99 research outputs found
THE CARNIVAL DANCE EVENT IN CROATIA AS A RITE OF PASSAGE
No full textElementi inicijacija imaju važnu društvenu dimenziju pokladnih običaja u Puntu na otoku Krku. Analizom tih običaja pomoću modela van Gennepove teorije o trodjelnoj strukturi obreda prijelaza, otkrivena je neobična snaga uložene energije pojedinaca i zajednice. Kako ples ima istaknuto mjesto u pokladnim običajima, promatra ih se i kao plesno zbivanje. Težište interpretacije plesnih zbivanja pomiće se od općeg pogleda na zbivanje, prema najužem, na kinemički dio plesa, po uzoru na analizu A. F. Snyder. Uočeno je da po svojim svojstvima tanac ima posebno mjesto u plesnome zbivanju.The author analyses the complex cultural phenomenon of dance as part
of Carnival customs in Punat on the island of Krk. He interprets
Carnival customs in the light of van Gennep's theory of the rite of
passage, and also observes them as a dance event. The focus of
interpretation of the dance event is transferred from a general view of
the event towards the narrowest, kinemic part of the dance, following
A. F. Snyder's analysis model. The author establishes that the tanac
dance has a specific place in the observed dance event
THE STAGE AS A PLACE OF CHALLENGING INTEGRATION
No full textPozornica je jedinstveno javno mjesto na kojem se prenose brojne različite poruke, mjesto na kojem su društvene i kulturne razlike očite. Na primjerima glazbe i plesa raspravlja se o glazbenoj i/ili političkoj sceni, o različitim načinima integracije, a pozornica se interpretira kao prostor na kojem su polja napetosti očita kao binarne opozicije (zajedničko – pojedinačno; globalno – lokalno; visoka tradicija – niska tradicija). Propituju se mnogostruke strategije izvođača i izvedba kao način komunikacije u kojoj su izvođači posebno odgovorni pred publikom, ne samo zbog sadržaja poruke nego i zbog načina na koji to čine. Usporedbom triju studija pokušavaju se otkriti rezultati (ne)svjesnih miješanja oblika, stilova i načina izražavanja kao posljedice procesa standardizacije, purifikacije i homogenizacije i usto se nastoje pokazati vidljivi i nevidljivi, odnosno, očiti i skriveni koraci tih akcija.
Kako se pojedina lokalna zajednica može predstavljati modelom koji je stvorio stručnjak – etnokoreolog kao autoritet, koliko taj model prati njihov način života i simboliku te kako odgovara modelima i kanonima scenskog prikazivanja folklora; kako komunicira sa širom publikom na nacionalnoj ili međunarodnoj razini te kako danas interpretiramo njihov izbor? O tome Iva Niemčić raspravlja na primjeru pokladarskog kola s Lastova. Prikazujući kako je polka prihvaćena u nas kroz povijest, Tvrtko Zebec otkriva i kako je potresujka, kao tradicijski ples Kastavštine i lokalna inačica polke, postala popularna među mladima u Hrvatskom primorju i Istri kao širemu lokalnom prostoru te kako povezuje lokalni i globalni kontekst kazališnom predstavom Potresujkom po Čehovu. Ivana Katarinačić pak otkriva kako se plesovi različitih kultura i podrijetla mijenjaju i stapaju u standardizirane oblike na globalnoj razini, kako istodobno postaju sportski i natjecateljski te odnedavno mnogo popularniji zahvaljujući
medijskoj prezentaciji u velikom televizijskom showu te kako se zajednica sportskih plesača snalazi u izazovima integracije sa širom zajednicom.The stage is a unique public space where a number of messages are performed and produced in different ways and where social and cultural differences may be made visible. Through the examples of music and dance, the musical and/or political stage are discussed, different mechanisms of integration are presented and the stage is interpreted as a space where certain fields of tension are visibly encountered as binary oppositions: collective – individual; global – local; great tradition – little tradition. Multiple strategies of performers are examined and performance as a type of communication that involves the performer shouldering a special responsibility before the audience, not only for what is to be communicated, but also how. Using a three case studies, it is explored how the (un)conscious mixing of forms, styles and
