Janino Oro, Jove Malej Mome, and Jovino Horo

Every writer has certain subjects that they write about again and again, and . . . most people's books are just variations on certain themes. Christopher Isherwoood

Confusion is to be embraced, not feared.

What do the music for Janino Oro, Jove Malej Mome, and Jovino Horo have in common? Is there a resemblance somewhere?

Video #1 is  Janino Oro, performed by Amanet from North Macedonia.  They were featured in a recent post.

This tune bears a striking resemblance in melody and rhythm to a Bulgarian dance from the Shope region: Jove Malaj Mome. 

Here is an interesting article from The Society of Folk Dance Historians about Janino and Jove Malaj Mome:

 

Video #2 is Jove  Malaj Mome.  The similarity of the music to Janino Oro is quite noticeable.

 

Video #3 is the Bulgarian dance Jovino Horo. The steps are similar to Jove Malej Mome but done to different music.  The group is from Bulgaria.   (The dance is also transliterated as Yovino Horo).

If you enjoyed this you may also like:

In Memory of Atanas Kolarovski (Janino Oro was a dance he taught)

Amanet from North Macedonia

Dancing Through the Alphabet, Letter Y

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

Crossing the River, Part Five: Trei Pazeste in Romania and Trey Pazuste in Bulgaria

We are defined not by our borders, but our bonds.

Barack Obama

The region of Oltenia in southwest Romania and the Vidin region of northwest Bulgaria have dances in common.  They are separated by the Danube River. 

There are numerous versions of the dance Trei Pazeste from Romania.  Video #1 is Trei Pazeste Batrinesc very popular in the folk dance community.

The dancers are from Boulder, Colorado in the United States.  I don't know if they are still performing (many community events have been cancelled due to Covid 19).  Hopefully they will resume when the pandemic is over.

This dance is very popular on Zoom.

Video #2 is Trei Pazeste de la Bistret. It's not as popular as the "Batrinesc."  What both Trei Pazeste dances have in common is that they are from the Romanian region of Oltenia and that they are fast.

   

 Video #3 is Trey Pazushte (slightly different spelling) from Bulgaria. It resembles Izruchana, another dance from Northwest Bulgaria and Trei Pazeste Batrinesc.

Northwest Bulgaria is the home of the Vlachs, originally from Romania, who settled in Bulgaria.  Their language is a dialect of Romanian.  There are some dances that go by similar names (but different music) in the Vlach border region: for example: Florecica and Kalushar. 

Bulgarian music from the Vlach region sounds almost but not quite Romanian.

 

If you enjoyed this you may also like: 

Crossing the River, Part 4 (links to previous videos)

Balkan Dances that are often confused Part 21 (links to the others in the series)

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

Amanet from North Macedonia: Part Two: Some Familiar Songs from Folk Dance

A few weeks ago I featured the North Macedonian folk ensemble Amanet on The Alien Diaries. I found them while looking for the music for Janino Oro.  I was delightfully surprised at what I heard and spent an entire evening listening to their songs.

Video #1 is from a New Year's party: There are two songs that many folk dancers will recognize: Zaiko Kokorajko at 8:40 (we dance Arap to this); at 12:00 is the music to Skopska Crnogorka.

Video #2: Pay attention to the first song:  this is the Macedonian version of Elerinka.  Music is the same but not the words.  Elerinka is a Bulgarian folk song from the Pirin region with choreography by Iliana Božanova. 

 

Video #3 is a lively song,  More Chicho Reche in Pajduško rhythm. (5/16).  It is popular in both North Macedonia and Bulgaria.

 

If you enjoyed this you may also like: 

Three Variations of the Bulgarian/Macedonian dance Arap

The Travels of Pajduško Horo

 

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

The Influence of Folk Music on Romanian Pop

The folk music definition has changed in this fast music world and musical styles are blending really quickly. 

Trey Anastasio 

The group Ro-mania has done much to popularize pop-folk music in Romania. The group was formed in 1996 and released many songs in the early 2000's. I don't know if they're still active and performing but their videos can be seen here (and on YouTube).

Video #1 is based on the Romanian folk dance, geampara. Geampara is in 7/16 rhythm. In that respect it is similar to Bulgarian rachenitsa. The name of the song is A Mai Zi O Geampara. 

 

Video #2: The Dancing Hat: Sa-ti sara basca.   The dance is geampara.  In this video the hat travels on its own.  It randomly lands on people and compels them to dance.

 

Video #3 is a song with strigaturi.  Romanian folk songs and dances often feature shouts called strigaturi. They make the dance more fun!

   

Video #4 is a pop-folk example of a Sirba, titled Sirba lui Valiuku by Valentin Uzun & Tharmis Orchestra, complete with dancers and a full orchestra.

  

 If you enjoyed this you may also like: Bring on the Border Crossers, Part One 

 Bring on the Border Crossers, Part Two

Balkan pop is very popular on Zoom. 

Balkan Dances that are often Confused:Part 12: Sirba pe Loc and Hora pe Loc.

 
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.