Balkan Dances That Are Often Confused: Part 19: Dunavsko Horo and Dunavsko Daichovo Horo

If I look confused, it is because I am thinking.
Samuel Goldwyn

Let's start 2020 with one of my favorite topics: Balkan dances that are often confused. It is the series that never ends. If you are a regular, you had probably read the previous 18 posts on this fascinating topic.

Video #1 features a group from the Czech republic, from the city of Brno. Despite the "soubor Pirin" in the title of the video, this is not music from southwest Bulgaria (Pirin region) but from the northwest region. Are you confused yet?

They perform a medley of two dances: the first a Vlach dance (known as Krajdunavsko, or from the Danube region).  Vlach dances are characterized with a lot of fast steps, crossovers and stamps. At 2:04 is the Dunavsko Daichovo Horo.  Daichovo is also a dance popular in northern Bulgaria and there are several variations, with different choreographies and different music.



The original version of Dunavsko Daichovo was composed by someone in the group Orchestra Horo. They are from the city of Ruse, and their specialty is modern renditions of folk songs and dances from the northern region of Bulgaria. The ensemble celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2012. I'm sure they will make it to their 60th in 2022.

The album cover below is probably from one of their original albums. Remember when there were records instead of digitized music?



Things get to be even more confusing because there is a very famous piece by Diko Iliev, that he composed and introduced in 1937: Dunavsko Horo.

This piece has a martial motif because Diko Iliev was involved with military bands in a number of towns and cities in Bulgaria. Diko Iliev had also fought in the First Balkan War as well as World War I. He was also the bandmaster in the town of Oryahovo, where he composed numerous works.

Video # 3 combines an old war movie with Dunavsko Horo.  The explosions seem to be in time with the music.  The music begins at 0:19. The New Year fireworks in Bulgaria are also in synch with the music. (If you want to see those, check out the 2020 New Year Post).



There are different tunes used for Dunavsko Horo . The choreography is essentially the same no matter what music is used because you can hear the dance in the music.  Here is an example of a more traditional version with dancers in folk costumes.  The group is Ensemble Gotse Delchev.



If you enjoyed this you may also like:

Balkan Dances That Are Often Confused, Part 18 (links to rest of the series)

The 2020 New Year Post (fireworks)

Same Dance, Different Music: Dunavsko Horo

Orchestra Horo: Modern Bulgarian Folk Songs, Traditional Rhythms


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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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The 2018 New Year Post

There is something special when creative people get together.
Joy Mangano

Today's post features creative ideas used with the music to Diko Iliev's Dunavsko Horo.  It is a dance traditionally done at midnight to welcome in the New Year.

Video #1 is a flash mob of dancers in front of National Theater Ivan Vazov (Bulgarian poet, novelist and playwright who lived from 1850-1921.)  It is a work of art by Rashev Photography: the dancers wear bright colors and arrange themselves in different formations.



Video #2 is an original arrangement of Dunavsko Horo. It uses the composer's music with some interesting variations. It is a blend of techno and traditional.



Happy New Year 2018!

If you enjoyed this you may also like:

Variations on a Theme by Diko Iliev

Happy New Year 2014, Same Dance: Different Music
http://katleyplanetbg.blogspot.com/2013/12/happy-new-year-2014-same-dance.html


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A Bulgarian New Year Celebration

First you take a drink, then the drink takes a drink, then the drink takes you.
F. Scott Fitzgerald.

Will 2017 be a better year than 2016?  I certainly hope so. There was the loss of Lyubka Rondova and Esma Redzepova in the world of Balkan music.  They will be missed.

Today's post features two Bulgarian New Year celebrations.  The first one has dancing and singing; the second, fireworks and music.

Video #1 features Nikolina Chakardakova, a Bulgarian folk singer from the Pirin region. Here she leads a New Year's celebration in 2014 with a medley of danceable folk songs.

The beauty of this is that she gets everyone up and dancing, even though it's cold outside (it is a good way to keep warm).

The event was broadcast on Bulgarian TV.