expressions builds on and presupposes a preceding process of
standardisation, purification and homogenisation, and what is visible on the stage as well as what is beyond it
THE CHALLENGES OF APPLIED FOLKLORE STUDIES AND ETHNOLOGY
No full textPojava te pozitivna i negativna recepcija scenskog prikaza
suvremenoga proštenja u struci i na televiziji kao javnome mediju,
potaknuli su ponovna promišljanja o načinima vrednovanja i
autoritetima koji odlučuju o reprezentativnosti pojedinih folklornih
prikaza. Kontekstom oko tog scenskog prikaza, te nekoliko drugih
primjera, odnosno širim kontekstom smotri folklora u nas,
prikazuju se dominantni stavovi struke i različite perspektive
sudionika u tim procesima.The appearance and the positive and the negative reception of the staged performance of a
contemporary church feast by the profession and the TV, as a public medium, have enticed
the rethinking of the ways of evaluation and the authorities which decide on the
representativeness of certain folklore performances. The text discusses the questions of the
folk art, especially folk dance, song, costume, their stage presentation, and the questions
— what is these days considered authentic in this field of cultural activity and evaluation,
what is considered representative, who creates contemporary folklore, who evaluates and
interprets it and how, what is the current state of this field in Croatia, and how public
opinion on this matter is created and shaped. These questions do not refer exclusively to
the field of ethnochoreology, but also to ethnology and folklore studies as a whole. By
analyzing and interpreting the staged performance of a contemporary church feast and
partly the situation with the current folklore festival paradigms, the author answers the
questions about himself and his ethnologist and folklorist coprofessionals, i.e. about the
current state of the profession in Croatia. His intent is to show various perspectives by
which complex social relations in a part of contemporary Croatian community are
revealed
Ethics in Ethnology / Cultural Anthropology
No full textU tekstu se propituju mnoga etička pitanja u različitim etnološkim djelatnostima – znanstveno-istraživačkoj, muzejskoj, konzervatorskoj, arhivskoj, snimateljskoj, spisateljskoj. U hrvatskoj etnologiji to je još uvijek nedovoljno zastupljen okvir promišljanja našega rada. Kakva je specifičnost etike u etnologiji i treba li uspostaviti etnološki etički kodeks neka su od otvorenih pitanja za raspravu. Uvodni tekst Tvrtka Zebeca komentiraju etnolozi Ljubica Gligorević, Sanja Potkonjak, Žarko Španiček, Luka Šešo, Jelka Vince Pallua i Željka Jelavić.This year Croatian Ethnological Society celebrates its 50th anniversary. The annual conference titled “Traditions and tendencies in Croatian ethnology: ethnology as an engaged and ethical science” (June 4-5, 2009) hosted the discussion we are publishing. The introductory article questions many ethical issues in different ethnological activities: concerning science and research, museums, conservation, archives, recording, representation, writing. What is specific about ethics in ethnology and do we need an ethnological ethical code were some of the issues opened at the discussion. Ethnologists Ljubica Gligorević, Sanja Potkonjak, Žarko Španiček, Luka Šešo, Jelka Vince Pallua and Željka Jelavić comment on the introductory text by Tvrtko Zebec
Ivan Ivančan, Narodni plesni običaji Podravine, knj. 3: Plesovi i plesni običaji Koprivnice i okolice, ur. Stjepan Sremac, Institut za etnologiju i folkloristiku, Zagreb 1999., 300 str.
No full textDance in the field, Theory, methods and issues in dance ethnography, ed. Theresa J. Buckland, Macmillan Press Ltd., London 1999., 223 str.
