Italian Treasury: The Trallaleri of Genoa Review

Alan Lomax Collection released by Rounder Records is a fantastic exploration of world and folk music based on the mid-20th-century recordings made by brilliant ethno-musicologist Alan Lomax. The collection includes music from around the world, including US, Caribbean, Spain, and Italy. The authenticity and beauty of these recordings is stunning, sound quality is excellent, and notes that accompany each CD (based on original notes by Alan Lomax) are extremely comprehensive and are exceptionally well researched.

The Trallaleri of Genoa is one of the jewels of the Italian Treasury series. This recording explores the improvised five-voiced male polyphony that originated in the Italian region of Liguria (Genoa is the largest city of the region.) The five voices that define Trallalero are falsetto, tenor, chitarra (guitar), baritone, and bass. The history Trallalero goes back for many centuries, as Alan Lomax points out when he notes that "this Ligurian style is probably one phase of music that is literally as old as human time," however we can only speculate about the origins of this style of singing. I don't want to bore you with the theory of Trallalero, however keep in mind that the notes that accompany this recording discuss the history and theory of Trallalero in great detail.

This CD is one of those recordings that blew me away as soon as I heard the very first five seconds of the very first song, and a strong desire (but lack of ability) to join in the chorus didn't leave me until the music stopped. The level of understanding and agreement these rustic men achieve in order to create these perfectly improvised melodies of rare beauty and complexity should be an object of endless envy for the solitary and self-sufficient urban dwellers we have become. The deep soulfulness of these songs is rooted in the earth itself, the melodies are intricate yet very straightforward, and cheap Italian wine is soaking through every note...
Trallaleri is the music that makes me want to quit the half-hearted complexities of the civilization and embrace the hearty simplicity of the country. Trallalero is best enjoyed with a group of friends, a jug of wine, a chunk of fresh Mozzarella, and a loaf of fresh Italian bread...

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