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)

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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

 

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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.

 
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Amanet from North Macedonia, Janino Oro, and Border Crossing Tunes

I find that there are a lot of similarities between French and Japanese food. I think they're two countries that have really systemized their cuisine and codified it.

 David Chang

Today's post is not about food. It features the group VIS Amanet from North Macedonia. They are an excellent ensemble and you will see more posts about them in the future. I found them when searching for the dance Janino Oro. Their specialty is Izvor music and they are a delight to listen to. 

 I noticed that they performed several pieces that were very similar to those from the Pirin region of Bulgaria. There are several songs and dances that have crossed borders; for example:  Maleshevsko Oro to the song Dve Nevesti Tikve Brale, and Aj dem idem Jano (also danced to Maleshevsko.) Bavno Oro is a North Macedonian dance tune arranged by the Bulgarian accordionist Boris Karlov. 

 Video #1 Otishlo e maloj mome, (Veligdensko oro) resembles the Bulgarian folk song Elerinka. Words are different and so is the orchestration.

   

 Video #2 is More Chicho Rece, popular in North Macedonia and southwestern Bulgaria. The dance to this is Pajduško Oro. Pajduško is also done in Bulgaria, Greece, and Turkey, to a number of different tunes.

 

  

 Video #3 is Janino Oro.  There is the Atanas dance that we do and there is another version that sounds strikingly similar to Jove Malaj Mome, a dance song from the Shope region of Bulgaria.  There is also a Shope region in North Macedonia.

   

Video #4 is the Atanas dance.  The music is by Pece Atanasovski.

 If you enjoyed this you may also like: The Travels of Maleshevsko Horo (that dance got as far as Greece) 

 The Women of Bulgarian Folk Songs (see both Elerinka and Jove Malej Mome)

 
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In Memory of Atanas Kolarovski

Dance every performance as if it were your last.

 Erik Bruhn

 On March 3, 2022, the dance leader and choreographer Atanas Kolarovski passed away at the age of 95. His speciality was dances from North Macedonia.  He got around quite a bit, teaching and leading in North America, Europe, and Japan.  He briefly appeared on Zoom in January 2021 during the Global Folk Dance Party held in his honor.

 Video #1 is Cije e Ona Mome (whose girl is that)? It is one of my favorites.  I don't know if Atanas taught workshops in Israel, where the Dunav group dances.  There are two Balkan dance groups in Israel; the other is Balkanitsa.

.  

 Another dance that is very popular is Kasapsko Oro (butchers' dance).  Note: this video was taken in Japan in 1981. Balkan music and dance are very popular in Japan. Fusae Carroll was one of his assistant teachers. She currently lives in California, but returns to Japan periodically.  She specializes in dances from North Macedonia.

   

 Just about every group has Bufcansko in their repertoire. There are two versions of the music used among folk dance groups; a kaval version and an Izvor version played by Pece Atanasovski's ensemble. This is the Atanasovski music and it plays twice in the video. 

There is another version of Bufcansko played on brass instruments.  My dance group has it on their playlist. For some reason this one isn't as popular.

  

 

If you enjoyed this you may also like: Balkan Folk Dance in Japan

 

Balkan Blues, Some Really Depressing Folk Songs (includes Tino More, another Atanas dance)

 

 
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Izruchana and Furla: Same Music Different Dance

Share our similiarites; celebrate our differences.-Bobby Cremins

We have been learning Ileana’s version of Izruchana at Cathie Springer’s class.  Cathie teaches Bulgarian folk dance on Zoom Thursday nights between 7 and 8 p.m. and on Sundays from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. Eastern time.  I have been attending her classes for about a year now and look forward to them every week.  She posts the Zoom links on Facebook and you can also get on her mailing list.

Video #1 is Furla.  This is a northern Bulgarian dance with different choreography that uses the Izruchana music. Notice that the dancers wear costumes from the Shope region.  There is also a little girl watching who seems fascinated by the dancers.  

Both Izruchana and Furla are from northwest Bulgaria.  The dances are Vlach influenced.  There is also another tune for Furla as well. The dance fits well with both pieces.

 

Video #2 is the Izruchana we all know and love.  It's a challenging dance but this group from Taiwan makes it look easy.

 

If you enjoyed this you may also like:

Variations on the Bulgarian folk dance Izruchana

 

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Most Popular Balkan Folk Dances on Zoom, Part Six

Any kind of dancing is better than no dancing at all.

Lynda Barr

Although pandemic restrictions are loosening up in the United States, and groups in some places are meeting in person again, many of us still dance on Zoom. Zoom has some advantages over in person meetings: you don't have to go out during inclement weather to dance, and you get to see and meet people who live far away.

The main disadvantages are lack of space in the living room (where most people use as their dance space) and the hard floors. Folk dancers tend to prefer wooden floors with spring; these are less stressful on the feet and knees. Some of us dance on carpet which can also be challenging.

Also it is best to see friends in person. You don't get to talk much to your friends at Zoom meetings. Sometimes there is a chat scheduled either at the beginning or the end of the meeting for social time. From what I've been hearing in various groups, there will be dancing on Zoom for a while; at least until the end of the year. 

Video #1 is a dance I learned on Zoom: Mahala Mori Shej. It is described as a Romany dance from Hungary/Transylvania. Transylvania is a multicultural region of Romania; Germans, Roma, Hungarians and other ethnic groups call it home. Also, this dance is not to be confused with another dance, also Romany, from Hungary: Mori Shej.

 

If anyone can find the lyrics for Mahala Mori Shej, please post the link in the "comments" section.  

   

Video #2 is a mellow dance from Albania: Moj Maro Moj Marine. I never knew this dance existed until people met on Zoom. It became very popular in the Zoomiverse during the past year. You can find the lyrics here.

   

Video #3 is Djurdevica, from Serbia, not to be confused with Djurdevka.  Djurdevica was popular  before the pandemic.  You can find both in my series Balkan Dances Often Confused (the link is on the bottom of the page.)

This is a dance that requires more space than the average living room because it's fast and moves in several directions. (See below for the pandemic version that uses smaller steps.)

 

If you enjoyed this you may also like:

Balkan Dances That Are Often Confused, Part 5

 

The entire "Confusion" series (so far) can be found here: (This is the longest series on this blog with 22 posts!)

Transylvania: The Land of Count Dracula is a Multicultural Mishmosh

Here is the rest of the series Most Popular Balkan Dances on Zoom.  It starts with Part Five.

  

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