No full textAnalysis of the impact of "Peasant-Choreographers" in Međimurje on the choreographic creativity of stage folklore performances
No full textOvaj diplomski rad bavi se analizom utjecaja seljaka-koreografa u Međimurju, koji su stvaranjem folklornih plesova na već postojeće melodije narodnih pjesama osmislili plesove, koje danas vidimo u scenskim prikazima hrvatskog folklora. Kontekst potreban za razumijevanje principa postavljanja elemenata narodnih običaja na scenu rad objašnjava osnutkom MHKD-a i njenog sudjelovanja na Berlinskoj olimpijadi 1936. godine, nakon čega su Zvonimir Ljevaković i Ivan Ivančan svojim djelovanjem započeli smjer u hrvatskom folkloru kojeg danas nazivamo zagrebačkom školom folklora. Fenomen seljaka-koreografa u Međimurju jedinstven je jer većini plesova koje danas smatramo narodnima znamo autora, dok je stariji sloj plesova ostao u većini zaboravljen. Također, ti su koreografski i umjetnički neškolovani seljaci odredili ono što se danas na sceni prezentira kao međimurske narodne plesove. Prema Ivanu Ivančanu i scenskim zakonitostima (1971) koje je utvrdio, rad analizira dosljednost u primjeni narodne umjetnosti na folklornoj sceni.This thesis analyses the impact of peasant-choreographers in Međimurje, who, by creating folk dances to existing melodies of traditional songs, choreographed dances that are now seen in stage presentations of Croatian folklore. The context necessary for understanding the principles of staging elements of folk customs is explained through the founding of the MHKD and its participation in the Berlin Olympics in 1936, after which Zvonimir Ljevaković and Ivan Ivančan began a direction in Croatian folklore that is today known as the Zagreb School of Folklore. The phenomenon of the peasant-choreographer in Međimurje is unique because, for the vast majority of dances now considered folk dances, we know the author, whereas older layers of dances have largely been forgotten. Additionally, these choreographers and artistically untrained peasants determined what is now presented on stage as folk dances of Međimurje region. According to Ivan Ivančan and the stage principles (1971) he established, this work analyzes the consistency in the application of folk art on the folk dance stage
The Lado Ensemble of folk dances and songs of Croatia as a part of the national and cultural identity
No full textAnsambl narodnih plesova i pjesama Hrvatske Lado je profesionalni folklorni ansambl osnovan 1949. godine sa zadaćom prikupljanja, umjetničke obrade i scenskog prikazivanja bogate hrvatske plesne i glazbene tradicije na visokoj izvedbenoj razini u zemlji i svijetu. Cilj ovog rada jest da se spoznajama i metodama humanističkih i društvenih disciplina kritički analizira i interpretira umjetničko djelovanje, značenje i uloga Ansambla Lado te da se potvrdi postavka da se identitet Ansambla oblikovao i mijenjao pod utjecajem umjetničkih politika, razvoja izvedbenih mogućnosti te društveno-političkih okolnosti u kojima je osnovan i u kojima je djelovao te da je od početka imao predznak nacionalnoga. Nastavljajući se na temeljnu postavku, razmotrit će se i mogućnost percipiranja Lada kao hrvatskoga kulturnog brenda. Zvonimir Ljevaković, jedan od idejnih utemeljitelja i dugogodišnji umjetnički ravnatelj Lada, od 1949. do 1974., dao je osnovnu odrednicu umjetničkog rada Ansambla koja se zasniva na težnji da se u izvedbi bude što bliže autentičnim tradicijskim oblicima istodobno poštujući specifičnosti lokalnoga stila. Nadalje, Lado je plesni folklorni ansambl koji se sustavno razvijao u vrhunski folklorni zbor, osposobljen za samostalne vokalne i vokalnoinstrumentalne koncerte, što je rijetkost u usporedbi sa sličnim ansamblima u svijetu. U Ansamblu kao samostalna izvedbena tijela djeluju Ladarice, muška vokalna skupina Vokalisti Lada i Orkestar Lada koji su svojim umjetničkim djelovanjem postali dio Ladova identiteta. Provedeno istraživanje Ladovih gostovanja u inozemstvu te analiza osvrta domaće i inozemne