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TURKISH ROM DANCE
The Romani people (Gypsies) originated in North India and moved west, eventually entering Spain through North Africa as well as traveling up through Eastern Europe. Nomads and outsiders who weren’t bound by their host culture’s (often Muslim) prohibition on women performing in public, entertaining was one of their traditional means of employment. As skilled musicians and entertainers, the Roma have played an important role in the transmission and development of many of the world’s musical traditions. The dance, while varying from country to country where it blended with the local traditions, is often characterized by dramatic shifts in mood and expression, body percussion (in the form of clapping, finger-snapping, and foot-stomping), and an irreverence that speaks to a cathartic emphasis on emotional expression.
The dance style of the Roman of Turkey is full of cheeky humor, saucy gestures, and complex pelvic isolations, often executed spontaneously in social settings in the spirit of enjoyment and self-expression. Is often done to a the karsilama rhythm which has a 9/8 time signature, lending it a uniquely punctuated rhythmic flavor. Theatrical staged versions may accentuate the characteristic zest of the style with acrobatics, skirt-work, and hair-tossing often borrowed from other forms.
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