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Slovenian Dance Ensemble Triglav – Folklorna Skupina Triglav The year 2009 was a very special year for the Triglav and Rožmarin dancers, in that a very memorable trip was undertaken to our parent’s homeland of Slovenia. The Slovenian Dance Ensemble Triglav and Rožmarin dancers are based in Winnipeg, Canada, and is sponsored by the Canadian Slovenian Cultural Society Inc. Not only are there the Triglav dancers in Winnipeg, but our community has two younger dance groups, Rožmarin, for our teenagers, and Žvoncek for our children. When planning for this tour of Slovenia, not only was it open to our Triglav dancers but also all dancers from our Rožmarin group as well.
The community in Winnipeg whole-heartedly supported this endeavor and were in fact a major financial contributor to the success of this project, but more important that the money, they were fully supportive from an emotional standpoint too. But while the community was fully behind us, the dancers realized that a lot of hard work lay ahead. The choreographer of the Triglav and Rožmarin dancers is Kristina Majowski, and it fell to Kristina to make the initial contact with an organization in Slovenia, that could facilitate making this trip occur. Kristina’s initial contact was the ‘Izseljensko Društvo – Slovenija v Svetu’ and their president Boštjan Kocmur. The reponse from Boštjan was incredible. Within a few short weeks, the application for financial aid from the Slovenian Government was put in place, and ready for signatures. Boštjan did a fantastic job of putting this information together so quickly, such that this major impediment was quickly put behind us. In March of 2009, we finally received word that the Slovenian Government did approve our application, and we were now fully approved to come to Slovenia and partake in a 7 day performance tour, and a 2 day teaching seminar. As the days of winter turned to spring, the dance groups were busy readying themselves for this trip. There were new suites of dances to learn, and there were new songs to learn! Practices turned from once a week, to twice a week, and double in duration! Many sore legs and voices left those practices, but the smiles of the faces could not be wiped off, as all of us were realizing what a tremendous opportunity this was for us. As late June arrived, 25 dancers and one choreographer, ranging in ages from 12 to 51 started departing Winnipeg, for various points in Europe. Some booked their travel into Brnik, others found cheaper fares into Trieste, Venice, or Munich. Some rented cars, some utilized train, but we all eventually found our way into Ljubljana, and on July 2nd, we came to our home for 10 days, ‘Dijaški Dom – Ivan Cankara’ in Ljubljana. For more than half of the dancers, this was their first journey to Slovenia, and it was particularly happy to see so many of the teenagers enjoying the country of their parents, or grandparents. For the other half, it was enjoying the country that we have seen before. The dorms were quaint, and with three people to a room, a bit cozy. Of course it did not help that each dancer had three sets of costumes. Space in each room was at a premium, but everyone made it work. Not a lot of time was spent in our rooms, for when we were not performing around Slovenia we were partaking in the beauty of Ljubljana. Our tour consisted of seven days of performing throughout Slovenia, and a two day teaching seminar, to further our knowledge of Slovenian dance, song and costumes. Our tour began in the second oldest city of Slovenia, Škofje Loka. We arrived on Friday July 3 in Škofje Loka, and were given a very nice tour of this city. The history and architecture in this city were amazing. From fresco’s on building facades, to the great castle, the city was incredible. After our tour of the city, it was to do, what we came to Slovenia for, to perform. As this was our first show, many of the dancers were nervous, and for many members of Rožmarin, it was their first time performing with Triglav. While they were all good dancers, dancing with the ‘big’ group was making some people a bit nervous. But after we dressed in our costumes, we gave each other a look over, made sure all buttons were done up, our hats were on straight, our aprons were even and our shawls were pinned correctly. There was nothing else to do, except to perform. Triglav entered the performance area, and light droplets of rain began failing. A worried look was on some faces, but underneath the nerves, the smiles were starting to show. The rain held off, and after a performance by a brass band, it was time for Triglav to take to the stage. Dressed in their Gorenjska costumes, Triglav took the stage, first with their opening song ‘V Dolini Tihi’, and after the song a suite of dances from Gorenjska. With each passing dance movement, the nerves diminished, and the look of enjoyment from the dancers became very