A Shock to the System: How Hungarian Dance Groups are Coping with Covid-19 (Accepted)

Type of Abstract (select):

Abstract (max. 250 words):
Community is at the center of Hungarian dance groups in the US and Canada, and dance often provides the focus and organization for events and celebrations in the Hungarian community. In addition, dance is a pillar of youth education. Hungarian dance groups are communities in themselves, growing friendships and families out of devotion to dance and each other. The sudden effect of cancellation of activities and isolation in 2020 caused by Covid-19 shocked this bond. How can a medium built on physical contact continue when there is none? How have the varying beliefs, attitudes, and political responses swirling around the virus affected the behavior of group members? What is the impact of individual decisions on what the group can do? This study explores the effect of Covid-19 on dance communities in the Eastern US and Canada. Using personal interviews and records of events, it discusses specific challenges and ways of coping, and how groups struggled to maintain a memory of the “before time” and preserve their values. International Folk Dance in the US/Canada is intertwined with Hungarian dance activity, offering revelatory comparisons. I will also make a comparison with European activities over the same period. Communities surveyed include those in New York; New Brunswick; Washington, DC; Boston; Detroit; Montreal; and Sarasota.


Brief Professional Bio (max. 100 words):
Judith E. Olson (NYU, U Colorado) historical musicologist working with traditional Hungarian music/dance in Romania, Hungary, and among Hungarians in the United States/Canada. She combines research in traditional settings, Hungarian dance camps, and revival groups with analysis of dance/music structure, process, and improvisation. She presents frequently at International Council for Traditional Music, International Musicological Society, Analytical Approaches to World Music, Society for Ethnomusicology, and AHEA. She performs research and organizes táncház in New York City with Hungarian House and American Hungarian Folklore Centrum. Secondary research areas include International Folk Dancing in the US, Balkan brass bands, and 19th-century German music/culture.