I say in my profile that I do Traditional Egyptian Belly Dance. Someone posted a question in a Visitor Message asking what the difference is between Egyptian and other types. I'm answering here.
There are many different schools and varieties of Belly Dance, but really just three main types are performed in the West. They are Cabaret (a.k.a. American Restaurant), Traditional Egyptian (a.k.a. Egyptian Oriental), and U.S. Tribal (a.k.a. Tribal Fusion).
There is a very thorough but somewhat lengthy article on the subject here: Belly Dancing: Dance Styles Used In The U.S.
But for those who want a more basic run-down, the styles differ in costuming, types of music used, vocabulary of moves (although most of the basic moves are common to all styles), and how some of the moves are executed.
My teachers are all either Egyptian or have had training from Egyptian teachers.
I originally started dancing with mostly Cabaret and Tribal DVDs, so transitioning to Egyptian is a bit of an adjustment for me. I have had to revise the way I do some moves (difficult when the old way is ingrained in muscle memory), and have had to eliminate some moves altogether (since they are not performed in Egyptian Belly Dance). I have not had to learn any completely new moves, though, which illustrates that the majority of moves are common to all styles.
Here are some example videos of dancers in various styles:
Cabaret: Neon
Tribal: Solstice
Egyptian Oriental: Sohaila (those things in her hands are zills, or finger cymbals -- sometimes but not always used in Egyptian Belly Dance).
Hope this helps anyone who is interested in the topic!
There are many different schools and varieties of Belly Dance, but really just three main types are performed in the West. They are Cabaret (a.k.a. American Restaurant), Traditional Egyptian (a.k.a. Egyptian Oriental), and U.S. Tribal (a.k.a. Tribal Fusion).
There is a very thorough but somewhat lengthy article on the subject here: Belly Dancing: Dance Styles Used In The U.S.
But for those who want a more basic run-down, the styles differ in costuming, types of music used, vocabulary of moves (although most of the basic moves are common to all styles), and how some of the moves are executed.
shira.net said:
My teachers are all either Egyptian or have had training from Egyptian teachers.
I originally started dancing with mostly Cabaret and Tribal DVDs, so transitioning to Egyptian is a bit of an adjustment for me. I have had to revise the way I do some moves (difficult when the old way is ingrained in muscle memory), and have had to eliminate some moves altogether (since they are not performed in Egyptian Belly Dance). I have not had to learn any completely new moves, though, which illustrates that the majority of moves are common to all styles.
Here are some example videos of dancers in various styles:
Cabaret: Neon
Tribal: Solstice
Egyptian Oriental: Sohaila (those things in her hands are zills, or finger cymbals -- sometimes but not always used in Egyptian Belly Dance).
Hope this helps anyone who is interested in the topic!