Kostroma is a straw effigy of a woman, for which Russian peasants organised funeral ceremonies on the verge of Summer. Special songs and dances were performed. Finally, accompanied by mourners, the effigy was either drowned or torn to pieces over the fields. It seems that Kostroma represented the life cycle of flax, and the ritual aimed to restore fertility of the earth for the next year. I play kanjira, frame drum and clay whistle on this track.

The song is traditional Russian and the rhythm comes from the Middle East.

(Traditional)