BRÂUL ROMÂNESC Romanian
PRONUNCIATION:	BREWL roh-muh-NEHSK The -ul ending, pronounced "-oo" (colloquial) or "-ool" (more formal usage) is a form of the Romanian definite article, the equivalent of English "the;" hence brîu = "belt," brîul = "the belt."
TRANSLATION:	The belt dance of Romania
SOURCE:	Dick Oakes learned this dance from Gordon Engler who learned it from Gabrielle Patraule, a Romanian dance leader from Montréal, Québec. He taught it at the 1968 California Kolo Festival.
BACKGROUND:	This dance is from the Romanian ethnographic region of Oltenia, a green and mountainous region that has some of southeastern Romania's oldest surviving artifacts, edifices, and folklore, with little Turkish, Russian, or Greek influence. The brâu was originally named for the way the dancers were linked together by holding each other's belts ("brâu," literally "belt" in Romanian). Today, however, dances in this class also are seen with low handholds or shldr holds. They are typically characterized by their powerful dynamism.
MUSIC:	Woodlands (45rpm) W-6901
FORMATION:	Short lines of 4 to 6 mixed M and W holding neighbors' belts in "X" pos, R arm under. Lines face CCW around the dance area like spokes of a wheel.
METER/RHYTHM:	2/4. It is interesting to note that these dances are performed exclusively to melodic music. Dances supported only by the rhythms of some percussion instruments, as in some other parts of the Balkans, appear to be unknown in Romania.
STEPS/STYLE:	TWO-STEP: Step R (ct 1) close L to back of R with wt (ct &); step (ct 2). A repeat is with the opp ftwk. Each Two-step is danced flat-footed and without up-and-down movement. The crossing steps are done with an up motion when stepping on the ball of the ft to side and front.
MEAS	MOVEMENT DESCRIPTION
	INTRODUCTION
1-4	No action.
	THE DANCE
1	One Two-step fwd (cts 1&2);
2	Repeat action of meas 1 fwd with opp ftwk;
3	Repeat action of meas 1 fwd.
4	Step bwd L (ct 1); step bwd R (ct 2);
5	Step bwd L (ct 1);
	Momentarily step on ball of R swd (ct &); step L in place (ct 2); momentarily step on ball of R in front on L (ct &);
6	Step L in place (ct 1); momentarily step on ball of R swd (ct &); step L in place (ct 2); momentarily step on ball of R in front of L (ct &);
7	Step L in place (ct 1); momentarily step on ball of R swd (ct &); step L in place (ct 2); pause (ct &);
8	Step R across in front of L (ct 1); low hop in R extending L low out to L (ct 2);
	Momentarily step on ball of L in front of R (ct &);
9	Step R in place (ct 1); momentarily step on ball of L swd (ct &); step R in place (ct 2); momentarily step on ball of L in front of R (ct &);
10	Step R in place (ct 1); momentarily step on ball of L swd (ct &); step R in place (ct 2); momentarily step on ball of L in front of R (ct &);
11	Step R in palce (ct 1); momentarily step on ball of L swd (ct &); step R in place (ct 2); pause (ct &);
12	Step slightly bwd L (ct 1); step slightly bwd R (ct &); step slightly bwd L bringing R slightly up in back (ct 2); pause (ct &).
	NOTE: These last three steps may be accented with a light stamping action.
	Repeat entire dance from beg.
Copyright © 2012 by Dick Oakes