Video #2 is quite noisy because Bulgarians get a bit crazy with the pyrotechnics for Nova Godina. There are three pieces traditionally played at midnight: the Bulgarian National Anthem, Mila Rondino, (0:20),  Diko Iliev's Dunavsko Horo (1:44), and a Russian hymn sung by Boris Christoff (last name also spelled Hristov) Mnogaya Leta  Grant, O Lord, Many Years (6:27).

Boris Christoff was best known for his operatic performances, especially in  Boris Godenov.   He was born in Plovdiv. He left Bulgaria for Italy in 1945 and never went back for the rest of his life. When he died in 1993, his body was returned to Bulgaria and given a State funeral.

The Bulgarian National Anthem has undergone a number of changes over the years.  The version currently in use glorifies the beauty of the country. You can find the lyrics in the original language, transliteration and English translation here.

Notice: you won't find Auld Lang Syne anywhere in this video.  In my humble opinion it's a sappy song suitable only for those drunk enough to sing it.

Happy New Year 2017!



If you enjoyed this you may also like:

The Best of The Alien Diaries 2010-2015

Now That We've Survived The End of the World (next prediction is for August 2017)

Happy New Year 2014: Same Dance, Different Music: Dunavsko Horo

In memory of two great singers who passed on in 2016:

A Tribute to Esma Redzepova

A Tribute to Lyubka Rondova


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Dancing Though the Alphabet: Letter C

C is for Cookie
Cookie Monster, Sesame Street

Since this week's dance has two c's instead of one, here's the Cookie Monster to tell you what the letter C is all about.  Eating too many cookies results in weight gain, which is why Cookie Monster should take up Balkan dancing.



The featured dance is from the Sumadija region of Central Serbia, Cicino Kolo.  Translated into English it means "Grandfather's Kolo"  At first it looks like something your grandfather can easily do until it starts to speed up.. Cicino Kolo is not recommended for those who have arthritis in the knees or other mobility problems.  No disrespect meant to grandfathers, some are very fit and active people.

Kolo means "circle"and it can also mean wheel. Not all kolos are danced in a circle, as you will see in the here, since there are only two people, not enough to form a circle. Circles and lines, by the way, are geometric figures, which are very prominent in folk dances from Eastern Europe.

If you are a regular reader of this blog, you'll recognize the dancers.  They are members of the Dunav group, from Jerusalem, Israel.  By the way, Dunav means Danube in Serbian and Bulgarian.



Although I'm  not quite ready to move to letter D I thought I'd include, as an added bonus, the Bulgarian New Year Dance:  Diko Iliev's Dunavsko Horo.  He composed it in honor of the Danube, River of Many Names.  It was a big part of his life because he spent many years in the town of Oryahovo, along the river. The music and the dance are associated with Diko Iliev, even though he wrote many other compositions.

Play it at midnight and turn the volume loud enough to wake the dead. Get all your friends to line up behind you and dance around the living room instead of having a drunken Auld Lang Syne singalong.  If you want to learn the dance, the first post on the list below will help.

Happy New Year 2015!



If you enjoyed this you may also like:

Same Dance, Different Music: Dunavkso Horo

The Flavors of Serbian Kolo

The Flavors of Serbian Cacak

Having a Blast with Diko Iliev

Age is an Issue of Mind Over Matter: Old People in Balkan Folk Songs


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A Tribute to Georgi Petrov

When I'm dead, I want to be remembered as a musician of some worth and substance.
― Freddie Mercury

Today's post features several memorable performances of Georgi Petrov, a musician who played the gadulka, the Bulgarian version of a fiddle. He died of a brain tumor in February 2014 at the age of 52. Unfortunately, I didn't know anything about this musician or his music until shortly after he had passed on, when I found this article (in Bulgarian) on the Vidin affiliate of the Bulgarian National Radio.

I read the article (via Google Translate)and listened to the audio file.

Georgi Petrov was from Northwestern Bulgaria, Vidin region, and he is best known for playing music from that area. On video #1 you'll hear  Sinagovsko Horo, named after the village, Sinagovtsi, where Petrov lived. It is also known as Dunavsko Horo, the dance done to this music.



Video #2 is a performance of Georgi Petrov from 2003. Here he's accompanied by a group of folk musicians on tambura, kaval, and tupan.  The piece is Dzanguritsa, a tune from the Pirin region.



