Morry Gelman Status:   Active Specialty:   German Range:   German, Bavarian, Austrian, international	CLICK TO ENLARGE
Morry Gelman is the premier teacher of Bavarian schuhplattlers and zwiefachers in the United States, teaching at camps, workshops, seminars, and conferences all over North America. He started folk dancing in high school and continued in college in Connecticut and in New York. He continued his involvement in 1946 with the Westwood Folk Dance Co-op in California. In 1947, Morry moved back to his hometown of Minneapolis where he and Dr. Ralph Piper, a professor at the University of Minnesota, formed the Folk Dance Federation of Minnesota. Morry began his teaching career in 1947, teaching Cotton-Eyed Joe, learned from Ray Shaw, who had learned it from his younger brother, the famous Lloyd Shaw. Over the decades since, Morry has taught hundreds of dances that have become popular with folk dancers all over the United States. From 1947 to 1951, Morry taught international dance full time in the upper Midwest. From 1951 to 1956, while working as a Unites States Air Force engineer in Europe, Morry and his wife Nancy lived on an air base just outside of the Bavarian city of Munich, Germany. The couple later moved to Wiesbaden. While in Bavaria, Morry and Nancy were members of a Munich Schuhplattler Trachten Verein dance group. Four of their children were born while Morry was stationed in Germany. In 1958, the couple returned to the United States, moving to Los Angeles, California, where Morry started four folk dance groups. For example, with Walter Grothe's help, Morry approached the Oxnard city government to stage a folk dance festival in City Park and to approve $500 for putting it on. Walter chartered an Army parachute plane and ferried enough performers to form three performing groups from San Francisco to Oxnard for the festival. The following week, Oxnard had a flourishing folk dance group! He also formed Southern California's G.T.E.V. D'Isertal, which performed Bavarian Schuhplattlers and Landlers, one of whose members was Dick Oakes. (Two years later, G.T.E.V. D'Isertal merged with G.T.E.V. D'Oberlandler of which Morry's son, Michael Gelman became "Vorplattler" or lead dance teacher.) In 1971, the Gelman family moved to Baltimore, Maryland, and in 1972, formed a dance group there. In 1973, Morry and Nancy participated in an all-Austrian folk dance and music seminar that was held in the South Tirol that is sponsored each year by the Austrian Folk Dancers Federation, just one of the many trips the couple made to Austria and Germany. Morry worked for NASA at the Maryland Goddard Space Flight Center until his retirement in 1995, where he now volunteers his time. In August of 1999, Morry's beloved Nancy died of lung cancer. For years, Nancy had been a volunteer at the art center at the Montpelier Mansion, built around 1783, helping with special events, decorating the many rooms for holidays, etc., and she really loved the mansion. According to her wishes, her ashes were scattered in one of the gardens there. On October 2, 2004, folk dance friends and family gathered in Maryland to honor Morry's lifelong contribution to German and Austrian dance. He was the first recipient of the "Gretel and Paul Dunsing Lifetime Achievement Award" for his outstanding contribution to German and Alpine dance in the USA. Morry continues to travel to Austria (Innsbruck, Salzburg, and Vienna) to attend Tanz Treffens (dance seminars) and to Germany visit with his Bavarian friends in the Schuhplattler groups of Munich. He regards his friendships with renowned Austrian folklorists as the important result of his visits to Europe. He says that his knowledge of Bavarian and Austrian music and dance would not have been possible without the good will and generosity of spirit of people there, such as Herman Derschmidt, Herbert Lager, Tobi Reiser, and Richard Wolfram that allowed him to introduce many dances, including several Landlers and many Zweifachers. Morry has been blessed with six children: Michael, Nina, Steven, Rick, David, and Tony. Michael Gelman has gone on to become a top dance teacher in his own right, leading the Baltimore Austrian/Bavarian dance group, Schuhplattler Verein Immergruen, in which Morry is still actve. Dances Morry has taught include Ambospolka Schuhplattler, Bauernmadel mit Waltz, Bertschesgadner Bayerischer Polka, Boarischer mit Plattler, Croatian Waltz, Feistritzer Ländler, Fight Plattle, Finsterauer Ländler, Fouka Vítr Vod Hor, Goasjaggl, Haushammer Schuhplattler, Heitauer Schuhplattler, Jäegermarsh, Knoedeldrahner, Kreuz Polka, Ländlerischer, Mainzer Polka, Man in the Hay, Nieder-Bayerische Ländler, Nieder-Bayerische Mazurka, Neppendorfer Ländler, Neubayrisch, Pinzgauer Boarischer, Pinzgauer Wickler, Pongauer Walzer, Ramsauer Kreuzpolka, Rohrbacher Ländler, Rosentaler Steirer, Ruhpoldinger Schuhplattler, Schnupftaback, Reit im Winkl Schuhplattler, Ruhpoldinger Schuhplattler, Steieregger, Turner Schottische, Unterstierer Ländler, Vienna Two Step, Vitiser Ländler, Vítr, Waldhansl (Steirilcher Walzer), Wattentaller Masolka, Woaf, and Zwiefacher. Some of the Zwiefachers Morry has taught include Alte Hopfenschnupfer Zwiefacher Bayerischer Bauer Zwiefacher Das Eisenkeilnest Zwiefacher Deifi Du Dürrer Zwiefacher Die Alte Kath Zwiefacher Die Neun Häuser Zwiefacher Leit, Leit Zwiefacher Nagelschmied Zwiefacher Saulocker Zwiefacher 's Lauda Zwiefacher s'Suserl Zwiefacher Schneider-Schneider Zwiefacher Schubkarrn Zwiefacher Sechs Lëffel Zwiefacher Sechsunddreissiger Zwiefacher Sommermichl Zwiefacher Tauberer Zwiefacher Wintergrün Zwiefacher Zwei, Vier, Sechs Zwiefacher (2,4,6)

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