On Sunday 10th April a group of dancers attended a most original and interesting workshop, led by the multi-talented Nina Kharakoz, a Russian accordion player and folk dance enthusiast who has her own band Raduga Trio in the NSW region.
Years ago I used to attend weekend workshops and they were always good, but this one is the first I’ve been to where I felt a genuine connection with the culture. Nina began by setting up some cultural displays and gave an introduction at the start. She also gave detailed explanations for each of the dances… and learning what the movements were about really gave me a sense of village life and what fun it could be.
I enjoyed the simplicity of the dances. Although some may have missed the complexity of professionally choreographed material, it was intriguing to see just how enjoyable simplicity could be, and the couples dances were a great way to meet the other dancers at the event. As Nina quotes her favourite saying: «Learning about culture is not a tribute to the past. It is a respect you are paying to the future and yourself.»
We danced to some field recordings she had brought from Russia. So much effort had gone into collecting them. Other folk enthusiasts she knows had travelled around villages to collect the dances, and the circle dances came from locations as remote as Siberia.
As well as field recordings, we had a fabulous Russian singer Nadezhda Velieva and Nina’s accordion playing. I loved the way the accordion sped up or slowed down in some parts, to keep us on our toes… and dancing to live song was a real novelty. I don’t want to be ungrateful for all the gorgeous recorded music we’ve danced to over the years, but it’s a different experience, especially when there were Russians there who could really sing the songs… Vladimir Shvedov, another delightful Russian singer and musician also dropped in right when we needed someone to show us men’s steps of the dance.
The use of costumes which previously belonged to the Sydney Russian Folk Dance group «Russian Souvenirs» was a novel twist. We were all given skirts, dresses and scarves brought in by Alena Yusupova, the Deputy of the Quakers Hill Saint Andrew Bogolubsky Russian Ethnic School. Her two little kids, Zarina (4) and Camilla (2), also turned up wearing gorgeous traditional outfits and hairdos… which added to the special flavour of the day. It was lovely to see the kids 'get it' and join in with pleasure after a bit of hesitation at the beginning.
But that was not all. Having come from the vast and multicultural former Soviet Union, Nina and her team decided to broaden the borders and introduced us to Moldavian folk dance Hora presented by Irina Mustea who also gave a brief talk on Moldavian traditions and history. There were also two Latvian dances shown. Why Latvian? For a couple of reasons. Nina’s home town, Saint Petersburg, is located on the Gulf of Finland and has strong connections with the Baltic states — Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia. And also Nina’s first ever dance field trip in 2001 with then her Russian band Reelroad was to Riga, the capital of Latvia.
All in all it was a delightful way to spend a Sunday. Where else in Sydney could you get an entire day’s entertainment, plus morning tea (!) for $25? And, of course, a warm big thank you to Nina Kharakoz and her Raduga Trio «babushka» partner Diane Lenham for their contageous enthusiasm.
Thanks again to Sandra, Kaye, Chris and the FDA for making it happen.
Penny Auburn
