Documente Academic
Documente Profesional
Documente Cultură
Introduction
The a tenore song is a genre of multipart vocal singing practiced in the
central area of Sardinia, mostly in the sub-regions Barbagia and Baronia,
by singers with various degrees of specialization on various occasions,
among which are the accompaniment of poetry contests and dancing. A
thorough introduction to the a tenore song has recently been published as
part of the Enciclopedia della musica sarda (Casu and Lutzu 2012-2013):
Pilosu 2012a and 2012b.
The four male voices comprising an a tenore choir are usually called
bassu, contra, boghe and mesu boghe (from the lowest to the highest
voice). Among them, the role of the boghe is distinct from that of the other
three: he sings the verbal text (usually poetry in Sardinian language),
whereas the other three parts provide a vocal accompaniment using
nonsense syllables. The two lower parts of the accompaniment choir, the
bassu and the contra, use characteristic guttural voices, which are obtained
through a particular constriction of the laryngeal muscles. In the case of
the bassu, this entails the doubling of the period, i.e. the production of a
note one octave below the one that would be produced in modal voice
(Bailly, Henrich, Pelorson 2010).
The intervention of the three voices of accompaniment is realized in
sections called corfos (sing. corfu). In the corfos the three accompanying
parts of the tenorebassu (plural: bassos), contra (plural: contras) and
mesu boghe (plural: mesu boghes)sing together, though not always in a
homorhythmic way, sometimes along with the soloist part, the boghe.
Their melodic profiles may vary, particularly as far as the mesu boghe and
the contra parts are concerned, but the most common disposition of the
voices, found at the end of each corfu, is represented in fig. 1.
Paolo Bravi
195
Fig. 1. The usual disposition of the voices in the a tenore songs at the end of the
sections called corfos.
Microcreativity
196
SINISCOLA
ORUNE
OROTELLI
Fig. 2. On the left: map showing the distribution of a tenore choirs in the villages
of Sardinia (the original map is taken from Pilosu 2012a: 29). On the right: the
nine singers of the recordings, placed on the basis of their provenance and singing
role: bassu, contra, mesu boghe, referred to as BS, CO and MB. They are
Francesco Luigi Podda (BS), Pino Ortu (CO) and Massimiliano Pusceddu (MB),
from Orotelli; Pietro Mula (BS), Peppinu Cidda (CO) and Piero Cidda (MB), from
Orune; Stefano Spanu (BS), Domenico Carta (CO) and Giovanni Mele (MB), from
Siniscola.
The analysis was carried out using the software Praat (Boersma and
Weenink, 2011) on a corpus of 105 (35 closures x 3 voices) audio
fragments identified and extracted on the basis of a two-step procedure
consisting firstly of a preliminary manual segmentation based on
perceptual criteria and secondly on the automatic detection of intensity fall
(arbitrarily set at < 40 dB) as the end point of the extracted audio fragment
(fig. 3).
Paolo Bravi
197
Fig. 3. The two phases of the segmentation and annotation of the corfos releases.
Each part of the accompaniment choir (bassu, contra, mesu boghe) was annotated
on a couple of tiers: in the upper one the segmentation was performed manually
(the interval in this tier is labelled r); in the lower one the end boundary is
replaced via an automatic procedure based on the detection of the falling of the
intensity curve below 40 dB (the interval in this tier is labelled r2). In this
example, the part under observation is that of the contra.
3. Analysis
The analysis took into consideration four acoustic features in the closure
of the corfos, that is pitch, intensity, spectrum and duration, and the
statistics were obtained by means of the software R (RDCT 2012). The
topic has also been discussed with some a tenore singers. They are Omar
Bandinu, bassu of the tenore group Mialinu Pira from Bitti, Domenico
Carta and Luigi Carta, contras from Siniscola, Stefano Frau, contra of the
tenore group Osana from Orosei and the Cuncordu Vramentu of Fonni.
