Romanian Folk Dances, , Sz. 56, BB 68 is a suite of six short piano pieces composed by Béla Bartók in 1915. He later orchestrated it for small ensemble in 1917 as Sz. 68, BB 76. It is based on seven Romanian tunes from Transylvania, originally played on fiddle or shepherd's flute. Its title was originally Romanian Folk Dances from Hungary but was later changed by Bartók when Transylvania became part of Romania in 1920. It is nowadays available in the 1971 edition which is written with key signatures although Bartók rarely used key signatures.

Structure

This set of dances consists of six movements and, according to the composer, it should take four minutes and three seconds to perform, but most professional pianists take up to five minutes. The list of the movements is as follows (with the original Hungarian title listed first, the most commonly known Romanian title second, and the English translation in parentheses):

1. Bot tánc / Jocul cu bâtă (Stick Dance)
2. Brâul (Sash Dance)
3. Topogó / Pe loc (In One Spot)
4. Bucsumí tánc / Buciumeana (Dance from Bucsum)
5. Román polka / Poarga Românească (Romanian Polka)
6. Aprózó / Mărunțel (Fast Dance)

Analysis

Arrangements

Aside from the version Bartók wrote for a small orchestral ensemble, some of Bartók's friends wrote adaptations or transcriptions of this piece for several different ensembles. The following are the best-known:

Notable recordings

Notable recordings of this composition include the following: Notable recordings of the arrangement by Zoltán Székely include the following: