Kyrgyz Youth Dance "Komuzchu"

“Komuzchu”

The Kyrgyz youth dance “Komuzchu” is usually performed at musical evenings for young people. Young men come out to perform the komuzchu. Attracted by the familiar melody of the komuz, the girls appear as well. Everyone gets involved in the dance.

There is always a couple among the dancers that dances better than the rest. And so, among their friends, who form a circle, this couple showcases their skills.

The playful dance concludes with a collective dance.

The dance “Komuzchu” was choreographed by U. Kuldarova, to the music of a folk melody arranged by S. Pankov. The musical meter is 2/4, the rhythm is energetic and quite fast. The dance is mass-oriented, and it can be performed by any even number of dancers. Below is a version for ten dancing pairs (two pairs of soloists).

Costumes of the performers

Girl's costume. A dress and a beshmet. The dress is in bright colors (yellow-orange, pink, raspberry) and is made of silk.

The color of the beshmet is a deeper tone (dark green, dark red, purple). The beshmet is made of velvet, trimmed with golden tinsel along the edges and hem. The headgear is a hat (topu) made of fur with a velvet top in the color of the beshmet, adorned with a bunch of owl feathers on top. Around the neck is a necklace (monchok) made of stamped coins.

Footwear — soft shoes with heels or saffiano boots of the ichig type.

Boy's costume. A shirt, a robe, trousers, and boots. The shirt is made of white fabric, trimmed with patterned braid (dzhelyak).

The robe is short, made of velvet or plush in blue-green or greenish tones, with a narrow stripe, trimmed around with braid. The belt (kemer) is leather, with metal buckles. The trousers are made of plush or wool in dark brown or dark green.

On the head is a white felt hat (kalpak), decorated with a bright colored cord with a tassel. The brim of the hat is cut at the edges and lined with black velvet or plush.

Footwear — saffiano boots with pointed toes, embroidered or painted on the shaft.

Description of the dance

Before the dance begins, the young men line up in the upper right wing, placing their hands on each other's shoulders, facing the audience. The girls line up separately from the boys, also in the upper right wing. The free hands of the first and last young men are raised up.

The komuz players are positioned along the left wings of the stage.

Introduction. 16 bars are played on the komuz.

First figure (48 bars)

1—16 bars
The young men walk in a circle counterclockwise (“movement I”) and at the end of the 16th bar, they form a circle facing the direction of movement (see fig. 115).

The young men sit on their left foot.

The young men mimic playing the komuz.

The young men repeat the movements performed to the count of “and-two-and.”

The young men stand up.

3—4 bars
The young men, turning 180°, drop to their right knee and repeat the movements of the 1st and 2nd bars. At the end of the 4th bar, the young men stand facing inward in the circle. 5—7 bars

Standing on the low half-toes of the left foot, bending the right knee, they make two hops to the right.

Hands on the waist (see fig. 116).

8th bar
A triple stomp, starting with the right foot.

9—12 bars
Repeat the movements of bars 5—7 with the right foot and moving in a circle to the left.

13—16 bars
The girls come out from the upper right wing (“girls' exit”) and move counterclockwise “movement 2.”

The young men, standing in a circle, clap their hands.

Bars 1—16 are repeated.

1—16 bars
The girls continue to move in a circle and at the end of the 16th bar stop near their partner. The young men clap their hands during the girls' dance.

Second figure (16 bars)

1—2 bars
The girls move to the right from the young men in a circular “swaying” movement. The young men continue to clap.

3—4 bars
The girls return to their places and turn their backs to the young men (see fig. 117).

5—6 bars
The young men, performing “movement 1,” turn to face their partner, admiring her, approach from the right and left sides, and then perform stomps as if trying to attract her attention. The young men's hands are on their waists.

7—8 bars
The girls, stepping from foot to foot on high half-toes, make wave-like movements with their arms above their heads, combining them with movements of their legs. They dance with the young men, turning away from them and as if covering their faces with their hands, while slyly glancing back. The young men return to their places (“movement 1”),

9—16 bars
The young men perform “movement 4” in place. The girls perform stepping in place, continuing to make wave-like movements with their arms and simultaneously rotating their wrists either towards themselves or over their right shoulder when they shift to the right foot, and over their left shoulder when they shift to the left. They turn their heads in the direction of their arms. At the end of the 16th bar, the young men and girls form a semicircle facing the audience, breaking the circle in the foreground of the stage (see fig. 118).

