In 2018 with the financial support of the Georgian Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sport, and “Georgian Chanting Foundation” International Research Centre for Traditional Polyphony of Tbilisi State Conservatoire published the book “Georgian Polyphony in Western Turkey: In the footsteps of Peter Gold” (in Georgia, Turkish, English and German); the book was published by WPN Polish Publishers specially for Frankfurt Book Fair.
Tbilisi State Conservatoire (TSC), which is a centre for researching traditional polyphony in Georgia, has been studying for several years already musical culture of the Georgians living in Turkey, particularly musical traditions of the village Hayriye, Inegol district.
American anthropologist Peter Gold recorded traditional music of the Georgians exiled in Turkey in the 19th century, in Inegol (Turkey) in 1968. Part of the material was published in 1972 in the name of world-famous Indiana University archives, USA. Peter Gold has also preserved the 1965-1966 recordings of Ahmed Melashvili – a Georgian from Turkey, who guided him in the expedition.
50 years later, young Georgian ethnomusicologists had the opportunity of follow Peter Gold’s path, collect new material and show traditional musical past and today’s musical life of the Georgians in Inegol via old and new materials on the enclosed CD.
IRCTP and Inegol Association of Caucasian Folklore and Culture have planned presentation of the book and concert, in which together with local singers and dancers
ensemble “Elesa” from Keda (Achara) will perform the songs recorded in Hayriye village in 1968. The presentation will be attended by the representatives of Tbilisi State Conservatoire, Folklore State Centre of Georgia, “Georgian Chanting Foundation”, Hayriye society, Achara Government and Peter Gold himself.
The book was prepared by: Nino Razmadze (compiler), Baia Zhuzhunadze, Teona Lomnsadze, Marika Kapanadze.
Editors: Rusudan tsurtaumia, Abdullah Akat, Susanne Ziegler.