kritike potvrdilo je da je hrvatski profesionalni folklorni ansambl uvijek nailazio na oduševljenje široke publike i stručne kritike koja ga od samih početaka prepoznaje kao čuvara narodnog blaga i kulturnog ambasadora u svijetu. Zaključno može se reći da se Lado u više od sedam desetljeća bogatog, umjetničkog djelovanja izgradio u hrvatski kulturni brend koji domaća publika i mediji prepoznaju kao simbol nacionalnih vrijednosti, čuvara i promicatelja hrvatske tradicije u domovini i u svijetu.INTRODUCTION: Traditional culture as part of cultural heritage is an indispensable part of national identity. Previous research has shown that the conceptions of public presentation of folklore changed in accordance with the political and socio-historical context. From the beginning, under the influence of the Peasant Concord (educational organization of the Croatian Peasant Party), they were conceived as a way of shaping and preserving national consciousness. There are many written works on amateur folkloric activity, but scientific reviews of the work of the national professional Ensemble of Folk Dances and Songs of Croatia Lado are few so far (Zebec 2008, Vitez 2009, Sremac 2010, Niemčić 2014; 2016; 2024, Ćaleta 2024). The aim of this work is to critically analyze and interpret the artistic activity, meaning and role of the Lado Ensemble using the knowledge and methods of the humanities and social disciplines. As well, to confirm the assumption that Lado's own identity, being cultural and national, which was formed in the 75 years of its artistic activity, and its uniqueness compared to other national ensembles. The starting point is that the identity of the Lado Ensemble changed under the influence of artistic policies, the development of performance possibilities, and the socio-political circumstances in which it was founded and in which it has operated since its foundation. Since 1950, it has been obliged to perform the so-called Yugoslav program, and with the creation of an independent Croatian state, it now performs Croatian programs. Furthermore, reviews of the performances of the Lado Ensemble in the country and abroad are critically questioned, and the extent to which Lado managed to achieve a combination of traditional heritage and the contemporary life of stage art is analyzed: on the one hand, the performance aims to preserve traditional forms as much as possible with high artistic achievements, and on the other hand, to be market attractive. It also wants to show that the Lado Ensemble, with its recognizable artistic personality and consciously created identity, which is part of the national and cultural, and significant international activity, has the characteristics of a cultural brand.
RESEARCH STRATEGY AND METHODOLOGY: Following contemporary ethnographic practice, with a general tendency to create a specific multi-methodological strategy whose purpose is to understand the phenomenon in question (Relja 2009: 121), different research techniques and methods were used in the preparation of the work. During the four phases of the work: collection of material, analysis (qualitative, quantitative, and combined), interpretation and synthesis, analytical, synthetic, comparative, and descriptive methods were used. The text of the work was built by modeling contrasting views, by letting the author's voices of narrators into the scientific text (Čapo Žmegač, Gulin Zrnić and Šantek 2006). In terms of methodology, the work is based on conducted interviews and a survey, as well as on the analysis of the theoretical material of the humanities and social sciences important for the topic under discussion. Due to the lack of written sources about the Lado Ensemble, an extensive and demanding archival research was carried out, which used newspaper articles, concert programs and promotional materials from private archives, statistics of Lado's performances with performed programs, as well as data obtained from interviews with the artists of the Ensemble.
HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT AND ARTISTIC POLICIES OF LADA: The Lado Ensemble was founded on November 11, 1949, by a decree of the Government of the People's Republic of Croatia with the task of presenting artistically processed folklore treasures and helping folklore groups in their artistic development. Zvonimir Ljevaković, the founder and long-time artistic director of the Lado Ensemble, from 1949 to 1974, gave the basic conception of the Ensemble's artistic work, which is based on the aspiration to be as close as possible to authentic traditional forms in performance while respecting the specificities of the local style. In order to understand Ljevaković's artistic conception, it is necessary to have an insight into the development of the stage presentation of folklore in Croatia, which was initially used for the purpose of shaping and awakening national consciousness (Sremac 2010). Namely, the Croatian Peasant Party and its educational organization Seljačka sloga, with a well-thought-out policy and organization of the festival, use folklore to confirm and emphasize national identity and develop national consciousness in a large part of the illiterate Croatian people. Sremac (2010) describes how the initiative for the establishment of national professional folklore ensembles came from the then Soviet Union, where Igor Mojsejev founded the famous ballet ensemble in 1937. This famous ballet dancer and choreographer is inspired by folklore, but in addition to ballet stage aesthetics, he puts skill and attractiveness in the foreground with elements of acrobatics. This way of presenting folklore was accepted in Eastern European countries, and ensembles from the eastern part of the former Yugoslavia were also prone to it. The national professional ensembles of the former Yugoslavia were created from already established amateur folklore groups, such as the Croatian ensemble was created from the folklore section of the Youth Cultural and Artistic Society (OKUD) "Joža Vlahović". In the first years of activity, along with Ljevaković, Ana Maletić, a dance pedagogue of contemporary dance, was appointed as the artistic director. However, she has a different idea of stage presentation of folklore, with which, due to stylization, she departs more from traditional templates, and due to the difference and disagreement in approach, she leaves the Ensemble (Đurinović 2008: 55-62). The famous composer of choral music Emil Cossetto also worked in the Ensemble, who with his arrangements and interpretations from the Kajkavian regions greatly contributed to the recognition of the Lado Ensemble's vocal expression. Ljevaković shapes his vast knowledge based on many years of field research of Croatian tradition, with exceptional skill, sensibility, and an artistic gift, into a stage presentation of folklore presented in the performances of Lada. Ensemble Lado is Ljevaković's vision of how the values of the Croatian tradition, "in which the spirit of the Croatian people is reflected", should be presented on stage, and therefore preserved from oblivion. Božo Potočnik (2009: 130) thus writes that Zvonimir Ljevaković is a folklore expert who decided to artistically convey the life force of the Croatian people on stage, using the language of folklore, music, and dance. Ljevaković's choreographic opus consists of about thirty choreographies (Ladarke, Prigorski dances, Posavski dances, Vrličko kolo, Krčki tanac, Dubrovnik kolo poskočica - Linđo, Drmeš etc.) and despite the changes in the artistic policies of his successors and the expansion of the program with new choreographic visions, forms the basis of the Lado Ensemble's artistic program. After more than two decades of artistic leadership of Lado, Ljevaković departs, but his artistic vision of performing folklore on stage has remained to this day. After Ljevaković, Ivan Ivančan (1974 – 1980) came to lead the Ensemble, who is also important for Lado as a choreographer (he is the author of about twenty choreographies in Lado's repertoire). Aware of Ljevaković's importance, Ivančan designs concerts whose backbone is Ljevaković's choreography, but Lada's