Klapa

Klapa singing crystallized in Dalmatia during the 19th century, drawing on older coastal folk part-singing and the liturgical and communal singing practices of Adriatic towns. The term “klapa” colloquially means a group of friends, reflecting the music’s social function: informal evening gatherings in town squares and by the sea.

Close cultural contact with Italian coastal cities across the Adriatic helped shape an ear for part-writing and blend, while local folk repertories and church singing provided melodies, modes, and performance manners. The resulting style coalesced into small, stable ensembles that prized purity of intonation and collective expression over solo virtuosity.

In the 20th century—especially after World War II—klapa groups began organizing more formally, developing distinctive repertoires and group identities. A pivotal moment was the founding of the Festival of Dalmatian Klapas in Omiš (1967), which standardized performance expectations, stimulated new compositions in the idiom, and helped disseminate klapa beyond Dalmatia.

From the 1980s onward, female and mixed klapa ensembles grew in prominence, and collaborations with popular musicians introduced the style to wider audiences, including the Croatian diaspora.

In 2012, “Klapa multipart singing of Dalmatia, southern Croatia” was inscribed by UNESCO on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, affirming its cultural significance. Today, the scene is vibrant: professional and amateur ensembles perform traditional songs, newly composed klapa works, and tasteful arrangements of popular material, while maintaining the core aesthetics of a cappella blend, modal inflection, and expressive rubato.