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The other day, I picked up some pink paint swatches. I'm considering repainting my bedroom (currently a light green) in a color that I spent years "hating"; or, more accurately, not allowing myself to like. Femme folks (girls, trans-women, cis-women, femme-presenting non-binary folks, and other shades of lady-like), and really everyone else too, have all gotten plenty of messages throughout our lives that "girly" things are bad. I think this quote from the intro to a Madonna song sums up society's attitude well.
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If you've taken my classes, you've heard me talk about how raqs is traditionally improvised, about the cultural value of the feeling in the moment, and probably about how impossible it is to do choreography in a restaurant or birthday party-type gig.
From level 2 on, please pick a song each week to familiarize yourself with. Keep an ear out for songs you might like to dance to at student shows!
From level 2 on, please pick a song each week to familiarize yourself with. Keep an ear out for songs you might like to dance to at student shows!
Over-dancing is something like that awkward stage of adolescence, a development stage that most intermediate dance students go through. We know a lot of what to do, but that lack of experience leaves a certain immaturity to how we do it.
Now, I don't mean levels in terms of how skilled a dancer is, this post is about how zoomed in, or out, on the music you are. Each level of musicality corresponds to different skills you can practice. You've probably taken classes or workshops around these levels. Maybe you're about to sign up for workshops at a festival and are trying to pick from different topics, or maybe you are looking back a smattering of learning and wondering how it all fits together. Hopefully (and if you're in my class, I've sent this to you as part of your level 2 information) you're reading this ahead of time, so you can see how the things we're doing in class build into a whole.
 A good map makes exploring more fun, you can strike out confident that you'll be able to find your way back. In dance, mapping the music is my favorite way to structure improvisation, prevent over-dancing, and create texture and interest in a dance. It's also the backbone of how I keep track of what part of the song I am making choreography notes about, and how I find patterns in a song to use for the choreographies I make for students.
Takeem (also spelled taqasim, taqsim, takseem, taxim, etc, etc) is a solo melodic improvisation. There is a structure to it that explores the maqam the taxeem is in and returns to the home note established at the start. There is more to it that gets pretty technical, for now you should just be aware that it is the musician following their feeling and displaying artistry. One interesting thing, it means "division" in Arabic, and something along the lines of "bridge/connection" in Turkish. It is often used to create a smooth transition from one song to another, especially if there is a maqam (mode/scale/key) change from one song to the next.
Part 1:This semester, we've worked on musical phrasing and learning to identify different instruments. All of that comes together when a band or orchestra plays. So, let's look at some different types of bands!
I like to start teaching phrasing with call and response because I think the change between the call and the response helps to draw attention to the end of one "sentence" and the start of another. There are three main types of call and response, but the lines between them are blurry and the categories are more guides for understanding that call and responses can sound differently, they are not hard rules.
This is intended as a source of review for students, or as an orientation. It is by no means an exhaustive list of all MENAHT instruments, but it is a good foundation list of instruments for raqs sharki dancers to be able to recognize in their music. For a more comprehensive list of Middle Eastern instruments, go here. As you learn to identify the sounds of each instrument, practice interpreting their textures. Over time, you will develop certain associations, or moves that "feel right for this sound" to you. Look also at the how the musicians play, their faces and their hands, for information about the feeling and ideas about how fast/slow or sharp/smooth you might want to move. Studying taxeem (solo improvisation on a melodic instrument) is also a key skill as you progress in your dancing.
This is intended as a source of review for students, or as an orientation. It is by no means an exhaustive list of all MENAHT instruments, but it is a good foundation list of instruments for raqs sharki dancers to be able to recognize in their music. For a more comprehensive list of Middle Eastern instruments, go here. As you learn to identify the sounds of each instrument, practice interpreting their textures. Over time, you will develop certain associations, or moves that "feel right for this sound" to you. Look also at the how the musicians play, their faces and their hands, for information about the feeling and ideas about how fast/slow or sharp/smooth you might want to move. Studying taxeem (solo improvisation on a melodic instrument) is also a key skill as you progress in your dancing.
Blown instruments are closest to the human voice which, being capable of religious praising, puts them at the top of the musician's hierarchy. This is intended as a source of review for students, or as an orientation. It is by no means an exhaustive list of all MENAHT instruments, but it is a good foundation list of instruments for raqs sharki dancers to be able to recognize in their music. For a more comprehensive list of Middle Eastern instruments, go here. As you learn to identify the sounds of each instrument, practice interpreting their textures. Over time, you will develop certain associations, or moves that "feel right for this sound" to you. Look also at the how the musicians play, their faces and their hands, for information about the feeling and ideas about how fast/slow or sharp/smooth you might want to move. Studying taxeem (solo improvisation on a melodic instrument) is also a key skill as you progress in your dancing.
