Folk Dance in Bulgaria Today

„Този проект е финансиран с подкрепата на Европейската комисия. Публикацията отразява само личните виждания на автора и от Комисията не може да бъде търсена отговорност за използването на съдържащата се в нея информация.” 2 3 Short Bulgarian History The oldest traces of human presence in our land are from Paleolithic Age –before 1.6 million years. Archaeological finds in the ―Kozarnika‖ cave, near the town of Belogradchik, testify to the life of the first inhabitants of southeastern Europe. With the emergence of agriculture (VII-VI millennium BC) in the valleys of Struma and Mesta rivers, the live of people here is transformed. Dwellings of stone and wood, permanent settlements and tribes appeared. The discovery of copper noted a peak in the agriculture in our land. Open in 1972, Varna treasure is evidence of advanced human relationships - property differentiation. In the III-II millennium BC, with the arrival of the nomadic tribes of the north and merging them with the local farmers, formed a large tribal community - the Thracians. Their culture is described by the ancient Greeks. The largest Thracian tribe- Odrysaeans, founded in V century BC their country, between the Maritsa River and Black Sea, led by king Teres. Thracians established a rich culture, although they have no script. Many lavish tombs in our lands reveal the sacraments of faith in the afterlife. Top of the art of the ancient Thracian is tomb of Kazanlak . 4 Since 1979, Kazanlak Tomb is in the List of World Heritage of UNESCO. Thracians demonstrated exceptional craft skills in the processing of gold and silver. The exponents of the thracian "treasures" from Panagyurishte, Valche tran, Rogozen, Vratsa have been exhibited in many museums around the world. The thracian lands during antiquity were subject to attacks of the Greeks (Black Sea colonies), the Macedonian kings (IV century BC) and the Roman conquerors (I century AD). Signs of their impact are amphitheatres, baths, forums in cities such as Varna, Plovdiv, Stara Zagora, etc. After separation of the Roman Empire, our lands are subject to Byzantium with its center- Constantinople (IV century AD). Great Migration gathered, south of the Danube river, Slavs and Bulgarians. The Slavs- part of the vast Indo-European group, inhabited the lands between the Baltic Sea and the Carpathians (I millennium BC). The Bulgarians - lived in Northern Caucasus and creators of Old Great Bulgaria of Khan Kubrat. Bearers of different material and spiritual cultures and religions, both communities are united in one country to survival and strength despite the rivalry of powerful Byzantine Empire. 5 Beginning – 681. At the head of the new state is Khan Asparoukh and the first capital - Pliska. In the following centuries Bulgaria is established on the territory between the Danube river and the Stara Planina, and in battles with the Byzantine Empire, until the middle of IX century, joined lands, along the Struma and Maritsa rivers. The adoption of Christianity during the reign of King Boris The First, created conditions for achieving power and authority in Southeast Europe, both politically and culturally. Bulgaria reached the territory of three seas - Black, Aegean and Adriatic. The construction of palaces, churches and monasteries, and the formation of cultural centers - Preslav and Ohrid ranked Bulgaria among the most important countries in Europe. In the XI century the lands of the Bulgarians were under the rule of Byzantium. The foreign domination was dismissed after the rebellion of the brothers Asen and Peter, opened the way to new heights. Bulgaria considerably increased its prestige during the Asen dynasty, and after significant victories of King Kaloyan at Adrianople in 1205 and King Ivan Asen II at Klokotnitsa, is again on the top, among the countries in Southeastern Europe. Under the reign of King Ivan Alexander (1331-1371) bulgarians experienced their second, spiritual "Golden Age". Then high-literary works were created. Between the end of the XVI century and the end of 70s of XIX century, the Bulgarian lands were within the framework of the Ottoman Empire. This necessitated significant changes in the live of bulgarians, both in material and in the spiritual realm. 6 The new time in the Balkans gives impetus to the development of the Bulgarians and they became part of the European processes. Movement for spiritual growth and national prosperity is deployed – The Bulgarian Revival. Relief Tanzimat regime allowed wealthy Bulgarians to study in "Robert College" in Istanbul. Bulgarian Mutual schools and community centers have been established. Bulgarian national idea came to the fore . One of the fighters for the national ideal is Hristo Botev - the patron of our school. Hundreds of Bulgarians became better off, received an European education and become the basis of the bourgeois elite of the future free Bulgaria. Bulgaria is formed as a modern European state after separation from the Ottoman Empire. Principality of Bulgaria had its own Constitution