evident. After the suite was completed, a truly heartwarming round of applause came forth from the audience. It was a quick change into our Štajerska costumes, and then out we went for our second suite. Upon conclusion of the suite, we performed what is a homemade tradition, in that we create the Slovenian flag to the song of ‘Regiment po Ceste Gre’. When people started realizing what we were doing the ovation was thunderous, and the applause did not stop! We were all somewhat in shock and in awe from the applause, but also very proud of what we were doing. Afterwards it was off to our bus, and our fantastic driver, Edita Vrankar, and back to our home in Ljubljana. The next day, we performed twice at Šmajerske Toplice and once at Ig. At the Toplice, it was the annual gathering of Slovenians from around the world. It was nice to see so many people make the trip back to Slovenia, from all corners of the world, to share in this beautiful country. In between performances at the toplice, we were able to go to the pool, and have some fun. In what was a beautiful sunny day, but not too hot, the dancers headed into the pool, and at first just swam around, and enjoyed the pool. Before too long, people where climbing onto shoulders of other people, and ‘diving’ into the pool. That led to more shenanigans and more fun. At the end of our ‘pool time’ we were truly beginning to fully enjoy our surroundings. From the Toplice, it was onto Ig. It was a neat festival in Ig, in that it seems that Ig is the sister city of Seville Spain. So we walked into a Spanish festival right in the middle of Ig! With many Spaniards dressed in their costumes, we were made to feel very welcome in our Slovenian costumes! After our show, we were treated to a wonderful supper and an assortment of beverages, courtesy of the Mayor of Ig. Sunday July 5, was an incredible day. This was the day we traveled to Lenart v Slovenskih Goricah. Lenart has a very special place for our choreographer, Kristina, as this is where here family is from, and they currently live here. When Kristina comes to Slovenia, this is her home! Our day started very early, as we were on the bus at 7AM. It is about a two hour ride from Ljubljana to Lenart, but it seemed to go very quickly. We knew we were going to attend Mass at the church in Lenart at 10AM, so all shorts were put away for the day, and proper church attire was worn. When we arrived in Lenart, we were greeted by the Mayor Janez Kramberger and his assistant Darija Ornik, as well as Kristina’s family. You could tell what type of day it was going to be, as Kristina’s uncle, Lojze, seemed to have the whole morning planned. In no time, he handed Kristina a copy of one of the readings for church, and he lined up Allie, Hilda and Vladka (all members of our church choir) to sing a solo during Mass. Further Luke, Chris, Dan and Matthew were enlisted as altar servers during this Mass. It made for a very special Mass. After Mass it was off to Sv. Trojica, to get a tour of this beautiful church. Not only was the church breathtaking, but we went to the church library, and we witnessed books over 500 years old. And they were all in the open. Immediately upon entering the room, you heard Kristina say ‘everyone, hands behind your backs!’ Now it was time for lunch, and we were treated to a very traditional Štajerska lunch! Lots of food, lots of wine, and we were entertained by Lojze’s young men’s singing group. The eleven voices blended together so well, it was truly amazing. After lunch, we literally ‘rolled onto the bus’, and it was off to Zavrh, home of the Rudolf Maister museum. After a very nice tour of this Museum, we visited the Maistrova Stolp, and then it was down the street to ‘Suman Winery’. We were given a tour of the winery, and then led into the cellar, for a sample of 7 different wines. All wines were enjoyed by all! Back onto the bus now, and back to Lenart, for a special surprise visit to Kristina’s Stric Lojze and Teta Marica’s home. All 26 dancers easily fit into their home, and we were all treated to a variety of juices and Štajerska Gibanica. It seems like we were always eating this day! When it was time to leave, and prepare for our evening show, we exited out of the back of the home, and we serenaded the family as we left for the performance hall. During the show in Lenart, Triglav performed dances from Štajerska, Gorenjska, Koroška and Prekmurje. The applause was thunderous and overwhelming. It was a packed house at the Kulturni Dom, and there were many tears of joy shed during the show. One of the most heart warming parts, was during the Štajerska suite, when the ladies sang ‘Bom Šla na Goro’. This song seemed to bring out so many memories for audience members, and many were singing along, or some were even crying. After the show, it was off to supper! I’m sure we all gained weight in Lenart, with all the food we ate, and wine we drank! After supper, in which we were accompanied by Mayor