dance repertoire begins to expand with new choreographies, he is the author of some of them, and for some he engages other folklore creators (Branko Šegović, Savo Popović, Mirko Ramovš, Stanimir Višinski etc.). It certainly brings variety to Lado’s program and thus opens a new page of Lado’s artistic activity. He also creates thematic concerts, which were a great step forward for those times, when the concept of dance folklore performances was based on the exchange of choreographies from different regions. He invites the distinguished pedagogue and choirmaster Dinko Fio to work daily on vocal technique and expand the Ensemble's musical repertoire. Also, an important point should be noted is his role in educational development. For example, he designes many educational concerts for school-age children. After the departure of Ivančan in 1980, Lado was without an artistic director for three years, and during that period the dance leaders, Ivan Šulina, Stjepan Poček and Ivica Dabac, work with the Ensemble and shape concert programs according to the experience and performance capabilities of Lado. Considering the activities of Lado during the time of Hanibal Dundović (1983 – 1991), we can say that there was a lack of great strides and folklore achievements in Lado, however, it was a period of stability. In his tenure, most of the new choreographies were signed by folklore creators: Vido Bagur, Karlo Mikačić, Dobrivoj Putnik, Branko Šegović, Vlado Šoć, Ivica Ivanković etc. It should be mentioned that Dundović created three choreographies for Lado. Also, Dundović accepted the initiatives of music directors Tomislav Uhlik (1983 – 1985) and Bojan Pogrmilović (1985 – 1998) for the increased activity of Lado as a concert ensemble, which improved the Ensemble's vocal potential. Analyzing the activities of Lado during the time of Ivančan Jr. (1992 - 2016), it can be said that it was a fruitful creative period. Lado’s repertoire has been enriched with about 40 new choreographies in the spirit of the "Zagreb school of folklore" (by Dr. Ivan Ivančan, Branko Šegović, Vidoslav Bagur, Miroslav Šilić, Ajša Ruždija, Milan and Goran Oreb, Andrija Ivančan, Vlado Šoć, Tomislav Miličević, Ivica Ivanković, Mojmir Golemac, Krunoslav Šokac, Valentina Šepak etc. Ivančan Jr. is the author of the choreography of the songs and dances of Međimurje Med Murom i Dravom. Furthermore, Ivančan Jr. designed and very successfully directed many thematic concerts and was also open to different musical and dance expressions inspired by folklore to attract a younger, non-folkloric audience (the first was the Lado Electro album by Hrvoje Crnić Boxer and Boris Harfman). The Ensemble's musical potential developed to unimagined heights. Until then, Lado, was known for singing related to the musical traditions of central and northern Croatia, and had mastered the stylistic features of the southern Croatian regions (thanks to the collaboration with Joško Ćaleta). Within Lado, the Orchestra, female vocal ensemble Ladrice and male vocal ensemble Lado’s Vocalists operate as independent performing bodies. The third point being that there is a collaboration between Lado and numerous collaborators, leading Croatian composers, arrangers, and ethnomusicologists, systematically researches and presents folk sacred traditions of the Lenten and Christmas cycle and Marian songs. Lado’s sacred repertoire was permanently enriched by: Božo Potočnik, Tomislav Uhlik, Marijan Makar, Joško Ćaleta, Dražen Kurilovčan, Ljubo Stipišić Delmata, Ivica Ivanković, Mihael Ferić, Branko Ivanković, Branko Starc. This laid the foundations of Lado's musical activity in the field of sacred music, which contributed to Lado growing into a top folk choir with high performance capabilities, which for the first time received awards usually reserved only for classical music performers. Ivančan Jr.’s role as artistic director during the four-year period (2016-2020), was followed by Andrija Ivančan, and Krunoslav Šokac. Given the brevity of their tenure and activity, during which there were no changes in Lado’s identity, we didn’t particularly look at the features of their artistic policies.
