional culture of the peoples of Dagestan, the typological method and the principles of modeling “individual folklore facts” associated with it are used (Gippius, 1982).

Findings

Studying the genre structure and artistic features of musical folklore of the peoples of Dagestan, it is necessary to characterize the scientific approaches that have developed in Dagestan folklore and in the research school of the North Caucasus region.

Our classification is carried out in accordance with the material of related cultures of the peoples of the North Caucasus and developed according to that material principles (Ashkhotov, 2003; Naloev, 1980; Pashina, 1999; Sokolova, 1998), considering folk genre and performing terminology. Dagestan musical folklore mainly consists of songs, cries, instrumental tunes, in accordance with the whole variety of national traditions of Dagestan. However, it is generally divided into two kinds of musical forms – reproduced by voice or by musical instrument, i.e., vocal and instrumental. All vocal forms are designated by the term song – Dalai (Dargins), KechI (Avars), Balai (Laks), etc., instrumental tunes or the common Arabic term makyam (maqam), makan meaning music, melody, or traditional folk names. To one degree or another, the very opposition of singing and playing musical instruments is known in many cultures and often has a religious basis. Song (vocal) genres are differentiated by intonation methods. In popular terminology, they are represented in many details, by such concepts as: dalai belches (далай белчIес) (sing a song) (darg.), yırlamak (йырламакъ) (yir-sing) (kum.), layla riques (лайла рикьес) (lullaby to speak), laylavares (лайлаварес) (layla-to tell) (darg.), aitmak (айтмакъ) (talk say) (kum.), kiakiari barkies (кьакьари баркьес), agi luala (агьи луала), luzheli (лужели), chillai (чIиллай) (scream, cry), deza darkes (деза даркьес) (praise do), khIjazli virkes (хIязли виркьес) (to play) (darg.), kIudijab kechI (кIудияб кечI) (“Big song”, that is, performed with a loud voice in open space) (avar.). These concepts form the first hierarchical series.

In the next hierarchical row are concepts that establish everyday destiny. As a rule, definitions of songs consist of two parts: constant (song) daluiti (далуйти), balairdu (балайрду) and variable, characterizing confinement to any kind of activity or related to certain persons: gyadatla daluiti (гIядатла далуйти) – ritual songs; buzerila daluiti (бузерила далуйти) – labor songs, gardla daluiti (гардла далуйти) – soothing songs; neshla daluiti (нешла далуйти) – mother songs.

Another series of terms is used by tradition bearers to refer to genres associated with circumstances of performance that are not strictly or not timed. These songs are identified by their content: masharala daluiti (масхарала далуйти) (darg.) – comic songs; masharala dukelcila (масхарала дукельцIила) (darg.) – mockery; ragul (рагъул), kalul kuchdul (кьалул кучIдул) (avar.), virttavrahassa balairdu (вирттаврахасса балайрду) (laks.), gabzachila daluiti (гъабзачила далуйти) (darg.) – songs about heroes; gvalab zamanala ancIbukuni sipatdaribti daluiti (гвалаб заманала анцIбукьуни сипатдарибти далуйти (darg.) – former times events described by songs; rokul kuchIdul (рокьул кучIдул) (avar.), digaila daluiti (дигайла далуйти) (darg.) – love songs; daluiti pikrumi (далуйти пикруми) – meditation songs; shishimti ancIkila daluiti (шишимти анцIкьила далуйти) – sad songs (darg.), mashinul balairdu (мащинул балайрду) (lak.) – farm songs, lahi balai (лахьи балай) (laks.) – long song, kisa (къиса) (avar.) – literally “narration” – a ballad song.

The intonation is defined by the performers in two terms – to sing and say, to say, which corresponds to the cantilean (song) and declamatory (spoken) style. Love curses, wedding majesty and song-reflection are sung cantilently and melismatically. In the performance of lyrical tunes, the traditional popular definition is clearly manifested: to sing, chant, intone (a song). The ritual sentences of the first furrow and labor songs are performed in a recitative manner.

Ritual and non-ritual genres are divided into male and female, which is quite comparable with the structure of the community, lifestyle, mentality, where the male / female opposition acts as fundamental. This division is projected onto the traditions of folk music, manifesting itself not only in the assignment of a certain repertoire to the named groups, but also in the poetics and musical side of the songs. The stylistic distinction in timed genres is also determined by those to whom they are addressed.

Vocal and instrumental music in the context of rituals has clearly fixed functions. In vocal genres, the opposition of male and female is especially pronounced, manifesting itself not only in the repertoire, timbre-register differences, but also in the limitation of joint singing. Women sang only in their own circle – rituals, during the performance of any work or at leisure. Here, singing performed ritually magical and fatal – organizing labor rhythm – functions.