First dance of the soloists.

Third figure (16 bars)

1—8 bars
The first pair of soloists runs out (“movement 5”) from behind the second left wing, and simultaneously the second pair of soloists runs out from behind the second right wing, performing “movement 5.” Both pairs of soloists run towards each other across the front of the stage and turn to face the audience (the first pair turns right over the right shoulder, the second pair turns left over the left shoulder), forming a line in the middle of the stage. The girls are on the right side of the boys (see fig. 119).

With their right hands, the girls make a circular movement upwards.

Upon reaching the center, the young men take the girls by the waist and perform “movement 5” in place.

9—12 bars
The young men perform “movement 6” (“dzhigitovka”) with a whip, mimicking daring dzhigits. The whip is in the right hand. The left hand is on the waist, as if on the saddle bow. While hopping in place, the young man swings the whip, striking it down to the floor. The girls perform “movement 7” and face the audience. The movement starts with the right foot to the right, then with the left foot to the left. Simultaneously, the girls make hand movements as if pushing something away from themselves. The hands move from left to right if the movement starts with the left foot, and vice versa — from right to left if the movement starts to the right. They turn their heads in the direction of the hand movements. At the end of the 12th bar, all the girls return to their original places (see fig. 120).

13—16 bars
The young men move back to the rear of the stage “movement 8.” Hands on the waist. Simultaneously, the girls retreat back with the young men “movement 9.” At the end of the 16th bar, everyone lines up in one line facing the audience.

General dance.

Fourth figure (48 bars)

The young men perform “movement 10” in place for bars 13—16. The girls perform the same movement as the young men, with the only difference being that the young men's hands are on their waists, while the girls' hands are bent at the elbows and raised up. When the movement is performed starting with the right foot, the girls raise their right hand to head level, and their left hand to face level. At the end of the 16th bar, the young men place their hands on each other's shoulders.

Bars 1—16 are repeated.

1—2 bars
The young men step right with the right foot, then to the left, bringing the left foot to the right foot half a step.

The girls turn in place, making wave-like and circular movements with their wrists. When turning to the right, the movement starts with the right foot, the right hand is raised above the head, and the left is at chest level. With the step of the left foot, the positions of the hands change. The left hand is raised up, and the right is at chest level. The head turns towards the raised hand.

3—4 bars
Repeat the movements of bars 1—2 to the right, then to the left.

5—8 bars
Two pairs of soloists walk in simple steps to the front of the stage, followed by the remaining dancers, dividing into two lines by pairs.

Two pairs of soloists exit to the first wings, while the remaining pairs pass along the wings: four pairs go to the right wings and turn to face the center, and four pairs go to the left wings and turn left (see fig. 121).

9—16 bars
The young men perform “movement 11” (“jump with stomp”), starting with the right foot to the right and with the left foot to the left, hands on the waist. The girls perform “movement 11” with a circular wave-like movement of their arms. When turning to the right, the movement starts with the right foot. The right hand is raised to head level, the left hand is at chest level, with the left wrist turned palm forward. The head is turned towards the raised hand. When turning to the left, the movement starts with the left foot, and the position of the hands changes. At the end of the 16th bar, all dancers turn to face the audience (see fig. 122).

Bars 1—16 are repeated.

1—12 bars
The young men take the girls by the waist with their right hand. The pair at the left third wing moves in simple steps diagonally to the lower right corner of the stage, followed by the other three pairs on that side; the pair at the lower right corner, followed by all the other pairs, moves across the front of the stage to the lower left corner and, turning to the right, goes along the left wings, crossing the stage from the upper left corner to the lower right corner (see fig. 123).

At the end of the 12th bar, all the girls and young men turn to face the audience.

13—16 bars
The young men perform “movement 12” in place, hands on the waist. They finish the movement with a stomp, glancing at their partner girls, who perform “movement 13” (“spinning threads”).

