EUROPA - FOLK INSTRUMENTS - SOPILE

SOPILE

Sopile is an old traditional musical instrument similar to today’s oboe which has remained preserved until today in the Kvarner and Kastav region, Vinodol and the island of Krk.
From the music instrument similar to sopile at the end of middle ages there developed the instrument called shawm (šalmaj), whose main features were double reed and a conical bore along the whole instrument. This instrument has completely vanished from the European musical traditional at the beginning of the 18th century. At that time it was replaced by a far better developed instrument - oboe. The primitive shapes of shawm remained preserved just in some parts of Europe in traditional music instruments (e.g. in Swiss Alps and in Italian region Abruzzo, where it is called piffero and also in our regions of Istria and Kvarner.
The characteristic of sopile is the double beating tongue made of common reed (and the conical pipe made of wood. The parts of sopila are reed, tone holes (špulet), pipe and bell (krilo). There are small and great sopila or fat and thin sopila since they are always played in pairs. The sopile players (Croatian: sopci) play the instrument most often on three occasions. Their first and most important role was to accompany the dance (tanac) on Sundays or holidays, when the youth would gather in the main square or in front of the church after evening mass. During playing the players (sopci) stomp the floor with their feet, giving thus rhythm to themselves and the dancers. Second occasion were wedding celebrations and the third playing in church. To that purpose the instrument was especially tuned for one-part playing. The players played during the whole mass and in processions (e.g. for the holiday of Corpus Christi).
The sopile players were always highly esteemed and the pairs of sopile players who were especially distinguished by their virtuosity and playing style were remembered. Although pretty simple, the sopile are an instrument of interesting timbre possibilities and very piercing sound and are still today used in folk music of the Kvarner region and the island of Krk.


Alan Kanski
Orchestra leader
of the Lado Ensemble