Ciuleandra

CIULEANDRA
Romanian

PRONUNCIATION: choo-LYAHN-drah

TRANSLATION: Ciulin in Romanian means thistle or tumbleweed, so ciuleandra means something like "the tumbleweed dance," possibly derived from the increase in tempo toward the the end of the music.

SOURCE: Dick Oakes learned this dance from Mihai David who learned this version of Ciuleandra during 1963-65 while dancing with the Romanian State Folk Dance Ensemble during the years 1963 to 1965 and subsequently taught it to folk dancers in Los Angeles, California, in 1972. Larisa Lucaci taught a variant at the 1966 Santa Barbara Folk Dance Conference and Eugenia Popescu-Judetz taught a variant at Stockton Folk Dance Camp in 1971.

BACKGROUND: The ethnographic region of Oltenia is green and mountainous and has some of southeastern Romania's oldest surviving artifacts, edifices, and folklore, with little Turkish, Russian, or Greek influence. Oltenia, also called Lesser Wallachia, with the alternate Latin names Wallachia Minor, Wallachia Alutana, Wallachia Caesarea in use between 1718 and 1739, is a historical province and geographical region of Romania, in western Wallachia. It is situated between the Danube, the Southern Carpathians and the Olt river (although counties in the east extend beyond the river in Muntenia in some areas).

MUSIC: The Lark (7"EP) FLDR-A
Monitor (LP) MF 439
Electrecord (LP) EPD 103

FORMATION: Open cir of mixed M and W with hands on neighbors' shldrs in "T" pos, end dancers may have hands on hips, leader at R.

METER/RHYTHM: 4/4. The music gradualy increases in tempo.

STEPS/STYLE: As the tempo increases in Fig I, the size of the steps become smaller. Dancers should avoid looking from side to side during meas 1-2 of Fig I.

MEAS MOVEMENT DESCRIPTION

INTRODUCTION

1-8 No action, although dancers sometimes sway slightly from ft to ft.

I. SWAY, FWD, GRAPEVINE

1 Step R swd, leaving L in place and bending knees with wt completely over R (ct 1); leaving L in place, raise on ball of R while straightening L knee (ct &); lower R heel, bending R knee slightly (ct 2); raise on ball of R as wt begins to shift to L (ct &); shift wt to L, leaving R in place and bending knees with wt completely over L (ct 3); raise on ball of L while straightening R knee (ct &); lower L heel and bend L knee slightly (ct 4); raise on ball of L as wt begins to shift to R (ct &).

2 Repeat action of meas 1.

3 Step slightly diag fwd to R on R heel (ct 1); close L to R, bending knees slightly and taking wt onto full R ft (ct 2); step slightly diag fwd to L on L heel (ct 3); close R to L, bending knees slightly and taking wt onto full L ft (ct 4);

4 Step R swd (ct 1); raise L leg fwd with L knee bent and L ft relaxed (ct 2); facing slightly diag L, step to L on L heel (ct 3); stamp R next to L lightly without wt (ct 4).

Dancers may join in with the vocalist during meas 4 with "HOHP shah-SHAH shah-SHAH."

5 Step R across in front of L (ct 1); step L swd (ct 2); step R in back of L (ct 3); step L to L (ct 4);

6-7 Repeat action of meas 5 two more times;

8 Step R across in front of L (ct 1) step L swd (ct 2); close R to L without wt (ct 3); pause (ct 4).

9-56 Repeat action of meas 1-8 six more times as the music increases in tempo.

II. TRAVEL SWD WITH STAMPS

1-2 Step R swd (ct 1); step L in back of R (ct 2); repeat action of cts 1-2 three more times except that on ct 4 of meas 2 stamp L next to R.

3-4 Repeat action of meas 1-2 to L with opp ftwk.

5-8 Repeat action of meas 1-4.

9 Small leap R swd (ct 1); stamp L next to R without wt (ct 2); small leap L swd (ct 3); stamp R next to L without wt (ct 4);

10 Step R swd (ct 1); step L in back of R (ct 2); step R swd (ct 3); stamp L next to R (ct 4).

11-12 Repeat action of meas 9-10 to L with opp ftwk.

13-16 Repeat action of meas 9-12.

17-32 Repeat action of meas 1-16.

33-42 Repeat action of meas 1-8.

CIULEANDRA
Romania

Foaie verde şi pinoc
Ţine-ţi ciuleandra pe loc.

Chorus:
Şi-nc-odată, măi băieţi,
Hooooop ş'aşa, ş'aşa.

Tineţi-o, flăcăi, aşa
Pînă n-ajunge puica.

Chorus

Întăriţi-o liţă lus
C-ajunge acuş, acuş.

Chorus

Mai întăriţi-o de un pas
C-ajuns şi n-a rămas.

Chorus

Două fire, două paie
Lauţi ciuleandra la bătaie.

Chorus

Tot aşa că nu mă las
Că sînt cu puica de-un pas.

Chorus

Două fire, două paie
Lauţi ciuleandra la bătaie.

