VIDEO: Georgian Folk Song "Orovela" by Leila Legashvili - from the film "Table Songs of Kakheti"

An excerpt of the documentary "Table Songs of Kakheti".

der.org/films/table songs of kakheti

by Hugo Zemp and Nona Lomidze
color, 80 min with 4 min of extras, 2016
in Georgian
with English subtitles

"Orovela" is a famous Georgian work song, traditionally sung by a peasant during ploughing. Nowadays it is also performed with a drone, a sustained tone in the bass, as are table songs. The filmmakers like especially Leila Legashvili’s version, sung while she picked grapes with her family and friends. As told by her father when she was "caressing the grapevine, and picking grapes": “Sing to the grapes. They are alive, they listen to you and obey you, because you are singing to them. When wine is brewing, it looks alive. See how it trembles, how it yawns in the jar, how it ferments. Then it enters a human body, and transforms it, makes it talk, sing, recite poetry. That’s why during a banquet, after a few glasses, everyone starts to sing, or recites a poem, because wine is alive, and it caresses everyone.”