❤❤❤ + ,i like to add something, i read that the Egyptians before calling it rasq Sharqi we used to call it Hashk Bashk which means hashk means shaking and bashk means fast
I knew that there were many styles of belly dancing and raqs sharqi before I embraced it, and a lot of the terminology got confusing! For belly dance in US, the way that we named steps ("Moroccan shimmy", "Turkish drop", etc.) had me believing that every country that practices belly dance had completely different foundational techniques. It wasn't until very recently that I began to notice how isolations are more prevalent in western styles, while in Arabic stylings, dancers tend to shift their entire posture for a movement. Upon this discovery, I began to see how the use of different techniques reflect what each side values in their dance. A lot of western dance is very technical and visual-oriented. I see it a lot in Tribal fusion dancers who use a lot of isolation techniques and drum solo enthusiasts. in Middle Eastern dance, I see a much more nuanced interaction with the music, you aren't just seeing what the dancer is doing but feeling what they feel in the music. As for terminology, I have noticed Middle Eastern musicians and dancers tend to use "Oriental dance" and "raqs sharqi" rather than "belly dance". I have read of a few who even hate that term. But in the US, it's the term the dance has evolved with over here. And isolation techniques have really made torso articulation its own craft within American belly dance. I used to think "raqs sharqi" was the stage-oriented version of baladi that was performed in a bedlah, I didn't know that it extended to anything else that didn't fit into folklore! An Egyptian teacher I follow on Instagram said that raqs baladi is the root of the dance, so I guess I simplified the meaning of "raqs sharqi" in my head from there. Thank you for your insight!
Thank you so much for watching my video and for your contribution! I didn't want to go into much detail, but you are right in your observations. We, as Westerners tend to categorize terms and compartmentalize dance movements, mostly to be easier to understand, teach and learn. But Middle-Eastern dancers and musicians make everything more fluid and connected. The moves are more intricated, and don't always have names. The terminology may differ from person to person. From my knowledge, the Baladi style did influence the current Raqs Sharki, but it's origin is more complex. If you get the chance to take Journey through Egypt workshops with Sahra Saida, I highly recommend it. 😊
❤❤❤ + ,i like to add something, i read that the Egyptians before calling it rasq Sharqi we used to call it Hashk Bashk which means hashk means shaking and bashk means fast
I didn't know that! Thank you for contributing! ☺️
I knew that there were many styles of belly dancing and raqs sharqi before I embraced it, and a lot of the terminology got confusing! For belly dance in US, the way that we named steps ("Moroccan shimmy", "Turkish drop", etc.) had me believing that every country that practices belly dance had completely different foundational techniques. It wasn't until very recently that I began to notice how isolations are more prevalent in western styles, while in Arabic stylings, dancers tend to shift their entire posture for a movement.
Upon this discovery, I began to see how the use of different techniques reflect what each side values in their dance. A lot of western dance is very technical and visual-oriented. I see it a lot in Tribal fusion dancers who use a lot of isolation techniques and drum solo enthusiasts. in Middle Eastern dance, I see a much more nuanced interaction with the music, you aren't just seeing what the dancer is doing but feeling what they feel in the music.
As for terminology, I have noticed Middle Eastern musicians and dancers tend to use "Oriental dance" and "raqs sharqi" rather than "belly dance". I have read of a few who even hate that term. But in the US, it's the term the dance has evolved with over here. And isolation techniques have really made torso articulation its own craft within American belly dance.
I used to think "raqs sharqi" was the stage-oriented version of baladi that was performed in a bedlah, I didn't know that it extended to anything else that didn't fit into folklore! An Egyptian teacher I follow on Instagram said that raqs baladi is the root of the dance, so I guess I simplified the meaning of "raqs sharqi" in my head from there. Thank you for your insight!
Thank you so much for watching my video and for your contribution! I didn't want to go into much detail, but you are right in your observations. We, as Westerners tend to categorize terms and compartmentalize dance movements, mostly to be easier to understand, teach and learn. But Middle-Eastern dancers and musicians make everything more fluid and connected. The moves are more intricated, and don't always have names. The terminology may differ from person to person. From my knowledge, the Baladi style did influence the current Raqs Sharki, but it's origin is more complex. If you get the chance to take Journey through Egypt workshops with Sahra Saida, I highly recommend it. 😊
🫶🏽✨🌹