Hora, also known as horo and oro, is a type of circle dance originating in Aromanian and Romanian communities, especially in Romania and Moldova. It is also found in other South East European countries and culturally adopted by ethnic minorities such as the Ashkenazi Jews and the Roma.
Music of Serbia represents the musical heritage of Serbia, both historical and modern. It has a variety of traditional music styles, which are part of the wider Balkan musical tradition, with its own distinctive sound and characteristics.
"Istrian scale" refers both to a "unique" musical scale and to the folk music genres from Istria and Kvarner which use that scale. It is named for the Istrian peninsula. Istrian folk music is based on a distinctive six-tone musical scale, and the peninsula's two-part, slightly nasal singing. The two-part singing and playing in the Istrian scale, a traditional singing practice characteristic of the Istrian region and the north Adriatic coastal area and islands, was inscribed in UNESCO's List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2009.
Kolo is a South Slavic circle dance, found under this name in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Slovenia, and Serbia. It is inscribed on the UNESCO List of Intagible Cultural Heritage for Serbia.
The Guča Trumpet Festival, also known as the Dragačevski Sabor, is an annual Balkan brass band festival held in the town of Guča, near the city of Čačak, in the Dragačevo region of western Serbia. Guča is a three-hour bus ride from Belgrade.
The Slavonic Dances are a series of 16 orchestral pieces composed by Antonín Dvořák in 1878 and 1886 and published in two sets as Op. 46 and Op. 72 respectively. Originally written for piano four hands, the Slavonic Dances were inspired by Johannes Brahms's own Hungarian Dances and were orchestrated at the request of Dvořák's publisher soon after composition. The pieces, lively and full of national character, were well received at the time and today are considered among the composer's most memorable works, occasionally making appearances in popular culture. “Contrary to what the title might suggest, the dances are not so much inspired by Slavic folk music generally, but specifically by styles and forms from Bohemia. In these pieces, Dvořák never actually quotes folk melodies, but evokes their style and spirit by using traditional rhythmic patterns and structures in keeping with traditional folk dances.”
Tamzara is a folk dance native to Armenian Highlands. In Armenia the dance originally had a ritual character, it was a wedding song and dance. Now "Tamzara" has lost its former ritual significance, when it was performed during almost all community events and parties. It is today performed by Armenians, Assyrians, Azerbaijanis, and Greeks. In post-Soviet Armenia, tamzara dance is gaining more and more popularity among all strata of the population.
Balkan brass, popularly known by the Serbian name Truba, is a distinctive style of music originating in the Balkan region as a fusion between military music and folk music. In recent years, it has become popular in a techno-synth fusion throughout Europe, and in pop music in the Anglo-American sphere and throughout the world. Songs like Worth It by Fifth Harmony and Talk Dirty by Jason Derulo have brought the style to a new audience. In traditional form, it is popular throughout the Balkans, especially in Serbia, North Macedonia, Bulgaria, Moldova, and Romania, although the turbo-folk variety attracts larger audiences. The energetic and fast beats encourage dance and are egalitarian, often resulting in participation by the entire audience; this unpretentious relationship with audiences, highly charged energy and loud and joyful performances by highly skilled musicians has contributed to its successes. Fans of bands inspired by Balkan bands, such as Gogol Bordello, often state that it is a type of music better experienced than listened to.
Shota is an Albanian dance very popular in Albania and Kosovo. It involves synchronised steps and a strong rhythm. It is commonly played at weddings, folk festivals and other events.
The Lika cap, also known as kićanka ("tassel") or crvenkapa, is an important cultural symbol of the Lika region in Croatia, part of the Lika national costume traditionally worn by local Croats and Serbs. It is cylinder-shaped, with a flat top in a red colour, black sides, and often with a black tassel in the back.
Moravian traditional music or Moravian folk music represents a part of the European musical culture connected with the Moravian region of the Czech Republic. Styles of Moravian traditional music vary by location and subject, but much of it is characterized by a specific melodic and harmonic texture related to the Eastern European musical world. According to Czech musicologist Jiří Plocek, Moravia is the area where the European East musically meets the West.
UNESCO established its Lists of Intangible Cultural Heritage with the aim of ensuring better protection of important intangible cultural heritages worldwide and the awareness of their significance. This list is published by the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage, the members of which are elected by State Parties meeting in a General Assembly. Through a compendium of the different oral and intangible treasures of humankind worldwide, the programme aims to draw attention to the importance of safeguarding intangible heritage, which UNESCO has identified as an essential component and as a repository of cultural diversity and of creative expression.
Croatian dance traditionally refers to a category of folk-dances, the most common being the kolo.
Jordan Nikolić was a Serbian folk singer who interpreted traditional songs from Kosovo.
The national symbols of Serbia are things which are emblematic, representative or otherwise characteristic of Serbia and the Serbian people or Serbian culture. Some are established, official symbols; the flag, the coat of arms and the national anthem, are all sanctioned in the Constitution of Serbia. Other symbols may not have official status, for one reason or another, but are likewise recognised and emblematic at a national or international level.
Ojkanje is a tradition of polyphonic folk singing in Croatia characteristic for the regions of the Dalmatian hinterland, Velebit, Lika, Kordun, and Karlovac. As described in The Harvard Dictionary of Music: "The ojkanje is a particular style of singing melisma with a sharp and prolonged shaking of the voice on the syllables oj or hoj." According to experts, ojkanje is a remnant of pre-Slavic Illyrian singing from the area of ancient Dalmatia.
National Folk Dance Ensemble of Croatia LADO was founded in 1949 in Zagreb, SR Croatia, SFRY as a professional national ensemble. LADO represents the rich and diverse regional musical and choreographic traditions of Croatia. It has been called Croatia's most successful "cultural export product".
"'Ajde Jano" is a traditional Serbian wedding Folk song from Kosovska Mitrovica and Kosovska Kamenica.
Izvika, Naglas (наглас) or Kajda (кајда) is a traditional polyphonic folk singing in southwestern Serbia, in the Zlatibor region (Užice), although similar styles are also found in Vlasotince and other parts of the country. It is sung in a duet. A folk dance, sakajdo, accompanies the singing.
The Ilidža Folk Music Festival is the oldest living and premier folk music festival in the Former Yugoslavia. It is held annually in Ilidža, Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina. The festival was established in 1964 by the Association of Bosnian Recording Artists, is held in July and lasts for four days. The event hosts contemporary and traditional artists in genres under the umbrella of Folk, including Sevdalinka, Starogradska, Modern Folk, Novokomponovana, Macedonian Folk, Turbo-folk and accordion music. It has traditionally been the premier showpiece event for folk recording artists in Yugoslavia, with the two major Yugoslav record labels Jugoton and PGP-RTS releasing live LPs of each year's edition. Numerous acclaimed folk singers from the Former Yugoslavia were either signed by record labels or received wider media exposure following performances at the festival. Serbian Turbo-folk star Ceca performed at the 1988 edition when she was 15 years old and won the competition with her single Cvetak Zanovetak, while Hanka Paldum was signed by Diskoton after winning the newcomer competition in 1974.
