Comments on: Sevdah is not ‘Bosnian blues’

By: Denis

Denis — Tue, 25 Jan 2011 08:08:34 +0000

I agree with your ending conclusions about the danger of misleading connotations the term could bring about, but I believe you have mistaken the usage of this phrase. I doubt anyone was attempting to at any point make a direct comparison to or to draw similarities between sevdah and the blues. It is simply meant as a symbolic analogy (I believe in essence a very well intentioned one). A more informative article could be along the lines of “The possible unwanted and misleading connotations brought about by the term ‘Bosnian Blues’”
Thank you

By: World of Sevdah

World of Sevdah — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 10:40:39 +0000

@Omer Wonderful reply. My point was that although some of these songs you mention are very similar in ‘nature’ to Blues, they do not represent very well some 4000 different Sevdah texts that are in known existence at the moment.

The fact that Bosnian people have become refugees in the recent years, again, is somewhat similar to Blues in terms of situation, but most of us didn’t go from Bosnia to slavery (although many of us might feel that way).

Also Sevdah is 500 year old tradition and the last 20 years should not really overpower it too much I think.

By: omer alic

omer alic — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 03:27:02 +0000

Mirza, an excellent text. Author knows what he’s talking about, my complimets.
I might not agree with everything it’s said here, but is still an excellent and rarely profound reading.
(Author:”…origins of blues and Sevdah diametrically oppose each other.
Sevdah is therefore music of people who are relatively well grounded and belong to a country which has existed for over eleven centuries.
Blues is the music of ‘refugees’, people who have been forcibly displaced and taken away from their natural habitat and no longer ‘belong’ to any country…”

Unfortunatelly, at these times when Bosniaks are again an again having a bitter taste of “displacement” with all the consequences of that displacement, comparison of Sevdah & Blues & Flamenco is absolutely logical at the level of ‘soul-mind’( and that ‘mind’ should be the authority in ‘reading’ of the music). Blues/Flamenco is music of oppressed, freed or not, runaways and refugees too, just as Sevdah might be…”Balada o Moricima”, “Kisa bi pala”, “Sa Gradaca Bijele Kule”, “Put putuje Latifaga”… are just some of the examples that show different shades, segments and levels of this ornament of Balkans called Sevdah( Bosnian and eastern and western of Bosnia).
Last thing, music is at the end of all ends there to celebrate life, and Sevdah altogether with Blues or Flamenco does it in ways that resonate with the most precision. It finds the Damar of its audience in such a beautlful way).

By: elvir

elvir — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 23:16:08 +0000

Dear Mirza I am afraid that you did not understood (or bether you dont like the comparison) Bluse -Sevdah. Ewrithing you wroth is correct ,but that is noth the point. It is about Symbolism.(Symbolism is the use of symbols to represent things such as ideas and emotions.) Sevdah is much older and complexer in its form and content than Bluse, so it can not be compared to. But symbolical meaning of word Bluse can. Btw. phrase ‘Bosnian blues’ or Balkan blues i heard for the first time in an itervy with Branimir Dzoni Stulic in the late 80′s. I like your site and approach to beautiful world of Sevdah.
Sevdah is about feelings and emotions (like a bluse) and to a foriners it will always be a mystery.
That is why comparison to a bluse is much easier than starting from ‘ground zero’. Ones that really want to know will learn.
Greetings …

By: Ahmed Karim

Ahmed Karim — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 01:54:49 +0000

Of course. If Sevdalinka is related to other musical styles then it is to the ilahije brought over by Sufi traveling bards or ashiq during Ottoman times. It is however interesting to note that some of the most beautiful sevdalinke of newer times were developed by non-Muslims, who however had a great understanding and love for Bosniak culture; like Jozo Penava or Jovica Petkovic; “Azra” is derived from a poem by Heinrich Heine, translated I’m not sure if by Safvet-Beg Basagic or Aleksa Santic, who also wrote “Emina” and “Hasanagin sevdah”; “Grana od bora” can be descended from a Judeo-Spanish song which is still known in Istanbul and which has almost the same text. Spanish Jewish refugees who came to the Ottoman Empire and also to Sarajevo in the 16th and 17th centuries brought with them their songs; and the Spanish Jews were culturally closer to the Spanish Muslims than to the Christians: Still some similarities in singing between sevdalinke and Flamenco, and also with some pieces from the classical repertory of North Africa can be found if you listen carefully.
Some classical pieces from the Andalusi or Gharnati repertory which was popular in Muslim Spain and has been preserved in Morocco and Algeria have probably evolved in a similar context as Sevdalinke. It was the music of a refined upper class who had a highly developed culture and enjoyed life to the fullest. Only that there you have a quite large orchestra for interpretation and unfortunately the classical style has been diluted too. And the language is of course Arabic, either classical or dialectal. For some reason however Sevdalinke speak directly to my heart. Could not some anonymous Bosnian bard have thought up a song with lyrics like these, probably by the 13th century poet from Granada, Al Shushtari (approximate translation):

“Oh, wonderful night/ sweeter beyond compare/May God will that the absent denunciator not return/Blessed he who has seen his beloved’s face./ Oh, moon, full moon/that sets afire my desires!/Lover lost forever now/and sentenced to perdition! (on “Calamus: the Splendour of Al Andalus”, M * A Recordings, M026A; and “The Music of Al Andalus; Ensemble Al Ala de Marrakech; Almaviva DS-0134)
And certainly the word “hanin” (beautiful) which you can hear on the sefardi song from Sarajevo “Jo hanino tu hanina” (on Amira Medunjanin “Zumra) is Arabic (Judeo-Spanish is “ermozo/a”).

In this context I would like that someone organized an exhibition in Bosnia about Muslim Spain and its culture and its history, possibly with concerts too; also as a sharp reminder of what happened to Al Andalus, to remind the Bosniaks that the declared enemies of their people and their culture are still out and about and have not given up on their dream of destroying them.