The Tamburitza Tradition: From the Balkans to the American Midwest

326 Pages·2013·1.801 MB·Languages and Folklore of Upper Midwest

by  Richard March

THE TAMBURITZA TRADITION
Languages and Folklore of the Upper Midwest
Joseph Salmons and James P. Leary,Series Editors
Published in collaboration with the Center for the Study of Upper
Midwestern Cultures at the University of Wisconsin–Madison
The Tamburitza Tradition: From the Balkans to the American Midwest
Richard March
Wisconsin Talk: Linguistic Diversity in the Badger State
Edited by Thomas Purnell, Eric Raimy,
and Joseph Salmons
THE TAMBURITZA
TRADITION
From the Balkans to the American Midwest
Richard March
The University of Wisconsin Press
The University of Wisconsin Press
1930 Monroe Street, 3rd Floor
Madison, Wisconsin 53711-2059
uwpress.wisc.edu
3 Henrietta Street
London WC2E 8LU, England
eurospanbookstore.com
Copyright © 2013
The Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a
retrieval system, or transmitted, in any format or by any means, digital, electronic,
mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, or conveyed via the Internet or
a website without written permission of the University of Wisconsin Press, except
in the case of brief quotations embedded in critical articles and reviews.
Printed in the United States of America
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
March, Richard, 1946–
The tamburitza tradition : from the Balkans to the American Midwest /
Richard March.
p. cm — (Languages and folklore of the Upper Midwest)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN978-0-299-29604-9 (pbk. : alk. paper) — ISBN978-0-299-29603-2 (e-book)
1. Tambura (Fretted lute)—History. 2. Tambura (Fretted lute)—Balkan Peninsula.
3. Tambura (Fretted lute)—United States. 4. Tambura (Fretted lute) music—
History and criticism. 5. Folk music—Balkan Peninsula—History and criticism.
6. Folk music—Middle West—History and criticism. I. Title. II. Series:
Languages and folklore of the Upper Midwest.
ML1015.T3M37 2013
787.8´21629181—dc23
2013015067
Živjeli tamburaši

Contents
List of Illustrations ix
Preface xi
A Note on Language Usage xix
Introduction 3
1 The Soloistic Tambura Comes to the Balkans 16
2 A National Music and the Illyrian Movement 34
3 The Tamburitza Matures and Migrates to America 56
4 Ethnologists and the Politics of Folklore Festivals 93
5 The Tamburitza Tradition Takes on American Ways 111
6 The Soloistic Tambura 137
7 Tamburitza Combos 165
8 My Little (Global) Village 213
9 Tamburitza Orchestras 226
10 Folk Dance Groups 253
Conclusion 270
Glossary 273
Essay on Sources 279
Sources 287
Index 299

Illustrations
Uncle John Grbac with tambura xiii
Aunt Agnes Daniels in radio studio xiii
Author in tamburitza orchestra xv
Homelands of the Tamburitza 2
Folklore ensemble from Sturlić, Bosnia-Herzegovina 18
Sketches of tambureby Franjo Ks. Kuhač 31
Ferdo Livadić Tamburitza Orchestra 35
Pajo Kolarić (1821–76) 54
Franjo Ksaver Kuhač (1834–1911) 63
Jadran tamburitza orchestra 75
Gilg Tamburitza Factory catalogs 84
Brochure from the 1978 International Folklore Festival 94
Villagers from Slavonia 109
Charles Elias Jr. (1911–83) 118
Duquesne University Tamburitzans, 1941–42 121
Edo Ljubić (1912–93) 128
Author recording a samicaplayer 138
KUD Kordun from Cleveland 141
ix