DAIVA RAÈIÛNAITË-VYÈINIENË SEEKING FOR ORIGIN OF SONGS WITH REFRAIN TUMBA AND THEIR INTERPRETATION

Lithuanian singing tradition there are some songs with refrains tumba tumba; tumba tumba tumba drica and similar to them: èiumba èiumba èiumba dra; èiumba olia dria; tumdi tumdi tumdidi etc. The aforementioned songs are considered by folklorists as „frivolous“, „ditties “ etc. According to singers, these songs were sung by children or „during entertainment activities“, while „working“, „during Shrovetide“, „parties, christening and wedding parties“. They can be either monophonic or homophonic. The aforementioned refrains expand one of the text lines or create a new one ( Ex.1). In some songs, a refrain tumba repeating becomes a drone part, basso ostinato. It is possible to propose that in these two-part (or more voice parts) songs syllable tumba tumba and similar imitate instrumental accompaniment (Ex.2). Similarly the refrain bam-bam (bim-bam)1 sung in the lowest drone vocal part may imitate bells (incidentally, the term bordun is related to bells2) (Ex. 3). This thought seems not to be new – in traditions of most nations different syllables very often become an imitation of instrumental accompaniment (Pamiatnik