Lithuanian sutartinės let different melodies sound together

Try following one voice through a sutartinė, then return to the recording and follow another. Looking for a single main tune can obscure the relationship between independent parts. Agreement need not mean singing in unison.

The Lithuanian National Commission for UNESCO describes different melodies and texts sounding simultaneously, including words alongside a refrain of vocables. Seconds, the intervals between neighbouring notes, are characteristic. Their dissonance is part of the music rather than, by itself, evidence of an error.

Ratilio, the Vilnius University folk ensemble, performs the linked Ošei pati, martala, identified as a keturinė sutartinė. The Vilnius Ethnic Culture Centre singles out sutartinės as an important part of the ensemble’s repertoire.

In 2017 Ratilio published Šokame sutartines, a teaching resource whose title means “We dance sutartinės”. Learning this music can involve movement as well as voices. The recording offers a place to begin with the latter: keep track of each line without asking either singer to make it identical to the other.