Rama publishes BBC transmission dedicated to traditional Albanian music

Albania's prime minister, Edi Rama, in the context of promoting cultural heritage and tourism, has today congratulated good morning with a BBC broadcast dedicated to the wonderful music of Albanian sauces.

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When you grow up under the communist regime, in an isolated corner of Europe, the modern world does not reach you. The special things of your country that you enjoy, form, remain with you, they may even persecute you. The sounds of my teenager in Albania were not the songs of the “The Beatles” or “Rolling Stones”. We had our own vocal column. What you're hearing is a door for the violin, a wailing. It's saz, the traditional music of southern Albania. When the country opened up to the world two decades ago, people began to move around the world and their music with them. I've met one of the artists who's keeping this music alive.

My name is Aureel Kyrio. We're out here outside St. Luke's church in the Barbician Centre where we're gonna show up in a few weeks. Aureli is the first violinist in a group of Albanian musicians to be known worldwide. They are called Sazão, and after two weeks they will publish an album with fifteen traditional songs, followed by their first concert outside Albania, here in Britain's capital. “When I came to London five years ago, it was just me and my baby violin. I didn't know where to play with my violin and my country's music. I'm very proud and I think people in London will hear this music with great interest.”

But how could this saz music, for many, still remain unknown, reach a world audience?

Joy Boyd is a world famous music producer. He has produced group records such as “Pink Floyd” and “Buena Vista Social Club” in Cuba and has now turned his attention to Albania. He met me in the studio with his copyists, Andrea Gerkler and Edith Pula from Tirana.

When did he become obsessed with music? I always dreamed of going to the Gjirokastra festival. Every five years in Albania, a concert of all national music is held. Up in the castle, great sights, mountains around and castle walls. I've known it for years, and I've always dreamed of going. The first time I went three and a half years ago. I heard music and was amazed. The Montenegrin music was richer and what was most worth recording and spreading around the world. There's really something of its own, something deep, something, something, I don't know, tragic or more complex that can certainly be expected of Albanian character. The more you listen to it, the more you deepen in it, the more feeling, the soul, the depth you feel and especially the issopolophone is so complex. The way two voices improvise, how they combine with each other in the Arabics of this music is something very tempting. It's not like you're kidnapped, it's like you're dead.

Edith is from Tirana, the capital of Albania. How did you get involved in this story? I also discovered this music as a foreigner because I lived in England, and when I returned to Albania, I continued to discover our music further. And as you know, after the communist era, popular music was considered totally old-fashioned. But it was a very family thing of our childhood. You grew up with folk music like the only music we could hear on the only national radio we had. She was the music that accompanied the summer season, the weddings, all the happy moments we had during the time of Communism. In a way, that's what connects us to our beautiful memories. To be honest, she was the only one, because we never had the chance to hear any other music. After living for thirteen years in the United Kingdom, I began to understand how undiscovered Albanian music is and therefore began gradually and with very modest means of returning to her and doing something. ”

In a way, music was the sound of music from southern Albania that joined them. Joe, you came here with your wife, Andrea. Albanian music has become very personal to you, isn't it? Yeah, that's right, because we were married during the implementation of this project, and in a way, Albanian music is the voice column of that event. I think we both agree that we like the third song on the list, your master's “Pedgerine, for the drama you're carrying. Although he speaks of a teenage boy who prays to the girl who lives next door to give her the headscarf. Women's voices tell the story and you don't need to understand the words to feel the emotion”.

Edith, I'll take you back in time. Albanians are starting to travel. People are starting to hear about Albania, about culture, about music. Did this thing have an impact on music and place? New generations are starting to learn it, jump, practice it. Even in the trend local, you can now hear the folk music amendments they perform. I was looking forward to this revival of traditional Albanian music”. Do you think there's room on the world music stage for Albanian music?” You can see the so-called world music scene very cynically and say that fashion changes and that projectors move from mountain to tango to gammalan, move to a new trend, a new discovery. Albania is now in light of the projector. People are resuscitating this music, which has aroused interest. We brought to Tirana Jerry Boys, the engineer of “Buena Vista Social Club” to record this music and I think it sounds the same, there's the same magic warmth. We hope that it will capture the moment and interest in music will grow from different parts of Albania, and Albanian music will join world music standards, which people around the world really respect and have interest.