The 2020 New Year Post

2020 shouldn't just be about vision.
It should also be about seeing what the New Year can bring. 
― Anthony T. Hincks

It's time to say good-bye to 2019.  It's hard to believe The Alien Diaries is entering its 10th year in publication with over 400 posts.  This one is number 401.

Today's post features music for the New Year, some pop and some folk.

Video #1 is a New Year song in Bulgarian.  This is a pop song and not a folk song.  It got my attention and I wanted to share it.  The artist is Nelina Georgieva.



Video #2 features Mango Duende with their version of Diko Iliev's Dunavsko Horo. This group is best known for their rendition of folk songs from Latin America.  Some are in Bulgarian, and some are in Spanish.

Another New Year is almost upon us, and it's time for another take on the Bulgarian New Year dance, Novogodinsko Horo (most of us know of it as Dunavsko Horo by Diko Iliev).

Video #3 celebrates the 80th anniversary of Dunavsko Horo.  The date the piece was introduced to the public was April 18, 1937.  Since then, it had been adopted for New Year celebrations in Bulgaria, and things haven't been the same since. By the way, the commentary in in video is in Bulgarian. The dance, however, is a universal language. The piece is a cultural icon, like the Radetsky March.



Video #4 is an actual New Year celebration that took place last year in Sofia, Bulgaria last year broadcast by Bulgarian National Television. It's 35 minutes long. If you don't have time to watch the entire video here are the highlights: the Bulgarian National Anthem with fireworks at 4:12, followed by a  Russian hymn sung by Boris Christoff (Hristov), Dunavsko Horo at 7:59, Elenino Horo by Panko Dobrev with costumed dancers at 12:45, Alexandriika at 17:54 (also by Diko Iliev), at 20:35 more brass music and folk dancers, at 22:08, Daichovo Horo by Diko Iliev, at 27:08, Rosna Kitka by Diko Iliev. It ends with Gankino Horo at 30:24 also by Diko Iliev.

Pick and choose what interests you, or you can watch the entire video, including the commercials. Notice that most of the music is by Diko Iliev; you can read about him in one of the posts below.




Happy New Year to all and thank you for reading my blog!

If you enjoyed this you may also like:

Mango Duende: Latin Rhythm with a Bulgarian Accent

The Music of Panko Dobrev

Having a Blast with Diko Iliev


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Balkan Dances that are Often Confused Part 18: Hora Fetelor and Hora Femeilor

If you're not confused, you're not paying attention.
Tom Peters

There never seems to be an end to confusion in Balkan dance. I have seen programmers confused by requests because the names of two dances are very similar.  I find this very amusing and often ask that both dances get played, so we can compare the differences.

The first two dances have several things in common:  (1) they are slow and graceful (2) they are from the Oltenia region of Romania and (3) both are geared to the female gender.  Notice that a man leads both of them. He is Yehuda Ben-Harush from the Dunav group in Jerusalem, Israel.

Video #1 is Hora Fetelor (Girls' Dance).



Video #2 is Hora Femeilor (Women's Dance).



Video #3 is another version of Hora Fetelor with different choreography and different music. The ladies are in charge. Notice that in the previous videos a man led the dance.  The Alien Diaries is an Equal Opportunity Blog, and features men leading women's dances as well as women leading men's dance.

Here the big girls take over: the dancing as well as the singing. (The men have their own circle on the side). This lively version of Hora Fetelor was recorded at a wedding in Craiova.



If you enjoyed this you will also like:

Balkan Dances that are Often Confused Part 17 (links to the rest of the series)

Some Equal Opportunity Folk Dances

Women's Dances from Macedonia Led by Men


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The Travels of Maleshevsko Horo

Music goes further than any border, any language.
J. Balvin

Maleshevsko Horo is a dance popular in southwestern Bulgaria (Pirin), North Macedonia, and Greece. It's one of those border crossing dances and has different variations and different music. There are also several songs associated with the dance.

