-1Monika Janowiak-Janik Musical Portrait of Carpathian Gypsies in Poland: Case study of Teresa Mirga

Abstract Carpathian Gypsies (so-called Bergitka Roma, Mountain Gypsies) is one of four groups that represent Gypsies in Poland. In contrast to the other groups of Gypsies in Poland, they have led a settled way of life for centuries. In my paper I would like to focus on several aspects of Carpathian Gypsies’ musical culture from the perspective of an individual artist, a member of this group, Teresa Mirga. Born in 1962 in Polish Spish (Spisz), Mirga is a singer, a poet, the founder and the leader of the Gypsy band Kałe Bała. Although Mirga as an artist is not a typical representative of her group, her case remains interesting as a kind of mirror reflecting the problems of the entire community. Moreover, we might perceive her rebellion against the social role imposed on her in context of much wider background of the Carpathians Gypsies identity crisis. The artist became an ambassador of the musical tradition of Carpathian Gypsies who have the lowest position in the Gypsy hierarchy in Poland. She also became a guard of the tradition within the society of Bergitka Roma. Teresa Mirga through her artistic activity presents a different attitude towards nonGypsy culture, significant concept of community and also a new way of action as an artist, woman and religious person. Thus, Mirga points out a possible direction to follow by Carpathian Gypsies searching for modern identity.

Musical Portrait of Carpathian Gypsies in Poland. Case study of Teresa Mirga In my paper I shall introduce a case study of Teresa Mirga, a poet and a singer of Carpathian Gypsies. Although Mirga as an artist is not a typical representative of her group, her case remains interesting as a kind of mirror reflecting the problems of the entire community. Moreover, we might perceive her rebellion against the social role imposed on her in context much wider background of the Carpathians Gypsies identity crisis. Teresa Mirga was born in 1962 in Białka Tatrzańska. She grew up among Gypsies of Polish Spisz on the Gypsy estate in Czarna Góra where she lives until today. Gypsies of Polish Spisz are seen as a part of Carpathians Gypsies also called Bergitka Roma or Mountain Gypsies, one of the four groups of Gypsies in Poland. The others: Polish Roma, Kalderari,

-2Lovari until recently have led nomadic life, contrary to Carpathian Gypsies who settled down in the 18th century. They settled down in areas far away from villages or at its peripheries. From the beginning they were exploited by the pastoral and agrarian population of autochthons. Their condition radically changed after the Second World War as a result of forcible resettlements to the areas that have been reconstructed after the war. Nowadays Gypsies of Bergitka Roma are dispersed and are living in the cities, villages and secluded enclaves of South and South-West Poland. The Roma culture of Polish Spisz till the 1960s is defined as culture of Spisz blacksmiths because of the popularity of the blacksmith profession that shaped the basic social and economical structures and gave a specific rhythm to everyday life of the community. What is characteristic for the community till the 1960s is the positive attitude towards their own tradition being an orientation point of action in the world of norms and values. Having lived in Poland for many generations, Carpathian Gypsies were under the vast influence of majority culture with its norms and patterns of behavior, which became visible in some rites and ceremonies. On the other hand, the barrier to internalization of the majority culture values was a strong feeling of alienation and aforementioned appreciation of the values of their own culture (Mirga 1982: 95). Andrzej Mirga, also from Czarna Góra, a researcher and expert on Gypsy issues, has observed a progressing cultural disintegration amongst Carpathian Gypsies, caused not only by the change of attitude to their own tradition but also by the stronger influence of values, norms and patterns of non-Gypsies world. According to Mirga one should not regard the process as the diffusion between the two cultures, instead, it is an intentional phenomenon associated with consciously made decision (Ibid.). From the musical perspective one of the most important cultural terms of Carpathian Gypsies is paciv which means being hospitable, including all sorts of more or less formalized encounters. During paciv it was music that fulfilled one of the most central social and cultural need of community, family, local and group ties. During the 1980s when they largely moved to cities, local ties were being released and multigenerational families divided, even then the Carpathian Gypsy identity remained the community identity based on the conception ‘we’ not ‘I’. In Czarna Góra, as recalled by Teresa Mirga, excellent Roma singers and instrumentalists used to live. The artist learned vocal repertoire from bibi Iłka and her uncle Jan Kacica. Old songs called purane gila include not only slow songs without fixed rhythm but also dance songs. What was characteristic for purane gila was their cohesive,

