The variabilities of a specific Gorj county song. Comparative analysis of two versions

Abstract

Traditional music is characterized by: oral transmission, collective specificity, syncretic substrate, anonymous source, etc. These elements generate another phenomenon specific to this music, namely: the transformations that a traditional song can undergo when it leaves an area, a region even a performer, and is “replanted” in another area /region or is reinterpreted by another person. This scientific study monitors this transformation through the comparative analysis of a song from the Oltenia region, Gorj County, sung by two of the most famous voices of traditional music and folklore in Romania: Maria Lătărețu and Maria Tănase. Following the analysis, conclusions are specified, regarding the differences in the underlying structure, melodic structure, rhythmic structure, etc.