Version 1: Gergana Panova teaches Maleshevsko to the Balkanitsa Group in Haifa, Israel. This is the variation popular in Bulgaria, performed to Dve Nevesti Tikvi Brale Bre (unfortunately you can't hear the entire song here). I have also heard the song on the Bulgarian National Radio's Blagoevgrad station during their folk music broadcasts. It is about two brides harvesting pumpkins.

The Pirin region borders North Macedonia and there are nationalistic claims to certain songs, for example: Makendonsko Devojce.  The Blagoevgrad province in Bulgaria is also known as Pirin Macedonia.

This Macedonia thing is a touchy subject in Bulgaria, Macedonia and Greece.



For contrast, this is the North Macedonian version of Dve Nesveste Tikvi Brale (different lyrics in a different language) If you want to sing along, you can find the lyrics here:

By the way, Bulgarian and Macedonian are closely related languages.  The dance is named after a mountain that is both in Macedonia and Bulgaria.



Version 2: Same dance, different music, performed by a folk dance club in Bulgaria. The song is Sarena Gaida.  My guess is that this is the Bulgarian version of the song; there is also one in  Macedonian  listed in the Songbook For Nearsighted People. Are you confused yet? Confusion is a popular topic on this blog.



Version 3: Another version of Maleshevsko performed by a Greek group.



North Macedonian version of the music used in the dance above, and it is also called Maleshevsko. Compare the arrangement to the one used in Version 3.  This is a traditional orchestration with folk instruments: gaida, kaval, tupan and tambura.



Version 4: This was the only dance video I could find from North Macedonia. The clarinetist here is amazing.  They use the same tune as the two previous videos, however, the choreography is different than the ones from Bulgaria and Greece. I don't know if Maleshevka is the name of the music or the dance or both. More confusion!



If you enjoyed this you may also like the series Balkan Dances That Are Often Confused.
You can also read: Macedonia, One Name, Three Countries.


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Music Inspired by Romania

Music is the shorthand of emotion.
Leo Tolstoy

Today's post features two pieces of classical music plus one of the original tunes that became a part of Enescu's Romanian Rhapsody #1.  Both were inspired by the composers' impressions of Romania.

The piece in Video #1 was created by a Norwegian, Johan Halvorsen. Halvorsen was offered a post at the Bucharest Conservatory. Although he didn't take the position,  he took an interest in Bucharest and Boyars, in particular, the entrance of the Boyars into Bucharest in the 18th century.  I don't know if he ever visited Romania, but it fired up enough of an interest in him to write a piece about it.

The result was The Entry March of the Boyars. It's 5 1/2 minutes of passion and excitement; I love it, even though it doesn't sound like anything Romanian.  This is what inspiration sounds like.



The Romanian Rhapsody #1 by George Enescu uses Romanian folk motifs. One of the tunes in the Romanian Rhapsody is the music for the dance Hora Lui Dobrica.



Here is the Romanian Rhapsody in its entirety, with some beautiful scenery to go along with the music. Hora Lui Dobrica is at 2:20. After watching this video, I will always associate barges and bridges with Hora Lui Dobrica.

This piece starts off slow and gradually speeds up until the wild finale. Reminds me of some Romanian folk dances.



If you enjoyed this you may also like:

The "Flavors" of Romanian Hora

The "Flavors" of Romanian Sirba


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Kolo Weddings

Your wedding can be the most memorable day and night of your life...or just another party.
Steven Crowder

What makes wedding celebrations so much fun is the dancing. Today's post features some spirited dancing at two Serbian weddings.

Video #1 is a basic version of the dance we know as U Sest or Uzicko Kolo. It's long (over five minutes) and energetic (young people in the line). The bride is second in the line and my guess is that the groom is the leader.  I love the energy and the shouting; the dancers are having a great time!