-3epigrammatic form; most of them consisted of one stanza with four lines. Melodies were based on heptachord, pentachord, as well as on major-minor scale and three or four-part meter (Kafel 1978: 173-174). The structure of melodies and songs texts enabled to assign several melodies to one text and vice versa. Those songs were never performed without some changes consciously made by the singers. For example they used to omit one fragment or add another. Distinctive feature of one-stanza dance and slow songs is also their arrangement into cycles consisting of several songs. That is why different texts can be accompanied by the same melody, and successive stanzas were not necessarily linked by their content. The main themes of purane gila are poverty, loneliness, loss of beloved person and love. Moreover, Bergitka Roma, as the only Roma group, used a profession motives in their folk poetry; this is how the songs of Roma blacksmiths were created. Carpathians Gypsies sang solo and in a group. During the group performances songs were singing in voices. Singing in unison is rather rare for Carpathians Gypsies. Harmonization of voices consists of adding third or sixth to the main voice. Some of the Polish highland songs were quite popular among Carpathian Gypsies. They attempted to keep the local dialect unchanged and specific voice timbre. Beside the well-known singers there was also a violinist in Mirga’s family. After the war, the Gypsy band was composed of violin, accordion, guitar, double bass and all its members were only male. The bands played mainly for non-Gypsy audience on the occasion of weddings, parties, rafting on Dunajec. The repertoire was based on czardasz. Teresa Mirga was 17 when her older sister died leaving her husband and two children. The artist accepted the family will and replaced her sister, performing the traditional role of a woman in the Roma society. But in 1992, after a dozen or so years of fulfilling her duties in patriarchal Gypsy family, Mirga founded her own musical band becoming its leader. Thus, Mirga gained independence by taking on a musical profession reserved only for men. For the first few years the main inspiration for her was musical style represented by Gypsy band from Hungary Kalyi Jag. Not only was she interested in pieces played by the group, musical arrangements and untypical instruments, but also in the idea of new interpretation of Gypsy folk songs. It was an impulse for the band to search within the area of their own traditional repertoire and to develop in the local context the idea initiated by Kalyi Jag. In the 1990s the process of transition in Poland created a new situation and opened new opportunities for ethnical minority groups including Gypsies. The music became one of ways of creating a positive image in eyes of Poles. Most of the Gypsy bands used the stereotypical – sentimental and even mawkish – image of Gypsies as romantic nomads absorbed by music

-4and love of nature called by Jerzy Ficowski as the operetta one (Ficowski 1989: 8). This image was fully expressed in the theatrical style and musical repertoire of Russian Gypsies bands. It was also adopted by bands from Polska Roma and Carpathian Gypsies and dominated musical scene till nowadays. Besides, apart from the case of Teresa Mirga, who has been shaping her own style based on traditional repertoire, other bands of Bergitka Roma did not manage to find the language which would enable them to maintain their traditional traits. In 1994 the first poetic volume of Mirga entitled Czemu tak? Soske kawka? (Why like that? Soske kawka?) was published. The others were published in 1999 under the title Pieśni z Czarnej Góry (Songs from Czarna Góra) and Wiersze i pieśni (Poems and songs) were published in 2006. They consist of Roma and Polish poems and texts of songs. Songs by Mirga are the main part of the repertoire played by her band Kałe Bała (Black Hair). Apart from songs of Carpathian Gypsies in traditional and non-traditional arrangements, one can also find there the melodies of Hungarian, Slovakian, Balkan Gypsies’ repertoires. The artistic output of Teresa Mirga is to a great extent dominated by religious issues. Her works include reflective texts, prayers, Lent songs, the Virgin Mary songs, carols and pieces on social problems also related to religious concept. In her poetry Mirga concentrates on questions about the sense of human life. According to Mirga the source of knowledge about a human is to be found by self-reflection. In her poems the human being is endowed with the free will; it has to make choices and take decisions in the inner dialogue with God. The source of strength, dignity and human independence is nature and world as the nature remains for her a perfect work of God. She is also interested in issues of human passing, death and life after death: Jakże mi tam będzie (How it would be like there) (Sound Ex.) i (Mirga 1999 : 23) (performed by Teresa Mirga, solo; recorded by Monika Janowiak-Janik, Czarna Góra 2008).

