Review article
Elements of the National Style in the Choral Compositions of Jakov Gotovac
Teo Pehal
Abstract
The ideology of the national movement in music in Croatia in the first half of the 20th century motivated composers to approach Croatian folk tradition in various ways as a source of inspiration for their own work. Among the most recognizable compositional approaches used to realize these ideas, we can highlight the choice of poetry and prose in the vernacular language—often drawn from folk creativity—as well as the expansion of tonal tradition with elements of folk music and its expression, and the shaping of elements of original compositions in the spirit of folk creation, which is most evident in the melodic construction.
In this paper, the aforementioned approaches are illustrated through the works of Jakov Gotovac (1895–1982), who, from his earliest compositions—such as Dva skerca (Two Scherzos) for Mixed Choir, Op. 1 (1916)—embraced the ideas of the national movement in his pursuit of creating ‘Croatian music,’ an important element of the identity politics shaping the musical scene of that period. As an active participant in the cultural and musical life of the 20th century, Gotovac developed a compositional language that synthesizes the idioms of traditional folk music with the forms of European art music. A special place in his oeuvre hold works that reflect folkloric inspiration, particularly that drawn from the Dalmatian and Dinaric regions. In the analysis of the selected choral works, the elements of folk music that Gotovac incorporated into the language of art music—and the ways in which he achieved this—have been especially clarified, and these will remain permanently recognizable features of his style.
Keywords
Hrčak ID:
347107
URI
Publication date:
22.12.2025.
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