‘Ustalar Kilic Kalkan’ or Masters of Sword-and-Shield Dancing ensemble will be joining the line-up of the Sixteenth Spasskaya Tower International Military Music Festival. Joining forces with the Mehter Ensemble, our guests from Turkey will be performing Turkish traditional folk dance ‘Kalkan-Kilic’, based on the sword and shield waving movements.
Tattoo fans will enjoy a spectacular fusion of music and dance showcasing the country’s unique trooping customs and narrating about the army’s courage and bravery.
Kalkan-Kilic dance is believed to have originated among the Ottoman soldiers during the conquest of the ancient Byzantine city of Bursa in 1326. Grouped in twos or fours, the soldiers engaged in dance, displaying a variety of battlefield patterns and striking their swords and shields, thereby effectively intimidating the adversary and reinvigorating the troops. The conquest was a triumph, and Sultan Osman Gazi’s troops entered the city gates, executing Kalkal-Kilic movements. For a brief period Bursa served as the capital of the young Ottoman Empire. Subsequently, it lost its capital status, yet remained the principal trade and religious center of the empire.
The Kalkan-Kilic folk dance has been the emblem of Bursa for seven centuries, and it is currently being performed at various solemn occasions and ceremonies. One of the oldest dancing acts in the world, it is one of the few traditional dances that are not accompanied by music. Nevertheless, when swords and shields clash, a precise rhythm emerges.
Although performed with symbolic swords and shields, Kalkan-Kilic is not about war. Dancers emphasize unity and harmony, reiterating that we should be having fun, rather than fighting.
Members of the Ustalar Kilic Kalkan Ensemble have been diligently celebrating their nation’s history and upholding the kalkan dancing tradition by safeguarding the authenticity of the movements through generations. The dancers wear traditional attire with authentic patterns, and their swords and shields are made of toughened steel.
Farouk Alkai has been in charge of the ensemble for 23 years. Hailing from Bursa, he has been practicing traditional sword dances for over 50 years. Acclaimed both at home and abroad, the artists have performed in more than 150 countries across all five continents, and are known for winning some of the most prestigious international festivals.
The Sixteenth Spasskaya Tower International Military Music Festival will unfold on Moscow’s Red Square from August 23 to September 1.
In 2023, the Spasskaya Tower Festival won the second grant contest from the Presidential Foundation for Cultural Initiatives.
It’s being carried out following the Order of the Russian President Vladimir Putin, under the aegis of the Public Council headed by Mr. Alexander Zhukov, First Deputy Chairman of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation, and enjoying the long-standing support of the Russian MoD, MFA and Moscow’s Department of Culture.
