Bosnia’s “Balkan Blues” earns UNESCO recognition

Every Friday, folk musician Enes Salman performs the Sevdalinka, an ancient form of love song from Bosnia and Herzegovina that this month was included in UNESCO’s National Inventory of Intangible Cultural Heritage.

Sevdalinka, often referred to as the Balkan Blues, is a melancholic urban love song dating back to the 16th century. It is a mix of South Slavic oral poetry and the music of the Ottoman Empire.