"Imagine this: there was a time in history, a long time ago, when the bounce and sway of a woman's hips was considered so beautiful that they set it to music and made a dance out of it…"
FCBD®Style celebrates the strength and beauty of women working together as a group. Formatted steps, cues, eye-contact and the familiarity of musical phrasing allow dancers to stitch together an improvisational tapestry each time they dance.
NB! The following material is meant for everybody, who are interested in tribal style bellydance and what this style has been influenced by, but it is not a learning-book, rather it is an extra material provided to those dancers, who are already learning tribal belly dance style.
You can ask more info about the steps and dance vocabulary from your teacher on nearest studio, that teaches tribal belly dance in your location.
Please note, that the order goes: first photo and then explanation. Enjoy! :)
Photo: FatChance®Style Belly Dance
FCBD - FatChance®Style Belly Dance (FCBD®) is a modern style of dance created by FatChanceBellyDance® director, Carolena Nericcio.
On
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Carolena Nericcio - American Tribal Style® looja ja FatChanceBellyDance® grupi asutaja
Megha Gavin - Founder and Director of Devyani Dance Company and Co-Director of Tribal Pura International.
Masha Archer - jewelry artist founder of SF Classic Dance Troupe, dance teacher of Carolena Nericcio, former student of Jamila Salimpour. Jamilia's student, Masha Archer, began improvising in the 1970s. Masha left Jamilia's group before learning how to choreograph so she made up improvisation to fill the gap: she taught improv by simply never choreographing. Masha sought to take belly dance out of nightclubs and restaurants and her main goal was for an artistic presentation, therefore, she was not concerned with recreating a specific culture or group.Ref. http://www.tribalbellydance.org/articles/atshistory.html
Jamila Salimpour - Over 50 years ago, in 1949, dance pioneer and instructor. Jamila Salimpour taught her first belly dance classes, establishing the Salimpour School of Dance in San Francisco, California. Her revolutionary approach to teaching belly dance left an undeniable mark on the art form, beginning in the San Francisco Bay Area, then across the United States, and today, throughout the world. https://www.salimpourschool.com/jamila-salimpour-belly-dance-myths/
Choli - A choli (Hindi: चोली, Gujarati: ચોળી, Marathi: चोळी, Nepali: चोलो cholo) (known in South India as ravike (Kannada: ರವಿಕೆ, Telugu: రవికె, Tamil: ரவிக்கை)) is a blouse or a bodice-like upper garment that is commonly cut short leaving the midriff bare, it is worn along with a sari in the Indian subcontinent. The choli is also part of the ghagra choli costume in the Indian subcontinent. In Northern Gujarat bordering Rajasthan, Palanpur in particular (Banaskantha), Polku, Gujarati: પોલકું word was used. Ref.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Choli
Dupatta - Dupatta, Chunari, Chunariya, Orhni, or Odhani, is a shawl-like scarf, women's traditionally essential clothing from the Indian subcontinent. The dupatta is currently used most commonly as part of the women's shalwar kameez costume, and worn over the kurta and the gharara. Ref. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dupatta
Tribe - The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant usage of the term is in the discipline of anthropology. The definition is contested, in part due to conflicting theoretical understandings of social and kinship structures, and also reflecting the problematic application of this concept to extremely diverse human societies. The concept is often contrasted by anthropologists with other social and kinship groups, being hierarchically larger than a lineage or clan, but smaller than a chiefdom, nation or state. These terms are equally disputed. In some cases tribes have legal recognition and some degree of political autonomy from national or federal government, but this legalistic usage of the term may conflict with anthropological definitions. Ref. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tribe
Bedouin - The Bedouin or Bedu (/ˈbɛduɪn/;[16] Arabic: بَدْو, romanized: badw, singular بَدَوِي badawī) are a grouping of nomadic Arab people who have historically inhabited the desert regions in North Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, Iraq and the Levant.[17] The English word bedouin comes from the Arabic badawī, which means "desert dweller", and is traditionally contrasted with ḥāḍir, the term for sedentary people.[18] Bedouin territory stretches from the vast deserts of North Africa to the rocky sands of the Middle East.[19] They are traditionally divided into tribes, or clans (known in Arabic as ʿašāʾir; عَشَائِر), and historically share a common culture of herding camels and goat.[19] The vast majority of Bedouin adhere to Islam, although there are some fewer numbers of Arab Christian Bedouins present in the Fertile Crescent.[20][13][14][21] Bedouins have been referred to by various names throughout history, including Qedarites in the Old Testament and Arabaa by the Assyrians (ar-ba-a-a being a nisba of the noun Arab, a name still used for Bedouins today). They are referred to as the ʾAʿrāb (أعراب) in the Quran. Ref. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bedouin
Ghawazee - Egyptian group of Ghawazi dancers(c. 1880) The Ghawazi (also ghawazee) (Egyptian Arabic: رقص الغوازي) were a group of female traveling dancers. They first started as Egyptian Gypsies, then the Ghawzis extensively practiced and developed among rural Egyptians or Fellahin, who then developed a more rural and traditional style accompanied by Rural Egyptian songs and colorful dresses of the Fellahin and became a theme of Rural Egypt. Over the years, Upper Egyptians (Sa'idis) mastered and then developed a different style of traditional Saidi dancing that's accompanied by Egyptian mizmar flute and Qena and Assuit's traditional female clothing of Telli (Egyptian Arabic: تلي)) , a super silky type of local fabric. That Upper Egyptian style is the most famous.
