Traditional Dances

by Özge Cingil

Artwork: TURKEY-BULGARIA-ITALY-GREECE

Joined May 2021
Published Books 4

Traditional Dances by Özge Cingil - Illustrated by TURKEY-BULGARIA-ITALY-GREECE - Ourboox.com

TURKEY

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Nar Fikret Aktekin Secondary School

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ZEYBEK

This dance is popular in Muğla, Antalya, Aydın, İzmir, and Denizli.

Zeybek (Harmandalı) dance is part of the Turkish Culture.

The zeybek is a form of Turkish folk dance from Yörüks to Western, Central and southern Anatolia in Turkey. It is named after the Zeybeks.

This dance is the symbol of courage and honour.

All zeybek dances have a common characteristic form, but the positioning of the arms and body differ according to the different regions.

HISTORY OF ZEYBEK

Zeybek’s were people living in Asia Minor. The majority of them came from Yörük and Türkmen villages. Before the establishment of the Republic of Turkey, large concentrations of Zeybek’s could be found in western Anatolia. Zeybeks were mountain warriors of Western Anatolia during the 13th – 19th centuries. Zeybeks generally had Turkmen and Yörük origins. They acted as protectors of village .A leader of a Zeybek gang was called “EFE” and his soldiers were known as “Kızan”.

Zeybek games are played with drums and zurnas (or clarinets) in open aired places and with tying in closed places. The games are usually accompanied by a double zurna and one plays the tune and the other holds the decision sound. At the beginning of the game, the tune to be played is the entrance section is played freely . In this section called ” Gezinleme ” , players slowly walk around the area. When the melody is entered, they start the game by throwing nara ( battle shout ) . In female zeybek, there is no wandering section and it is more walking than men. In Zeybek games, the arms are raised while the right foot is thrown forward. The arms swing in triple strokes forming the limb, then lifted up and held above the head. At the end of the game the left arm is lowered. The body is always upright, the eyes are hard.

(The dancer playing Zeybek spreads her/his arms at shoulder level, with her/his hands at the same level as her/his head.

He/She moves slowly and takes big steps.

One of the distinctive movements of this dance is to bend down and touch one knee to the ground from time to time.)

It can be played alone, in pairs or in groups.

Zeybek clothes also differ in colors, embroidery, ornaments, jewelery and other accessories used according to the region where the game is played.

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Mehmet Tarman Primary School

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Halay

Halay is a Turkish folk game accompanied by drums and zurna, played collectively by holding hands, entering arm in arm, or holding shoulders, and has different types.

How to Play Halay?

It is usually played with a minimum of 3 people, accompanied by drums and zurna. The people who will pull the rope are lined up next to each other and hold on to each other with their little fingers. The Halay’s head is on the right side, and the person over there is the Halay’s head, known as the halay’s leader. The people who are at the beginning and end of the carpet wave handkerchiefs with their idle hands while the carpet is being pulled. Halay, which begins with slow rhythms, gradually accelerates and ends in a high rhythm.

Halay game is a game played with foot figures. In halays, where a large number of people play, it is difficult to move synchronously in high rhythms. Halay’s game starts with the left foot being thrown to the right side and put back in place. Then, in a similar state, the right foot is thrown to the left and put in place, and one step is taken to the right side, first with the left foot, and then with the right foot, respectively. After the step of the right foot, the first movement with the left foot is repeated. All steps are repeated fluently, accompanied by a rhythm. The Halay game is played by moving around in a circle in a large area.

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BULGARIA

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Third Primary School Bratya Miladinovi

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HORO

If you see Bulgarians dancing in the street holding hands and forming big circles or rows, you have most probably come across a horo, the national dance of Bulgaria. “Bulgarian rhythm” is the use of asymmetrical rhythm groups within measures, particularly in a fast tempo.

The pace is fast. The clock size is 13/16 (2 + 2 + 2 + 2 + 2 + 3) / 16 (six-part measure with six extended parts). It can also be found in ⅞ bar. The dance is spread in almost all parts of our country. In some places there have even been deviations in the dance steps and changes in the name of the dance. All these Elena’s people are rich as their prototype with a variety of dance steps and the beauty of group routines and performances. This horo is played in a closed or open circle or is most often conducted in a winding way – as a long, developed horo. Choreographers – men and women, hold hands with palms together. It is possible to play separately, only from men or only from women.

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Pravo

Pravo horo-South Bulgaria-This dance – is a popular folk dance that is played throughout the country. It is performed to the accompaniment of many famous dance melodies. It used to be played often in straight and long rows. In the past, the dance was played by a mixture of men and women who lined up next to each other and held hands with palms facing each other. Nowadays, this rule is not observed. The real dance can be played in different forms – in a closed circle or open circle, in a straight line and in a twist. Sometimes men and women are caught separately and play in male and female dance. The hands of all performers during the game are kept either bent at the elbows, or stretched and lowered low, or caught by the shoulders of each other.

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GREECE

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4th Kindergarten of N. Ionia

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ZORBA

Zorba’s Dance is an instrumental by Greek composer Mikis Theodorakis. The song featured for the dance, which has become known as sirtaki, in the 1964 film Zorba the Greek, for which Theodorakis wrote the soundtrack and became renowned around the world.

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Syrtos

Syrtos is – in classical and modern Greece – a traditional dance in which the dancers link hands to form a chain or circle, headed by a leader who intermittently breaks away to perform improvised steps.

Syrtos, along with its relative kalamatianos, are the most popular dances throughout Greece and are frequently danced by the Greek diaspora worldwide. They are very popular in social gatherings, weddings and religious festivals.

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