The Songs of Old Europe—Ancient Belarusian Folk Songs is a feature-length documentary by Seattle-based Belarusian filmmaker Volya Dzemka. Drenched with both vocal and instrumental folk music, the film is an engaging introduction to Belarusian language, folklore, geography, and history. In the West, quite little is known about Belarus (not Belorussia); it is mostly perceived as a small post-Soviet country. In light of recent political protests against the current President Lukashenko's despotic regime, which has been rolling across Belarus since August 2020, the global media has shown more interest in this terra incognita of modern Europe. The Songs of Old Europe, one of the first English-language documentaries about Belarusian folklore, offers a glimpse into the traditional musical culture of Belarus.The film begins with a 5-minute-long animated history of Belarus, from 30,000 BC to present day. Through the narration, we learn about the impacts of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, Rzeczpospolita (a historical name of the Republic of Poland), the Russian Empire, and the Soviet Union on the formation of present-day Belarusian national and cultural identity.Traditional music of Belarus, “the land of forests and lakes,” has been well-kept and preserved for centuries right in the heart of Europe due to the extreme remoteness and inaccessibility of some of the Belarusian regions. In pre-industrial times, many areas were so remote and unreachable that access was possible only 2 months out of the year: in February, when the swamps were frozen with ice, and in July, when the swamps dried out from the midsummer heat. Soviet collectivization created conditions that made migration from the villages impossible—the government refused to issue any kind of simple ID or passport, so residents had to stay in their places of origin, with their communities, and with their songs.The film presents the variety of Belarusian folk music through five main cultural regions—Palesse, Panyamonne, Central Belarus, Paazer'e, and Padnyaprov'e. The songs of Paazer'e, for instance, are generally monophonic, characterized by pure linear musical phrasing and antiphonal canons that echo early Byzantine music. In Palesse, the polyphonic Bourdon style is more common, and the harmonies are rich in seconds and half-tone intervals.Belarusian folk songs, the film explains, are syncretic: the song cannot be separated from its melody, ritual, or singing style; they all exist as a whole, an indivisible cosmic phenomenon that is unique to the particular region and time of the year. Most of the traditional songs are sung in the “loud voice” a cappella singing technique. Instrumental music is also briefly covered here—violins, flutes, hurdy-gurdies, hammered dulcimers, percussion instruments, and bagpipes called the duda. In terms of genres, the film offers a plethora of examples—lullabies, harvest songs, children's folk games, mermaid songs, wedding songs, Christmas carols, historical epic songs, and much more.Local melodies in the film are mostly performed by their tradition bearers. Elderly women and men sing solo, in duets, and with the village folk singing ensembles. They share their memories of the times when a folk song flew on the wind while women were reaping wheat in the field, or when about 500 different songs were sung at a village wedding.Ethnomusicologists, music scholars, and anthropologists also offer their comments about the historical development of these regional music traditions, as well as their current stage of development, and illustrate them with singing (it is a common practice in Eastern Europe for folk music researchers to form their own music ensembles in order to re-create the vanishing singing styles and music traditions). Moreover, the film shows how modern Belarusian folk rock, folk metal, and new age bands, such as Guda, Palac, Troitsa, and Vuraj, get their inspiration from the traditional songs and hope to motivate young Belarusians toward an interest in folk culture with these re-imagined tunes. It is very common to hear this type of music at pub concerts and places like Medieval-themed historic reconstruction festivals, as well as local and international folk festivals. Belarusian diasporic communities also try to popularize Belarusian folk songs abroad, as do ensembles such as Volya (United States), which the director herself is a part of, and Javarovy Ludzi (Canada).Historical developments in the twentieth century, such as technological developments, two World Wars, political and economic changes, the Soviet regime, and the Chernobyl nuclear power station catastrophe that caused the evacuation and migration of whole villages, have led to many tradition bearers being removed from the natural habitats of their songs. The narrator explains that few people in Belarus today understand how ancient these songs are, but nevertheless the songs are still preserved and continue to evolve.Footage from older ethnographic movies is also included and serves as a good visual exemplification of the story being told. The film's animation deserves its own compliment. Fun, light-hearted, entertaining, and expertly crafted, it engages the viewer and creates welcome breaks between the parts of the narrative.The film is based on the fieldwork, or folk expeditions, conducted in 2011 by Belarusian researchers together with a team of international film crew members. In general, one can definitely tell that the director took a highly professional approach when creating this documentary, by collaborating and consulting with a wide range of scholars and community members, as well as both folk and modern musicians.The Songs of Old Europe ends with a note of admiration mixed with concern about the future. A true living history, “caught between the ancient and the modern,” Belarusian folk songs have remained virtually unchanged for thousands of years, but the fragile tradition of village-style folk singing can slip away almost overnight.Today, when the people of Belarus are spilling blood to be able to even wave their own white-red-white flag under the reign of President Lukashenko, who is often referred to as “Europe's last dictator,” The Songs of Old Europe presents an extremely timely reminder of who the Belarusian people really are—not merely the citizens of a small post-Soviet country, but a nation with deep roots, rich history, and ancient, mesmerizing songs.