Video #3 is from a Bulgarian TV show back in 1995 (can you believe that was almost 20 years ago?) of Georgi Petrov playing Kraĭdunavska prikazka; the English translation is A Danubean Tale. It is a beautiful piece and one for which he is best known. Here, he's accompanied by the folk music orchestra of the Bulgarian National Radio.The radio station celebrates its 80th anniversary in January 2015.



Video #4  is from a concert in Morocco.. It's a half hour long but worth a listen  It starts with Petrov playing a solo on gadulka, to be accompanied by musicians on  kaval  and tambura. Two vocalists join in at 19:00.  You'll also hear the music from video #1 (at 14:54) and video #2 (21:45)  If you watch closely, you'll also see an artist painting Bulgarian musical instruments. The eye candy is there if you know where to look :)



If you enjoyed this you may also like:

The Gadulka in Bulgarian Folk Music

Same Dance, Different Music, Dunavkso Horo


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Happy New Year 2014: Same Dance, Different Music, Dunavsko Horo

The more things change, the more they stay the same.

― Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr

One day I decided to check out the Universe of YouTube to see how many different tunes I could find for Dunavsko Horo (that were not composed by Diko Iliev).  I found five; there are probably more. The Bulgarians love this dance and play it on festive occasions, especially to ring in the New Year.

Unfortunately, I couldn't find any notes (even in Bulgarian) about the origin of Dunavsko Horo.  I'm sure people did this dance or something like it before Diko Iliev (1898-1984) came along and made it popular.  The dance may have originated in the town of Svishtov; it is also known as Svishtovsto Horo.

Even though this is essentially the same dance in all five videos; there are variations in speed and style. This is where the "different village" concept comes into play.

The first video is a group of young people from the ensemble Pirinska Kitka performing at a Christmas celebration.  The recorded music is played on traditional Bulgarian folk instruments.



This brass band version, which reminds me of Diko Iliev's Dunavsko, is from a Bulgarian dance teaching video.  It's quite a bit faster than the one in the previous video. The costumes are from the northwestern folklore region (Severnjasko).



Here's another teaching video, this time from horo.bg . They have an excellent website with videos and information about Bulgarian dance and folklore.  The dancers are from the Filip Kutev Folk Ensemble. Although there is an English translate button on the horo.bg site, it doesn't work very well.  You are better off cutting and pasting the link to the site into an online translation program, although some of the meaning can get lost.

By the way, my group likes this version because it's not too fast.



If you're searching for a feminist version of Dunavsko, look no further. Since most women love to shop, here is a group of them in one of their favorite places: the shopping mall. For some reason they aren't wearing folk costumes.  Maybe they couldn't find them at any of the stores.



Young people add an element of energy, and this version is fast, with plenty of arm swinging! The group is the ensemble Goce Delcev, from Sofia.



If you enjoyed this you may also like:

Variations on a Theme by Diko Iliev:  Dunavsko Horo

The River of Many Names, parts Two and Four (Folk songs and dances from Bulgaria related to the Danube)

A Birthday Celebration and a Cause of Inspiration: The Music of Diko Iliev

Now That We've Survived the End of the World  (year end post from 2012)

A very Happy New Year 2014 to all!


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

Mango Duende: Latin Rhythm with a Bulgarian Accent

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.
Charles Caleb Colton

Today's cross-cultural post features Mango Duende, a group from Bulgaria that specializes in songs with a Latin flavor.

The first song, Friday, (петък) which I heard on Bulgarian National Radio about two years ago, really caught my attention. It had me fooled for a minute...le lo lai is something associated with folk music from Puerto Rico and so is the salsa beat, but the lyrics are in Bulgarian.  This is cultural cross-pollination at its best.



Loco is another good song. The word "loco" reminds me of the word "ludo" in Bulgarian. Both mean exactly the same thing: crazy.



This time Mango Duende returns to Bulgaria, with their version of Diko Iliev's Dunavsko Horo. This is the dance that Bulgarians do to usher in the New Year.  I don't know how the tradition of dancing Dunavsko for New Year's got started...can anyone tell me why?  If you have an answer, please post it in the comments section.



