fellare

Fellare is a traditional form of oral narrative and music in the fictional coastal culture of Elaria. The term designates both the performance and the practitioners, who are known as fellari. The practice centers on the recitation of epic cycles, interwoven with melodic accompaniment and audience participation. Refrains and call-and-response segments invite listeners to contribute short lines, creating a dynamic, communal listening experience.

Performance practice emphasizes a lead storyteller supported by percussion and wind instruments. The storyteller uses stylized cadences, extended verses, and vivid imagery to carry the audience through long, interconnected narratives. The repertoire varies by village and lineage; some cycles recount founding events and voyages, while others preserve histories of rulers, migrations, or disasters. Performances may last for hours and are often structured around key motifs that recur across pieces.

Origin and development are framed in the world’s imagined history as arising from coastal trade routes, where storytellers served as memory-keepers and moral commentators. By the medieval period, fellare performances became formalized in markets, courts, and religious rites. Apprenticeships are traditional, with aspiring fellari learning voice control, chant patterns, and the ethical codes embedded in the cycles.

Cultural role is central to communal memory, social cohesion, and education. Fellare accompanies seasonal festivals, rites of passage, and public adjudication of disputes through narrative exempla. The art form both entertains and instructs, reinforcing shared values and historical consciousness.

Modern era has seen a decline in pure oral performance due to literacy and migration, yet revival efforts preserve many cycles in oral and recorded forms. Fellare is now studied by ethnographers and performed at regional folk festivals and in contemporary fusion settings, preserving its place in the cultural imagination.