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YinFit Yoga & Bellydance
THE ART OF BELLY DANCING Belly Dance is a Fine Art, a poem in Celebration of Life, told through the graceful flow of movements of all parts of the dancer's body. This ancient women's dance originated in Egypt many centuries ago and has been adapted changed and developed by many cultures as it spread throughout the Middle East and the world. The Egyptian Style of Belly Dance is known as" Raks Sharqui" (arabic for eastern dance) or "Oriental Dance" (as it was called in Europe) and has gained recognition as the best representation of this art form and it is probabably the most beautiful and inspired style of Belly Dance. Through time the music accompanying Belly Dance has also developed greatly. Many new and varied rhytms are added to enhance the dance movements so that the music and the dance form an integrated whole. As Bellydancing has evolved in different ways it's made it's debut on the forum of Fitness and Health for it's amazing benefits on body, mind & energy.Belly Dance is an art of muscular control of each part of the body capturing beauty, sensuality, excitement joy. HISTORY AND CULTURE The captivating Art of Belly Dance, also known as Oriental Dance, came to the West during the height of what was called Orientalism ( late 1800s), when artists, writers and travelers were fascinated with the culture of what was then called the Orient. Flaubert's paintings, Fitzgerald's translation of the Rubiyat of Omar Khayyam, and the tale "The Arabian Nights" are just a few of the expressions of this fascination that are still popular today. In the Middle East, people have always danced to entertain themselves, and there is a class of professional dancers who have traditionally been hired to perform at weddings and other celebrations. In the West, dance is taught formally in classes; in the Middle East, children learn to dance as early as they learn to walk, from relatives and friends at social gatherings. Belly Dance itself came to the United States at the Chicago World's Fair of 1893, with the appearance of the dancer Little Egypt. Much of the audience was entranced, and consequently, many of the dance moves were picked up by various venues such as vaudeville and burlesque shows. It also found enough true students that it has evolved into a performing art in the West, and of course, it was in constant refinement in its homeland, the Middle East, where it is known by the name Raks Sharki. Authentic teachers were brought from Egypt and elsewhere to teach. Dedicated artists in the West set about researching and documenting Oriental dance, as well as teaching classes. The last two decades have seen a revival in the interest in belly dance. With the advent of the Information Age, people everywhere have become interested in Belly Dance. Oriental dance artists in demand for their knowledge and expertise, and new scholars and instructors are emerging rapidly around the world. Today Oriental dance artists and performers can be found worldwide, from Australia to Japan, and from Europe to Americas. The movements of Belly Dance are quite distinct from western dance forms. Instead of large traveling steps, and leaps and jumps to travel across a large performance space, you see small movements, making use of the torso and especially the hips. Subtlety is the key here, with a belly dancer often making use of a small dance space (as opposed to the large stage usually seen in ballet) and creating small, intricate movements, enhancing the music creating an exhilarating and moving experience for the audience. Belly Dance is distinctly rooted in the music itself. Watch any experienced dancer, and you will see that her performance is a tangible expression of the music being played. Arabic music has many nuances, from complex rhythms to a larger range of notes from which to draw its compositions. The Belly Dancer draws from this complexity to create her performance, whether it be an improvised performance or choreographed one. While there are many Oriental Dance artists who consistently use traditional and classical dance music today, one also sees outside influences. Both new compositions are used as well as new arrangements of traditional and popular songs. Some performers use modern, western, world fusion music in their performances while others use modern Middle Eastern compositions. Belly Dance ranges from solo dancers, either in an improvisational or choreographed style, to ensembles of dancers with choreography. ______________________________________________________ Khalil Gibran - Author of The Prophet, Poet, Philosopher, Artist - Born in Lebanon and lived in USA for 20 years - 1883 -1931 THE DANCER An Excerpt from The Wanderer by Khalil Gibran: Once there came to the court of the Prince of Birkasha a dancer and her musicians. And she was admitted to the court. And she danced to the music of the flute, the lute, and the zither. She danced the dance of flames and fire, and the dance of swords and sprears; she danced the dance of stars and the dance of space, and then she danced the dance of flowers in the wind. When she had finished, she approached the prince and bowed her body before him. The prince waved her to come nearer, and said unto her, "Beautiful woman, daughter of gace and delight, where comes your art? And how is it that you command all the elements in you rythyms and your rhymes?" And the dancer came near and bowed her body again and said," Gracious majesty, I know not the answer to your questionings. Only this I know: The philosopher's soul dwells within his head, the poet's soul dwells within his heart, the singer's soul dwells about his throat, but the soul of the dancer abides in all her body!" _______________________________________________ Just Dance! By Annie Close your eyes You have learned enough techniques Now let you soul lead your body how Tell yourself this is about loving myself This dance is about feeling good about myself I feel beautiful! I feel sensual! I feel Sexy! I love my body, I allow my body to feel my soul My soul will lead my dance Listen to the music, hear the music Move with the music The mind simply knows Just let it happen let the soul take over Just dance! |
| History, Art & Culture of Bellydance |
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