Two Acres of Land Lost over a Bećarac: A Contribution to the Folklore Music Tradition of Vojvodina Research

Folkloristics 10/1 (2025): 167-183
Author: Borislav Hložan
Text:

The paper deals with the analysis of short Serbian folk songs called bećarac that were presented at the festival “Bećarijada” held on May 19, 2024 in the village of Turija in Vojvodina. As it has been stated in the studies and works of numerous ethnomusicologists, one of the most interesting characteristics of bećarac is the fact that it is still created as part of a living oral folk tradition. Thanks to the performance of the tamburitza band “Friends of songs” led by the singer and author of bećarac songs Andjelko Pivnički Baba, this festival presented bećarac as a vital form of Serbian folk poetry at the very moment of its creation. Tradition is reflected humorously and vividly in it but at the same time it reflects the present day and the life of the authors of these songs and their audience.

Keywords: bećarac, festival, Turija, tamburitza players, Anđelko Pivnički Baba, Brane Beljanski Beljanac.