If you enjoyed this you may also like:

Variations on a Theme By Diko Iliev (different versions of Dunavsko Horo)

Bulgarian Folk Music with a Hungarian Accent (Bulgarian folk songs in Hungarian)

Puerto Rico and Bulgaria: A Cross-Cultural Comparison


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

Crossing the River, Part 4: Celebrating the Opening of a New Bridge Between Bulgaria and Romania

photo from Wikipedia Commons, Danube Bridge 2, taken March 2013

We build too many walls and not enough bridges.

Sir Isaac Newton

Sir Isaac Newton's words certainly ring true, both literally and figuratively, and here at The Alien Diaries building bridges between cultures is one of the main reasons for this blog.

I find bridges fascinating because I grew up in New York City, a city linked together by hundreds of bridges. One of my childhood nightmares involved a drawbridge that opened when I was halfway across, and one of my favorite memories was summer nights in one of New York's waterfront parks.  We often stayed late enough to watch the bridge lights come on.

Many years ago I had won tickets to the 100th Anniversary of the opening of the Brooklyn Bridge.  It was a beautiful, festive ceremony that I will never forget.

Today's post celebrates the official opening of Danube Bridge 2, (Bulgarian: Дунав мост 2, Romanian: Podul Vidin-Calafat), connecting the cities of Vidin, Bulgaria, and Calafat, Romania.

You can get information on Danube Bridge 2 from its official website: Click on one the flags to read about it in the language of your choice.

Until Danube Bridge 2 was completed in 2013, there was only one bridge crossing between Romania and Bulgaria; the Giurgiu–Ruse Bridge, completed in 1954. This made things especially difficult for truck drivers and other commercial traffic; they had to deal with long waits at ferry crossings, since one bridge couldn't accommodate them all.

The Giurgiu–Ruse Bridge was also known as the "Friendship Bridge" during socialist days, a term used for propaganda purposes. There couldn't have been too much friendship going on between the two countries.  The dictator, Nicolae Ceausescu of Romania, had his country under lockdown.  The situation in Romania became so bad under his regime that people risked their lives swimming across to Bulgaria to escape oppression.

Since the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, things have changed in Eastern Europe for the better. Hopefully.

Because The Alien Diaries is a music and dance blog (among other things), the first video is a dance piece, Sârba de la Calafat. The notes on the video a describe a course for accordion video lessons. (If you're interested click here:)  The accordionist here does an excellent job, he has learned his lessons well.

Unfortunately, there is no dancing in this video, if you want to see some Sârba, click this link. It is a very energetic and lively dance, especially when it's done by people who've had a little too much booze.

This colorful group of costumed dancers performs Vidinsko Horo.  Energetic dances like this are typical of the Severnjasko (northwest) region of Bulgaria.



Diko Iliev, a Bulgarian composer who lived from 1898 to 1984 wrote a very well-known piece which has almost become the second national anthem of Bulgaria.  It's played during celebrations, especially at the start of the New Year.  This is Iliev's Dunavsko Horo, which was most likely written while the composer lived in Oryahovo.  If you look closely you can see a photo of Iliev at center stage.



And now we come to the water underneath that bridge.  The composer of this waltz (yes, they play waltzes in the Balkans!) was of Serbian origin and he made his home in Romania.  His name was Ion Iosef Ivanovici, and he was a bandmaster in the Romanian army who composed music in his spare time. He was quite prolific, having written over 350 dance pieces.

His compositions was quite popular at the end of the 19th century, but unfortunately he was pretty much forgotten after his death in 1902.

According to the article here, Ivanovici was influenced not only by the music of the Austro-Hungarian empire (they and the Ottomans held sway over this part of the world in the late 19th century), but also by Romanian traditional music. He wrote several hora pieces, hora being the national dance of Romania.

This is his best-known piece, Waves of the Danube.  If you read the Wikipedia article, you'll find it has undergone several  incarnations such as as The Anniversary Song in the United States and in Korea as the Psalm of Death (how morbid!)  This is the original orchestration, and like many other pieces on The Alien Diaries, it has an odd time signature.  This one is in 3/4, and played in true Romanian style. Note that the conductor is Korean, but the orchestra is from the town of Bostusani, in northern Romania.

