Masterpiece of heritage/Shkëlqim Guçe 50 years facing the challenges of its preservation

2025-02-18 14:38:00, Kulturë CNA

Masterpiece of heritage/Shkëlqim Guçe 50 years facing the challenges

Shkëlqim Guçe since childhood stood out with his energy, love for dance, isopolyphony. A love that he cultivated for years. Raised among the songs Shkëlqim together with his 4 brothers would inherit from their mother the precious wealth of the Picari region. In a story about childhood, studies and then the formation of the Gurra e Picarit Group, the artist hides the tears, the emotions that he has received in all these years from the applause of the public.

" We are 5 brothers, our mother raised us with isopolyphony and dances, I started the activity as a child in 9-grade school where I first sang a few verses, then I pursued higher studies and so the desire grew every year until the creation of the Gurra e Picarit group ," said Guçe.

Isopolifonia, says Guçe, is a genre that not everyone can interpret despite their desire because it requires skill. In these times, despite its status as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, isopolifonia is being taken up by some pseudo-artists, says Guçe.

" I'm sorry because not everyone can be capable of leading an artistic group, because without knowing the current, you can't give to the public, let alone represent your region in activities ," he adds.

Amid the turmoil of the early 1990s, Shkëlqimi managed to gather various groups and today, with 5 other artists, he represents Gjirokastra in folklore festivals and beyond.

" It was a testament to the formation of the group and I succeeded, we participate not only in festivals, but also with various agencies we entertain foreigners who come from all over the world through isopolyphony and costume design ," said Shkëlqim Guçe.

Despite the years, Shkëlqimi remembers in detail how he wrote the song Zog e Libohovës

" I was in Libohova near the plane tree, the sun rose and I, watching its rise over the mountain, the water, the plane tree, I began to say the first verses to myself. I went to find a pencil and paper and to throw the thoughts from inspiration there. Today, after so many years, I feel proud that the song is sung by different artists ," says Guçe.

Shkëlqim Guçe with his group Gurra e Picarit has participated in every folklore activity by transmitting the middle voice and fanatically preserving the labe song without alienating it or deforming it. Isopolyphony, like civic music, has faced difficulties in continuity and transmission among young people over the past decades.

The costumes that accompany this singing tradition are being damaged and losing many elements over time. Representatives of folk ensembles have also repeatedly appealed for support for the authentic transmission of this heritage./ CNA