Vlach Dances from Bulgaria and Serbia

Vlachs have been called "the perfect Balkan citizens" because they are able to preserve their culture without resorting to war or politics, violence or dishonesty. (from article)

It would be nice if the entire world lived by the Vlach philosophy.  There would finally be peace on earth.

The Vlachs traditionally worked as shepherds, and wandered all over the Balkans to search for pastures for their sheep.  They speak a language related to Romanian, and wherever they traveled, they brought their language, music, and dance with them.

Today's post shows examples of Vlach dances from Bulgaria and Serbia.

Video #1 is a group of people in elaborate embroidered costumes.  They are the Severnjaski Ensemble from Pleven.

The dance is Shira Horo.  There are a number of variations of this; depending on the village where it originated.

Vlach dances have a number of steps in common: crossovers, stamps and arm swings.  Sways are also common (you will see those in many Romanian dances as well).



Video #2 is the version from Kula, a town in northwestern Bulgaria.



Video #3 is Kulsko Horo, another dance from the town of Kula. This one has arm swings and stamps. Each figure builds on the previous one.

The dancers are from Jerusalem in Israel. There are actually two Balkan dance groups in Israel: Dunav from  Jerusalem and Balkanitsa from Haifa.  Both have been featured regularly on this blog, and if you're looking for new dances to teach your group, their videos on YouTube are an excellent resource.



Video #4, Zenske Vlashke Igre is a women's dance from Serbia. Hang on to your belts, ladies, this one is going to be fast....

If you want to skip the introduction the dance starts at 1:30. Check out the jumps and the stamps (3:20 to 3:40).  It is thought that stamping drives away evil spirits; no evil can survive what these women do. There were no notes to be found, and the link to the group's web page, KUD Polet, was a dead end.  They do, however, have a Facebook page.



Video #5 is Vlaski Sat,a  popular dance in the Sunday night group in Wethersfield.  Several members of the group learned it at Pinewoods, a music and dance camp held every June in the Boston area.

This dance has both sways and stamps. 

The teacher here is the very energetic Bianca de Jong; this took place at a workshop in Austria in 2002.



If you enjoyed this you may also like:

Variations on a Vlaško Theme 

Stamp it Out: Vlach Dances from Serbia

Two Variations on a Serbian Folk Dance: Stara Vlajna


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