Water is clear at the source
(Chechen saying)
Music has held a special place in the life of the Chechen people from time immemorial. It was used to declare love, swear friendship and fidelity, reconcile enemies and healed the sick. The distinct peculiarity of Chechen melodies and the profundity of the poetic imagery have inspired Russian thinkers – V. Odoyevsky, I. Klinger, L.Tolstoy and A. Fet, who have written down and elaborated on specimens of folk poetry. The earliest examples of notated Chechen songs are considered to be melodies published by I. Dobrovolsky in the Astrakhan “Asian Musical Journal” from 1816. During the 1920s many Soviet cultural activists went out into Chechen villages on musical research expeditions – among them, the composer A.A. Davidenko. He wrote down numerous historical, ritual, lyrical and dance folk songs. On the basis of the expeditions of 1926 there was a musical collection published in Moscow, “30 Arrangements of Chechen Folk Melodies.”
Only a limited number of genres exists in Chechen musical folklore: the song, dance music and theso-called “music for listening.” Among the songs, the heroic-epic genres are especially distinguished – the illi or illesh (frequently sung in the form of recitatives), performed by men. The male choral songs include the nazma (religious hymns, performed during the zikr rituals, usually in two or three voices), whereas the female and young girls’ songs include the esharsh, khalkharan and yish, which have numerous local variants.
At the same time in the Chechens’ own musical thinking the song and dance musical elements are mostly integrated. The melody of a song frequently accelerates and turns into a sparkling dance. Similarly to the rest of the Caucasus, the most popular dance for the Chechens is the lezginka. Almost in every aul or village one could find a local variety of this dance. In the lezginka the movements of the dance partners “speak” for themselves, being suave and gracious in the case of the women and impetuous and temperamental in the case of men, with “advancing” on the fingers. The instrumental ensembles which accompany the dances consist, as a rule, of accordion, the doul tambourine and several dechig-pondurs. In the present day the dancing traditions, which have ancient folklore roots, are supported by professional Chechen dance ensembles, including the “Vainakh” ensemble, well-known far beyond the boundaries of Chechnya (the vainakhs is how the Chechens and Ingushes call each other), the “Lovzar” Children’s Ensemble, and numerous others.
Traditionally the performance of songs has the character of a dialogue: during the holidays one of the men recited in a singing voice, then the other men repeated the refrain in chorus; after this, a woman came out and answered the man with the corresponding song, then the other women echoed her in refrain. What turned out was a certain type of artistic tournament: who could outtalk, out-sing and, subsequently, out-dance the other person.
Among the folk instruments especially popular are the dechig-pondur (plucked stringed instrument), atukh-pondur (bowed stringed instrument), shedag (pipe) and zurna; especially widespread turned out to be the Eastern accordion. Many centuries ago the national instruments in Chechnya were made of natural material: the bodies of balalaikas and violins were made of dried pumpkins, strings were made of horsehair and gut, while the fingerboards were made from the shoulder-blades of horned cattle. At first accordions were made of wood, whereas the Russian accordion became available to the Chechens later. Those were played at first only by women and young girls, whereas men joined in playing them much later.
The dechig-pondur presents itself as one of the symbols of undying values of the vainaikhs’ traditional culture, being the most ancient, the most common and beloved musical instrument. It has three strings and a wooden body of a prolonged form, hollowed out from a whole piece of wood. Its sound is gentle and sort of rustling. Over the sound of the dechig-pondur the ancient narrators performed their illanchi songs. Among the old legends there also exists a narrative of the pondur itself, it is connected with the name of commander Timur, who had asked his high-rank officersafter a battle with the Chechens: “Have you taken away the pondur from them?”, and, having received a negative reply, uttered: “If you haven’t taken away the pondur, that means that we have only beat them in the battle, but have not subdued them…”
This compact disc presents some of the most popular genres of Chechen folk music in performance by well-known masters, such as the celebrated singers, Sultan Magamedov and Said Shaipov. The sparkling art of performance on the Chechen accordion by Umar Dimayev has brought the musician not only numerous titles and governmental awards, but also the popular fame of a “professor of Caucasian music.” In performance by the favorite of all the Caucasus, the legend of the Chechen stage, Mariam Aidamirova we can hear the traditional song “Remembrance of a Girl.” The theme of the woman presents itself as one of the most important themes in Chechen mythology and folklore. Possessing the status of “mother of fire,” or the mother of life itself, women have throughout the ages played an immense role in Chechen society, not only being the guardians of the home hearth and age-old traditions, but also brave helpers of men in their struggle for truth and freedom. The song “Mama” in performance by a female trio presents a manifestation of this sacred theme in a contemporary interpretation.