and political management. One of the greatest Bulgarian politicians in the end of XIX century -Stefan Stambolov, held an wise policy for fast Europeanization of Bulgaria. The country managed for two decades to become economically viable, to declare and political stability - September 22, 1908. Bulgaria became a Kingdom. Remarkable are the connections and good relations between Bulgaria and Turkey during the rule of Kemal Ataturk. Bulgaria's participation in the regional and world wars brought collapse and nation-wide disappointment. After World War II, Bulgaria fell among the countries, surrounding the Soviet Union, etc. socialist countries. In the period until 1989, the country developed a special type of political, economic and social relations other than the southern neighbors Turkey and Greece. With tremendous effort our people created a good economic base. In 70s of XX century Bulgaria even has its own space program and two cosmonauts. 7 Despite its political orientation, Bulgaria maintained strong relationships with the countries with different political thinking. In the field of sport and culture, Bulgarians marks high achievements. The Masters of the art of singing as Boris Christoff, Nicolai Ghiaurov, Gena Dimitrova, Raina Kabaivanska, Valya Balkan prove that the legend about the mythical singer Orpheus, born in our land, is true. Athletes such as Jordan Jovchev, Ivet Lalova, Dimitar Berbatov, Veselin Topalov ,the Bulgarian volleyball and eurythmics teams maintaine the sporting glory of Bulgaria. Bulgaria today is a member of NATO, the European Union, modernizes its economy and infrastructure, leads tolerant foreign policy with the neighbors and all countries over the world, rising to the forefront that which unites us and makes us better. 8 Bulgarian dances Bulgaria is a relatively small country but within its modern boundaries a wide diversity of folk dance styles can be found. This is probably the main reason why Bulgarian dances prove so popular among international folk dancers. The dances that we learn range from the simple village dance with one basic pattern that repeats itself until all "foreigners" are "sick to death" (although the inhabitants of the village concerned seem to be able to continue all night!) to highly complex choreographies which are either "borrowed" from one of the professional dance troupes or else are put together outside Bulgaria. Most of the dances that we enjoy in this country fall in between these two extremes. They are usually slightly more complex arrangements of traditional village dances, possibly combining several figures from adjoining villages or else including several of the more interesting variations performed by the village "extroverts". We usually dance a fixed number of variations in an agreed order which have been "put together" by either a national folk dance teacher such as Belcho Stanev, who taught at the SIFD Summer School in 1987, or a foreign Bulgarian dance specialist such as Eddy Tijssen or Jaap Leegwater. Often people who visit Bulgaria are surprised that the nationals do not appear to have heard of the dances that we enjoy and look at us blankly if we show them a sequence of steps which is very familiar to us. This is because their knowledge of their own folk dances is limited to simple pravos and improvised racenica. Perhaps when our knowledge has increased further we too will be able to feel relaxed and confident enough to improvise freely within the style! Folk dance in Bulgaria today 1) Village groups These groups perform only the dances from their own village. These dances are simple and repetitive and variations are usually performed only by individuals. These are the groups who take part in the festival in Koprivshtitsa which has been held around every five years since 1965, the last one being held in 1991, the next is hoped to be held in 1995. The political situation in Bulgaria makes the future of this festival very uncertain as it was funded by the State. 9 2) Amateur performing groups These groups were formed in towns under the communist regime. Until the recent changes membership of these groups was very popular among children and teenagers as it could give them the opportunity to travel outside the country to perform. These groups perform choreographed suites of dances from all over Bulgaria, not just their own town or region. The choreographies are based on folk dances and folk customs, and when one watches one of these groups it is often possible to recognise parts of the dances that have been taught to us. 3) Professional performing groups (such as Philip Koutev Ensemble or Ensemble Trakiya) These are based in the larger towns or regional centres and perform more complex choreographies than the amateur groups and have in the past travelled abroad quite extensively. Although it is still possible to recognise some folk elements in their performances their choreographies are normally far further from the folk idiom than those of the amateur groups.

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