- Kozachok
Kozachok ( _uk. Koзaчoк) or kazachok ( _ru. Kaзaчoк) is a
folk dance fromUkraine . It is a fast, linear, couple-dance in 2/4, typically in a constantly increasing tempo and of an improvisatory character in a major key. The woman leads and the man follows, imitating her figures- she signals movement changes by hand clapping.The kozachok, from "Kozak" ("Cossack"), can be traced back to the
Vertep , the late 16th and 17th century East Slavicpuppet theatre. Vertep plays consisted of two parts, the first dramatizing the birth ofChrist , and the second with a secular plot. In Ukraine it was often a joyful celebration centred around the Cossacks from the Zaporizhian region, who sang, played thebandura , and danced. This dance became known as theVertepny Kozachok , literally meaning "A Cossack Puppet from Vertep" and displayed all the characteristics of the fiery Kozak temperament.Variants of the kozachok also include the Kuban-kazachok (from the
Kuban district) and the Ter-kazachok (from the northern Caucasus).The first known arrangement of a kozachok is attributed to the Belorussian
lutenist and composer K.S.R. Dusiacki (17th century). There are manuscript collections of kozachok melodies from the second half of the 18th century, and printed collections begin to appear toward the end of that century.The Kozachok was often performed in the 18th century in French ballets and achieved widespread popularity after the Russian troops occupied Paris in the 1813.
In the 19th century the dance has changed, it was then performed as a circle-dance; since the end of the 1960s, it has been revived in many countries. There are arrangements of it in the works of A. N. Serov, Tchaikovsky and other Russian composers. Among works for
symphony orchestra , notable areAlexander Dargomyzhsky 's "Malorossiysky Kаzachok" (Малороссийский казачок),R. Simovych 's Third Symphony and the Dance Suite byA. Kolomiyetz .Sources
*Bobri, Vladimir - Notes on the Ukrainian Folk Dances //Guitar review - #33, Summer, 1970 p.27
*Ukrayins'ke kozatstvo - (Entsyklopedia) Kiev, 2006
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