LADO AS A NATIONAL AND CULTURAL BRAND AND ITS IDENTITIES: The identity of the Lado Ensemble was shaped and changed under the influence of artistic policies, the development of performance possibilities, and the socio-political circumstances in which it was founded and in which it has operated since its foundation. From 1950 to 1989, depending on the politics of the time, it was obliged to perform the so-called the Yugoslav program, and since the creation of the independent Croatian state in 1991, only the Croatian program has been carried out (except for special thematic projects). Furthermore, research into the artistic activities of Lado confirmed that, regardless of the socio-political circumstances in which the Ensemble operated, the artistic leadership and members expressed a strong sense of national identity. Lado has always been recognized as an artistic ensemble that primarily cherishes the values of Croatian dance and music tradition, and thanks to its founder and first artistic director Zvonimir Ljevaković, it strives to be as close as possible to traditional forms. Furthermore, by analyzing the work, we confirmed that Ljevaković's artistic expression of high aesthetics with respect for local stylistic features is what makes Lado recognizable, and that Ljevaković's refinement and subtlety in the artistic representation of folklore is what separates Lado from other folklore ensembles. Ljevaković's conception continued to be applied and developed by his successors, and it has remained until today. At the same time, the Ensemble's performance abilities, especially musical ones, have developed. The analysis of artistic policy confirmed that Lado’s identity is cultural and national, which was formed during more than seven decades of artistic activity as an ensemble identity, unique in comparison to other ensembles. Identities are the starting point for showing the value of a brand, including Lado, and include all those features that show that, compared to other folklore ensembles, it is Lado that best fulfills the needs, expectations and wishes of the audience and that it means the greatest value to them. The brand's values are the brand's identities, and Lado's identities are: Lado - the "guardian" of the Croatian dance and music tradition; "2 in 1" - Lado is a superb dance folklore ensemble and a great folklore choir; Lado – "ambassador" of Croatia in the world; Lado – "traveling museum"; Lado – center for education on national intangible heritage; Lado – a successful symbiosis of tradition and modernity; Lado trademark – Posavina wheel. Independent performing bodies in the Ensemble, the female vocal ensemble Ladrice, the male vocal ensemble Lado’s Vocalists and the Orchestra, act as sub-brands, which have become part of Lado's identity. Today's Ladarice consists of the Lado female choir, which continued the work of the legendary nonet Ladarice, although with a completely different sound and program. Namely, Ladarice were not officially part of the Lado Ensemble until 2008, but with their artistic activity under the leadership of Božo Potočnik, they significantly influenced the popularity of traditional music and the popularity of Lado among a wide audience. The performing body of Lado is also the Orchestra, which consists of musicians who are mostly multi-instrumentalists and perform independent concerts, as well as Lado Vocalists who cherish the musical expression of Dalmatia.
COMPARISON OF CROATIAN FOLKLORE ENSEMBLE LADO WITH RUSSIAN ENSEMBLE IGOR MOJSEJEV AND IRISH RIVERDANCE ENSEMBLE: Comparing the performance of Lado with the spectacular performances of other well-known professional ensembles, we question whether Lado as a folklore ensemble, whose artistic expression is far from what is called a spectacle, can gain a greater presence on the world cultural market. We received a positive response from reviews by well-known American dance critics Heather Desaulniers and Anthony Shay. Desaulniers (2009) believes that spectacles like Riverdance and Lord of the Dance attract the audience like some television reality shows of dance competitions and expresses the opinion that attracting a mass audience is a success, but that these excessively produced performances leave a feeling of fakeness. He emphasizes that their technical excellence was indisputable and absolute, but what he remembers most about that evening was the artistic emptiness on stage. In the following, Heather Desaulniers positively comments on the performance of the Croatian ensemble Lado: "This past weekend, Music Center Strathmore proved that an evening of ethnic dance can be both technically great and deeply emotional. They hosted Lado, the Ensemble of Folk Dances and Songs of Croatia, which was generous and graceful in its performance and in which it honestly shared its customs and folk dances. Anthony Shay believes that Lado is a symbol of Croatian identity and says that Lado has an advantage over other national ensembles because it has retained the traditional values. "And the source has always been in the field, in the countryside. Ljevaković has always been my biggest role model. He respected the original folk dance, costumes, musical accompaniment much more than other choreographers. He managed to make art without being spectacular, and Lado respects that to this day" (Shay according to Derk 2008: 39).
LADO – AMBASSADOR OF CROATIAN CULTURE IN THE WORLD: From an exhaustive analysis of Lado’s foreign performances, the Croatian professional folklore ensemble performed on the world's most famous stages and that it always received the undisputed and indisputable enthusiasm of a wide audience and expert critics who recognized it as an ambassador of national culture from the very beginning. Considering the presented reviews, it is easy to read that what Lado conquers with, in addition to exceptional dancing and singing qualities and the perfect technique and musical skill of the Orchestra, is a display of folklore art that provides an experience of sincerity and conquers with purity of style and refinement. The comments and criticisms of the domestic and foreign press confirm that Lado is a top performer who does not resort to stylization and acrobatics to impress the audience, but, moreover, tries to present all the splendor, wealth, and exceptional diversity of the Croatian tradition, from folk costumes, dances, songs to customs, with the desire for the audience to feel the spirit of the Croatian people. Expert criticism recognizes the joy and emotion that Lado’s artists give to the audience. In addition to valuable recognitions, Lado was also awarded the INA award for the promotion of Croatian culture in the world for 2006, and the jury wrote in its explanation: "We can rightly say that Lado has been our ambassador in the world throughout its existence, promoting our cultural heritage at the highest level."
