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Tribal Style Belly Dance and Tribal Fusion
There are many dance troupes and solo dancers who call their dance style “tribal” or “tribal fusion”. This can be confusing as often the dances seem to have very little in common with each other except for some similarities in costuming. Here I give a brief description of a few of the different styles which come under the umbrella of “tribal”. The best explanations I have read are written by Kajira Djoumahna in her book The Tribal Bible (out of print, I got one of the last 4 copies) and many of my ideas come from her.
True Tribal dance is a dance from an existing tribe of people, performed using their traditional moves and costuming.
There are many dance troupes and solo dancers who call their dance style “tribal” or “tribal fusion”. This can be confusing as often the dances seem to have very little in common with each other except for some similarities in costuming. Here I give a brief description of a few of the different styles which come under the umbrella of “tribal”. The best explanations I have read are written by Kajira Djoumahna in her book The Tribal Bible (out of print, I got one of the last 4 copies) and many of my ideas come from her.
True Tribal dance is a dance from an existing tribe of people, performed using their traditional moves and costuming.
British Tribal Style ©. Pauline Quereshi is developing her own unique brand of tribal style belly dance which draws from ATS and incorporates variations on moves and original combinations. It leans towards the “dark side” in music and style and could be described as funky and urban rather than folkloric. As with ATS you can only call your style BTS if you are affiliated with Pauline.
Sheherazade Tribal Fusion style. In our troupe, Omega (O MAY GA), we believe in having the freedom to borrow and create. Mostly we fuse ATS with BTS, Egyptian dance, Bollywood and tribal fusion. We usually dance as an interactive group, using improvisation to perform learned moves, but occasionally put together a choreographed dance.
I have taken part in tribal workshops taught by Kajira Djoumahna of Black Sheep Tribe, by Tribe of Kizmet, Morai Tribe, Sam Riggs and Heidi Alexander of Doomba, Sharon Kihara of Bellydance Superstars, Chris Ogden of UK Tribal, Angela Noble of Tribe Zuza, Dawn Obrian and others, including 1 ˝ years dancing with Pauline Quereshi of BTS. In addition, I continue to learn from DVDs by Carolena Nericcio of Fat Chance Belly Dance, Kajira Djoumahna, Sera, Bellydance Superstars, Kassar and others.
Tribal Fusion is a fusion of tribal costuming, Egyptian belly dance moves, ATS moves, and creative moves added by the dancer. It is often danced as a solo or as a duet. The music is distinctively unusual and employs percussive sounds from a variety of sources, ranging from ethnic instruments to electronic sources. Moves may come from yoga, gymnastics, Indian classical or bollywood, African folk, or the dancer’s own creativity, but usually includes serpentine movements, pops and locks. “Mystery” seems to be the key descriptor here. For more information, read Liz Jarret’s short article on www.orientaldancer.co.uk
UK Tribal Style. Chris Ogden's 400 Roses troupe has used the basic format of ATS plus authentic United Kingdom folkdance moves, to create her own unique fusion style, including original music that fuses bagpipes and didgeridoos with Arabic rhythms and percussion … or whatever music style fits the mood!
American Tribal Style (aka ATS) follows the format, moves and cues originally developed by Carolena Nericcio and is American in that it originated in America. The ATS name belongs to Carolena Nericcio, her troupe Fat Chance Belly Dance (San Francisco), and those officially associated with her. This format involves interaction between the dancers as they take it in turn to be the lead dancer, or to follow the other dancers as they lead. All or most of the performance should be an improvisational dance. There is never a solo performance in ATS. The focus of the dancers is on each other, and on giving each dancer her time slot to be supported as the lead dancer.
There are a number of official affiliates of ATS in the U.K. Including Morai Tribal (pictured left)
There are a number of official affiliates of ATS in the U.K. Including Morai Tribal (pictured left)
ATS inspired tribal is very popular and is often just referred to as Tribal Style. There are more variants of Tribal Style than can be mentioned in a short article. The freedom of the genre is one of its attractions and creativity is encouraged: there is a whole sub-genre of Gothic tribal style. As with all genres of belly dance, Tribal style is open to women (and men) of all ages, sizes and backgrounds; a good number of performers come to it after their children have moved out and the sisterhood of Tribal grannies continues to grow ... and to dance as equals with their younger sisters!
Sheherazade's tribal class meets on Friday evenings at Bishop Grosseteste College in Lincoln. New students are welcome to come along and give it a try. No dance experience is needed. Click HERE for class details.
Approved Instructor
Sheherazade's tribal class meets on Friday evenings at Bishop Grosseteste College in Lincoln. New students are welcome to come along and give it a try. No dance experience is needed. Click HERE for class details.