Bela Rada – Serbia/Šumadija [Dick Crum*]
The Serbian dance Bela Rada is often done second in combination with Makazice. Sometimes it is confused with and mislabeled “Makazice.” The two were introduced by Dick Crum at the University of the Pacific Folk Dance Camp in the summer of 1955.
| Serbian: | Бела Рада |
| Pronunciation: | BEH-lah RAH-dah |
| Translation: | Fair (Pretty) Rada |
| Region: | City of Korman, Šumadija District (central) |
| Aliases: | Rado, Makazice |
| Similar to: | Makazice |
| Introduced: | Dick Crum*, Ricky Holden*, Dennis Boxell* |
| Year: | 1955 |
| Type of Dance: | Circle/Chain/Line: non-partner |
| Category: | Oldies RIFD |
| Formation: | Open Circle |
| Skill: | Easy |
| Energy: | Moderate |
| Hand Hold: | V |
| Leads to: | R w/ R |
| Meter: | 2/4 |
| Rhythm: | Dance phrasing is 5 bars, music is 8 |
| Song: | Bela Rada |
| Date Taught: | |
| Teacher: | |
| Posted: | January 1, 2024 |
| Updated: | January 8, 2024 |
Dance on the balls of the feet with the heels, which seldom touch down, just off the floor. The knees are flexed, or “soft.” Take tiny steps with the feet close together (or as Mr. Crum would say, “hugging each other.”)
Dick Oakes on styling
Amateur Linguist Lyrics Translation Alert
There are a few different translations for Бела (bela) given on sites and in dance notes. The simplest translation is white, which has been rendered as, in addition to “white,” “fair” and “pretty.” Suffice to say that “bela” as a modifier for a given name is a term of endearment, and it doesn’t reflect a woman’s complexion. Бела Рада is also translates to and is used commonly for white daisy, or just daisy, so the entire name is possibly a term of endearment.
The last verse gave me translation problems until I applied the above theory, possibly. If you take the translation literally, you come up with “Rada ordered the Yellow Quinces for me.” Unfortunately, I don’t have the original lyrics in Cyrillic to translate, so that doesn’t help. It is confusing that Rada would be digging yellow quinces when quinces grow on trees, like apples. However, when you find out that “Dunje” is a common given name and not always a fruit, it is possible that her Nana’s term of endearment name is Žute Dunje Yellow Quince. It is also possible the translation is not digging but rather picking, or that the song lyricist doesn’t know how yellow quinces are harvested!
I did find a rather sordid version of the lyrics that somewhat resembles the story.
Dancing Examples: Bela Rada
Dancing Examples: Makazice and Bela Rada
Music Examples
Lyrics
Dunav Folk Dancers, bad translation by Google & fix-up by me// Ide Jova od oranje Bela Rada od kopanje. // Ref: // Stani Rado, bela Rado, Daj da ljubim lice mlado. // // Ne smem Jovo, oj Jovane, Ljutiće se moje nane. // // Rada mi je poručila, Žute Dunje naredila. //// Jova goes by from plowing Pretty Rada is digging. // Ref: // Stop Rada, pretty Rada, Let me kiss your young face. // // I must not Jovo, O Jovan, My nana will be angry. // // She told me, Rada, Žute Dunje ordered. //