The research, based on the integration of fieldwork and documents
analysis, shares the principles and method described and discussed in
Bravi, 2012.
3.1 Pitch
In some singers, the pitch profile exhibits a characteristic high jump in
the voiced part of the corfu release. An analysis of this acoustic feature
was carried out by measuring the difference in semitones from the pitch
before the release and the maximum pitch in the release, as shown in fig.
4.
198
Microcreativity
Fig. 4. The measure of the high jump, a feature observable in many corfos
releases.
Paolo Bravi
orot
25
199
orun
sini
Semitones
20
15
10
5
0
-5
bs
co
mb
bs
co
mb
bs
co
mb
Fig. 5. Distribution of the pitch jumps in the releases, per village and part.
Microcreativity
200
20
orun
sini
Semitones
15
10
0
bs
co
mb
bs
co
mb
bs
co
mb
Fig. 7. Distribution of the pitch descents in the corfos releases, per village and part.
3.2 Intensity
As far as intensity is concerned, the presence or the absence of a hump in
the intensity curve1 of the releases is a feature which reveals either a
strong or a smooth emphasis in the closure of the corfu (see fig. 8). In this
case, the analysis shows that humps are common everywhere, but that the
absence of humps is less frequent in the bassos than in the other voices
(fig. 9).
Paolo Bravi
201
20
15
presence of a hump
absence of a hump
10
occorrences
25
30
35
Fig. 8. The intensity curve in the corfu release may (or may not) show a hump,
i.e. may reach its maximum level after the release start point.
bs
co
mb
Fig. 9. Distribution of corfos releases with and without humps in their intensity
curves, per part.
3.3 Spectrum
The emphasis on the closure of corfu sometimes occurs through the
insertion of a fricative section which precedes the final nasal release. This
friction is in some cases clearly visible in the spectrogram, where
relatively strong energy bands appear in the higher part of the spectrum
above 5 kHz (see fig. 10).
202
Microcreativity
Fig. 10. An example of a fricative section at the beginning of a corfu release. The
rounded rectangle displays the presence of energy bands in the upper part of the
spectrogram.
Paolo Bravi
slice
slice
203
slice
slice
slice
-20
-30
-40
-50
bs
co
mb
bs
co
mb
bs
co
mb
bs
co
mb
bs
co
mb
slice
slice
slice
slice
slice
-15
-20
-25
-30
-35
-40
orot
orun
sini
orot
orun
sini
orot
orun
sini
orot
orun
sini
orot
orun
sini
Bassu
Fig. 11. Distribution of energy bands (0-5 / 5-20 kHz) in five subsequent spectra
after the corfos releases (time step = 0.02 s.). Upper panel: per poet; lower panel:
bassos, per village.
3.4 Time
Some acoustic features of the release concern the time dimension. Two
factors have been evaluated in this regard: the overall duration of the
release and the delay of each voices release start in relation to the voice
which starts the release first. Release duration analysis partly provides
countertrend results compared to those observed so far. The bassos
release usually has a shorter duration than that of the other voices. As far
as the difference between choirs is concerned, durations are usually longer
in all three parts of the Siniscola choir than in the other choirs (see fig. 12,
left panel). The delay of the release start shows different behaviors in the
three choirs. In the Orotelli choir, the voice which starts the closure first is
the mesu boghe; in the Orune choir it is the contra, and in the Siniscola
204
Microcreativity
choir no clear difference between the three parts is present (see fig. 12,
right panel).
In this respect, the Orotelli choir seems to reflect an idea expressed by
some a tenore singers, like those of the Cuncordu Vramentu of Fonni, who
say:
Deve uscire un unico suono da bassu e contra, non si deve distinguere tra
il basso e la contra. In poche parole, il suono deve essere unico. Invece la
mezza voce pu sganciarsi un po di pi perch guida il tenore e aiuta la
voce al tono anche La mezza voce guida il tenore, una seconda voce,
diciamo. (Interview with the Cuncordu Vramentu of Fonni, in Lutzu 2003)
Bassu and contra should make up one sound; one should not distinguish
between bassu and contra. In other words, there should be one sound.
