Italie: Polyphonies des Quatre Provinces / Italy: Polyphonies of the Four Provinces

Trallalero is a traditional male a cappella polyphonic singing style from the Ligurian region around Genoa, Italy. Ensembles perform without instruments, weaving five or more independent vocal parts into bright, ringing harmonies that often move with dance-like energy. A distinctive hallmark is the “chitarra” voice, a specialized part that imitates a guitar’s rhythmic arpeggios using non-lexical syllables, underpinning the harmonic framework in lieu of actual instruments. Typical parts include a lead tenor (primmu), second tenor (secondu), a high falsetto alto (contràto), baritone, bass (bassu), and the chitarra. The texts are commonly in the Genoese (Zeneize) dialect, drawing on serenades, love songs, and urban folk narratives. Trallalero balances rough, work-song vigor with refined, close-harmony craft, producing a sound that is at once communal, agile, and rhythmically buoyant.