Percussion Instruments form the backbone of the music. Rhythms even impact the emphasis patterns of the melody. Each percussion instrument gives a different feeling. This post is a place for level 2 students to find resources to support the rhythms and drum solo semester of classes. It is by NO MEANS a comprehensive list of rhythms! For the most part, the rhythms we start with are the most commonly used in bellydance music, there is a certain bias towards Egyptian music in this class. Count on continuing to learn more rhythms each semester.
When working on mapping out a song's verses/section, what I like to call paragraphs, there are some common pattens they can take. You can find examples of these listen in the "Egyptian Music Appreciation and Practice for Bellydancers" book and CD set I keep bringing up in class.
A musical phrase is a bit like a sentence in a conversation. You will notice there are some places that you naturally try to fit in a breath, and some places where you might have to awkwardly squeeze one in. Those places where a breath naturally fits are the ends of a sentence/phrase. (As I mentioned in class, a sentence is just a way I conceptualize what a musician more properly calls a musical phrase). Just like in a conversation, it's not usually a good idea to switch topics in the middle of a sentence! Unless the music has some sort of change happening during the phrase, you usually want to stick with the movement you're doing until the end of a phrase. Again, this is a general guideline to help overcome the tendency to over dance that most students go though, it is not a rule.
Welcome to bellydance class! If you're taking Lisa's level one class, you'll want to add finger cymbals by the time you start your 5th month of class. Here's what to look for, and how to get three different sounds out of your cymbals.  We've all been there: you made time to practice, got your hip scarf on, and then are standing in front of a mirror wondering what to do. This is by no means the be all, end all of practice methods. Some of the most skilled dancers I know practice by just putting music on, dancing for a song or two, and then spending some time on whatever didn't feel right for them. You don't NEED to have a set structure, but if you find yourself spending more time trying to pick what to practice than actually dancing, this should help.
Articles
Although both "Arabic Classics" and "raqs sharki entrance numbers" use the sound of an orchestra, and many of the classics can be danced to, they are quite different genres. Arabic Classics were the pop music of the 40s, 50s, 60s, and even 70s and 80s. Created by composers like Abdel Wahab and Baligh Hamdi, and brought to life by singers like Om Kalthoom, Abdel Halim Hafez (also a composer), Asmahan, and Warda. Raqs Sharki entrance numbers were composed just for the dancer, usually by the band she employed. We'll learn more about all of these, and the Turkish genre called Arabesk, during levels 2 and 3, when each week includes a "must know song". Articles
There are many ways raqs sharqi can be healing: it brings us back emotionally in touch with our bodies, balances physical muscle imbalances, builds confidence, provides a creative outlet, and creates community. In Egyptian and other MENAHT cultures, there are also dance rituals specifically for psychological healing, one of which is the zaar. Although it is illegal due to it's pagan roots, folks who need that sort of outlet still find a way. Roxanne talks about one ritual she witnessed in this article. Articles
There is a concept in Arabic music called Tarab, which loosely means "the ecstasy of listening" and is a sort of trance like state of just being immersed in, one with, and carried away by the music as you let it move you (physically and emotionally). Articles
I mentioned the more traditional way of teaching this class. Western way of teaching and learning, with a very codified way of doing things is not traditional to how raqs sharki (Eastern dance, AKA bellydance) was learned. For centuries, professional dancers were from families of entertainers and so they learned from a very young age. I try to combine how Americans are comfortable learning with more traditional teaching styles, to prepare you to really appreciate how many native dancers prefer to teach. This article from Leila (an American who had a successful career in Cairo for many years) talks about how important it is to be able to learn in this way. Articles
I promised short articles each week to give the dance some context. This week: a little on the history of bellydance, and the difficulties of reconstructing the past of a folk dance. This article is a bit about how hard it is to pin down the exact origins of raqs sharqi. Lots of myths have been created to try and explain the history, but it is likely that, in spite of more research into the early 20th century being published in English, we won't ever have firm answers for the first origins. |
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AuthorLisa Lumina is the primary author of student readings. Guest authors are indicated on their posts. Archives
August 2025
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