Formal and informal ways of transferring knowledge and skills of traditional (polyphonic) singing, example of the Lado Ensemble
Formal and informal ways of transferring knowledge and skills of traditional (polyphonic) singing, example of the Lado Ensemble

Author(s): Joško Ćaleta
Subject(s): Anthropology, Theatre, Dance, Performing Arts, Music
Published by: Етнографски институт САНУ
Keywords: Croatian vocal music; polyphonic singing; folklore; original vs. stylized folklore; Lado ensemble
Summary/Abstract: Vocal musical phenomena represent recognizable identification marks of wi- der communities and integral segments of their cultural and social identity. The term ‘folk music’ in Croatia is closely related to the history of its performance at festivals and parades, where the attitude towards vocal music had a remarkable influence on the development of the parade system. All of the above was a good prerequisite for creating the first profes- sional ensemble in the period of institutionalization, which will also form a recognizable vocal pattern, a recognizable Croatian “voice”. Chest-throat singing, today known as Lado’s singing (ladovsko pjevanje), as a “voice”, is very similar to the singing of the central and northern Croatian plains. In this act, the informal way of learning (oral transmission) is formalized with new ways of learning – spontaneity, which is one of the backbones of the concept of originality, is, in this case, replaced by professionalism represented during the entire process of creating a stylized, staged work of art. Changes in approaches to the stage presentation of vocal music in the seventy-year practice of the Lado ensemble will show a series of knowledge transfer processes that found their place in the stage vocal performances of the ensemble, creating new performance models that simultaneously became new ways of acquiring and transferring knowledge in local communities.

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