Folk Dances in Bulgaria

One of the main different features of the Balkan folk music dance is the difficulty of its rhythms in contrast to Western music. However, it uses the Western meters like 2/4, 3/4 and 4/4; Balkan music also includes meters with 5,7,9,11,13, and 15 beats per measure, which sometimes referred to as irregular meters, these can be understood as a mixtures of groups of quick and slow beats. For example the dance Lesotho (the light/easy one) that has a meter of 7 beats with emphasis on the first fourth, and the sixth beats, it can be divided into three groups; a slow unit of 3 and two quick unit of 2 beats, which is often written as 3-2-2.

source of picture: www.balkanfolk.com

Each basic folk dance kind used a different mixture of these rhythmic units, some example are rachenitsa (7 beats divided 2-2-3), paidushko horo (5 beats 2-3), eleno mome (7 beats 2-2-1—2), kopanitsa (11 beats 2-2-3-2-2), and bucimis (15 beats 2-2-2-2-3-2-2) and pravo horo which can either be standard 4/4 or 6/8. Some rhythms with the same number of beats can be divided in several ways for instant 8 beat rhythms can be divided 2-3-3, 3-2-3, 3-3-2, 2-2-2-2, 2-2-4, 2-4-2, 4-2-2, or even 4-4. Its terminology is a crude popularization and this is not used by Balkan musician; it does not capture the full delicacy of the Balkan rhythms.

Some Discography of folk music:

o   The music of Bulgaria originated in 1955 with the recording (Nonesuch 9 72011), early recordings of Philip Koutev and the Ensemble of Bulgarian Republic, this was one of the Frank Zappa’s favourite albums, and Bulgarians harmonies reported power the harmonies of Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young.

o   Le Mystere des Voix Bulgares (Nonesuch 9 79165 in the United States., 4AD Records CAD603CD in the United Kingdom), the Bulgarian State Radio and Television Female Choir that is directed by Philip Koutev and Krasimir Kyurchiyski, is the world hit that introduced many of the Bulgarian music. This is actually a collection of recordings by different artists and groups, a group that include some of these composers and other toured under this name.

o   New colours in Bulgarian wedding music, the Yuri Yunakov ensemble (the traditional cross roads 4283), Yunakov a Bulgarian Roma saxophonist, is one of the maker with clarinettist Ivo Papazov of the modern Bulgarian wedding music movement. His album highlights his amalgamation of the traditional Bulgarian music with more modern elements from rock and jazz.

o   Village music of Bulgaria (Elektra/Nonecush 9 79195) which is the two albums of the field that recorded on one CD (A harvest, a shepherd, a bridge and in the shadow of the mountain). One of the tracks of the record of Izle je Delyo Hajdutin was included by Carl Sagan and Ann Druyan on the Voyager Golden Record.

o   Balkana the music of Bulgaria 9Hannibal HNCD 1335, most of the songs are Trio Bulgarka or one of its members

o   The forest is crying (is lament for Indje Voivoda) by the Trio Bulgarka (Hannibal HNCD 132)