ARGUZHA

“ARGUZHA”, is a Bashkir ethnic song, uzun-­kuy. The legend  and  poems  were  first written down in the 1920’s by S. Salimov and published in “Bashkort aymagy” (1929, № 7). It was recorded on phonograph in the 30’s and published in “Folklore of RSFSR peoples” (1979). The song is lyroepic. The story of “A.” is connected with Sharafetdin Vaysilov’s life. He was born in the Yaltyr village of Chelabinskiy region. He opposed the seizure of Bashkir lands for the construction of mining plants in the mid­19th century and was sent to hard labor in exile. His letters written in poems became the basis of the song. They are full of yearning for the homelands. The author of the melody is considered to be Baguman, the folk singer, Sharafetdin’s neighbour. The melodical form of “A.” is typical for uzun­kuy style and consists of two parts. One of the characteristic features of the chant is that the melody flows gradually and has a climax at the beginning of the 2nd part.