On December 9, 2017, KOLO, Traditional Folk Dance from Serbia was inscribed on the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
The word kolo means: a game in a circle that goes around, a chain of interconnected players, a magical action, because closing the circle protects the community from everything that could harm it. KOLO is also a Serbian national dance, part of the story of what we are, a value by which the whole world recognizes us. And that is why it should be preserved and preserved (Source: Nematerijalna baština – SRPSKO KOLO – B92, taken from Status Magazine, December 9, 2011).
How old kolo is, since when it is played, is not known. It is believed that the ancient Slavs believed that by energetically moving the body and turning, it would contribute to the Sun turning happily. In the last century, it was certainly a part of rural and even urban everyday life, researchers think that it existed in the 19th century, and they assume that it was played a century before that. (Source: Nematerijalna baština – SRPSKO KOLO – B92, taken from Status Magazine, December 9, 2011).
It is known that kolo used to be played mostly in Central and Western Serbia, and then it became a folk dance of the whole of Serbia.
Learning through direct participation is the most common way of transmitting the skills and skilled dancers motivate other players, awakening in them a desire to learn and improve their own performance. Knowledge is also acquired through the regular education system and in ballet and music schools (Source: Kolo, traditional folk dance – intangible heritage – Culture Sector – UNESCO)
The most beautiful Serbian KOLO are: (order is not a sign of importance or quality) Moravac, Užičko kolo, Čačak, Vranjansko kolo, Takovsko kolo, Zlatiborske dvojnice, Devojačko kolo, Ciganski urnebes, Dunavski vrtlog, Zvečansko kolo, Timočki brzak, Šumadijsko kolo…
KOLO encourages both collective and individual energy, positivity, and enthusiasm. (Source: Nematerijalna baština – SRPSKO KOLO – B92, taken from Status Magazine, December 9, 2011)
For us, KOLO is more than dance! It cannot be described with words, you have to experience and feel it.
In this video you can see the performance of the KOLO performed by KUD “Oplenac” Topola and presented by the dances-kola of the Toplica region: Cveto mori cveto; Cela kolo; Eleno; Drdavke; Sestica; Zikino kolo; Toplicki cacak; Ćeramidzijsko kolo.
And finally, a newly composed KOLO in the masterful performance of Miloš Mihajlović /piano/ Professor at Faculty of Music in Belgrade and Aleksandar Sofronijević /accordion/. Composer: Ljubisa Pavkovic
I am asking myself are you just sitting and listening or you are dancing? 😊
Sources:
1) Kolo, traditional folk dance – intangible heritage – Culture Sector – UNESCO
2) Srpska narodna kola — Vikipedija, slobodna enciklopedija (wikipedia.org)
3) Nematerijalna baština – SRPSKO KOLO – B92
4) Medeno kolo – /acoustic version/ – YouTube
5) Miloš Mihajlović – Official Website (milosmihajlovic.com)
6) Ljubiša Pavković – Wikipedia
7) КУД “Опленац” Топола (@kudoplenactopola) • Instagram photos and videos
Photo: private gallery