The Ghawazee dancers are some of the indigenous professional dancers of Egypt. These traditional entertainers are becoming harder and harder to find as time passes. There are main movements and positioning of two of the most popular Ghawazee groups that are found in Modern Egypt; the Banat Mazin (Egyptian Arabic: بنات مازن) of Luxor and the Sumbati Ghawazee (Egyptian Arabic: غوازي السنباطي) of the Nile Delta. Banat Mazin are famous for their traditional Upper Egyptian vintage-style costume, so you can see how the movements would be affected by the costuming. The Sagat (finger cymbals), are optional but recommended in the Upper Egyptian/Saidi style.[1]
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Nomadic hunting and gathering—following seasonally available wild plants and game—is by far the oldest human subsistence method.[5] Pastoralists raise herds, driving or accompanying in patterns that normally avoid depleting pastures beyond their ability to recover.[citation needed]
Nomadism is also a lifestyle adapted to infertile regions such as steppe, tundra, or ice and sand, where mobility is the most efficient strategy for exploiting scarce resources. For example, many groups living in the tundra are reindeer herders and are semi-nomadic, following forage for their animals.
Sometimes also described as "nomadic" are the various itinerant populations who move among densely populated areas to offer specialized services (crafts or trades) to their residents—external consultants, for example. These groups are known[by whom?] as "peripatetic nomads".[6][7]
Saidi - Egyptian Saidi and Raks Assaya
Saidi is pronounced Sah-EE-dee. Alternate spellings include Sa’idi, Saiidi, Sayyidi, and Saeedi. Raks Assaya is often written as Raks Al Assaya or Rakset Assaya. (Raks = Dance)
Saidi dance is a folkloric dance (one of the baladi dances) from the Sa’id, a rural area in Southern (Upper) Egypt. The dance style includes a lot of energetic bouncy footwork and horse-styled steps, and frequently incorporates a stick or cane, called an Assaya (Arabic for stick). Saidi-style Raks al Assaya is the classic masculine dance of the Egyptian stage.
Raks Saidi: A dance from the Said region of Egypt, often (but not always) done with a stick or cane.
Raks Al Assaya: Dance with a stick or cane. Often done in Saidi style, but not always.
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The Tuaregs have been called the "blue people" for the indigo dye coloured clothes they traditionally wear and which stains their skin.[7][8] A semi-nomadic Muslim people, they are believed to be descendants of the Berber natives of North Africa.[9] The Tuareg have been one of the ethnic groups that have been historically influential in the spread of Islam and its legacy in North Africa and the adjacent Sahel region.[10]
Ghoomar - Ghoomar is a traditional folk dance of Rajasthan. It was Bhil tribe who performed it to worship Goddess Sarasvati which was later embraced by other Rajasthani communities.[1][2][3][4][5] The dance is chiefly performed by veiled women who wear flowing dresses called ghaghara.[6] It was ranked 4th in the list of "Top 10 local dances around the world" in 2013.[7][8] The dance typically involves performers pirouetting while moving in and out of a wide circle. The word ghoomna describes the twirling movement of the dancers and is the basis of the word ghoomar.[9][10]
Zills - Zills, also zils or finger cymbals (from Turkish zil, "cymbals"), are small metallic cymbals used in belly dancing and similar performances.[1] They are called sājāt (صاجات) in Arabic.[2][3] They are similar to Tibetan tingsha bells. In western music, several pairs of zills can be set in a frame to make a tambourine. A set of zills consists of four cymbals, two for each hand. Zills come in a range of sizes, the most common having a diameter of about 5 cm (2 in). Different sizes and shapes of zills will produce sounds that differ in volume, tone and resonance. For instance, a dancer performing with an orchestra will use a larger zill with more volume, whereas many belly dancers may use a zill with a more delicate sound, depending on the venue and whether their music is live or recorded, amplified or acoustic. American Tribal dancers typically use a much larger zill with a more mellow tone. Ref. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zill
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A keski is a type of turban, a long piece of cloth roughly half the length of a traditional "single turban", but not cut and sewn to make a double-width "Double Turban" (or Double Patti).[2]
Wearing turbans is common among Sikhs, including women.[3] The headgear also serves as a religious observance, including among Shia Muslims, who regard turban-wearing as Sunnah Mu'akkadah (confirmed tradition).[4]
The turban is also the traditional headdress of Sufi scholars. Additionally, turbans have often been worn by nobility, regardless of religious background. They are also sometimes donned to protect hair or as a headwrap for women following cancer treatments.[5]
Harem pants - Harem pants or harem trousers are baggy, long pants caught in at the ankle. Early on, the style was also called a harem skirt.[1] The original so-called 'harem pants/skirts' were introduced to Western fashion by designers such as Paul Poiret around 1910, although they themselves were inspired by Middle East styles, and by şalvar (Turkish trousers).[2][3] The term 'harem pants' subsequently became popular in the West as a generic term for baggy trousers caught in at the ankle that suggest the Turkish style, or similar styles such as bloomers, the South Asian shalwar and patiala salwar; the Bosnian dimije; sirwal (as worn by Zouaves); and the Ukrainian sharovary.
Bindi - A bindi (Hindi: बिंदी, from Sanskrit बिन्दु bindú, meaning "point, drop, dot or small particle") is a colored dot worn on the center of the forehead, originally by Hindus and Jains from the Indian subcontinent. The word bindu dates back to the hymn of creation known as Nasadiya Sukta in the Rigveda.[1] Bindu is considered the point at which creation begins and may become unity. It is also described as "the sacred symbol of the cosmos in its unmanifested state".[2][3]