Jakże mi tam będzie

How it would be like

w tej ciasnej trumience?

there in a tight coffin?

Śmierć mnie pocałuje,

Death will kiss me,

matka ziemia ukryje.

mother-earth will hide me.

Czy będą płakali,

Will they cry,

mej osoby żałowali ?

pity me?

Wszystko złe wypomną,

All the bad they will reproach me with,

-5więc będę stracony.

so I will be lost.

Na świecie bywałem,

I visited some places,

krótko wędrowałem,

I roamed for a short time,

zostałem wezwany

but then I was called

na inne bywanie.

to go another way.

Idę wąską dróżką,

I walk along a narrow path,

pachną lilie słodko

I can smell a sweet scent of lilies

i w biel mnie ubrali

I am dressed in white

Alleluja śpiewać kazali.

and told to sing Alleluia.

Through her own creative activity Teresa Mirga attempts to answer the question ‘who I am as a woman, as an artist, as a religious person, and as an individual’. The decision to set up the band negates traditional role attributed to a Gypsy woman, allowing her to act in social and cultural sphere reserved solely to a man. The first artistic decision which has been consequently practiced till now not only defined specific stylistics of Mirga’s own and traditional songs but also expressed her protest against perceiving the Gypsy community through musical stereotypes by non-Gypsies. Music as a cultural Roma’s symbol, used in the 1990s, but also these days, simplified and decreased their image to colorful, dancing and singing Gypsies. Meanwhile, a need of new identity has emerged. Thus, the protest against stereotypes, also the musical ones, has arisen; first of all, amongst the young, well educated generation of Bergitka Roma. Music as a way of auto-presentation might be a reason to feel proud but only if it is accepted in the non-Gypsy world, too (Lubecka 2005: 187). In this context Mirga’s concept of Gypsy music may be seen as an opportunity to break the stereotypes, because it has been appreciated by Gadzie (non-Gypsies), though still it is marginalized in her own group.

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Fig. 1 Teresa Mirga while singing at the concert in Wrocław, June 2007. Teresa Mirga defines her identity as a borderland between the two cultures: Gypsy and non-Gypsy, namely Polish. Mirga declares that she considers herself equally a Gypsy and a Pole. Anna Lubecka, however, the researcher of Bergitka Roma’s cultural identity noticed that nowadays it is not easy to define oneself as Roma towards the social majority, because more frequent contacts with non-Roma have changed the way of mutual perception, evaluation and made unclear the borders which have existed so far (Lubecka 2005: 290). Thus the negative attitude towards Gypsy culture and also towards Gypsy music led to marginalization or even denial of one’s own roots. Music and language have gained some features of sacrum these days, as the rare opportunities to cultivate them are traditionally celebrated feasts guided by old people (Lubecka 2005: 294). For Mirga the Gadzie culture is neither a kind of threat for her Gypsyness nor a subject of passive imitation. By referring to non-Gypsy world of values she gets an opportunity of a wider artistic expression also as a religious person and an individual. In the Carpathian Gypsy culture Catholicism is reduced to practicing some of its rituals which despite attempts of the priests remains to a great extent incomprehensible. Through poetical and musical creative activity Mirga articulates her religiosity in an original way. The main issues posed in the context of religion include the sense of human life, death, attempts to overcome weakness, searching for perfection. The poetry for Mirga is a way of rescuing herself. It is a remedy for

-7oblivion and passing but also a source of catharsis. Thus, Mirga is not more an anonymous artist but her name is well- known, her songs are being recorded and they break convention of inevitably short life of Gypsy songs. Despite the fact that Roma culture depreciates an individual in favour of community, not only Mirga independently looks for the answers to the question of her identity as an individual but also perceives the community in different manner, also the one constituted by music. According to Mirga, the musical community in composed not only of people from the same ethnos but also of these who share similar values and feelings. In Carpathian Gypsy culture home is still seen as the musical community. It seems however that the overwhelming presence of music in Gypsy homes is rather declared then real, which remains closer to Mirga’s concept of musical community. Now Bergitka Roma are creating new kinds of communities, not connected with the close ones and with home; those are communities that interact with members of other, non-Gypsy cultures. One may observe the shared experience of music between Gypsies and Pentecostal churches, or between Gypsies and non-Gypsies during Gypsy feasts and cultural events. Teresa Mirga’s creative activity went into two directions: one relating to her own individuality and the other conceived as an attempt of creating a kind of archive of musical tradition. Her artistic creativity is an example of interweaving traditional patterns and the new musical features, which both decide about specificity and uniqueness of Mirga’s musical style. Music in Mirga’s songs plays the role of deepening a dimension of poetic text. Her works are characterized by common in Bergitka Roma songs irregular rhythm, verse-structure of songs texts, syllabic form of melody, large ambitus, major-minor scale, but also untypical for this tradition structure of texts (without verse-division), simple and freely adaptation of instrumental accompaniment realized by guitar. Teresa Mirga became an ambassador of the musical tradition of Carpathian Gypsies who have the lowest position in the Gypsy hierarchy in Poland. She also became a guard of the tradition within the society of Bergitka Roma. It is worth mentioning that identification with Roma society but also self-defying against the other groups of Gypsies still remains a great challenge in the modern world. Bergitka Roma by their settled way of life and by not abiding Gypsy ethos is thought to be on the margins of Gypsy life in Poland by other groups of Gypsies. The need of proving their Gypsyness is met by internalization of patterns and principles of behavior of a group to which they aspire. The long-term common existence especially in the cities makes them accept the music of stronger culture of Polska Roma with its specific melody and dialect.

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Fig. 2 Teresa Mirga (on the right) while singing; the photo was taken during our joint fieldworks to the Gypsy settlement in Maszkowice, November 2006.

Gradual growth of sense of cultural identity among Gypsy elites and the need of revaluation of Bergitka Roma Gypsyness will also raise questions concerning their music. It is not sure if the group would work out the form of musical identity joining together the tradition and challenges of modernity. Teresa Mirga through her artistic activity presents a different attitude towards non-Gypsy culture, significant concept of community and also a new way of action as an artist, woman and religious person. Thus, Mirga points out a possible direction to follow by Carpathian Gypsies searching for modern identity.

Works Cited Ficowski, Jerzy. 1989. Cyganie w Polsce : dzieje i obyczaje [The Gypsies in Poland : History and Customs]. Warszawa: Wydawnictwo Interpress. Kafel, Ewa. 1978. „Ogólna charakterystyka pieśni Cyganów z Czarnej Góry.” [General Characterization of Songs of Gypsies of Czarna Góra]. Etnografia Polska XXII/2: 171-175. Lubecka, Anna. 2005. Tożsamość kulturowa Bergitka Roma [Cultural Identity of Bergitka Roma]. Kraków: Księgarnia Akademicka.

-9Mirga, Andrzej. 1982. "Niektóre kategorie światopoglądu Romów Spiskich." [Some Terms of the Word View of the Spisz Roma]. Polska Sztuka Ludowa 1-4: 95-98. Mirga, Teresa. 1999. Pieśni z Czarnej Góry [Songs from Czarna Góra]. Podkowa Leśna: Koło Podkowy – Spółka Poetów. i

Sound example available at: http://www.esnips.com/web/MonikaJanowiakJanikssoundrecordings