Without a Title (Songs of home) by Goran Lazarevic

Poems written by: Snežana Nikolić
Poems read by: Bratislav Slavković Keša
Accordion: Vladimir Blagojević, Goran Lazarević
Flute: Verica Nerić
Music composed by: Goran Lazarević

The piece was born as an idea of connecting the lyrics to which I have a very deep and personal connection, having been written by my beloved aunt, to the sounds and music I found equally enchanting. Each of the poems was written with a specific atmosphere in mind, whilst the sounds try and reflect the meaning of verses to the best of composer’s abilities.

The first part, “Prayer”, carries with it the somber melancholy of orthodox religion and the hope of a spiritual rebirth into something more through facing our fears and trepidations.

“The Bird” tries, through the usage of minimalistic motive work and significantly reduced soundscape, to capture the simplicity of an ordinary life and at the same time illuminate its wonder and extraordinary persistence in the face of all hardships.

The third segment, one to whom the poet herself never set a title for, reflects, in a way, the dark atmosphere of the beginning. Moaning dialogue of flute and accordion tries to depict the essential loneliness of human beings and our continuous search for that special someone to make us whole again.

Although the title of the fourth poem might suggest equally gloomy subject, “Longing” is actually a satirical statement, underlined musically through burlesque character, somewhat out-of-tune and borderline banal accompaniment, and a melody fashioned after the Russian accordion music of the XX century. Ebbs and flows of the musical material are there to emphasize the state of “wishing and not doing”, daydreaming and wanting the future to unfold according to our wishes, yet without our actions – a state that keeps us trapped and forever fretful.

Fifth and the last part, “Condemned”, is simply about acceptance and making peace with oneself and the world – all the while knowing that the world can never really understand the hidden depths inside us all. The sounds of bells and rain correspond to “Prayer” and the very beginning, tying the piece into a circle.