The Albanaian iso-polyphony is a traditional part of Albanian folk music and, as such, is included in UNESCO's intangible cultural heritage list. The term iso is related to the ison of Byzantine church music and refers to the drone accompanying polyphonic singing.
Rendered mainly by male singers, the music traditionally accompanies a wide range of social events, such as weddings, funerals, harvest feasts, religious celebrations and festivals such as the well-known Albanian folk festival in Gjirokastra.
Traditional Albanian polyphonic music can be divided into two major stylistic groups as performed by the Ghegs of northern Albania and the Tosks and Labs living in the southern part of the country.
The Labëria region is particular well known for multipart singing; songs can have two, three, or four parts. Two-part songs are sung only by women. Three-part songs can be sung by men and women. Four part songs are a Labërian specialty.