By the way, the waltz is listed on the video under its German name, Donauwellen. There is also a cake with the same name!

If you enjoyed this, you may also enjoy the rest of the series Crossing the River Parts 1, 2 and 3. Part 3 is where you'll find the links to the earlier posts.

The "Flavors" of Romanian Sirba and The "Flavors" of Romanian Hora (the most popular Romanian folk dances).

The River of Many Names, parts 1 -6. (you can find the links from 1-5 in Part 6.  If you like Close Encounters of the Danubian kind, you will love this series.

Classical Composers inspired by Balkan Folk Dances.  This post includes the Enescu Romanian Rhapsody #1.


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Now that we've survived the end of the world...

Now that we've survived the end of the world and the craziness that is the Christmas holiday it's time to celebrate the New Year, Bulgarian style.  Today's post will feature party videos from different countries with Bulgarian folk dancing.

The first one takes place in Tampa, Florida in the United States, and this really exuberant group dances a rachenitsa, accompanied with lots of noise (presumably to drive away the evil spirits). Maybe they've had a little too much wine, the room seems to turn sideways :) I know it isn't me...



There are many versions of Dunavsko Horo around, and this dance always ushers in the New Year in Bulgaria; the one shown here is played on traditional folk instruments.  This group of young people is from Bulgaria.



The next group hails from Toronto, Canada. Check out the cute little girl in the center of the room (somehow they manage not to run over her).   The dance is Bachkovsko Horo, which looks very similar to Dunavsko, with a few more steps. It is a very energetic dance which should be done only by people in excellent physical condition :)



The music most often used for Dunavsko Horo on New Year's is by Diko Iliev; this father with his little boy are having fun with it.  They're pretending that they're shooting off fireworks while the little one blows the whistle and keeps time with the forks.  They're wishing everyone a Happy New Year all the way from California.



A very Happy New Year 2013 to all!

If you enjoyed this you may also like:

Bulgarian Folk Dance Around the World:

http://katleyplanetbg.blogspot.com/2012/01/bulgarian-folk-dance-around-world.html

Having a Blast with Diko Iliev: (everything you always wanted to know about the composer of Dunavsko Horo.)

http://katleyplanetbg.blogspot.com/2010/06/having-blast-with-diko-iliev.html

All that gloom and doom predicted for 2012 is now just a memory.  Here is last year's New Year post.  You can look back on 2012 and be glad it's almost over.  What will 2013 bring? More of the same, I'm sure.

http://katleyplanetbg.blogspot.com/2011/12/happy-new-year-2012.html


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

Dancing Across Bulgaria: The Pravo and Regional Folk Dance Styles

For me, music and life are all about style.
Miles Davis

Although Bulgaria is a relatively small country (if you superimpose it on a map of the United States it's about the size of the state of Tennessee), it has seven distinct folklore regions. Today's post will feature dancing from four of them: Trakia, Rhodope, Dobrudja and Severnjasko.

Each area is distinct in its music and dance. Today's post will feature one of the most popular Bulgarian dances, the Pravo Horo (and its variations) and compare how it's performed in different regions of the country.

The Pravo originated somewhere in Thrace, a region now located in three different countries, Greece, Bulgaria and Turkey. By the way, people who live in the Thracian region of Greece do the same dance with a belt hold, but they call it by a different name, Zonaradikos. Zonaria means "belt" in Greek.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pravo

This dance from the Bulgarian region of the same name,Pravo Trakiisko Horo is slow and easy. It speeds up toward the end. It is a basic three and one pattern, in and out, over and over, at least until they run out of music.



Same dance as in the first video with a couple of slight variations.  This group uses a front basket hold.



This pravo is from the Rhodope region of southern Bulgaria. The tempo is slower and almost hypnotic. The dancers link arms and the instrumental accompaniment is a kaba gaida (bagpipe) an instrument native to that area.



The people of Dobrudja,(northeastern Bulgaria), not to be outdone, have their own version of the pravo, called Opas. It's a more challenging dance than your basic pravo,too, with lots of stamping and done in a baskethold, so if you screw up, the whole line goes out of kilter.