Second dance of the soloists

Fifth figure (32 bars)

1—8 bars
The dancers, lined up diagonally, perform “movement 13,” while the young men perform “movement 12.” A pair of soloists runs out from the lower right corner to the front of the stage and begins their dance. The young man performs “movement 14” (“squat with a turn”) three times. The girl performs “movement 15.” By the 7th bar, they reach the upper left corner.

At the 8th bar, the young man and girl run diagonally between the dancers from the upper left corner to the lower right corner and exit the stage. 9—16 bars

The girls, performing “movement 15,” starting with the left foot, move to the right, then, turning their backs to the audience, head towards the left first wing and then along the left wings. Turning to face the center of the stage, they move clockwise towards the center, forming a circle. The young men, during this time, imitate the movements of dzhigits, raising their right hand with an imaginary whip. They move along the outer circle counterclockwise, forming a second, outer circle, performing a gallop, starting with the right foot: step right, step left, triple stomp with a whip strike (see fig. 124, a, b).

The concluding part is performed (16 bars). 1—8 bars

The girls move in a circle clockwise with “movement 15,” starting with the left foot. The young men perform “movement 4” four times, starting with the right foot.

9—16 bars.
The young men take the girls by the waist with their right hand, raise their left hand up, making a circular inward movement with their wrist. The girls place their left hand on the young man's shoulder, raise their right hand up, and make the same circular movement with their wrist. Pair by pair, the dancers run in a circle clockwise to the third right wing.

Description of movements

Movement 1. “Exit of the young men.”
Starting position — the young men stand facing the audience, hands on each other's shoulders, feet in a natural position.

Performed over two bars.
1st bar
one Jump on the right foot to the right,
and A small hop on the right foot, extending the left foot forward to the right in front of the right foot, head turned to the right,
two Jump on the left foot to the left,
and A small hop on the left foot, extending the right foot forward to the left in front of the left foot.

Head turned to the left.

2nd bar
one Step right with the right foot,
and Step left with the left foot behind the right foot,
two Step right with the right foot,
and Bring the left foot to the right foot.

The movement of the 2nd bar is performed consecutively at a fast pace, close to running.

Movement 2. “Exit of the girls.”

Starting position — feet in a natural position,
one Step right with the right foot,
and Step forward with the left foot,
two Step forward with the right foot,
and Step forward with the left foot on high half-toes, the right foot behind on the toe.

The hands open at shoulder level for the first three steps, making circular movements, and on the 4th step, the hands are raised up to the left over the left shoulder.

Movement 3. “Steps with a turn of 360°.”

Starting position — feet in a natural position, hands on the waist.

Performed over two bars.

1st bar
one-and Step forward to the right with the left foot, beginning the turn. Continue the turn for 360°.
two Step forward to the left with the right foot, continuing the turn.
and Stomp with the left foot. During the turn, the arms open to the sides, and during the stomp, the arms close on the waist.

2nd bar
one Step forward with the left foot.
and Step forward with the right foot.
two Step forward with the left foot.
and Stomp with the right foot.

Hands on the waist.

Movement 4. “Hops with a jump.”

Starting position — natural position of the feet, hands on the waist.
one Jump on the left foot, bending the right foot across in front of the left,
and Jump on the right foot, bending the left foot across in front of the right.
two Lower the left foot and squat on both feet.
and Jump up, bending the legs at the knees, crossing them, hands lowered on the knees.

Movement 5. “First dance of the soloists.”

Starting position. The young man holds the girl by the waist with his right hand, the left hand bent above the head, wrist down, feet in a natural position. The girl places her left hand on the young man's right shoulder, her right hand bent above her head, wrist down, feet in a natural position.

Performed over two bars.

1st bar
one A light jump forward on the right foot.
and A light hop on the low half-toes of the right foot, bringing the left foot forward to the right in front of the right foot.

two Skip forward on the left foot.
and Step forward with the right foot.

2nd bar
Light running with hops.

Movement 6. “Dzhigitovka.”

Starting position. Feet in a natural position, left hand on the waist, right hand with a whip raised up,
one Step with the right foot in place,
and Step with the left foot in place,
two Step with the right foot in place and strike with the whip,
and Step with the left foot in place, raising the right hand.

