#Folk Dancing

[newyorkthegoldenage]

An habitue of Marconi’s Restaurant on Mulberry Street dropped in for a bite to eat New Year’s Eve, and did a spontaneous dance to entertain the family party of the Di Costanzos, the restaurant owners, December 31, 1942.

Photo: Marjory Collins via Library of Congress

[mywingsareonwheels]

sup you said you like folk music and discworld

have you ever tried/watched morris dancing

I've never tried doing it (and alas folk dancing is not really doable for me these days for disability reasons, but I have done various other kinds in the past)!

But I've certainly watched it. I grew up in south-east England and have played in folk bands; it was kind of compulsory. ;-) I rather love it tbh!

[msperfectsheep-posts]

top 5 folk dances ? ^^

ROBIN DON'T MAKE ME PICK THIS IS LIKE PICKING A FAVORITE CHILD

Anyways. My top 5 Folk Dances: 1. Vjalla E Pllanes (Albania) This dance is so good. It has everything. It has scarves, it has a bunch of very unique figures that stand out from one another, there's a section where you just fucking SPIN for eight counts as much as you can, and the double-headed eagle is a classic. I love this dance so so much and it looks great.

2. Dance of Ikaria (Greece) EXACTLY THE SAME FOOTWORK as the Serbian dance Biserka/Bojarka and Romanian Boiereasca but I really love the Greek music specifically that was chosen for it. This dance is made to mimic the sound and feeling of waves crashing against the rocks of the islands old Greek monastaries were located on, including Ikaria! It's a dance where you intentionall mimic the feeling of being off balance, and the entire circle of dances sort of rocks back and forth like the barrel of a washing machine. In a small circle, the energy and feeling is so great that I literally feel like I am back in the Indian/Pacific ocean.

3. Ördög Útja (Drumul Dracului) (Csango Peoples, Romania/Moldova) Okay so I didn't credit Romania/Moldova alone here because there is a really important distinction to be made with the Csango Peoples: they are Not Romanian. They're of Hungarian descent and speak a Hungarian dialect, they just live In Romania. It's kind of like Opsa (below) where it's an immigrant group's work, but crediting Hungary entirely feels a little disingenuous, so there we go. Anyways, rant aside, this is the worst fucking dance I have ever danced (/aff). My folk dance group lovingly calls it the Fitness Gram Pacer Test of dances. You think you are done but you are Never Done. The footwork is actually pretty simple, but the real catch with this fucking dance is that it keeps getting faster and the songs can easily go one for over 5 minutes. Traditionally, this dance is done to hype everyone up for the big hunt, and they can easily do it for over twenty minutes straight. Me? I'll just die. We like to haze newcomers to our folk dance classes by having them go into this dance with no warning whatsoever and everyone hates us for it. It's one of our most popularly requested dances. The feeling is universal.

4. Opsa (Croatia/Serbian/USA) The thing with Opsa is that it is so stupidly simple. You just chat with your friends while you dance it! You hold hands, you chat, and whenever it's time to shout "OPSA!", you shout "OPSA!" I do not know what opsa means, and at this point I'm scared to ask. It's great. This dance is a great dance to start off the day, to end the day, or just for when you want to chat.

5. Sicilian Tarantella (Sicily) I was taught the Neapolitan Tarantella (Italy) first, and By God. That's definitely the harder but more "authentic" tarantella, but if you do not know how to dance in a ballroom position, then it is Hell. And let me tell you, most people do not know how to dance in ballroom position. However, the tambourines are always a delight, and the Sicilian Tarantella still retains a lot of the charm of the Neapolitan Tarantella while making it a lot more accessible to beginners. In a dance that relies on the fact that you at bare minimum have a partner, but ideally four people, you should either get a group of people who know how to dance or dance an easier version so people can still have fun. Anyways, that's my spiel.

Special mentions to: Das Fenster (Germany), T'smidje (Beligium), Eastbourne Rover (England), High Green Mountain (Taiwan), Istanbul Bar (Turkey/USA), Udarata Kandukara (Sri Lanka), and Fado Português de Nos (Portugal)

[anumberofcatschilling]

Hey, what's the kinesthetic equivalent of an earworm?

[hepdenerose]

Sowerby Rush

Often away in the past during Sowerby Rush bearing, it was high time we witnessed the spectacle. We rode the bus to Tuel Lane Top and walked briskly down to Christ Church. After spending a few moments appreciating gargoyles depicted in the yellow York stone frontage, we entered to peruse the interior. A craft fair underway, the nave buzzed with community spirit. We bought flapjacks and candles…

[gemsofgreece]

Hi there:)

I'm going to Greece for the first time next month, primarily to hike, but we'll also spend a few days in Thessaloniki as well. I've always been fond of folk dances, and Greek dances are no exception, so I've just been wondering if you know of any ways of trying it? Is it only possible to watch on cultural nights or workshops, or do people do "flashmobs" sometimes here as well? (As in, when I was in Bulgaria for example, it did happen that people just came out to the square randomly in the middle of the town and started dancing, inviting anyone to join in, be it local or tourist).

