ABSTRACT. Zlateva notes that many of the spiritual creations of the Romanian people are inspired by pastoral life (a number of ballads, songs and dances commemorate shepherds and shepherding). Kraft writes that the immediate appeal of village dancing must have had much to do with its being an intensely social experience; inasmuch as Transylvanian village traditions usually have a large inventory of dance figures, much depends on how those figures are put to use. Beissinger remarks that weddings represent the most commemorated ritual event of the life cycle in Romanian society; music, performed by lautari, plays a central role at weddings.