PUBLIC PERCEPTION OF THE LADO ENSEMBLE - SURVEY RESULTS: In order to examine the views more closely and empirically on the importance of the Lado Ensemble of Folk Dances and Songs of Croatia for national and cultural identity, a survey was conducted in 2002 using a Google form. In the descriptive part of the questionnaire, demographic characteristics such as gender, age, level of education, habits of attending Lado's concerts etc. were examined, while in the value section, the views on folklore in general, about the Lado Ensemble were examined (questions: "Do you consider yourself a Lado lover?", "Do you consider the Lado Ensemble important for the preservation of Croatian traditional values?", "Do you consider that Lado is an important part of the Croatian national identity?", "Do you consider that is the artistic activity of the Lado Ensemble important for Croatian culture?", "Do you consider the Lado Ensemble a Croatian cultural brand?"...),
ISKUSTVA I DVOJBE PRIMIJENJENE ETNOKOREOLOGIJE
No full textThe possibilities for the application of ethnochoreological knowledge are considered in the article on the basis of the author's own experience in researching dance on the island of Krk, and the reception of the published results. One paradigmatic example is the reconstruction of the tanac dance that is shown, in a picturesque way, as a link between direct scholarly research and practical activity in the field. Assessment of the stage performances is a quite different and much more sensitive experience, since what is in question relates to a decision on the representativeness of the tradition and the persons presenting it. What stems from that are also the inevitable changes in aesthetics, depending on the context of the performance and its performers. The training method also shows itself to be one of the ways of preserving the stylistic and structural particularities of the dance. The writer attempts by reflexivity to encompass and interpret the multi-layered and diverse discourses. The researcher is equally accountable whether assessment of a performance or writing text is involved. Thus, he interprets scholarly and theoretical discussions in combination with diverse fields and research contexts and the reception of the published texts as part of their practical application and vice versa.U tekstu se promišlja o mogućnostima primjene etnokoreološkoga znanja prema autorovu vlastitu iskustvu istraživanja plesa na otoku Krku i recepcije objavljenih rezultata. Iskustvo rekonstrukcije tanca se slikovito pokazuje kao spoj neposrednog znanstvenog istraživanja i praktičnoga djelovanja na terenu. Ocjenjivanje nastupa folklornih skupina na pozornicama donosi sasvim drukčija iskustva, mnogo osjetljivija jer se u pitanje dovode odluke o reprezentativnosti tradicije i o osobama koje ih donose – tradicionalno su to sopci, ali pripremajući točke za scenske nastupe to postaju koreografi-obrađivači, a zatim i stručnjaci koji su pozvani komentirati nastupe jer to od njih traže organizatori festivala. Iz toga proizlaze i neminovne razlike u estetici, odnosno, njezine promjene ovisno o kontekstu izvedbi i izvođačima. Način poduke otkriva sa i kao jedan od načina očuvanja stilskih i strukturalnih osobitosti plesa. Autor kritički nastoji obuhvatiti i tumačiti višeslojne i različite diskurse. Odgovornost istraživača izjednačava neovisno o tome je li riječ o prosudbi nastupa ili pisanju teksta. Znanstvene i teorijske rasprave tako u kombinaciji s različitim terenima i kontekstima istraživanja te recepcijom objavljenih tekstova tumači kao dio njihove praktične primjene i obrnuto
- …