Vocal-instrumental genres are more associated with communication between members of gender and age groups, contributing to their unification (rural and family holidays). Although instrumental performance is an area of male creativity, women in their circle often accompany singing on chungur, accordion, tambourine. The genres of instrumental dance music are mainly associated with the moments of ritual or festive unification of age and gender strata and communities (tukhums, jamaats). Contact, communicative function in them comes to the fore.

The specific features of the genre in the context of the entire clan cycle and tradition are manifested in the manner of performance, the type of intonation and articulation. In the people there are designations of the way they are performed (stable phrases) – layla rikjes (лайла рикьес), laylavares (лайлаварес) (layla – talk, cradle), while in relation to lyric songs it’s dalay belchIes (далай белчIес) (dalay – sing). Therefore, rocking songs are more correlated with recitations, which the people do not perceive as singing, but act as a kind of emotional action addressed to the audience: kakari barkes (кьакьари баркьес) (kakari – to do), khyabkub dures (хIябкуб дурес) (khyabkub – to tell), deza darkes (деза даркьес) (deza – to do). In the same row correlate with recitation and crying. They are characterized by a leisurely pace, a downward melodic orientation and emotional performance. They can be divided into two groups: cries performed immediately after death and within seven days, cries performed on the fortieth day.

Of the genres in the context of the wedding, it turned out to be viable and wedding songs about family well-being and happiness continue to exist. Examples of such songs can be traced in the productions of folklore ensembles, and even in a wedding ritual in the countryside. So, the Avarians sang the ritual song «МатахI босув кечI» («Matakh bosuv kech») (song of the transfer of things). Wedding grandees sing on special lyrical tunes, which the informants themselves designate as Nikolai daluyti (Николай далуйти) – «Nikolaev» (from the time of Nicholas I), that is, old, characteristic of non-ritual lyrics. Another group consists of wedding songs, performed when they go after the bride and lead her to the groom's house. They are accompanied by dancing. In the Kumyk wedding, the male singing tradition is clearly represented. During the procession after the bride or after her arrival, the male choir performed the Bosa Yyr (боза-йыр). These songs by style belong to the traditional Kumyk choral art.

The group of timed genres is adjoined by healthy, banquet male songs (deza) (literally “honor”, “praise”). They are sung in the male circle, at a friendly table, several people alternately, as if passing the baton to each other, often to the accompaniment of a stringed plucked instrument (pandura, agach-kumuz, mandolin, chungur, accordion). The social component in the rites is very developed; they have a lot of manipulations and actions. Here, each participant has his own function, and sentences and songs are thought of as an integral part, one of the complementary elements of the action. Out of the ritual context, they do not sound. At the same time, while maintaining the basic elements of the rite, the musical genres accompanying them are often lost and forgotten.

In the group of ritual genres, all forms of performance are revealed: solo, collective (choral), solo-group (resp.) And solo accompanied by a musical instrument. From the song genres in solo form, wedding majors are performed on behalf of the mother-in-law, meeting the bride in her house and motherly songs (motion sickness of her son). Collective sentences and songs sound without an instrument. Songs of men's feasts – deza (darg.) – are often accompanied by accompaniment of chungur, mandolins, male choral bosa-yyrs (kum) sound a capella, and sometimes accompanied by national harmony. Instrumental music has a place in the wedding ceremony, men's feasts, calendar rites of the summer cycle. The ensemble consisting of a drum, zurna (sometimes with an accordion or accordion) accompanies dancing. Actually, instrumental music is determined by its purpose: it is represented by an extensive layer of dance music – delkh (делхъ) (dance), (music for listening (tuned) (darg.), yel kyui (ел кюй) (road melody), chartlama kyui (чартлама кюй) (medical melody) (kum.) and accompaniment to the songs. Organizing and combining functions belong to instrumental music in rites.

In the rites of the patrimonial cycle, in particular, in the wedding, many varieties of Lezginka are preserved – pair and solo dances accompanied by zurna, nat. harmonies, drums, and other instruments, there are also forms of collective dance, for example, the Kumyks have a collective wedding dance to the polyphonic chorus of men. Every nation, even in every village, has its own dance melodies that have become widespread, or have retained the name of the area where they originated – Akushinsky, Amuzginsky, Kubachinsky, etc., dances of Chargu, Kyissu, Syudum-tayak, etc. that are associated with fixed melody and dance figures. Men's dances with elements of acrobatics, which require certain physical skills, are associated with the social institutions of male unions, the existence and prevalence of which in the regions of Dagestan, and more widely in the Caucasus, are described in detail by Dagestan and Russian scientists, let's give an example, the Kubachin male union Gulala-aku-bucon (Гулала-аку-букон) (union of the unmarried), known, among other things, for the traditions of theatrical costumed performances and the existence of dance on bent legs (tangacuc (тангацIуцI) and collective dance tjagtung (тягьтIунг). In the dance culture of the Caucasus, various genres and forms of dance and a variety of dance melodies are presented – Chechen Lezghinka, Kabardian (Islam), numerous Armenians, Georgian, Azerbaijani, Ossetian dances, including men's collective.

