Grup dansaire Catalunya in San Diego

The Grup Dansaire Catalunya was born in march of 1995. It was presented for the first time in april 30 of 1995 in the Spring Aplec of the Casal dels Catalans de California celebrated in Santa Barbara. Until now the Grup Dansaire has experienced a great evolution. During this evolution the dancing group has had the chance to perform in the TV Channel 22, in the Los Angeles Spanish Consulate, in the Los Angeles City anniversary celebrations, in Hollywood, in the UCLA Compton College and in other events of the Casal dels Catalans de California.

Grup dansaire Catalunya

We are being assisted by the Generalitat de Catalunya, the Casal dels Catalans de California, the Esbart Dansaire d'Horta from Barcelona, the Esbart Dansaire d'Alcoi from Valencia, the Esbart Català de Dansaires from Barcelona, the Esbart folclòric San Martí de Barcelona, and by private individuals from California and Catalonia.

Grup dansaire Catalunya

We are 12 members and 2 assistants that take charge of the audio devices and video recording.

Sardana in Santa Barbara

Here you can see one of the "ballets" that the dancing group performed in the "Open House" from the Casal's president, Peter Balsells.

La Tirotitaina del Pallars

A bit of history:

Origins of the dance: Dancing is defined as an instinctive necessity of the mankind to express its feelings. The word dancing, very similar in several european languages, has its origins in the word ‘tant’ which in sanscrict language means stress, emotions and feelings of the man interacting with the nature. Dancing has been important in all the vital tasks of the mankind: the harvest, the magic, the war... Dancing is an evidence of the nature and existence of the man.

Origins of the esbarts: About the middle of the XIX century, a group of literary young people started to celebrate meetings to read poems. These meetings were called esbartades. Mr. Jacint Verdaguer, who was a distinguished poet, created the esbarts in collaboration with other artists. The esbarts were outdoor events where rhapsodies and poems were recited. From then onward, a grup of people worked in the research and in the diffusion of traditional catalan dances. The first esbart dansaire was created in 1908 and was called "Esbart Català de Dansaires".

Ball de Cintes

Future performances of the Grup Dansaire will be announced in the Casal web site. and in Vilaweb LA. Please, check them periodically for new performances.

Ball de Gitanes del Vallès

 AWARD TO OUR WEB SITE

In Fall 1998 the prizes comitee from the Associació per la dansa tradicional dels Paisos Catalans awarded our web site with the first prize in the information modality. In Fall 1998 the prizes comitee from the Associació per la dansa tradicional dels Paisos Catalans awarded our web site with the first prize in the information modality.

 BALLETS AL NOSTRE REPERTORI

Per obtenir més informació sobre els diferents ballets del nostre repertori, clica a sobre de les imatges o els títols dels ballets.

We are available for any celebration or cultural event. You can contact Joan Comellas, director from the grup dansaire.