Lingo Rito Tatato. Introduction to Sutartinės Lithuanian Polyphonic Songs

Lithuania’s polyphonic songs, termed multipart songs by the EU, the sutartinės constitute a unique manifestation of Lithuanian traditional music (the derivative of the sutartinės is the verb sutarti ʻto agree’, or ʻto attune’ with another person). Today sutartinės have turned into one of the most pronounced symbols of Lithuanian cultural identity, sort of a “business or visiting card” of Lithuania.
The author of this booklet with the CD entitled Lingo Rito Tatato sincerely believes that hearing and singing the sutartinės will not only familiarize people from other countries with the most archaic and most unique heritage of Lithuania’s traditional music but will also prove to be an original means for improving skills for learning the Lithuanian language. The beautiful resonance of the Lithuanian language outcrops with the constantly repeating refrains of the sutartinės that are grounded by onomatopoeic sounds. The sutartinės will offer an unuasual “key” to open the door into the spiritual world of Lithuanians and their mentality.