Recruiting Dance

The participants get acquainted with a popular Hungarian soldier recruiting song, which Zoltán Kodály also used in his musical
composition János Háry. Participants can learn a soldier dance
with simple Hungarian folk dance elements.

AIM

Participants learn a melody and dance moves parallelly – this helps to memorise the song easier and deeper. There are various and simple dance moves that change line by line. This session with listening to the music and learning the song and the dance moves improves the participants concentration and they are able to observe the development of their moves by a special community experience.

Description

The group members are standing in a circle or random in the room.
The facilitator start with a brief discussion on the recruitment of the soldiers and how they were inspiried and convinced to join the army. Then facilitator shares information on the hussars: hussar was a member of a class of light-horseman soldiers (light cavalry). This has Central-European origin, in the 15th and 16th centuries. The title and characteristic dress of these horsemen were later widely adopted by light cavalry regiments in European armies in the late 17th and early 18th centuries. A number of armored or ceremonial mounted units in modern armies preserve the title of hussars.
Next step is to listen to the music and/or watch the video with dance. Then the facilitator shows the dance moves to the participants, these are as follows:

Recruiting dance (hussar dance) to the rhythm of the melody:

1. One step to the right with raising the knee (like marching) – one step to the left with raising the knee
2. Two steps to the right with raising the knee
3. Two steps to the left with raising the knee
3. Once clap your hand and one slap to the inner part of right ankle with the left hand
4. Once clap your hand and one slap to the inner part of left ankle with the right hand
5. Once clap your hand and one slap to the inner part of right ankle with the right hand
6. Once clap your hand and one slap to the inner part of left ankle with the left hand
And repeat starting from point 1.

In the end of the session the facilitator can ask the participants how they feel and if they see how inspiring this song and dance ought to be for the people to join the army.

Optional: hussar cap made by the group (cardboard, red felt-tip pen, glue, scissors) – preliminary preparation

Lyrics

A jó lovas katonának
De jól vagyon dolga.
Eszik, iszik a sátorba,
Semmire sincs gondja.
Hej élet, be gyöngy élet,
Ennél szebb se lehet,
Csak az gyüjjön katonának,
Aki ilyet szeret.

Translation:
The good horse-soldier
Has it really good.
He eats and drinks in the tent,
And has no cares at all.
Heigh, life, what a splendid life,
It couldn’t be lovelier,
Only one who likes this kind of life
Should be a soldier.