Graovsko Šopsko Horo - Граовско шопско хоро (Bulgaria)

Graovsko Šopsko Horo

Граовско шопско хоро

Bulgaria

These notes ©2016, Andrew Carnie. This is a strange dance. Most Graovsko dances are 10 measure dances structured like Kjustendilska Râčenica or Šopsko, with 4 bars of travel to the R, 1 bar in place, two bars of travel to the L and then 3 bars in place.  This dance isn't structured like this at all. It's also been hard to track down a source on it. Ira Gessel remembers Conny Taylor teaching it in Boston back in the 70s. He also thinks it might be a Dick Crum dance originally. Tom Roby says he learned the dance from Chris Walker, who said he learned it from Arthur Cornelius, who was a good friend of Dick Crum. The music is from a 1960 Michael Herman record. The dance isn't widely done anymore in US folk dance circles. 

Music: Folk Dancer MH110, "Graovsko Shopsko Horo" by Zlatan Zlatanov.
Meter: 2/4
Formation: Open circle, belt hold, leads Right.
Introduction: None

Part 1

Bar 1: Step R (1), L (&), R (2) in place
Bar 2: Repeat bar 1 with opposite footwork
Bars 3-4: repeat bars 1-2
Bar 5: Circle R foot twice (1,2),
Bar 6: Leap on R (1), Slap L forward flat foot forward (2)
Bar 7: Back up L (1), R (2)
Bar 8: Back up L (1), hop on L (2)
Bars 9-16: repeat bars 1-8

Part 2

Bars 1-4: repeat bars 1-4 of part 1
Bar 5: Stamp R forward (1), Step on R into the center (2)
Bar 6: Stamp L forward (1), step on L into the center (2)
Bar 7-10: repeat bars 5-8 of part 1
Bars 11-20: repeat bars 1-10

Part 3

Bars 1-6: repeat bars 1-6 of part 2
Bars 7-8: repeat bars 5-6 of part 2
Bars 9-12: repeat bars 5-8 of part 1
Bars 13-24: repeat bars 1-12

Part 4

Bars 1-6: repeat bars 1-6 of part 2
Bar 7: Repeat bar 5
Bar 8: Touch L heel to L (1), cross L foot in front of R (2)
Bar 9: Rock back on R (1), Lift L up (2)
Bar 10: Repeat bar 6
Bar 11-14: repeat bars 5-8 of part 1
Bars 15-28: repeat bars 1-14

Part 5

Bars 1-10: repeat bars 1-10 of part 4
Bar 11-12: Repeat bars 8-9 of part 4 with opposite footwork
Bars 13-18: repeat bars 7-12 of part 3
Bars 19-36: repeat bars 1-18

Part 6

Bars 1-4: repeat bars 1-4 of part 1
Bar 5: Twisting body to face L, Cross R over L (1) Leap on L forward (2)
Bars 6-8: repeat bars 5, three more times
Bars 9-12: repeat bars 5-8 of part 1
Bars 13-24: repeat bars 1-12

Ending

Bars 1-6: repeat bars 1-6 of part 2
Bars 7-8: repeat bars 5-6 of part 6
Bars 9-10: repeat bars 1-2
Bars 11-12: repeat bars 5-6 of part 1, end with slap

Boston TNR Video:

Also spelled: Shopsko, Sopsko