Movement 7.

Starting position — feet in 3rd position, hands in 1st position.
one-and Step with the right foot to the right, opening the arms to the right, turning the head in the direction of the arm movement.
two-and Place the left foot to the right behind the right foot, opening the arms to the left, turning the head in the direction of the arm movement.

Movement 8.

Starting position — feet in a natural position, hands on the waist.
upbeat “and” Raise the right foot and move it back,
one-and Jump from the left foot to the right, bending the left foot at the knee, head straight,
two-and Move the left foot back and jump on it.

Bend the right foot at the knee, gaze straight.

Movement 9.

Starting position — feet in 3rd position, right foot in front, arms opened to the sides.

Performed over two bars.

1st bar
one A sliding step back with the right foot.
and A sliding step back with the left foot. At the same time, the hands come together in front of the chest, as if grabbing a thread and twisting it into a rope.
two A sliding step back with the right foot.
and Place the left foot in front of the right in 3rd position.

2nd bar
one Step right with the right foot, bringing the left foot to the right foot, arms move to the right, raising the right hand above the head, slightly bending at the elbow, wrist making a circular inward movement upwards.
and A small step right with the right foot.
two Step left with the left foot, bringing the right foot to the left foot, moving the arms to the left, raising the left hand above the head, rotating the wrist.
and Make a small step left with the left foot.

Movement 10. “Stomping”

Starting position — feet in a natural position, hands of the young men on the waist, of the girls in a preparatory position down.
one Step right with the right foot.
and Bring the left foot to the right foot.
two Step left with the left foot.
and Bring the right foot to the left foot. Turn the head in the direction of the movement.

Movement 11. “Jump with stomp”

Starting position — feet in 3rd position, right foot in front, hands of the young men on the waist, of the girls bent in front of the chest, elbows down, right wrist at eye level, left at shoulder level.

Performed over two bars.

1st bar
one Jump on the right foot to the right.
and Bring the left foot to the right foot.
two Stomp with the right foot.
and Pause.

2nd bar
one Jump on the left foot to the left.
and Bring the right foot to the left foot.
two Stomp with the left foot.
and Pause.

Movement 12.

Starting position — 3rd position of the feet, right foot in front, hands on the waist.

Performed over two bars.

upbeat “and” Raise the left foot, bent at the knee.

1st bar
one-and Jump on the left foot, simultaneously raising the right foot, bending at the knee and placing it across the left,
two-and Jump across to the right foot, simultaneously raising the left foot, bending at the knee and placing it across the right.

2nd bar
one-and Jump on the left foot, simultaneously raising the right foot, bending at the knee and crossing it with the left.
two-and Triple stomp, starting with the right foot.

Movement 13. “Spinning threads”

Starting position — feet in a natural position, arms bent at the elbows, wrists, palms inwards — in front of the chest, one closer to the body,

one-and A small step with the right foot to the right, turning the torso to the right, placing the left foot behind on the toe.

Lead the right hand under the left to the face and then up above the head.

Make circular movements with the left wrist, as if spinning a spindle,

two-and Turning 180° to the left, step with the left foot to the left. The right foot is behind on the toe. The head turns in the direction of the hand movements.

Movement 14. “Squat with a turn”

Starting position — 3rd position of the feet, right foot in front, arms to the sides.

Performed over two bars.

1st bar
one Step with the right foot to the right.
and Jump on the right foot, raising the left foot to the right, crossing it with the right foot, extending the toe.
two Step with the left foot to the left.
and Jump on the left foot, raising the right foot to the left, crossing it with the left foot, extending the toe.

2nd bar
one Step with the right foot to the right.
and Bring the left foot to the right foot and lower into a deep squat.
two Turn around 360° over the right shoulder, opening the arms to the sides.
and Straighten the legs.

Movement 15.

Starting position — 3rd position of the feet, left foot in front, arms in a preparatory position,
one Step with the left foot forward,
and Bring the right foot to the left foot, slightly bending the knees, arms to the sides,
two Straighten up, turning the head to the left, raising the arms through the sides up,
and Pause.