Dancing in Sixes

It’s like asking why is Ludwig van Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony beautiful. If you don't see why, someone can't tell you. I know numbers are beautiful. If they aren't beautiful, nothing is.
Paul Erdos

Today's post features two dances, two from Serbia, and one from Romania.  All of them have the number six in the name.

Video #1 is Sestorka.  шест is the number six in Serbian.  What is really amazing about these young dancers is their ability (this is not an easy dance) and that they are members of a Chinese folk dance club in Dallas, Texas.

Follow the link to these to old dance notes (there is no year, but you can tell they are old because they were done on a typewriter.)  Also there is mention of a country, Yugoslavia, that no longer exists. Although there are only three kids in the line, the shout "ooh ah" is done after the first set of six steps.  So I see a connection here.



Video #2,  U Sest (In Six) is also a very popular Serbian dance from the region of Sumadija.  The music is played on a frula, a traditional folk instrument.

This is a leader-called dance. The different variations are mentioned in the notes, and if you listen carefully, you can hear Yehuda call them.

The Dunav group is from Jerusalem in Israel, and they have numerous Balkan dance videos on YouTube.  While you are isolated at home, you can connect with the rest of the world and learn some new dances as well!



Video #3 is Hora pe Sase from Romania.  It has three sets of figures: the three steps in and one step out (pravo step), the second figure (czardas), and the last is the step together step.  I don't see anything here in six or its multiples, so how did the dance get its name?  I couldn't find any notes.  If you can find an explanation for the name or dance notes, please post them in the comments section.

The dance reminds me of Bulgarian Pravo Horo with a shot of Romanian attitude.



If you enjoyed this you may also like:

Dancing in Sevens (the series)

Dancing in Nines


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Bring on the Kids!

You are only young once, but you can stay immature indefinitely.
Ogden Nash

Dancing keeps you young, and the younger you start the better. Staying immature is optional. Who wants to grow up anyway?

Today's post features young people performing dances from Serbia and Bulgaria.

Video #1 is of three Chinese kids from the States dancing Sestorka from Serbia.Check out the girl who leads (she also does the sound effects.  Hoo-ha he-hop!

This dance is usually done in a belt hold, but the kids here are using a basket hold.  Either one is fine. Short lines are best; three to four people is a good number.

The lyrics are at the bottom of the screen, so you can sing along.



Video #2 is the kids's dance ensemble Hopa Trop dancing a Shopska Rachenitsa. The group is from Seattle, Washington.

The title of the video is Proletni Igri (Springtime Dance).  I'm still waiting for spring because the weather has been so chilly.



Video #3 is of the kids' ensemble Dimitrovche from Toronto, Canada.  The description (in Bulgarian) translates to Big Thracian Dance.  It's actually a dressed-up version of Pravo Horo. The kids are dressed-up, too, in elaborate embroidered costumes.



If you enjoyed this you may also like:

Hopa Trop: Children's Ensemble From Seattle, Washington

Variations on the Bulgarian Folk Dance Chichovo Horo (includes a performance by the Dimitrovche Kids


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

Some Equal Opportunity Folk Dances

I just love bossy women. I could be around them all day. To me, bossy is not a pejorative term at all. It means somebody's passionate and engaged and ambitious and doesn't mind leading.
Amy Poehler

Today's post, for International Women's Day, will feature men's dances from Bulgaria, Romania, Serbia and Greece, led by women.

In the Balkans, traditionally, there were dances for women and dances for men.  Nowadays, no one really cares if a female leads what was once considered a men's dance. In the old days, however there was gender segregation. There would be two different lines, one for the women and one for the men.  The men performed the fancy moves and jumps, and the women's version was more dainty.

The first dance is from the Pirin region of southwestern Bulgaria. I don't know the name of it (can someone help me here?) The female leader it does it with style; this is music with a hypnotic rhythm played on a tupan (double-headed drum) and a zurna (a wooden horn with a double reed and finger holes). Most of the dancers are women, you can see a couple of men near the end.

What is even more amazing is that this performance goes on for over six minutes and the music gets progressively faster.



Sirba Pe Loc, from Romania, was most likely a men's dance.  It's fast, and done in a shoulder hold with stamps and heel clicks for emphasis. Sirba dances are very popular in Romania, and there are many.  They are usually named by the town or region, but this one translates to "dance in place."



Sestorka, from Serbia, is a very fast dance, usually performed by men holding on to each other's belts.  The rules have been changed here, with some interesting results. This is an all-female group dressed in traditional Serbian folk costumes (that means skirts). There is a point in the dance where they are supposed to shout ooh-ha, but I can barely hear them. Raise your voices, ladies!



The,Hasapiko was the dance of the butcher's guild in Greece during the Middle Ages, and back then was performed only by men.  Times have changed.  This group, like the previous one, is all female.



If you liked this you will also enjoy:

The "Flavors" of Romanian Sirba

In Honor of International Women's Day:  Women's Dances From the Balkans

The Butcher's Dance in Balkan Folklore


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