ETNOS
North Macedonia is a country in southern Europe located in the central part of the Balkan peninsula. Without access to the sea, it shares borders with Greece, Bulgaria, Serbia, Kosovo and Albania. It occupies approximately the northern half of geographical Macedonia, which also extends into Bulgaria and Greece. The country is mainly mountainous and has about fifty lakes.
North Macedonia was one of the successor states to the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, whose independence it declared in 1991 under the name "Republic of Macedonia". Due to a dispute over its name with Greece, it was necessary to wait for an international agreement, reached on June 12, 2018, in order to rename the country as the Republic of North Macedonia.
Due to its position in Europe, this territory has experienced numerous occupations and migrations, the most significant ones being at the Byzantine age, the arrival of the Slavs in the 6th century, then an Ottoman domination lasting five centuries. These presences have shaped a culture rich in influences. In addition to citizens belonging to the Macedonian people, the country has significant Albanian, Turkish and Roma minorities.
Albanians form the main minority in North Macedonia. They represent a quarter of the total population of the country behind the Macedonians. Albanian-speaking Macedonians are constitutionally recognized as a minority and have specific rights. Albanian is one of the official languages of the country. They are mainly concentrated in the northwest of the country, between Kumanovo, Tetovo and Struga.
The national folk ensemble "Etnos", created in 2004, bears witness to this cultural wealth and geographical implantation. He gave his first concert in front of thousands of spectators. The success was immediate. The group tells in its show the great moments of the life of the Albanians in Macedonia: the carnivals, the wedding of Galičnik, the festival of the grape harvest, the weddings or even the departure under the flags.
The music offered to spectators, in support of the dances, is of exceptional quality. Polyphonies vary according to the ethnic groups that sing them. They are three or four-part.
They are sometimes interspersed with instrumental improvisations. The clarinet plays the role of soloist and the lute that of bourdon. The violin or the accordion support them. Slow and sad at the beginning, the music moves towards a fast dance tune.
In this Balkan region, located at the crossroads of Greece, Albania, Serbia, and Bulgaria, people have been mixing since ancient times. A "Babel in miniature" according to the writer-traveler Nicolas BOUVIER, who crossed it in the 1950s, recounting in "the use of the world" that one raised his glass of raki there in turn to the health of the Turks, the Greeks, the Albanians, the Bulgarians and so on.
With the national folk ensemble "Etnos", you will discover Europe with the flavors of the Orient and especially the immense richness generated by the mix of cultures. The whole gives an authentic and fascinating show that will remind you of the comic strips of your youth, that of the spectres of Tintin.
