The Sound Of Sevdah

This is the second of two posts about the music that I picked up on my recent holiday in Bosnia & Herzegovina. The first post last week covered the modern stuff. For this one we are going traditional. 

Sevdah (also known as sevdalinka) is a style of folk music seen as an integral part of Bosnian culture. It is typically slow and melancholic and has been compared with Portuguese fado; indeed, some linguists claim that sevdah and saudade come from the same root word. I have asked George to test the theory by playing today's selections to the goats and recording their response.

While in Mostar I picked up a 6 CD box set called 'Sevdah: 108 Orginalih Hitova'. Hopefully you don't need me to translate that for you. Most of the hitova seem to date from the 1950s and 1960s which I gather was a bit of a golden age. 

I have picked a track each from three of the singers who feature most frequently: Zaim Imamović, Himzo Polovina and Beba Selimović. While originally hailing from Travnik, Mostar and Trebinje respectively, all three moved to the capital after the Second World War where they each started their careers performing on Radio Sarajevo, Bosnia's first radio station.

Himzo is just one of many artists to record "Emina", a setting of a poem by Aleksa Šantić, who had the dubious honour of giving his name to the street that formed part of the frontline during the war in Mostar in the 1990s. These days the end where the most severe fighting took place is occupied by newly built apartment blocks with fetching murals, but one ruined building is still standing - perhaps as a reminder.

There is currently a new generation of singers reinvigorating sevdah music, including Zaim's grandson Damir Imamović. Perhaps the most interesting is Božo Vrećo, a non-binary performer who has said that sevdah provides the perfect platform for them to express themselves. 

After a stint with the band Halka they released their first solo album "Moj Sevdah" in 2014. Singing unaccompanied throughout its no party album but it is quite affecting if you listen to it in the right mood and environment.

"Od Kako Sam Sevdah Svezo" - Zaim Imamović

"Emina" - Himzo Polovina

"Mene Moja Zaklinjala Majka" - Beba Selimović

"Od Svega Me Sacuvala Majka" - Božo Vrećo

Last year Bosnian sevdah was added to UNESCO's List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, one of the most fascinating lists I have ever had the pleasure of reading. 

Among the other activities added to the list in 2024 were "Asturian cider culture" and "Cooking and eating traditional mashed potato with barley in the Mulgimaa region, Estonia". I don't know what makes them unique enough to be worthy of listing but I am sure we can all agree that cider and spuds deserve to be celebrated.