Taratanci

Taratanci is a mobile game with augmented reality that makes playing and learning Bulgarian folk dances - horo easy, fun and free of charge wherever you are.
Select a horo, point your phone at the floor and follow the steps.

I. What is augmented reality:
Augmented reality allows you to superimpose virtual (non-existent) objects into the environment around you via a mobile device. For example, you can see on the screen of your phone, that on your living room floor appear the steps of the dance you want to learn.

II. Which dances you can learn by playing the game Taratanci*:
• Pravo horo
• Ruka horo
• Elenino horo
• Graovsko horo
* Gradually we will add more dances.

III. How to learn to dance through the game Taratanci:
1. Open the app game;
2. Select a dance from the "SELECT HORO" menu;
3. Press the orange "LEARN THE HORO" button;
4. Choose whether you will learn the horo ("LEARN THE HORO" button) or dance it with music ("DANCE WITH MUSIC" button);
5. Allow the game to access the camera function on your device (see section V);
6. Point your phone down so that it can scan the floor. When the steps of the horo appear, press the "PLACE" button to fix the steps;
7. Step on the starting steps. Press the "START" button;
8. Follow the voice instructions if you are learning the horo, or the music if you are dancing it;
9. Enjoy the game!

IV. What else can you learn through the game Taratanci:
1. In folk dances there are a number of basic movements. We recommend that you learn them before you start to learn dances, as each dance usually contains one or more basic movements. You can learn them from the "BASIC MOVEMENTS" menu. Select the movement you want to learn, point your phone slightly down towards the floor, wait for a silhouette to appear, and tap the screen for a virtual instructor to appear. Repeat the movement after the instructor.
2. In folk dancing, there are six basic foot positions. You can learn them by selecting the first submenu "BASIC POSITIONS" from the menu "BASIC MOVEMENTS". Point your phone slightly down and "tap" to bring up the virtual instructor. Repeat the positions after them.
3. There is an "INFORMATION" button to every horo, where you can find out more about the dance - time signature, folklore region, etc.

V. Allowing access to the phone camera for the scan function:
The game needs to be able to scan the space where the steps of the dance or the virtual instructor will appear. This requires that you allow the game to access the camera feature on your device. You can at any time disable the access to your device's camera.

VI. Give (yourself) a horo:
From the menu "GIVE A HORO" you can open the Taratanci online shop www.taratanci.com, where great educational games and gifts with figures from the steps of over 30 Bulgarian folk dances are available.

VII. The Cause of Taratanci:
Taratanci is a cultural organization with a mission to preserve and promote Bulgarian folklore in today's world. We are the authors of a method for visual representation of Bulgarian folk dances through graphical figures of their steps. So far we have preserved over 100 dances, creating digital figures from the authentic footprints of choreographers and dancers from all over the country.
By buying Taratanci's products, you support the cause of preserving more and more Bulgarian traditional dances for the future generations.

Taratanci is a laureate of the European Cultural Heritage Award "Europa Nostra" for year 2021.

This application was made possible thanks to the financial support of the National Culture Fund.