About us
I Dance Hungary – Your first steps to Hungary
Welcome on the first online platform dedicated to the non-Hungarian speakers of the Hungarian Dance House Movement!
Dear Visitor,
You are one of tens or even hundreds of thousands of people all over the world who love Hungarian dances but cannot speak Hungarian. Still, you feel the “heartbeat” of the dances of the Mezőség, enjoy the vitality of Szászcsávás, admire the elegance of Kalotaszeg, and above all, know the magical strength that holds together a community entertaining, dancing and singing together in a táncház.
We thought it was high time that you feel that you are an important member of the dance house movement, and thus, the Hungarian nation. We will provide you with subtitles, dance lessons with the best masters and music bands, such as Júlia Kubinyi, Szabó Szilárd “Sziszi”, and Halmos Attila. At the same time, we will also channel the most recent English news on Hungary, via Hungary Today, so that you can broaden your interest in Hungarian culture.
We hope that this site proves to be a good tool for strengthening the global community of the Hungarian Dance House Movement!
WARNING!
These dance lesson videos are only meant to serve as complementary aids to those who find it hard to meet masters they could learn from in person. They do not replace real lessons, and they definitely cannot replace the experiences you can have in Hungarian dance houses and – above all – by visiting the villages of the Carpathian basin.
International Board:
Karlócai Orsolya – Hungary (Friends of Hungary Foundation)
Kenneth Tse – Hong Kong (Knack Cordial Folk Group)
Kovács Norbert “Cimbi” – Hungary (Élő Forrás Hagyományőrző Egyesület)
Nagy Ildikó – USA (Hungarian House of Heritage – New York)
Rosonczy-Kovács Mihály – Hungary (Hungarian FolkEmbassy)
A project by: Friends of Hungary Foundation
co-artistic director: Kovács Norbert “Cimbi”
idea, co-artistic director: Rosonczy-Kovács Mihály
visual works: Tímár Mátyás
design: Kálmán Luca
translation: Dobi Gábor
partners: Hungary Today, Fonó Music Hall, Philidor Institute, Hungarian FolkEmbassy, Élő Forrás Hagyományőrző Egyesület, Knack Cordial Folk Group
Masters and musicians:
Szék:
Masters: Szabó Szilárd “Sziszi” and Szabó Rubinka (dancing), Kubinyi Júlia (singing)
Musicians: Halmos Attila and Friends, Kalász Máté and Friends
Somogy:
Masters: Szabó Szilárd “Sziszi” and Szabó Rubinka (dancing), Kubinyi Júlia (singing)
Musicians: Hungarian FolkEmbassy (feat. Samu Zoltán), Bese Botond
About Friends of Hungary
The Friends of Hungary Foundation was established in 2011 with the aim to provide value-based, yet non-partisan, information to the community of Hungary’s friends and the general public on events and successes concerning Hungary and Hungarians living around the world. The Foundation collects and disseminates information about the social, cultural, economic and scientific activities of Hungarians, strengthening the ties between Hungarians living in their homeland and in the Diaspora. Friends of Hungary is working to help to create a more complete, and accurate public image of Hungary and Hungarians. The Foundation thinks of itself as a bridge between academic figures and those involved in public life in Hungary and abroad. There are many Hungarians in the wider world who find success abroad: they are proud of being Hungarian, and Hungarians are proud of them.
They are the informal ambassadors of our country: they improve the reputation of Hungary, contribute to its image and recognition, and build our civil and political relationships.
About Hungarian FolkEmbassy
FolkEmbassy makes it their own special mission – hence their choice of name – to search out musical contacts that will strengthen Hungary’s cultural diplomatic connections through music, while also presenting the organic cultural unit created by Central European peoples. They feel that it is important to demonstrate to an ever-widening international audience how the various periods of European heritage live on in Hungarian folk music and folk dance. They travel the world with this goal. In the past years they have performed at the opening of the Milan Expo, toured in Poland, Estonia, Pakistan, Canada, Indonesia and Taiwan. They play every Friday night at the Araz Restaurant at the Hotel Continental Budapest. In June 2016 they released their first recording: Felsütött a nap az égre/The Sun Shines on the Heavens. This double DVD set contains 7 hours of music recorded in karoke format with 33 of their singer and musician friends – with the aim of bringing folk song back into everyday life.
Facebook: Hungarian FolkEmbassy
About Élő Forrás Hagyományőrző Egyesület
The Association presided by Kovács Norbert “Cimbi” deals with an immense variety of activities related to preserving, handing over and revitalizing Hungarian folk tradition. Folk camps, workshop, museum, performances are just a small part of what they do all around the year. Élő Forrás always focuses on the so-called Hungarian – Hungarian relations, that connects Hungarians from all over the world with the motherland.
Fonó Music Hall
Fonó Music Hall in Budapest is the most prestigious non-governmental venue and publishing house of Hungarian folk music, world music and the jazz scene. Many of Hungary’s best groups gave their debut appearances at the Fonó. The Fonó Records label is the only Eastern European publishing house on the Womex top label, but above all, it is the Budapest “nest” of the Hungarian dance house movement, this unique revolutionary cultural phenomenon that started in the 70s “using” (instead of watching) folk tradition as an everyday part of entertaining.
藝摯歐洲民族舞蹈團 Knack Cordial Folk Group
Founded in 1998, Knack Cordial Folk Group (the Group) is a non-profit organization specializing in performing authentic folk dances mainly from Hungary and other countries in Eastern Europe. Its leader Kenneth Tse is the first native Hong Kong citizen to receive the Hungarian Gold Cross of Merit.
Facebook: 藝摯歐洲民族舞蹈團 Knack Cordial Folk Group
The project is supported by the State Secretary for National Policy, Prime Minister’s Office.