Shefqet Pllana – the collector and researcher who bequeathed folklore treasures

Shefqet Pllana was remembered on Wednesday at the scientific table on the 30th anniversary of his death, as a prominent figure in the collection and study of folklore, the bearer of his knowledge across generations. In addition, many precious treasures that have his seal still remain unstudied and undocumented, and Pllana's entire activity, according to researchers, can serve a new chapter of folklore based on his creativity bequeathed

His name occupies a place in the ranks of intellectuals and his contribution to Albanian studies is a pillar separately in folklore. Educated at the Department of Albanology at the University of Belgrade, Shefqet Pllana had taught the subject of popular literature at the Department of Albanian Literature at the University of Pristina for more than 20 years, until he was fired from his job by the Serbian authorities. 

Precisely on the 30th anniversary of his death, Pllana's activity was marked with a scientific table, on Wednesday, at the Albanological Institute of Pristina. The table started with the disclosure of the scientific profile of Pllana by Leontina Gega-Musa, scientific worker at IAP. It has brought an overview of the context of attempts to institutionalize the field of folklore studies and the role of Pllana in this step.

"His eloquence while lecturing the matter he knew and his ability to illustrate and concretize it, as in the case when he described the announcement made by Lekë Dukagjini about the death of Skënderbeu, improvising with screams and facial scratches, just like the ritual of men's glasses", said Gega-Musa.

Based on these details, she said that it was normal for his students to memorize each of his lectures. 

Through Pllana's regular participation in symposiums and congresses in the region and beyond, he managed to make his studies on Albanian folklore known in many countries. 

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Among the first topics that he had addressed during the scientific activity are the weather songs, starting from the Buzmi festival to Shëmitri. At the table, his role in the collection of folklore was constantly emphasized, until his work that he had done during the tracking in different localities of Kosovo was presented, starting from the poetic lyrics which reflect a wealth of expressions of the Albanian people, which according to the work of Pllana is understood to have been given importance from wedding songs to songs during the work process. During the study of folk lyrics, it was emphasized that Pllana had taken a deep look at the mourning of women and the mourning of men, as prototypes of early folklore creations, through which the ethnographic material is also generated. But, with all the complex character that the Albanian folk lyric has, according to Pllana's studies, one of its types takes the epithet of the most developed. 

"For Professor Pllana, the most developed type of popular lyrics are love songs, either in terms of number, but also in terms of variety and enrichment of motives. These songs often seem that, despite their tone and serious nature, they are often intertwined with tragic feelings, but there is also humor and satire", added Gega-Musa. 

The second point of the table was like a turning point, which placed the emphasis on the concretization of the activity of Shefqet Pllana, born in 1930. 

Liburn Jupolli, professor and music connoisseur, has examined the digitization of audio recordings in folklore studies, using the work of Shefqet Pllana as a case study. Through an analysis of the documentary possibilities of Pllana's analog audio materials and its application to previously unknown musical material, it was repeatedly mentioned that the knowledge and understanding of the musical tradition in Kosovo is essential. 

Jupolli's approach to this table came as a sensitization call, but at the same time as a kind of draft-guidance document for the ways in which the research community and institutions should work together towards the preservation of audio materials on tape. "We often say that it's a matter of professionals, but today in 2024 we have not only audio engineering school, in bachelor and master, but we also have graduates, professionals and a whole constellation of generations who know the equipment well technological. So, the human capacities are, now it's time to create a policy and a new more comprehensive and inclusive approach to documentation, where the main aspect of this initiative should be the digitization of materials", said Jupolli. The materials collected by Shefqet Pllana have been referred to as the first step for digitization. 
During the discussion, the need for folklore and ethnic libraries and ensuring access to them was also touched upon, since with the neglect and delay, this wealth is in danger of being lost. 

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"Here we are talking about a part of our heritage that has not had any other form of documentation. In the case of more contemporary phenomena, still the sources of the material can somehow be found, but a recording like that of Sali Ferizi which is only on the magnetic tape, recorded in 1960 by the professor is a golden and unique specimen, which no it's just that we have to preserve it, we have to digitize it, but also expose it as part of our technological development", said Jupolli.

 He added that the very process of work during the documentation and recording of these materials by Shefqet Pllana constitutes a study opportunity which would shed light on the practices of learning in Kosovo in the 20th century. 

Vlorë Fetaj-Berisha, a scientific worker at IAP, was also part of the panel, who revealed at the table Pllana's contribution to studies on Albanian mourning in Kosovo. 

"He has focused all the analysis based on the materials on four types of Albanian laments in Kosovo: men's laments, women's laments, laments as elegiac songs and epic laments," said Fetaj-Berisha, who at the same time was student of Shefqet Pllana. 
At the table, the mention of his contribution was continuous. Musicologist Kristina Përkola has emphasized the historical values ​​of Shefqet Pllana's contribution and activity in the field of folklore, placing it in the field of ethnomusicology. She considered the audio recordings made by Pllana during his research as a resource for the field. 

Arbnora Dushi, head of the Department of Folklore at IAP, spoke about Pllana's role as an editor and author of early scientific journals in Kosovo. He mentioned Pllana's first engagements in 1962 as one of the first editors of the scientific journal "Albanological Traces".  

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At the end of the presentations, during the discussion, which was treated as open, the urgent need to treat Pllana's work in folklore, namely his audio materials, in a serious and professional manner was constantly emphasized. An appeal was also made to the institutions that for years now, as a result of negligence and administrative gaps, have caused many such materials to be hostage to time, not even providing an adequate database for their storage.