Video #2 is a group in traditional Serbian elaborate embroidered costumes performing a medley of dances at the wedding of Jelena and Dragan: U Sest, Makazice, Moravac (similar to U Sest), and Cacak. There were two other dances as well, one that I recognized but I didn't know the name, and the other was not familiar. Readers, if you know what they are, please post the names in the comments section.



If you enjoyed this, you may also like:

Thracian Dances at Bulgarian Wedding

Periniţa: a Romanian Wedding Dance


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The Music of Panko Dobrev

Lesser artists borrow. Great artists steal.
Igor Stravinsky

A number of years ago I wrote two posts about the Bulgarian composer Diko Iliev. While searching for Diko Iliev on YouTube I found several gems by a composer named Panko Dobrev (not the Japanese bread crumbs!) that were strongly influenced by Diko Iliev.

The first one is Gankino Horo, a dance that originated in Northern Bulgaria. Brass music is very popular in that region and this piece really sparkles. It made me want to get up and dance. By the way, the piece was named after a woman named Ganka, and there are numerous versions of Gankino Horo making the rounds. The dance itself is a basic kopanitsa.



The second piece is Rachenitsa Simona. I take it that Simona is also a woman's name. Rachenitsa is the national dance of Bulgaria and performed everywhere in the country. It can be in 7/8 or 7/16 depending on the speed. This one is rather slow and it's a lovely piece of music.



Video #3 is Elenino Horo, the dance we know as Eleno Mome, another dance that originated in Northern Bulgaria.  So far every dance tune I've found by Panko Dobrev was named after a woman; this time it's Elena.

Unfortunately, I couldn't find Panko Dobrev on Bulgarian Wikipedia, although he does have a YouTube channel.



If you enjoyed this you may also like:

Having a Blast with Diko Iliev

A Birthday Celebration and a Source of Inspiration: the Music of Diko Iliev


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The Best of Slavi's Show

Talent does what it can, genius does what it must.
Edward G. Bulwer-Lytton

Recently I have been watching excerpts from Slavi's Show on YouTube.  The host is a very talented man who has captivated late night Bulgarian TV watchers since 2000. 

This show features Bulgarian pop and folk music and Slavi (full name Slavi Trifonov), with his Ku-Ku Band, have hosted numerous performers.  It is the Bulgarian version of the Tonight Show (the older version with Johnny Carson as MC.)  Unfortunately, the last broadcast of Slavi's Show will be on 31 July 2019.

Video #1 is a sing-along.  The song is Nazad, Nazad, Mome Kalino. I don't know the name of the woman who sings with him, if anyone out there knows who she is, please post her name in the "comments" section.

Note: in the lower right hand corner of the video, there is a logo for Seven-Eight Productions.  7/8 is a very common dance rhythm in the Balkans (especially in Bulgaria, Macedonia, and Romania).  There are different forms of 7/8: lesnoto, chetvorno, and rachenitsa. depending on the grouping of the beats.  This song is a 7/8 lesnoto.



In Video #2 Slavi sings Svatba. This is a different song from the one that we dance to (sung by Nikolina Chakardakova).  It means "wedding" in Bulgarian.  If anyone out there can get me the lyrics for Svatba, please post them in the comments.

The drummers in the intro are amazing.  They play for nearly two minutes!



Video #3 is another Slavi sing along. This time it's the Bulgarian National Anthem. You can feel the excitement here, as well as the Bulgarians' love for their country (too bad the end was cut off abruptly).



If you enjoyed this, you can watch many more excerpts of Slavi's Show on YouTube or on his official site. You may also like these posts:

Variations on the Bulgarian folk dance: Svatba

Folklore and Eurovision

Bits and Pieces:  More Folklore and Pop Culture from the Universe of YouTube


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Bulgaro-Macedonian Sing Along Songs

The world has only one border. It is called humanity. The differences between us are small compared to our shared humanity. Put humans first.
Nadia Murad

Today's post features the Bulgarian singer Nikolina Chakardakova with a medley of Bulgaro-Macedonian folk songs. There are links to them in the same order as in the video.  I was able to find translations for most of these  (some in German, some in English) and transliterations via The Songbook for Nearsighted People compiled by Birgitt Karlson.  Songs that weren't in the Songbook I found at various websites including Wikipedia, where you can find almost everything.