Chorus

Green leaves and pine,
Do the dance in place!

Chorus:
And once again, my boys,
Oooh, like this, like this.

Keep it like this boys, like this
Until your little chick (girl) catches up.

Chorus

Dance harder now,
For she will catch up soon, soon.

Chorus

Dance still harder with each step,
For she has arrived and will not rest.

Chorus

Two strands, two straws,
Take ciuleandra in stamps.

Chorus

Keep it up like this,
For I'm in step with my chick.

Chorus

Two strands, two staws,
We'll take it up to tempo.

Chorus

NOTES:
Foaie verde opens many songs and is meaningless;
Puica (little chicken) is an endearing nickname for a girl.

Copyright © 2012 by Dick Oakes

CIULEANDRA Romanian

PRONUNCIATION:	choo-LYAHN-drah

TRANSLATION:	Ciulin in Romanian means thistle or tumbleweed, so ciuleandra means something like "the tumbleweed dance," possibly derived from the increase in tempo toward the the end of the music.

SOURCE:	Dick Oakes learned this dance from Mihai David who learned this version of Ciuleandra during 1963-65 while dancing with the Romanian State Folk Dance Ensemble during the years 1963 to 1965 and subsequently taught it to folk dancers in Los Angeles, California, in 1972. Larisa Lucaci taught a variant at the 1966 Santa Barbara Folk Dance Conference and Eugenia Popescu-Judetz taught a variant at Stockton Folk Dance Camp in 1971.

BACKGROUND:	The ethnographic region of Oltenia is green and mountainous and has some of southeastern Romania's oldest surviving artifacts, edifices, and folklore, with little Turkish, Russian, or Greek influence. Oltenia, also called Lesser Wallachia, with the alternate Latin names Wallachia Minor, Wallachia Alutana, Wallachia Caesarea in use between 1718 and 1739, is a historical province and geographical region of Romania, in western Wallachia. It is situated between the Danube, the Southern Carpathians and the Olt river (although counties in the east extend beyond the river in Muntenia in some areas).

MUSIC:	The Lark (7"EP) FLDR-A Monitor (LP) MF 439 Electrecord (LP) EPD 103

FORMATION:	Open cir of mixed M and W with hands on neighbors' shldrs in "T" pos, end dancers may have hands on hips, leader at R.

METER/RHYTHM:	4/4. The music gradualy increases in tempo.

STEPS/STYLE:	As the tempo increases in Fig I, the size of the steps become smaller. Dancers should avoid looking from side to side during meas 1-2 of Fig I.


MEAS	MOVEMENT DESCRIPTION


	INTRODUCTION

1-8	No action, although dancers sometimes sway slightly from ft to ft.

I.	SWAY, FWD, GRAPEVINE

1	Step R swd, leaving L in place and bending knees with wt completely over R (ct 1); leaving L in place, raise on ball of R while straightening L knee (ct &); lower R heel, bending R knee slightly (ct 2); raise on ball of R as wt begins to shift to L (ct &); shift wt to L, leaving R in place and bending knees with wt completely over L (ct 3); raise on ball of L while straightening R knee (ct &); lower L heel and bend L knee slightly (ct 4); raise on ball of L as wt begins to shift to R (ct &).
2	Repeat action of meas 1.

3	Step slightly diag fwd to R on R heel (ct 1); close L to R, bending knees slightly and taking wt onto full R ft (ct 2); step slightly diag fwd to L on L heel (ct 3); close R to L, bending knees slightly and taking wt onto full L ft (ct 4);
4	Step R swd (ct 1); raise L leg fwd with L knee bent and L ft relaxed (ct 2); facing slightly diag L, step to L on L heel (ct 3); stamp R next to L lightly without wt (ct 4).
	Dancers may join in with the vocalist during meas 4 with "HOHP shah-SHAH shah-SHAH."

5	Step R across in front of L (ct 1); step L swd (ct 2); step R in back of L (ct 3); step L to L (ct 4);
6-7	Repeat action of meas 5 two more times;
8	Step R across in front of L (ct 1) step L swd (ct 2); close R to L without wt (ct 3); pause (ct 4).
9-56	Repeat action of meas 1-8 six more times as the music increases in tempo.

II.	TRAVEL SWD WITH STAMPS

1-2	Step R swd (ct 1); step L in back of R (ct 2); repeat action of cts 1-2 three more times except that on ct 4 of meas 2 stamp L next to R.
3-4	Repeat action of meas 1-2 to L with opp ftwk.
5-8	Repeat action of meas 1-4.

9	Small leap R swd (ct 1); stamp L next to R without wt (ct 2); small leap L swd (ct 3); stamp R next to L without wt (ct 4);
10	Step R swd (ct 1); step L in back of R (ct 2); step R swd (ct 3); stamp L next to R (ct 4).
11-12	Repeat action of meas 9-10 to L with opp ftwk.
13-16	Repeat action of meas 9-12.

17-32	Repeat action of meas 1-16.

33-42	Repeat action of meas 1-8.