Heroic legends about heroes-sledges exist among many peoples of the Caucasus – Adygs (Abkhazians, Adyghe, Kabardins, Circassians), Vainakhs (Chechens, Ingush), Ossetians. The Nart heroic epic in a singing form may have been presented among the Kumyks, now we can talk about oral-poetic and prosaic forms of preservation. In the artistic heritage of other peoples of Dagestan there are separate plots about sledges – in fairy tales, legends and traditions that are in a prosaic form.

The epic songs of the tradition carriers are defined as: galab zamanala ancbukuni sipatdaribti daluyti (гьалаб заманала анцIбукьуни сипатдарибти далуйти) – former times of the event, described by songs (darg.), ttatahal balayrdu (ттатахъал балайрду) – songs of grandfathers, huni balayrdu (хъуни балайрду) – big songs, hhichavassa balayrdu (хьхьичIавасса балайрду) – ancient songs (laks.), yir (йыр) (kum.), batyr yirlar (батыр йырлар) – legends about heroes (nog.), kelul kech (къелул кечI) (heroic songs), kisa (къиса) – ballad song (avar.). Ballad songs are a vocal and instrumental genre, men sing them accompanied by a musical instrument (chungur, agach-kumuz, pandura, dombra), the instrument part, as a rule, duplicates the vocal part (with variable deviations) and sets the rhythm (sometimes of a dance character, rhythm horse racing), which influences the rhythm of the song tune. Lyroepic songs are characterized by the merging of the cantilean and declamatory beginnings, a moving pace. The recitation beginning is expressed in the abundance of rehearsal repetitions, the ratio of verse and tune according to the principle of syllable – sound, uniform rhythmic movement, a narrow volume of tune, energetic manner of pronouncing the text. To this is added periodic repetition and dynamic instrumental accompaniment (often percussion), with a rhythmic dance base. The melodic composition consists of descending “terraced”, mainly received displacements of melodic constructions and repetition of melodic-rhythmic units (periodicities). Epic genres the ballad, were significantly influenced by song lyrics. This was reflected in the structure of the verse and its musical rhythm.

The modern existence of lyrical songs does not have a strict confinement. To define lyric songs, folk singers use the concepts of – rokul kuchIdul (рокьул кучIдул) (avar.), digaila daluyti (дигайла далуйти) (darg.) – love song, shishimti anckila daluyti (шишимти анцIкьила далуйти) – sad songs, daluyti pikrumi (далуйти пикруми) – meditation songs (darg.), tolgavlar (толгавлар) (nog.) – sad thoughts. Love lyrics are also present in the men's song repertoire. These are songs singing a beloved, songs about separation, about unrequited love. Men also sing about heroes – ragul (рагъул), kalul kuchdul (кьалул кучIдул) (avar.), gjakhgobzachila (гIяхIгъобзачила) (darg.), in which courage is praised. In the case of Russian folklore, such songs are called “daring” and distinguished as a special kind of lyrical song. Love lyrics in the folklore of the peoples of Dagestan – Avars, Dargins, Lezghins, Kumyks, Laks are the most developed. Lyrical songs are sung to the accompaniment of musical instruments (chungur, mandolin, pandura, agach-kumuz, national accordion, accordion) and without them, mugham compositions – accompanied by packaging, an ensemble of instruments.

The basics of the melodic line of songs are rooted in the dynamics of the outline of speech intonation. The melody reflects the predominance in the spatial representations of the Dagestanis, characteristic of the Caucasian peoples, of the vertical spatial vector.

Conclusion

Thus, in the modern world, with its opposite development trends – the globalization of the economy and culture and the desire to preserve ethnic and cultural identity, Dagestan is a kind of “reservation” of the local-style traditional culture. Putting forward the thesis about the locality of culture, we have in mind its ethnic identity, due to the "mosaic" composition of the population. The phenomenon of locality in the culture of Dagestan manifests itself to varying degrees at the level of ethnic cultures and at the level of “dialect” features in them, expressed in different genres. In musical folklore within each ethnic group, locality is not revealed to the same extent as in other areas of culture or language. Perhaps this is since in neighboring rural territorial communities that performed political and economic functions, villages of not one district were united (in accordance with the modern administrative-territorial division), but residents of different regions, carriers of different cultural traditions. When characterizing the genres of national folklore, as a rule, some dominant one is identified, which became such due to the historical development and specificity of culture. Among the Ossetians, Adyghe and Turkic peoples – this is a heroic epic about the Narts, among the peoples of Dagestan – a variety of lyrical songs.

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