Egyptian Dance Classes

Although Egyptian dance has been very influenced by the western world, traditional dance of Egypt is still alive and well and popular as ever. It is similar to the belly dance that was popularized in the western world. Egyptian business owners made changes to please their western tourists and customers. But the dance that this came from is unique and characteristic of the dance found in the Middle East and North Africa. In Arabic, the term for this dance form is raqs beledi which translated means folk dance. It is representative of the lower classes dance trends throughout time. These are the dances that have stood the test of time and are popular at dance schools today as Egyptian.

The music of traditional Egypt is very complex in rhythm. This complexity is reflected in the dances of the region as well. It is a rhythm that is very common in oriental and Arabic pop. So the music used is a bit more flexible than other folk dances. The music and the dance are both a 4/4 time but the trick comes in with the stressed beats. Egyptian dance and music stresses some of the accents and in between beats rather than just the first in the phrase or the even counts. This gives lots of license for the dancer to work with.

Some of Egyptian dance and music has a strong improvisational element. The stresses of the beats can change slightly in these circumstances and a musical dancer is required in order to make the best use of the music. The musician can also benefit from being familiar with a dancer's signals, habits, and the basics of the dance. Another type of dance is sharqi which is based on beledi but has more specific purposes. It evolved during the golden age of the Egyptian film industry. It has become the classical style of dance in Egypt and continues to be the basis of dance there.

Egypt is often considered the Mecca of belly dance. But most Egyptian dance looks down on it as does most of the country. There have been laws in place in Egypt since the 1950's that ban the costumes the belly dancers often wear. It is not a respectable form of dance in Egypt and any belly dancers there are often imported. The tradition runs deep for dance in this nation. The classical and traditional are all there is room for.