Albania

by Ardian Ahmedaja

The research focus Albania begun at the IVE with the research project Albanian Folk Music and Byzantine Chant (1999-2002), which was supported by the Austrian Science Fund (FWF). It contains issues on music and dance practices, music and minorities, and music and religion in Albania, among Albanians living in the neighboring countries, among descendants of Arvanites in Greece and Arbëresh in southern Italy as well as in the Albanian Orthodox Churches in Boston, USA. There begun in 1908 the history of the Albanian Autocephalous Orthodox Church.

This work is reflected firstly in a considerable amount of audio and video recordings from fieldwork. They are part of the IVE archive. An overview about recordings from 1999-2002 is provided also online (Archiv: ALB). Further online information is being prepared.

Parallel to intensive lecturing activities also many publications have emerged. Here can be mentioned the second volume (with CD) of the IVE series klanglese with the title Dein Herz soll immer singen! Einblicke in die Volksmusiktraditionen Albaniens, the 25 entries on folk music instruments in Albania in The Grove Dictionary of Musical Instruments (Second Edition, 2014) as well as the entry Albanien in the  MGG (2016). The newest publication is the DVD Jashar und Idajet Sejdiu. Our songs are indulged (2019) of the IVE series European Voices: Audiovisuals (eva).

In this context also many events have taken place. In 2004 took place for example an impactful excursion with mdw students in Albania, led by Ass.-Prof. Dr. Rudolf Pietsch (1951-2020) and co-organised by Emi Aliçka-Ebhart and Ardian Ahmedaja. Musicians groups from Albania have performed several times at the mdw, like in the framework of the symposium European Voices I in 2005. In 2012 the IVE was co-organiser of the Second Symposium of the ICTM Study Group on Multipart Music, which took place in Albania. Also the Fokus Albanien of the Glatt&Verkehrt Festival in 2018 was organised in cooperation with the IVE.

Information to this research focus of the IVE will be updated regularly.