One of the most popular variants of the pravo is from northwestern Bulgaria. It is a very lively and energetic dance and has practically become synonymous with celebrations in Bulgaria: Dunavsko Horo. There are many different melodies for Dunavsko (the brass orchestration by Diko Iliev is the most popular). This version is played on Bulgarian folk instruments. By the way, these girls are Bulgarian language students from Armenia.



For more on regional variations in Bulgarian dance, check out Eliznik's web page. If you're short on time, scroll to the very bottom where you will find a summary of the regional differences.

http://www.eliznik.org.uk/Bulgaria/dance/index.htm

If you enjoyed this you may also like:

Bulgarian Dances and Their Greek Relatives

http://katleyplanetbg.blogspot.com/2011/07/bulgarian-dances-and-their-greek.html

A Dance by Any Other Name

http://katleyplanetbg.blogspot.com/2010/11/dance-by-any-other-name_15.html

Variations on a Theme by Diko Iliev:

http://katleyplanetbg.blogspot.com/2011/07/variations-on-theme-by-diko-iliev.html


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

Where words fail, music speaks.
Hans Christian Andersen

Today's post features the music of one of Bulgaria's favorite composers, Diko Iliev, whose birthday falls on February 15th. He was born in 1898 in Karlukovo, Bulgaria.

Although he died in 1984, his music is very much alive especially during celebrations in Bulgaria. Many of his compositions are based on folk dances and are arranged for brass and woodwind instruments. Unfortunately, he is virtually unknown here in the States.

Let's start with a rachenitsa, the national dance of Bulgaria, composed by Diko Iliev. This is a short and powerful piece played by the Velingrad Brass Band. Turn up the volume, this will blast you right out of your chair.



At the age of 13, his parents sent him to study music with a military brass band. The bandmaster recognized his talent early on, and at 19 he composed his first piece, Iskarsko Horo.



Diko Iliev saw time on the battlefield during the Balkan Wars and World War I, as well as World War II, where he was a military bandmaster for the Bulgarian army. He was stationed for a long time in Oryahovo, a town on the Danube, the River of Many Names, where he composed his most famous and popular piece, Dunavsko Horo. You will hear it in this video and see what inspired the music.

The name of the video translates to Bulgaria, Where are We? The narration (in Bulgarian, no English subtitles) describes the town of Oryahovo, in part, though the eyes of a child. It is very well presented, with beautiful scenery, especially along the river. Even if you don't understand the language, it's a pleasure to watch. It is a bit of summertime in the middle of winter, which has been especially bad in Europe this year (so cold that the Danube froze over in Bulgaria.)



Although Diko Iliev's music is associated with celebrations, his life was marked by tragedy. His first child died of tuberculosis at the age of 14, and near the end of his life, he went blind and had to leave Oryahovo to live with his daughter. He wasn't officially recognized by the Union of Bulgarian Composers until a year before his death, partly because he was primarily a self-taught musician.

Diko Iliev is remembered as the soul of a nation and and in his music you hear the voice of Bulgaria, loud and clear. Happy Birthday!

If you enjoyed this you may also like:

Having a Blast With Diko Iliev a post with lots of music and dancing.

http://katleyplanetbg.blogspot.com/2010/06/having-blast-with-diko-iliev.html

Variations on a Theme by Diko Iliev (Dunavsko Horo in its different manifestations)

http://katleyplanetbg.blogspot.com/2011/07/variations-on-theme-by-diko-iliev.html

Diko Iliev had an interest in music from Latin America, especially the tango and the rumba. From what I've seen on the Universe of YouTube, Bulgarians have a fascination with Latin dancing. Read more here:

http://katleyplanetbg.blogspot.com/2010/11/bulgarians-and-latin-dance.html


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

Variations on a Theme by Diko Iliev

Today's post is about one of the most popular dances in Bulgaria, Dunavsko Horo (Danubian Horo).

Although there are other versions of Dunavsko with different music (you can find them on my blog and on the Universe of YouTube), the one everyone knows and loves was written by Diko Iliev, a Bulgarian composer who lived from 1898 to 1984. Although the lighting isn't so good, you can see a picture of the composer in the background, and costumed dancers in the foreground. This is the original brass arrangement.