These songs are excellent examples of songs that cross borders.  They are popular both in Bulgaria and in Northern Macedonia. Sing along with Nikolina!

Makendonsko Devojce
(Macedonian transliteration with German translation)

Zemi Ogin, Zapali Me
(Bulgarian Cyrillic lyrics)

Nazad, Nazad Mome Kalino
(Bulgarian to English translation and transliteration)

Ako Umram il Zaginam
(Macedonian transliteration, translations in German and English)

More Sokol Pie
(English translation)

Jovano Jovanke
(Macedonian to English, no transliteration)

Ludo Mlado
(Bulgarian transliteration and German translation)

We have sung and/or danced to all of these at one time or another. Usually our dances end with a lesnoto in 7/8 time.  The dancers here do a ten minute lesnoto sing-along that is fun to watch. 



If you enjoyed this you may also like:

A Bulgarian New Year Celebration (with Nikolina Chakardakova)

Dancing in Sevens, Part Two (there is a link to Part One in this post)


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Dancing by the Numbers, Part Two

Numbers constitute the only universal language.
Nathaniel West

Today's featured dance is the 16 Count Tsamiko.  It's slightly more complicated than the basic Tsamiko that is usually done at Greek festivals.  We do it at the Sunday night dances.

The dance is sometimes called Tsamikos.  In Video #1 the spelling is "Chamiko." This dance and its variations may have originated with the Cham people; ethnic Albanians who lived in Greece.



This is the Tsamiko dance that we do when we're not dancing the 16 count version. It is often done at Greek festivals. Notice that it's the same music as video #1. At 1:54 the leader introduces a variation.  She also does a few turns: some leaders embellish the basic dance with turns, jumps and acrobatics.  Male leaders tend to do this more than women, but there are exceptions.



Since The Alien Diaries is an equal opportunity blog, the Tsamiko in Video #3 shows a female leader in an all female line doing some masculine moves that include turns, jumps, and knee bends. She spices it up with shouts.



If you enjoyed this you may also like:

Dancing by the Numbers


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Dances from Oltenia Part Two

You have to love dancing to stick to it. It gives you nothing back, no manuscripts to store away, no paintings to show on walls and maybe hang in museums, no poems to be printed and sold, nothing but that single fleeting moment when you feel alive.
Merce Cunningham

At the Friday night and Sunday night dances there are a number of dances from the Romanian region of Oltenia in our repertoire. They tend to be fast, with lots of crossing, stamps, and grapevines.

One that we're working on is Hora Lui Chisar. The music is delightful with caval, cimbalom and panpipes.



The next dance is Vulpita.  It translates to "little fox" in English. We have been doing this one a long time.  It's short, only a minute and a half but really fast.



This is a dance I would like to introduce to the Sunday night group.  One of the Friday night leaders taught it a few years ago.  The one thing I remember about Hora Spoitorilor is that the first figure is in the form of a square.



Another favorite of ours is Rustemul. This is the tune that we use, although there are others out there. There are also other versions of Rustemul as well; you can see an example in Dances From Oltenia (part one).



If you enjoyed this you may also like:

Dances from Oltenia

Variations on the Romanian Folk Dance Trei Pazeste

Balkan Dances That Are Often Confused Part Nine: Cimpoi and Sirba din Cimpoi


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Horo for the Dead

Our death is not an end if we can live on in our children and the younger generation. For they are us; our bodies are only wilted leaves on the tree of life. – Albert Einstein

On Orthodox Easter Monday, the Bulgarian National Radio published a post on a Vlach custom: The Horo for the Dead.

