What is that instrument that I hear? The Mizmar
The Mizmar is a traditional Middle Eastern instrument found in Egypt, the Levant, Turkey and North Africa known for its unique sound. It is also known by a few other names with slight variation in style and materials, the “zurna” in Turkish, the “zamr” in the Levant, and “rhaita” in Morocco.
Music Appreciation: Egyptian Instruments
When you first start learning Egyptian Oriental dance and begin to piece together a belly dance music collection, you are bombarded (understandably) by sounds that you’ve never heard, by instruments you don’t know, with lyrics you can’t understand. Learning about Arabic music, in this case Egyptian, can feel like an uphill battle and if it weren’t for the “call of the drums” many of us would give up on getting familiar with it all together. However, with a little immersion, you…
Singer Spotlight: Abdel Halim Hafez
Abdel Halim Hafez is one of Egypt’s greatest singers. Almost 60 years later, we are still using some of his most popular tunes in our performances. Some of his songs were quite long, over an hour in length, and we are most familiar with them as individual movements of the same song. Here is my top 10 list of songs performed by him. Where possible, I will post the full and shorter versions. Note: You will be able to find…
Khaleegi: Better Understanding the Arabian Gulf’s Thobe Dance & Music
For several weeks now, I have been introducing Khaleegi (Arabian Gulf) movement, more specifically Saudi, to my students. To help students better understand the thobe (nasha’al) dance with its lovely footwork and hair tosses, as well as to give them a better idea of different musical styles of the region, I have created a few YouTube playlists for you to explore the rich dance and music traditions of the Arabian Gulf. For many years, dancers and researches from outside this…
Choosing a Great Song for Your Belly Dance Performances Part 2
Part 2 of 2: Don’t regret your song choice! Choose the right music before you create a choreography or use it in your improvisation to make the most of each performance.
Choosing a Great Song for Your Belly Dance Performances Part 1
Part 1 of 2: Don’t regret your song choice! Choose the right music before you create a choreography or use it in your improvisation to make the most of each performance.
