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The
dance, which we all know as “belly dance”, has gone
by many names. The French named it "dance du ventre",
or dance of the stomach. It is known in Greece as the ciftetelli
(also the name of a Turkish rhythm), in Turkey as rakkase and in
Egypt as Raks Sharki. In the Middle East it is also called "danse
orientale". It developed through the influence of many different
areas and continues its long process of development today. |
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| "Belly dance" is recognized as a dance style of its own. There are several points that make oriental dance different from other dance forms and reveal its diverse heritage. Although in some countries it is thought be unlucky to touch a belly dancer. |  |
| In Egypt today, it is still the custom for the bride and groom to hire a belly dancer for their wedding, and to take a picture with their hands on the belly dancer's stomach. This is an obvious reference to the dance's relation to ancient fertility cults. | |
| It is traditionally danced barefoot. There are other forms of dance which are done barefoot, but most do not meet all of the criteria which will be mentioned + relevant form is Spanish dance. Most Flamenco dance is done with shoes on. In modern times, some famous Egyptian dancers perform in high heels as a way of showing their audiences in a very poor culture that they can afford to wear shoes. This does not affect the traditional reason that dancers danced barefoot: namely, because it connects one directly to Mother Earth. | |
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Belly dance grew out the traditions of eastern music. Although modern belly dancers use music that is western-influenced to varying degrees, the rhythmic influences of near and Middle Eastern music created a music form that is fundamentally different from that which developed in the west. |
| Western music came to depend upon the natural sense of tension and relaxation, a regular rhythm of in and out, and melodies that built upon a progression of chords. Eastern music, however, relies on the rhythms that lead the melody and lend variety to the patterns. Whereas the even flow of western music relies on changes in tempo for variety, the eastern musician hardly mentions standard tempos of music. | |
| In addition, eastern music typically begins with an arrhythmic, or free rhythm introduction known as "taqsim" (or division). Vocal music in the east is allowed complete freedom from standard tempo or rhythm when not accompanied by a rhythm instrument. Western rhythms are multiplicative or divisive whereas eastern rhythms are additive. | |
| This means simply that western rhythms break down evenly into so that a 4/4 is twice as long as a 2/4. By contrast, Eastern rhythms are a series of smaller patterns strung together and cannot be evenly divided as in the following examples: 3+2+2=7, 2+2+2+3=9 and 4+3+3=10. |  |
| The
dancers often use some type of rhythm instrument to aid the musicians,
or as the sole accompaniment to their dance. The earliest dancer's
finger cymbals were made of metal, upturned rim, measuring 2-7/16"
in diameter. It is said that Spanish Gypsies, who are traditionally associated with the spread of eastern dance, did not originally use castanets, moving with "easy, undulating soft movements of the arms and hands, reflecting his eastern ethnic heritage. |
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| The early gypsies felt no need for devices beyond their own innate, rhythmic hand clapping, finger snapping, clicking of the tongue, and often tapping of a stick. However, even though gypsies have taken up the use of castanets, many still play them in the primitive manner, on the middle finger instead of the thumb. Thus, references to "metal castanets". Modern finger cymbals are played with a cymbal on each middle finger and thumb. | |
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Oriental dance is uniquely designed for the female body, with an emphasis on abdominal muscles, hip moves, and chest moves. It is firm and earthy, with bare feet connected to the ground. It is a dance characterized by smooth, flowing, complex, and sensual movements of the torso, alternated with shaking and shimmy type moves. |
| Eastern dances are considered to be different because they are "muscle dances", as opposed to the European "step" dances. In traditional belly dancing the knee is never lifted higher than the hip. | |
| The spectators pay the dancer directly in the form of coins or cash thrown on the floor or placed on the dancer's body. There is no other dance form in which this occurs. Today, dancers wear costumes decorated with "dowry" coins. A dancer would go into a backbend to receive the money, which would be moistened and placed on the dancer's upturned face. It is still the custom `a belly dancer receives money while she dances, and there is no other kind of professional dancer who receives money directly from her audience. | |
| Although belly dance developed from the dances of the people, or folk dance, belly dance tends to evolve into a dance for professional dancers and trained soloists. Oriental dance evolved toward more sophisticated moves requiring some training, and to its performance by solo dancers in a totally improvisational style or ensembles of 2-3 dancers with choreography. At the same time, various forms of eastern dance continue to be used in a medicinal or religious sense in the various trance dances found throughout the Middle East today. | |