Kramberber, Darija, Lojze and Marica, we boarded our bus, and headed for our home in Ljubljana…..the last heartwarming scene, was as our bus headed down Mariborska Cesta, there were Lojze and Marica on the sidewalk, waving with both hands to our bus. I truly don’t know who enjoyed themselves more on this day, us, or Kristina’s family. On Tuesday, we visited the town of Šentjošt. This was a very interesting town, in that family is very important here, because of what happened during the second world war. Many young men lost their lives, in fact so many, that for 10 years after the war, there were no children born in this town. As such, now, family takes front and centre in this town, and the sight of families and children is very much normal here. After being greeted by the town, we were given a tour of the churches, and then we performed dances and songs for a very appreciative audience. After our show, we joined the locals in singing a variety of Slovenian folk songs. The next day, it was off the Štajerska again, and the visit of Slovenia’s oldest city, Ptuj. Upon arrival, we received a tour of the city, and we amazed at the influence that the Roman’s had on this city. From the architecture to the statues, everywhere you turned, you saw the influence of the Roman’s. After a tour of the city, it was up to the castle, and a tour of the castle. It was hard to believe that about 60 years ago, people actually still lived in this castle. Only after the second world war, was the castle turned into a museum. The furniture and artwork were amazing, and the room full of Kurents and festival activities was awe inspiring. After our tour, we had the privilege to perform in the grand ballroom of the castle. With the architecture, the paintings and the furniture, it was like we were dancing in a time that no longer exists. The audience, while small, was very appreciative and enjoyed the show. Our last day of performing was once very memorable for many reasons. We headed of to Podljubelj in the morning, and we were hosted in a Catholic retreat. The retreat this week was for ‘large’ families. Large families were ones with at least 6 children, and some of the families we encountered had over 10 children. So once again, we were very much in a family environment. Once we got there, we were taken on a mountain hike. We climbed 300 metres and all of us where huffing and puffing a bit after the hike. For many of us, having grown up in Winnipeg, we have not seen a mountain up close, nor have many of us hiked in mountains. So this was going to be a real treat. After a 90 minute hike, we reached a spot of rest, and we were treated to hot tea and some fellowship, in that we learned much information about the families that were with us. In some ways, going down was harder than coming up!! But we all made it safe and sound. After joining in some fun, including playing soccer, it was time for Mass and then supper. For a performance, it was a packed hall, and we were amazed at the enthusiasm that the young children had for our group. We always hear how the culture is being lost in Slovenia, amongst the youth, but we saw nothing of the sort. We saw children singing many folklore songs, and almost hungering to see their culture. I hope we were able to satisfy their hunger, even a bit. The group picture from this event was huge, and with so many children, it was heartwarming. Into the evening, it was back onto the bus and back to Ljubljana. The next two days, we began our seminar, and we were very lucky to have as a leader, from Akademska Folklorna Skupina France Marolt, Tomaž Simetinger. We spent two days learning dance steps, learning about costumes, the history of folklore dancing in Slovenia and learning about singing. Lots of information was shared with us, and this will form a basis for our community and all our dance groups for years to come. In closing, this was an incredibly unforgettable tour. I know I can say, that we will most likely never be greeted so warmly, nor will we see our dances appreciated so much as we did, while we were in Slovenia. The applause and the tears just never seemed to stop from our audiences. Our thanks go out to Boštjan Kocmur, President of the Izseljensko Društvo – Slovenija v Svetu, who was instrumental in working with Kristina to organize this tour. Without Boštjan, this tour would not have happened. Hvala Lepa! Also, a big thank you to the Government of Slovenija for their financial support, while we were in Slovenija. All food, transport and lodging costs were taken care of, and we were very happy with everything we received. Also, thank you to the Embassy in Ottawa, for their support of this project. A big thank you to our bus driver, Edita Vrankar, who always got us to our destination, and back home to Dijaški Dom in Ljubljana. And finally, a big thank you Tomaž Simetinger for all his help during the seminar. Written by
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