The next Dunavsko is an arrangement for accordion and played by an American musician who does a phenomenal job with Bulgarian folk music. A number of folk dances are posted on his channel, plus a tutorial on how to play Elenino Horo (Eleno Mome), another very popular Bulgarian dance. You can find links to the sheet music on his YouTube profile if you're feeling ambitious. And is that a Martenitsa I see on his wall?



There are some people, however, who consider the accordion an instrument of torture, like my husband. One day he returned home from work while I played the previous video and the first words out of his mouth were "Turn that damned accordion off!"

If you enjoy accordion music, or are interested in using it for pain and torture purposes, this post is a must read:

http://katleyplanetbg.blogspot.com/2010/10/accordion-in-bulgarian-folk-music.html

The Bulgarian Police Band is a fine group of musicians. When they're not out in the streets keeping order and arresting the riffraff, they're playing some really good stuff. They have a varied repertoire, which includes American big band music, military marches, and Bulgarian folk dances. This piece is Memorial For Diko Iliev, based on his Dunavsko Horo. It's a modern version which took some getting used to, but now I really like it.



For more about Diko Iliev, his life and his music read:

http://katleyplanetbg.blogspot.com/2010/06/having-blast-with-diko-iliev.html

More music by Diko Iliev can be found here:

http://katleyplanetbg.blogspot.com/2012/02/birthday-celebration-and-source-of.html

You can find other variations of Dunavsko Horo (not by Diko Iliev) in the following posts. The first one is played on traditional Bulgarian folk instruments:

http://katleyplanetbg.blogspot.com/2011/04/more-interesting-and-unusual.html

This one is a brass band rendition, with dancers in colorful folk costumes.

http://katleyplanetbg.blogspot.com/2010/10/river-of-many-names-part-2-danube-in.html


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The River of Many Names (part 2) The Danube in Bulgarian folk music

(photo by Preslav, from Wikipedia Commons)

If you missed part 1. click here: http://katleyplanetbg.blogspot.com/2010/10/river-of-many-names-musical-journey.html

In part 2, we explore the Danube in Bulgarian folk music. By the way the Bulgarians are fascinated by water for some reason I have yet to figure out. One singer even compared water to their folklore. For more on this subject, click here: http://katleyplanetbg.blogspot.com/2010/03/bulgarian-fascination-with-water.html

There are a number of songs and dances written about this legendary river. It is mentioned in the Bulgarian national anthem and frequently in folk songs. The composer Diko Iliev wrote a dance piece, well known and loved in Bulgaria, and played on festive occasions. It's called Dunavsko Horo, and is considered by some to be the second national anthem of Bulgaria:) For more on Diko Iliev, along with some of his delightful music, click the link below:

http://katleyplanetbg.blogspot.com/2010/06/having-blast-with-diko-iliev.html

The lyrics for the Bulgarian national anthem can be found here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bulgarian_national_anthem

Now it's time to check out the Universe of YouTube, where you can find almost everything :) The first video features a folklore group from the city of Vidin. The ensemble is named after the river, which in Bulgarian is called Dunav. You can see them in performing in the first 2 1/2 minutes (the rest is worth looking at as well, with dances from different folklore regions of Bulgaria). By the way this is beautifully done, especially the introduction with the dancers superimposed on the water, accompanied by a kaval solo. That ship behind the dancers is a bit of a distraction, though....



The next video features a folk ensemble performing two dances from northwestern Bulgaria, which borders Serbia and Romania. The first is Krajdunavsko Horo, the second is Dunavsko Daichovo Horo (at 2.04). Daichovo is lively and spirited dance native to this region. It has an odd number in the time signature, which is 9/8. The rhythm is quick quick quick slow, with the accent on the first beat.



I couldn't resist yet another version of Dunavsko Horo, since it's so popular in Bulgaria.



The Danube is often mentioned in love songs. Here is a particularly lovely solo by Nelly Andreeva, accompanied by the Filip Kutev choir. The song, Malka Moma, describes a young girl, praying to God, asking him to help her find a boy she can love. (See English translation below).