Thanks in advance!:)

Hello!

It is common in Greece for local traditional dance groups to perform in the promenades, squares or others spots in towns in summer. It is more frequent in especially touristic places. In these cases, it's more like a spectacle to watch and other people usually do not participate. But also this is something you can't easily find information about and most people bump into those acts accidentally.

Greece has often religious and other local festivals where everyone can participate in the traditional dances. In such occasions, the dancers may or may not wear traditional costumes. But in order to know about that, you will have to google about any festivals during the days you are going to be in Thessaloniki, or ask your guide, if any, or your hotel receptionist, if any. In the middle of the summer, there may not be many acts in Thessaloniki, because albeit large, it is a particularly student inhabited city and most young people take exams and return to their birthplaces during that time. It has many great museums to visit though. And many concerts around that time, now that I think about it.

You could also call dance schools of Thessaloniki in case they are preparing something around that time. If anybody is from Thessaloniki and is aware of acts about to happen there in June, please comment.

I don't know if you will find folk dances during your time here but enjoy your hiking :)

[ohulancutash]

This feels a little spurious to say in the face of all this, but I know a bunch of us in the folk dancing world have tried and loved Appalachian clog dancing in our time, and so I thought I'd share in case anyone has some spare resources to help the people those traditions come from.

appalachia is devastated. towns i loved, towns i visited all the time, are gone. not damaged, GONE. they are leveled to the ground. there is nothing left but rubble and ruin. people are dead. appalachia is poor to begin with and relies on tourism for a lot of its income, and multiple of those tourist locations are just...gone.

my town is okay, but it's flooded and wrecked. trees are blocking all but one way out of our neighborhood. power lines are hanging limp in the roads. we've been without power for over 24 hours and will continue to be without power for likely another 24+. disabled people and poor people are GOING to die from this. gods save appalachia.

[unhonestlymirror]

In the Vilnius Kalnų Park, as part of the 100th anniversary of the Song Festival, the Evening of Ensembles “Tree of Life” took place.

More than 4,000 members of the choir, folk orchestra and folk dance ensemble performed a theatrical program, which included not only famous works, but also compositions specially created for this concert.

Photos by: Delfi.lt

[wilddogsworldwide]

[hanginglikeafruit]

He's not dead, he's a cockroach and- and he will return to Eddie in New York, and THEY WILL GET TO CLIMB THE STATUE OF LIBERTY TOGETHER, AND- *breaks down in sobs*

[renegade-hierophant]

Slovak traditional highland axe dance

EDIT: If you'd like to play a character like these guys in a video game, check out Hellish Quart.

[baddywronglegs]

Around the world today, the penumbra of the rising of the first sun of May is lined with onlookers and wellwishers, eyes on the eastern horizon to catch the first glimpse of a new season.

Because in our hearts, this is how summer returns to the northern hemisphere; this sun a baton passed in the annual relay as the south prepares for what winter may bring.

Among our number, where the hilltops flatten enough for people to trust their feet in the gloom, for over a century now morris dancers have set out in the fading dark to dance in the dawn, for the same reason we do anything: because it's what we do. That's all tradition is, after all.

And every year, alongside the bells, a passage from Terry Pratchett's Hogfather rings in my mind.

"The sun would have risen just the same, yes?"

NO.

"Oh, come on. You can't expect me to believe that. It's an astronomical fact."

THE SUN WOULD NOT HAVE RISEN.

...

"Really? Then what would have happened, pray?"

A MERE BALL OF FLAMING GAS WOULD HAVE ILLUMINATED THE WORLD.

And so, every year, follow the sound of bells and sticks, the chorus of voices singing Hal And Tow, and you'll find a bunch of knackered weirdos in the middle of nowhere in daft hats and a chill breeze, but proud of what they've done.

After all, we just made the sun rise.

[fanfictionroxs]

The world calls you 'breakbones', but the first word your son thinks of to describe his father, is 'gentle'.

Harwin Strong the man that you are. Best father in Westeros!

[anumberofcatschilling]

Occasion: the plaza is empty and I'm wearing crocs

Celebration: Mindrele in the plaza in crocs

[little-escapist]

Many folk dances feature these elements so it's difficult to say which one in particular this might be. It's not even a question of the kind of dance (polkas and quadrilles can have what you described). Here is one I enjoy dancing a lot:

hi finnish people whats that dance called where you hold hands and weave your arms together and dont let go no matter what and you turn and meander and go forward and backward and switch sides all while holding hands

[multiiocular-mushroom]

Anyway, here's Bashkir Miku 🐎