Along the paved road

Words and music: Russian folksong
Pronunciation:
       a as in "bar", e as in "bed", i as in "bid", o as in "bore", u as in "blue"
       y = as in "yellow" / ý = dull i, as in "bill"
       s = always voiceless, as in "son" / z = voiced, as in "zone"
       sh = voiceless, as in "mesh" / zh = voiced, like the s in "measure"
       kh = mostly rough, like the ch in Scotch "loch", but smooth when "e" or "i" follows
       a, e, i, o, u, y = the underlined vowel signifies the stressed syllable of a word.
Arrangement for balalaika, musical notation, transcription and analogous translation: Kai Kracht
Comment:
       It may sound funny but this little song has no end: If it is played in A Major, it should also end with the keynote A or at least with an A Major chord to dissolve the melody's tension – but there is no doubt that this song ends in E Major: The tension is still there and calls for the next verse to be appended immediately. This new verse begins in A Major which may loosen the tension for a moment, but at once the new verse develops a new tension which again remains undissolved at the end and asks for the next verse ...
       So verse comes after verse, without a break, as long as you want. This kind of melody is typical for round dances, and the Don Cossacks Choir of Serge Yaroff accompanied their artistic cossack dance interludes also with this song – the melody flows on and on, until it is finished at last by a single powerful A Major chord.
© Kai Kracht 2002