It is done in the Northwest (Severnjasko) region of Bulgaria, a place where the population is aging and dying and few young people are born to replace them. The people in this region get together at the Albotin monastery or in the town square with pictures of relatives who died since the previous Easter. Unfortunately, the custom may disappear because the authorities don't support it.

Their way of mourning the dead is to dance with them in spirit. Each dancer holds the picture of a deceased relative. Most of the people in the line are elderly, although there are a few young people. They dance a slow pravo horo, accompanied either by an accordion or brass band.

I found this post shortly I had been notified of the death of a relative in Puerto Rico.  She was my aunt, who passed on at the ripe old age of 88.

This custom reminds me of the Mexican Day of the Dead, when relatives visit cemeteries and bring food and drink for themselves and the spirits of the departed.  They decorate the graves and celebrate the lives of their deceased friends and relatives.

The Sunday night group used to have a memorial dance in June. Tom Pixton (who is fantastic on the accordion), played requests from the group, usually a favorite dance in memory of a member who had passed on.  Our group is aging and few young people are replacing them. In that respect we are much like the northwest region of Bulgaria.

Here is the video (entirely in Bulgarian). It begins with a church service. It is worth watching in its entirety; but if you're limited on time the dancing (with accordion and drum accompaniment) starts at 11:34.  The dance in the town square, accompanied by a brass band starts at 15:00.



If you enjoyed this you may also like:

Dancing Across Bulgaria: The Pravo and Regional Folk Dance Styles


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Bring on the Border Crossers, Part Two

We are all human beings, and our nationality is simply an accident of birth.
Venkatraman Ramakrishnan

There are dances that have elements in common, even though they are from different countries.  Alunelul from (Romania) is a very popular children's dance.. Here the grown-ups have taken over. Video #1 includes instruction and a translation of the lyrics.  This version is instrumental; for the vocal check out Video #2.



Vocal version with sing-along lyrics:



Video #3 is Podaraki, a dance from Greece with similar steps.  The music sounds more like something from Bulgarian Dobrudja than Greece.  Must be the accordion and the stamping.



If you enjoyed this you may also like:

Bring on the Border Crossers!

Variations on the Romanian Folk Dance Alunelul

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Balkan Dances That Are Often Confused, Part 17: Opinca and Opincuta

It's sensational to be part of a series that takes on a life of its own.
Robert Wagner

The series continues: who knew that the names of so many Balkan dances were so confusing?

Today's dances are similar when it comes to name (an additional syllable), the first from Romania (Bukovina), the second from Moldova. Moldova is a separate country, although they speak the Romanian language.  Their folk music is very similar to Romanian.  To confuse matters even more, there is a region named Moldavia (Moldova) in Romania.

Opinca is a dance very popular in my Sunday night group. The name is derived from the Romanian word for peasant sandals, now used as dance shoes.  They are made of leather and tied to the feet with leather strips. Nobody in the video is wearing them.



Opincuta is a totally different dance. If you click on the link you can find the dance notes as well as the lyrics, so you can sing along.

The leader is Roy Butler.  He has many videos on YouTube.  He is really into folk dancing, especially Romanian dances.



If you enjoyed this you will also like:

Balkan Dances That Are Often Confused: Part 16.  This post links to the others in the series. You can spend a good part of a day reading them and still be confused.


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Two Variations on the Turkish Dance Esmer

For this brunette I would die.
(Turkish song Esmer)

Esmer is a dance that has caught my attention recently. It is from Turkey.  The Ottoman empire held sway over the Balkans for over 500 years and much of the music of this region has been influenced by Turkish rhythms (aksak). Instruments such as the zurna and davul (tupan) are especially popular in the Pirin region of Bulgaria and in North Macedonia.

The song is about a man who is smitten by a dark-haired woman (esmer translates to brunette in English).   You can find the lyrics to the song here, in Turkish and in German.

Video #1 is the one done in my Sunday dance group.