"Please god give me eyes of a dove,
please god give me wings of a falcon,
so I can fly over Dunav river,
so I can find a boy that I love.

And god gave her wings of a falcon.
And she found a boy that she loves."



Radio Bulgaria (BNR) had an article recently about Danube cruises, and also about a bike path along the river from the source to the end. Something I would like to do one day is combine the two. It would be a very interesting journey indeed.

http://bnr.bg/sites/en/Lifestyle/MapOfBulgaria/Pages/1709Danubecruise.aspx

http://bnr.bg/sites/en/Lifestyle/MapOfBulgaria/Pages/3006velosipednialei.aspx

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Having a Blast with Diko Iliev.....

Today we're going to have a blast with the music of Diko Iliev, a Bulgarian composer of dance music for brass bands, who lived from 1898 to 1984.

The first time I heard a piece by Diko Iliev, I was blown away (literally) by this fiery and passionate music. While exploring the Balkanfolk website, I heard some samples of his work and decided this CD was something I absolutely had to have. http://www.balkanfolk.com/.

It so happened that the CD took nearly two months to get here because I ordered it during the festive season in Bulgaria. Everyone there must have been celebrating Diko Iliev's 110th birth anniversary. In the photo above it reads (translated into English, for the Cyrillically challenged): "Masters of Bulgarian Folklore, Diko Iliev, Dunavsko Horo."

Who was Diko Iliev and why is he the soul of modern Bulgarian folk music? Not many people in the United States have heard of him, but everyone in Bulgaria knows who he is, and holidays and festivities would be unthinkable without the lively and vibrant music of this composer.

Brass band music is a common element in many cultures; for example: Germany (Bavaria), Serbia, Macedonia, Turkey, Romania, and even in the United States and Latin America.

First of all, here's his most famous piece: Dunavsko Horo (Danubian Horo) which has become the unofficial national anthem of Bulgaria. Both are in this New Year in Sofia 2007 video. After the countdown they play Mila Rodina (the official Bulgarian anthem), and right after, Dunavsko Horo. (note: this was a very special event celebrating the admission of Bulgaria to the European Union, the fireworks are in perfect time with the music!)



And here is the actual dance:



A celebration in Bulgaria would be unthinkable without a group of people getting together to dance horo and rachenitsa. Horo is a dance done in an open circle or a line, and means "chain dance" in English. The dancers hold hands or each other's belts and are linked like a chain.

This group dances Svatbarska (wedding) rachenitsa,composed by Diko Iliev, (as part of a medley of several dances, including kopanitsa and pravo, the first one is the rachenitsa).



For more on the rachenitsa, read: http://katleyplanetbg.blogspot.com/2010/07/flavors-of-bulgarian-rachenitsa.html

Diko Iliev had an interest in music and dance from a very early age, especially the brass band music popular in northwestern Bulgaria, where he grew up. At the age of 13,he left home to study music with a military brass band. He composed his first piece at the age of 19, the Iskarsko Horo.



Diko Iliev lived in Oryahovo, a town on the Danube, for many years. He was the bandmaster of a regiment in nearby Kozloduy. Aside from that he composed music for various events, and taught music to the children of the town. The people of Oryahovo thought so highly of him that they named a square in the center of town in his honor, and his house is now a museum.

Here is the river that inspired him, at sunset, as seen from Oryahovo, from a site called "Bulgaria in 360." What is amazing about it is that you can zoom and rotate the picture, and almost get inside it. The view is magnificent!

http://bg360.net/pano/oryahovo/zalez.php

Here is a video of the Danube as seen from Oryahovo on YouTube. The surreal music adds some charm to it, although it's not by Diko Iliev.....



The Bulgarian National Radio featured a segment on him recently (in German), with lots of music.

http://bnr.bg/sites/de/Musik/Pages/050510_MF.aspx

Diko Iliev composed about 70 works. Most of his music is based on Northern Bulgarian motifs such as the elenino, the daichovo, and the pravo. The majority of his work consists of marches and Bulgarian folk dances. He did, however, experiment with other genres, such as waltzes and tangos but his real love was horo and rachenitsa.

This is why the people of Bulgaria love his music, and it became the soul of a nation.


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