PART OF THE MONOGRAPH "TOMOV" BY SLAVE KATIN
Tomov began rehearsals in September at Morelli Studios on 14th Street. He started with about two dozen young Americans, both men and women. Some were experienced dancers, others had never performed in front of an audience. But all were filled with enthusiasm and were willing to put in the time and hard work to learn first the basics, then the more subtle techniques and styles of the Balkan dances.
In fact, it did not mean learning just one, but many styles. Just as America is a “big melting pot,” i.e. a place where many peoples of different races, countries, or social classes live, so was Yugoslavia, composed of: Macedonians, Slovenes, Serbs, Montenegrins, Bosnians, and other ethnic minority groups such as Albanians, Romanians, Hungarians, and each people with its own style of dancing, singing, and dressing. Georgi’s goal was to give an authentic, precise presentation of the folklore style from each region and its main characteristic on stage.
Among the first dances to be included in the repertoire were those from Macedonia, Tomov's native land. He taught them to dance the interweaving of dances from the Vardar region, from Eastern Macedonia, then interweaving dances based on the agricultural life of the peasants, as well as the bridal dance – a slow but beautiful, well-known and beautiful dance.
During this period, the Society made great progress by introducing Macedonian and Balkan folklore among the people of the United States and Canada.
In April 1975, his dance group gave its first major concert before a large auditorium at Hunter College, sharing the program with two other major dance groups, Ungaresca and Janosik. Interludes were added to present the various dances from Posavina, in eastern Croatia, the fast jumping lindžo dance from Dalmatia, and the bunjevacko, a trio dance from Subotica, near the Hungarian border.
Albanian influence was evident in the shota, the courtship dance from the Kosovo region. A medley of dances from Serbia displayed a wide variety of movements – from the calm, precise moravec to the galloping rhythms of the katanka, the horseman's dance.
In 1975, Georgi founded the Folkdance Foundation Inc. in New York City, becoming its founder and president. This cultural organization was sponsored by both the State of New York and the Queens Arts Council. At the time, the Foundation published and distributed the Folk View magazine, which covered folklore, and which attracted a large number of devotees to the subject and the Tomov Studio.
Over time, in 1977, the Tomov Folk Dance Studio and the Folkdance Foundation fulfilled Georgi's dream - the company became professional and reached its full glory under his leadership. At that time, the Tomov Folk Dance Ensemble performed in many countries around the world.
Its appeal became universal because it was admired by many new devotees of folk dances and dances from all nations and, more importantly, from all age groups of different ethnic and national backgrounds.
In New York, they performed in major concert halls: Carnegie Hall, Hunter College, and Lincoln Center. The recognition was great when Tomov's company was selected as one of the best dance groups in New York State at Avery Fisher Hall.
The Tomov Ensemble, based in New York City, was formed to preserve and promote the Balkan folk songs and dances of the time. With its dedicated and enthusiastic American dancers, it actively performed locally, nationally, and internationally, and was highly acclaimed by critics both at home and abroad.
Georgi (George) Tomov and his Ensemble have been extremely dedicated to keeping the folk traditions of past generations intact and sharing those traditions with people of different ethnic backgrounds. Although they were adapted to perform on stage, extraordinary care has been taken to preserve the authenticity of the steps, style, costumes and spirit.
It was believed that the existence of the ensemble would help ensure that the richness and beauty of the Macedonian and Balkan folklore heritage would never disappear.
Georgi (George) Tomov was a professional dancer in "TANEC" and "LADO", the world-famous folklore ensembles of Macedonia and Croatia, respectively, where he received high praise from critics for his brilliance as a soloist.
Widely known as an expert on Balkan dances, songs, and folklore, he regularly gave professional classes and lectures throughout America and Canada and a series of lectures and folklore presentations on videotapes for Balkan and American television audiences.
The "Tomov" ensemble has had a huge number of professional performances that were exciting, interesting, precise, colorful and spiritual. Most of its activity and work is characterized by a feeling of great love for the choir and respect for the cultural traditions of the region from which they originate.
There were many reasons why people played in the Tomov Ensemble. But the main one was very simple: the real, pure excitement of performing and performing. Whether someone was an introvert, an extrovert, a novice or an experienced performer – the excitement was great, like no other.
Part of the excitement and challenge of being part of the Tomov Ensemble has been the diversity of situations, stages, and scenes. Over the years, they have performed on such illustrious stages as Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center. They have also performed in educational centers, parks, gyms, outdoor music platforms, auditoriums, festival halls, TV studios, town halls, and city halls.
To be continued
SLAVE KATIN writes