Instead, the mesu boghe may get away a little more because he leads the
tenore and helps the boghe in the pitch as well The mesu boghe leads the
tenore, it is like a second boghe, say.
Instead, the Orune choir seems to share the idea (and the singing
behavior) maintained by two contras of different generations of Siniscola,
Luigi and Domenico Carta, according to whom: [DC] Sa chi cumandat
sonande est sempre sa contra [LC] Certu! Est sa contra che cumandat,
su bassu si depet ponnere afatu a sa contra, ca sa contra iscurtat sa oche.
[[DC] The one who is in command is always the contra [LC] Of course!
The one who commands is the contra, the bassu should follow the contra,
as the contra listens to the boghe.] (Domenico and Luigi Carta 2011)
Lastly, the behavior of the Siniscola choir, at least in the recording
analyzed here, seems to obey a third principle on the topic advocated by
Omar Bandinu, i.e. that there is no fixed voice with a lead role within the
accompaniment choir.
In questi casi, c una voce che anticipa le altre e quindi le guida []? Mah, secondo me no. Secondo me qua vige la totale libert dei cantori,
non c una voce che in qualche modo d, come dire, il La, che guida le
altre nella produzione di questo espediente della voce. (Bandinu 2012)
In these cases, is there a voice which anticipates the others, and therefore
guides them? In my opinion there is not. To me the singers are completely
free here, there is no voice which somehow guides the others in the
production of this vocal device.
Paolo Bravi
205
DURATION
START DELAY
0.25
0.55
0.50
0.20
Time (s)
0.40
0.35
0.15
0.10
0.30
0.05
0.25
sini_co
Fig. 12. Left panel: distribution of release durations; right panel: delay of the
release start with respect to the voice which starts the release first.
4. Conclusion
Upon closer inspection of the emphasis of the closure of the corfos,
what is seemingly a minor characteristic of singing and is usually
neglected as a specific musical or expressive element in the vocal
accompaniment turned out to be an interesting trait of the performative
styles in a tenore songs. A first ethnographic survey devoted to the topic
and the results of the analysis carried out on some of its acoustic features
allow some preliminary hypotheses on the whole matter.
First, there is a consistency, at least to a certain degree, in the
performances of each singer and sometimes of the choirs. The release
technique may be considered a part of the individual or collective style of
the accompaniment voices. As a feature shared within the choirs, an
emphasised release may be considered a characteristic which can
distinguish different groups and different singing styles:
La /m/ noi la usiamo fra un corfu e l'altro per non chiudere direttamente in
[a]. Invece di fare [a], fai [am] [] Noi indirizziamo dalla /a/ alla /m/,
quella una particolarit del modo di cantare nostro, del nostro tenore, per
indirizzare verso la chiusura (Frau 2011)
sini_mb
sini_bs
orun_co
orun_mb
orun_bs
orot_co
orot_mb
sini_co
sini_mb
sini_bs
orun_co
orun_mb
orun_bs
orot_co
orot_mb
orot_bs
0.00
0.20
orot_bs
Time (s)
0.45
206
Microcreativity
We use /m/ between one corfu and another in order not to close directly in
[a]. Instead of doing [a], you do [am] []. We go from /a/ to /m/, this is a
peculiarity of our way of singing, of our tenore, for approaching the
closure
Paolo Bravi
207
Third, the emphasis on the closure may be a way to stress the rhythmic
dimension of the song, to bring attention to the strength of the choir
accompaniment, to enhance the compactness of the ensemble and, as
pointed out by Omar Bandinu, to make a contribution to the emotional
efficacy of the song. [lenfasi nella chiusura del corfu] serve anche
per caricare proprio emotivamente il canto, anche per spingere di pi il
solista a dare una maggiore, come dire, carica emotiva al canto. [
[emphasis on corfu closure] also serves to charge the singing emotionally,
and to give the soloist a lift to provide a stronger emotional charge to the
song.] (Bandinu 2012)
In oral and traditional musical genres like the a tenore song, where
many primary stylistic features are (pre-)defined by specific and wellknown village fashions, the customization of the song is often carried by
the singers by means of low-level variations of their village model. The
singers creativity is usually expressed not in terms of the creation of
completely new melodies or the invention of rhythmic and harmonic
innovative structures, but as small and progressive changes of what each
singer has learned by listening to and practicing with others, normally in
the first years of his life. Existing repertories are subjected to a moderate
elaboration as far as individual experiences are concerned and to a slow
evolution as far as diachronic change is concerned.
