Loading AI tools
Slovenian ethnomusicologist (1924–2008) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Zmaga Kumer (24 April 1924 – 27 December 2008) was a Slovenian ethnomusicologist and academic. A leading authority on Slovenian folk songs, she published over 450 works on the subject. She taught at both of her alma maters, the Academy of Music from 1953 to 1966 and the University of Ljubljana from 1966 to 1989.
Zmaga Kumer | |
|---|---|
Kumer before 1996 | |
| Born | 25 April 1924 Ribnica, Ribnica, Slovenia |
| Died | 27 December 2008 (aged 84) |
| Occupations |
|
| Known for | Slovenian folk song scholarship |
| Academic background | |
| Alma mater | |
| Academic work | |
| Discipline | Ethnomusicology |
| Institutions | |
Zmaga Kumer was born on 24 April 1924 in Ribnica, Slovenia.[1] She earned a degree from the University of Ljubljana in 1948, where she studied Slovenian literature within Slavic studies, and subsequently attended the Ljubljana Academy of Music, graduating in 1952 with a degree in musicology from the folklore-historical department.[1][2] Kumer returned to the University of Ljubljana, receiving a PhD in 1955; her dissertation analyzed Slovenian versions of "Puer natus in Bethlehem", a medieval Christmas hymn.[2][3] The philologist and folk song researcher Karel Štrekelj (1859–1912) was her role model.[4]
Kumer taught ethnomusicology at both her alma maters: first at the Ljubljana Academy of Music from 1953 to 1966, and later at the University of Ljubljana from 1966 to 1989.[1] From 1948/49 until 1988/89 she was a research advisor at the Ljubljana Institute of Ethnomusicology under the Research Centre of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts (ZRC SAZU).[5][n 1] She became an honorary member of the ZRC SAZU in 1995/96.[7][n 2] Throughout her career, Kumer held numerous positions at other institutions, including group member of The International Folk Music Council, board member (1973–1993) of the European Prize for Folk Art, and a founding member and multi-term vice president of SIEF's International Ballad Commission.[9] She also delivered guest lectures on Slovenian folk music variously in Innsbruck, Munich and Sarajevo.[9] Despite retiring in 1988/89,[n 1] the ethnologist Marko Terseglav noted that "even after her retirement, [Kumer] came to the institute every morning for many years and prepared her new books and articles."[4] She eventually moved to Gornji Grad, Slovenia, where she died on 27 December 2008.[10]
Kumer received numerous awards throughout her career, including the Order of Labour (1983), the Murk Award (1989) and the Herder Prize (1992).[7] In 1998, she received the Zois Award, the highest Slovenian academic prize, followed by the Štreklj Award in 2003.[11]
Her career has been described as "extremely productive"; she authored over 450 total publications, which included 37 book-length monographs.[2] Considered a "leading Slovenian authority on ethnomusicology", Kumer primarily researched Slovenian folk songs.[1] She often published in both Slovenian and German, including anthologies, indexes, anthologies as well as texts on instrument-making and performance practice.[9] She connected her research to the folk music of nearby Alpine states, identifying and exploring their shared topics, melodies and texts.[1] Her work culminated in two monographs:[11] the 1996 Vloga, zgradba, slog slovenski ljudske pesmi (The Role, Structure, and Style of Slovenian Folk Song),[12] and the 2002 Slovenska ljudska pesem (The Slovenian Folk Song).[13] She also published an important textbook, Etnomuzikologija (Ethnomusicology) in 1988.[9] The literary critic Marjetka Golež Kaučič surmised that "Kumer followed her life values towards an important goal: to demonstrate that, in both general and specific sense, the Slovenian folk heritage, with its characteristic elements, is one of the most important foundations of Slovenian independence and is at the same time an important part of European culture."[14]
For other writings see Bujic 2001
Seamless Wikipedia browsing. On steroids.
Every time you click a link to Wikipedia, Wiktionary or Wikiquote in your browser's search results, it will show the modern Wikiwand interface.
Wikiwand extension is a five stars, simple, with minimum permission required to keep your browsing private, safe and transparent.
