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Lebanese style Belly Dancing - Raqs Sharqi Lubnani


In short, Lebanese cabaret dance is somewhere between the Egyptian and Turkish styles.

Lebanese Oriental is different from its cousin, Egyptian Oriental. The basic moves are the same but the styling, musical interpretation, and folkloric traditions developed separately. Western dance elements, Debke/dabka (folkloric line dance of the Levantine region), upward hip articulations, glut accents, and Khaleeji influences (Arabian Gulf) are characteristic of Lebanese style. The larger use of space and faster music is also characteristic of Lebanese Oriental.
(www.gildedserpent. com/aboutuspages/MarkBalahadia.htm)

"Debke" (dabbke) is a Middle Eastern folk dance. It is a line dance. That is, people hold hands to form a line with the leader at the right end of the line. There is at least one notable exception, which is the Israeli "hora/debka", in which the leader is at the left end of the line so the line moves in the opposite direction. "Debke" can range from very simple (Step-step-step-kick-step-kick) to very complex. It is NOT done in Egypt, but you'll find many variations throughout Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Palestine. It's found in Iraq too. It is done by both men and women and, depending on local tradition, the lines can be women-only, men-only, or mixed. It is closely related to the Greek Fast Hasapiko (Not Vari Hasapiko), Macedonian Oro, Bulgarian Horo, which are all based on the same Step-step-step-kick-step-kick pattern. Some folk dance specialists call this the generic Mediterranean three-measure dance. The word Debke actually means to stamp/stomp the foot.
www.zilltech. com/FAQStylesDebke.html

Debkes can be amazingly energetic and tiring dances to do in spite of their simplicity, mostly because the music is generally played pretty fast. Some of the younger Lebanese people tend to "spice" up their debke steps and do twisting leaps and other inventive steps instead of simply crossing one foot in front of the other. It's something to see! You also end up kind of rocking forward and back with the cross-over steps when you get the hang of it. Also, because the left foot ends up doing most of the work, you can easily end up feeling "lop-sided" at the end of a long debke. However, it's lots of fun!

Ibrahim "Bobby" Farrah is Lebanese and teaches a very dramatic, elegant style with many poses, direction changes, and ballet influences. Leila Gamal dances in a style influenced by Bobby.