A third work on maritime songs in Vendée that can be read and listened to

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The Vendée Center for Historical Research (CVRH) a published the third volume of Maritime songs in Vendée. Coincidentally, this outing is part of the recognition by UNESCO of the sea ​​shanty as intangible cultural heritage of France. Sing to give your heart to the work: hoist the sail, hold the helm or pass the time; At sea, sailors have always shown imagination to cope with the harsh conditions of their profession. The sea shanty is now firmly anchored in popular culture thanks to this inscription.

This third volume, directed by Jean-Pierre Bertrand of the Association for Research Expression of Popular Culture (AREXCPO), in collaboration with the OPCI-Etno doc (Office for Intangible Cultural Heritage), brings together songs transmitted only orally and originating of the Vendée territory.

If we had not carried out this collection work, all this popular cultural heritage would have been lost. Singing was often the only cultural opening for an entire generation. We sang at weddings and banquets. On ships, some sailors had the task of singing on board.

Read and Listen

This maritime memory is not only written, but also accessible to listen thanks to a QR code referring to the online ethnographic database RADdo-ethnodoc. “We can therefore listen to these songs and thus find the voice of those who sang them. »

The repertoire of these songs is vastdescribing the daily life of sailors (in the navy, tuna boats, etc.) or recounting shipwrecks due to wars, storms or collisions, such as that of the Saint-Philibert of June 14, 1931, which inspired numerous songs. These songs are grouped by themes such as: Blue-collar workers or red pompoms, coastal fishing, merchant marine, love songs and broadsides…

This book is in tune with current events since it includes a song entitled Globe tourwhich evokes the Vendée Globe.

Maritime songs in Vendée€24. Available in CVRH bookstores and online store: histoire-vendee.com

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