Oral creativity may be seen best, in cases like this, through a
microscope, be it a careful listening or a fine-grained analysis. There is
no genius, no chosen soul, no revolutionary eccentric or hypersensitive
talent at work here, only honest, gifted, pernickety craftsmen of their own
voices. Their vocal creations have no grandeur, no vanity, no vulgarity, no
blatant appearance. I think that we may refer to them as microcreativity:
something which can be discovered and, if present, appreciated through
work, experience and practice.
208
Microcreativity
References
Bandinu, Omar. 2012. Interview with Paolo Bravi. Cagliari, Sardinia,
Italy. 17 April.
Bailly, Lucie and Natalie Henrich, Xavier Pelorson. 2010. Vocal fold and
ventricular fold vibration in period-doubling phonation: Physiological
description and aerodynamic modeling. Journal of the Acoustical
Society of America. Vol. 127(5). 3212-3222.
http://asadl.org/jasa/search?sortby=newestdate&q=j+acoust+soc+am.+
vol+127+%285%29&faceted=faceted&searchzone=1&alias=/jasa&dis
playid=ASA&key=JASMAN&conditions=j+acoust+soc+am.+vol+127
+%285%29article&page=8.
Boersma, Paul, and David Weenink. 2011. Praat: doing phonetics by
computer. http://www.fon.hum.uva.nl/praat/.
Bravi, Paolo. 2012. "The practice of ornamentation in the multipart vocal
music of Southern Sardinia. A bifocal perspective in ethnomusicological
analysis." In Multipart music: a specific mode of musical thinking,
expressive behaviour and sound, a cura di Ignazio Macchiarella, 467490. Udine: Nota, 2012.
Paolo Bravi
209
Carta, Domenico and Luigi Carta. 2011. Interview with Paolo Bravi.
Siniscola, Sardinia, Italy. 22 July.
Casu, Francesco and Marco Lutzu. 2012-[c.s.]. Enciclopedia della musica
sarda. Voll. 1-16. Cagliari: Unione Sarda.
Frau, Stefano. 2011. Interview with Paolo Bravi. Orosei, Sardinia, Italy.
24 September.
Lutzu, Marco. 2003. Tenores. Vol. Suoni di un'isola, vol. 1. CD-Rom.
Cagliari: Live Studio.
Pilosu, Sebastiano. 2012a. Enciclopedia della musica sarda. Vol. 1: Canto
a tenore. Casu, Francesco and Marco Lutzu, eds. Cagliari: L'Unione
Sarda.
. 2012b. Enciclopedia della musica sarda. Vol. 2: Canto a tenore. Casu,
Francesco and Marco Lutzu, eds. Cagliari: L'Unione Sarda.
RDCT (R Development Core Team). 2012. R: A Language and
Environment for Statistical Computing. Vienna: R Foundation for
Statistical Computing. URL: http://www.R-project.org.
Notes
1
Parameters used for the intensity measure in Praat are the following: pitch floor =
40 Hz; time step = 0.01 sec.
2
Spectral analyses were carried out by means of the relevant Praat functions, with
the following parameters: window length = 0.005; maxfreq = 24000; time step =
0.02; window shape: Gaussian.