International Folk Dance- Lesson 9
International folk dance is a genre of dance where in selected folk dances from multiple ethnic groups are done by the samedancers, typically as part of a regular recreational dance club, for performances or at other events. The dances are typically considered the products of national or cultural traditions rather than part of an international tradition. International folk dancers need not be a member of any particular ethnicity.
It is done for various purposes, typically for preservation, recreation, or performance. Groups that dance for different purposes tend to do dances differently, and to select different dances. Recreational dancers select and tend to alter the dances (often unintentionally) according to their own tastes, and as a result of the changes that inevitably occur as dances are passed on from one person to the next. Performers typically prefer dramatic, flamboyant, or athletic dances, and they often tend to dance with stylized techniques and exaggerated movements. Dances for performances are usually selected and choreographed for presentation on stage. Nevertheless, there is substantial overlap between the dances done for recreation and performance. Some dancers of both types are often concerned with the preservation of a dance for its cultural value.
Some recreational international folk dance groups also perform dances not strictly considered folk dances. These are dances which are choreographed, or are aristocratic in nature. Choreographed modern Israeli folk dancing is often incorporated into international folk dance repertoire.
International folk dance developed in the immigrant communities of the United States of America during the first half of the 20th century. Traditional dances such as branles, polkas, quadrilles and others have been done internationally for hundreds of years; however, the creation of international folk dance as such is often attributed to Vytautas Beliajus, a Lithuanian-American who studied, taught, and performed dances from various ethnic traditions in the 1930s. Other prominent teachers and promoters of international folk dance in its first few decades included Michael Herman and Mary Ann Herman, Jane Farwell, and Dick Crum.
International folk dance has grown into a large community of dancers, performing groups and recreational folk dance clubs throughout the United States, Europe, Canada, Japan, Australia and other countries. Dance festivals and conventions are held year-round. Dance "camps" or workshops invite teachers to instruct dancers in dances from many traditions. These groups usually focus on European dances, but the international folk dance repertoire may include dances from every part of the world: Europe, Africa, North and South America, the Middle East, the Far East, Australia and the South Pacific.
Korean Folk Dance
Korean folk dance has survived many wars and active attempts to erase it from history. Today it is kept alive by enthusiasts and fans all over the world in both live and recorded performances.
Japanese Folk Dance
You can make the argument that all dance tells a story but, in the case of Japanese folk dance, the centrality of story is unmistakable. Folk dances derived from treasured myth, seasonal supplications to the gods, the novelty of intriguing foreign dance forms, and the necessity to drive out demons. The dances are a kind of moving calligraphy written on the body in timeless language.
Kagura
The Kojiki is an ancient Japanese myth of darkness and light in which the sun goddess is lured from her cave with a ritual offering and a sacred dance. Kagura is the name of the temple dances inspired by the myth and typically tells all or part of the story of the return of the sun. The mythological dance was quite bawdy and seductive, but the derivative Kagura temple dances are more sedate rituals and can be performed in a kind of slow motion that emphasizes every gesture and every use of symbolic props.
Bugaku
Bugaku are Imperial Japanese court dances that fused influences from Chinese, Korean, Southeast Asian, and Indian dance. They took the forms of dignified civil dances and dynamic warrior, running and children's dances, choreographed to Chinese or to Korean music. These are geometric pattern dances with extremely stylized arm, hand, and feet movements. They tell stories; one defining characteristic of the genre is the elaborate masks which identify the various players. If you see a traditional Bugaku dance performance today, it may remind you of the cultures Bugaku was borrowed from -- the Chinese New Year lion dance, for instance.
Sangaku
Sangaku was rowdier dancing that appealed to the common people and might utilize puppets, acrobatics, and energetic music. It was the entertainment at various social occasions, not confined to formal presentations or temple ritual. The earliest Sangaku evolved into a popular dance form called Sarugaku, a precursor of Noh theatre. The masks used in the dances serve to disguise the males who play female characters in all-male Noh performances. When Sangaku appears in traditional Noh theatre today, it often has a burlesque quality that disguises the deceptively difficult mastery required for the art form.
Awa Odori
The Awa is a 400-year-old festival dance from the island of Shikoku. In the dance, men and women are separated into groups and move in different styles. The men are bent forward with bowed legs, hands raised just over the head, wrists gently waving up and down. The women are more upright and graceful. Their palms face inward at the start, their wrist movements are more rounded, the fingers of each hand move in unison. Throughout the dance, the women remain tall, taking high steps, and the men stay lower to the ground, always with bent knees. There's a kind of jazzy feeling to the drums, flute and brass gong playing that is reflected in the lively progress of the dancers down festival streets. Awa seems simple to perform but you need a strong back and muscular thighs to maintain the raised arms and bent knees positions, synchronized with the measured drumbeats.
Bon Odori
Bon is a summer festival (late July or August) that welcomes and honors ancestors. It is an upbeat, happy time with a cheerful traditional folk dance known as Bon Odori. Everyone dances -- Bon Odori isn't difficult to learn and exuberance trumps precision in performance. Bon Odori is usually danced at night, when the souls of the ancestors visit, so you will see open-air stage shows and street dances lit with strings of lights. Depending on space, people generally dance in a great continuous circle. If you'd like to try a Japanese folk dance, Bon Odori is a good one to attempt. Just mind your feet and memorize a few simple arm gestures, put on a dazzling smile and repeat, repeat, repeat. The video is a mini-lesson you can master in less than five minutes.
Chinese Fan Dance
The traditional Chinese fan dance has been a part of China's heritage for over two thousand years. Considered to be an ancient form of folk dance, the fan dance serves various purposes and is highly regarded by the Chinese.
Purposes of the Chinese Fan Dance
The Chinese fan dance plays a few different roles in China. First, it is used to help pass down stories and traditions of Chinese culture. Both tourists and younger Chinese generations learn classic tales and lore of China's past through the fan dance. This is why you can often see fan dancers at festivals, theater performances, and other exhibition-style events where the performers are able to promote their rich roots in history.
Reference: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_folk_dance
https://dance.lovetoknow.com/korean-folk-dance
https://dance.lovetoknow.com/Japanese_Folk_Dance
https://dance.lovetoknow.com/Traditional_Chinese_Dance
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