Tallava or Talava is a music genre originating from

Albanian Albanian may refer to: *Pertaining to Albania in Southeast Europe; in particular: **Albanians, an ethnic group native to the Balkans **Albanian language **Albanian culture **Demographics of Albania, includes other ethnic groups within the country ...

-speaking

Roma Roma or ROMA may refer to: People, characters, figures, names * Roma or Romani people, an ethnic group living mostly in Europe and the Americas. * Roma called Roy, ancient Egyptian High Priest of Amun * Roma (footballer, born 1979), born ''Paul ...

communities in

Kosovo Kosovo, officially the Republic of Kosovo, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe with International recognition of Kosovo, partial diplomatic recognition. It is bordered by Albania to the southwest, Montenegro to the west, Serbia to the ...

as well as in

North Macedonia North Macedonia, officially the Republic of North Macedonia, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe. It shares land borders with Greece to the south, Albania to the west, Bulgaria to the east, Kosovo to the northwest and Serbia to the n ...

, with a presence in

Albania Albania ( ; or ), officially the Republic of Albania (), is a country in Southeast Europe. It is located in the Balkans, on the Adriatic Sea, Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea, and shares land borders with Montenegro to ...

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

and

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

. Having originated in the Roma community in Kosovo in the 1990s, it evokes regional

Balkan The Balkans ( , ), corresponding partially with the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throug ...

musical styles (e.g., microtones, vocal

glissando In music, a glissando (; plural: ''glissandi'', abbreviated ''gliss.'') is a wikt:glide, glide from one pitch (music), pitch to another (). It is an Italianized Musical terminology, musical term derived from the French ''glisser'', "to glide". In ...

, and certain musical instruments) and has become popular in Albania and North Macedonia. It is identified as part of the wider

pop-folk Folk-pop is a broad musical fusion genre that includes contemporary folk songs with pop arrangements, and pop songs with intimate, acoustic-based folk arrangements. Folk-pop has been popularized by mainstream media in recent years. Music ...

genre of the

Southeastern Europe Southeast Europe or Southeastern Europe is a geographical sub-region of Europe, consisting primarily of the region of the Balkans, as well as adjacent regions and Archipelago, archipelagos. There are overlapping and conflicting definitions of t ...

, which includes

Chalga Chalga (; often referred to as Folk-pop#Balkan region, pop-folk or ethno-pop) is a genre of Bulgarian pop music. Chalga is a folk-inspired dance music genre, with a blend of Music of Bulgaria, Traditional Bulgarian music along with influences from ...

from Bulgaria, Skiladiko from Greece,

Manele Manele (from Romanian, ''fem.'' ''sg.'' manea; ''pl.'' manele, the plural form being more common) is a genre of pop folk music from Romania. The manele can be divided into "classical manele" and "modern manele". The "classical manele" are a ...

from Romania and

turbo-folk Turbo-folk is a subgenre of contemporary South Slavs, South Slavic pop music that initially developed in Serbia during the 1990s as a fusion of techno and folk music, folk. The term was an invention of the Montenegro, Montenegrin singer Rambo ...

from Serbia.

History

Tallava originated in the 1980s and 1990s within the Albanian-speaking areas of

region, created by the Romani ethnic minority community. The name is derived from Romani ''tel o vas'', meaning "under the hand", referring to the čoček dance where the hands are waved delicately. Kosovo Albanian refugees of the

Kosovo War The Kosovo War (; sr-Cyrl-Latn, Косовски рат, Kosovski rat) was an armed conflict in Kosovo that lasted from 28 February 1998 until 11 June 1999. It ...

had brought their music with them, including Tallava. It has since also been adopted by the non-Albanian-speaking Roma in North Macedonia.

Identity and reputation

Tallava occupies an ambivalent place in popular consciousness; it is both celebrated and vilified by the wider Albanian community. In the minds of many, its Ashkali origins imbue it with a lower-class connotation, and it is often disparaged. However, tallava is extremely popular and considered by many necessary for any party, especially a wedding. Kosovo Roma musician Bajram Kafu Kinolli suggests that it is simple racism that gave tallava its low status: “Bearing in mind that it was the Roma, Ashkali and Egyptians who mostly cultivated tallava and that they are in a crisis in regard to presenting their culture… some people label it as a degradation, especially today when the word ‘tallava’ is a dirty, filthy, and degrading term for anything in Kosovo.”

Style and attributes

Initially, tallava music was performed in cafes, and the ''def'', a kind of tambourine, predominated. In the 1990s, other instruments like drums, bass guitar, guitar, accordion and clarinet were incorporated. Kafu Kinolli sees tallava as distinct from the wider

umbrella genre in that whereas a turbo-folk song has a linear structure (e.g., verse-chorus-verse-chorus), tallava songs are longer, more improvisational, and without a definitive structure. However, this improvisational character leads other musicologists, such as Astrit Stafai, to believe that tallava does not constitute a genre in and of itself: “... tallava is an improvisation of a certain moment, for example at a family-related or personal occasion. Tallava has neither a musical form nor development. It just doesn't have the proper concept to be a musical style”.

Popular singers

Albania

* Baba Qel * Mazlum Shaqiri * Sulltan Hajolli * Mandi Nishtulla * Muharrem Ahmeti * Marseli * Altin Shira * Sinan Hoxha * Seldi Qualliu * Vani Gjuzi *

Pandora In Greek mythology, Pandora was the first human woman created by Hephaestus on the instructions of Zeus. As Hesiod related it, each god cooperated by giving her unique gifts. Her other name—inscribed against her figure on a white-ground '' ky ...

* Xhavit Dedej * Soni Alidemit

Kosovo and North Macedonia

* Daim Lala * Meda * Mentor Kurtishi * Bekim Dehari * Zyber Avdiu * Gazmend Rama (Gazi) * Duli * Sefë Duraj * Adem Mehmeti * Leonora Bahiti * Shkurte Gashi * Teuta Selimi * Avdyl Mziu * Muhamet Sejdiu * Linda * Ylli * Buqe Rama * Besim Mahmuti * Memi * Antigona Sejdiu * Amtigona Rrustolli * Ganimete Asllani * Adem Ramadani * Syne Loshi * Leta (Tallava Music) * Aferdita Demaku * Baba celj Djemail * Ibrahim Ruli Shotano * Nehat Gasi * Djemail Gasi * Cita Zumberi (hajde babo babo ) * Sultan hajoli

References

Sources

*
Refleksion sociologjik mbi kiçin e muzikës tallava
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tallava Albanian styles of music Music of Kosovo Pop music genres Balkan music Folk music genres Romani music