Video #2 is an instrumental version with different steps, introduced by Ercument Kilic, a folk dance teacher from Ankara. It's energetic, and includes claps and turns not seen in Video #1.



If you enjoyed this you may also like:

The Zurna in Bulgarian Folk Music

The Haidouks (rebels), including the famous poet, Hristo Botev, were instrumental in the liberation of Bulgaria from Ottoman rule.

The Haidouks in Bulgarian Folk Songs


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Balkan Music and the Celtic Connection

I have a multicultural background, so I tend to have an open mind about things, and I find other cultures interesting.
Viggo Mortenson

When you blend two cultures what results is an interesting blend. This is the Celtic version of the dance Adje Jano from Serbia.  The singer is Talitha Mackenzie.



I am not a fan of commercials but this one caught my attention: it's an ad for rakia. The music is a Bulgarian dance tune played on Scottish bagpipes.



If you enjoyed this you may also like:

East Meets Barry West: An Irishman's Adventures in Bulgaria


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Variations on the Croatian Folk Dance: Raca Plava

Raca Plava translated literally means "blue duck." The lyrics are peculiar when translated from Croatian. The song is about a man who is in love with a woman who steps off a boat. He recognizes her by her distinctive walk and wants to marry her.  The refrain is "this year the roses will bloom."

The link to the song provides Croatian lyrics with a German translation.

Raca Plava is very popular in folk dance circles. I know of two variations: Video #1 is the version taught by Yves Moreau and the one that our dance group uses.



Video#2 is a simplified variation performed by the Tanzgruppe Baeckerstrasse, from Vienna, Austria.  Like the Israeli Dunav group, they have many folk dance videos posted on YouTube.  Most of them were posted in the early 2000's.  The group used to have a web site; but they may have disbanded since I can no longer find it.



Video #3 is a funky version of Raca Plava.  The kids in the foreground dance it freestyle, along with the singers.



If you enjoyed this you may also like:

Crazy Croatian Dance Songs


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Dancing in Elevens

Why do we believe that in all matters the odd numbers are more powerful?
Pliny the Elder

Odd number rhythms are prevalent in Balkan dance. Today's post features dances in 11/8 and 11/16 (the 11/16 is faster).

Video #1 is the dance Isu Bialo Nedo.  This is a slow 11/8.  The rhythm isn't obvious, but if you listen carefully it's there.



Video #2 is the familiar Boris Karlov version of Gankino Horo. This dance uses the basic kopanitsa step.  The rhythm is a fast 11/16 and a lot less subtle than in Video #1.



Video #3 is a dressed-up Thracian Kopanitsa. It starts with a slow, synchronized walk, then a running step that reminds me of the dance Jove Male Mome followed with some fancy footwork.  The dancers make it look easy. The rhythm is 11/16.



If you enjoyed this you may also like:

Dances to Music Arranged by Boris Karlov

Variations on the Bulgarian Folk Tune: Gankino Horo


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Balkan Dances That Are Often Confused Part 16: Staro Pomaško and Pomaško Širto

I'm not confused. I'm just well mixed.
Robert Frost

The series continues....

The other night I mixed up Staro Pomaško with a totally different dance, Pomaško Širto.  The lady who was programming even got confused and played both dances one after the other, so we could compare them.

Staro Pomaško, in video #1, was first.  It is a dance from the Rhodope region in southern Bulgaria, in 7/8 rhythm (slow-quick-quick), almost like a Macedonian lesnoto (along with step-lifts during the vocal part).

Pomaks are Bulgarian Muslims.   Most of them live in the southern part of the country.



Pomaško Širto is also a Pomak dance in 7/8.  The original music had a very long gaida (bagpipe) introduction; part of it was cut.

Širto is the Bulgarian version of the Greek Syrtos.



If you enjoyed this you may also like:

Dancing in Sevens, Part One

Dospatsko Horo is a very well-known Pomak dance from the Rhodope region..

Variations on the Bulgarian Folk Tune: Dospatsko Horo



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