{"id":130,"date":"2022-08-22T23:05:40","date_gmt":"2022-08-22T23:05:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/koshanin.com\/blog\/?p=130"},"modified":"2026-01-06T04:41:25","modified_gmt":"2026-01-06T04:41:25","slug":"gusta-mi-magla-padnala","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/koshanin.com\/blog\/2022\/08\/22\/gusta-mi-magla-padnala\/","title":{"rendered":"GUSTA MI MAGLA PADNALA"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cGusta m<\/b>i magla padnala<\/b><\/em>\u201d<\/em>
\n<\/b>Serbian Traditional Folk Song<\/b><\/h3>\n

SONG INFO & LYRICS<\/strong><\/h3>\n

 <\/p>\n

This old folk song belongs to an opus of Serbian traditional songs from the Kosovo and Metohija region in Serbia. It originated in the town of \u0160trpce (\u0428\u0442\u0440\u043f\u0446\u0435)<\/em>, in the the Sirini\u0107 District (\u0421\u0438\u0440\u0438\u043d\u0438\u045b\u043a\u0430 \u0436\u0443\u043f\u0430)<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Before we proceed to the song itself, let\u2019s take a quick look at the town\u2019s name: \u0160trpce<\/em> (pronounced as Sh-trp-TSEH<\/em>). Note that there are five tightly packed consonants (Sh – t – r – p – c)<\/em> that you have to conquer before you get to an \u2018e\u2019<\/em> – the single vowel in the entire word!<\/p>\n

One of the common features of Serbian language are words consisting of tight clusters with three or four consonants glued together, followed by a single vowel, syllable or a group of syllables.<\/p>\n

A person in Serbia looking at the street sign with a perplexed look on their face is most likely a foreign tourist wondering whether it\u2019s possible to pronounce the street name at all or if there is a spelling error in the street sign!<\/p>\n

Many words do not even have a single vowel, such as in:<\/p>\n

vrt<\/strong> (garden)
\nprst<\/strong> (finger)
\nkrst<\/strong> (cross)
\ngrm<\/strong> (bush)
\ntrn<\/strong> (thorn)
\nkrt<\/strong> (brittle)
\nstrm<\/strong> (steep)
\n<\/em>etc.<\/p>\n

The crucial common factor for such words is that they all contain the letter \u201cr”<\/em> and the secret for the correct pronunciation is in the rolled \u201cr\u201d<\/em> which takes on itself the function of a vowel.<\/p>\n

Non-native speakers, often unable to properly pronounce such words, would add an \u201ce\u201d<\/em> sound before the \u201cr\u201d<\/em> to soften them so they can pronounce the entire word without stumbling or breaking their tongue. That is the reason why an \u201ce”<\/em> appears in the word \u201cSe<\/strong>r<\/u>bia\u201d<\/em> after all, even though in Serbian it is written as: Sr<\/u>bija.<\/em><\/p>\n

By examining features of such words language researchers and especially the etymologists are able to decipher the source language and explain the original meaning for many words of a \u201csupposedly\u201d unknown origin.<\/p>\n

Many ancient toponyms and geonyms are scattered all throughout the Helm peninsula. Names for numerous rivers, mountains, villages and regions, specifically in present day Albania and Greece, have no relation whatsoever to modern Greek and Albanian languages, however when deciphered by the etymologists, a revealed original meaning turned out to be equivalent to their meaning in the archaic ‘Slavic’ language.<\/p>\n

It is well known by historians that in the early Twentieth Century a state-wide renaming campaign was launched in Greece with an aim at artificially replacing all the traditional toponyms and geonyms that have been in use by local population for centuries as well as eradicating any \u201cundesired\u201d local languages by removing them from schools and forcing the locals to speak only the “official language\u201d even at their own homes.<\/p>\n

In present day Albania and in what is known by some as a so-called \u201cKosova\u201d these \u201cissues\u201d were taken care of in a much more \u201ceffective\u201d way. Suffice to say that there is practically no original population living in those lands anymore.<\/p>\n

Apparently the strong ties and friendship between the Greek and Serbian people that brought an end to the rule of the Ottoman Empire in Europe and ultimately defeated it were not in the best interest of corrupt political \u201celites\u201d of the day.<\/p>\n

Sadly, just by looking at today\u2019s societies and the ruling business and political classes around the world one can come to a sad conclusion that nothing has changed to this day: Divide et impera<\/em>.<\/p>\n

* * * * * * *<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Back to the music:<\/p>\n

This folk song was traditionally sung by young women at wedding celebrations, usually while they were helping the bride to get dressed for the wedding ceremony. The story is narrated by a young woman, a bride in anticipation of her wedding day, as she watches a tailor sewing her wedding outfit.<\/p>\n

\u201cGusta mi magla padnala\u201d<\/em> is one of the most popular Serbian folk songs and hundreds of versions have been recorded by various artists and ensembles across the world so it is quite a difficult task to select a single performance as a perfect example.<\/p>\n

To showcase the song I have selected a few different versions ranging from the classic traditional performances to more modern interpretations, including a male vocal duet and a \u201cBerklee-style\u201d jazzy arrangement.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cGusta mi magla padnala\u201d<\/strong><\/em> by folk singer Mara Djordjevic & Dushan Radetic Sextet:
\n<\/strong><\/em>https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=sp_b4W7iXq8<\/a><\/p>\n