music – Sophia Ravenna

Tribal Trend Predictions

June 2, 2015Sophia Ravenna

Are powdered wigs poised to be the next big tribal trend? (Photo of Auberon taken by Chuck Lehnhard)

I bet you thought I was done talking about Tribal Fest 15! No, I have this one last post in me, and it’s about trends I saw on stage at Tribal Fest and how I think they’re going to trickle down into the tribal dance community as a whole.

1. Humor and fun. I want to discuss this one first. I think it’s a trend that’s slowly been building. For the longest time it’s seemed like tribal and fusion belly dance has taken itself very seriously, probably because we wanted other people to take us seriously. And while there’s nothing wrong with that, and while I like seeing serious belly dance, it’s also nice to see dancers let loose sometimes. There were a lot of performances this year that demonstrated that you can have serious dance technique and a wacky persona and put on a great show. Will this spread beyond Tribal Fest? I suspect that a lot of the humorous pieces happen because people feel comfortable letting loose at Tribal Fest. As such, I think we’ll probably only see these kind of pieces at other tribal-specific belly dance events, while dancers will continue to present more serious work at mixed-genre performances.

It's fascinating to see humor and fun emerging as trends in the tribal and fusion belly dance community. The infusion of lightheartedness into performances can indeed add a fresh dimension to the dance form, making it more accessible and enjoyable for a broader audience while still showcasing serious technique.

As you predict the potential impact of this trend on the broader tribal dance community, you might consider using tools like Latenode to track and analyze these shifts. For instance, Latenode could help you organize and manage events or workshops that focus on integrating humor into tribal belly dance. It can automate the process of collecting feedback from participants to gauge how well these elements are being received and the effectiveness of their implementation.

Furthermore, Latenode could assist in documenting and sharing these performances on social media or other platforms. By setting up automated workflows, you can schedule posts, videos, and articles that highlight performances embracing this trend. This could help spread the idea more widely within the community and encourage more dancers to experiment with humor in their routines.

By analyzing the data collected through Latenode, you could also provide insights and guidance on how to balance humor with the traditional elements of tribal and fusion belly dance, potentially influencing how this trend evolves within the community. This strategic use of automation and data analysis could not only support your observations but also contribute to shaping the future directions of tribal belly dance.

2. Lip synching/singing along. I saw a LOT of this, sometimes very obvious and intentional, such as Sooz’s full man-drag Uptown Funk performance, and other times I couldn’t tell if the dancer even knew they were mouthing the lyrics. This is something you sometimes see in Egyptian-style belly dance, but honestly, I have a feeling tribal dancers are drawing it more from the drag community. Will it spread? Maybe. I just have to say, if you’re going to do it, commit to it.

3. SPARKLES. The line is really blurring between tribal and cabaret, and I saw a lot more sparkly costumes and some that I would not have been surprised to see an Egyptian dancer wear at a night club or upscale restaurant. Witness the stunning costumes worn by Rose Movement. I’ve seen similar styles on Egyptian dancers many times. My own troupe performed in nude rhinestone costumes this year. Will it spread? I think so. There seems to be a lot less firm boundaries between styles now, and I think especially as more fusion dancers decide to train in more “traditional” Egyptian and Turkish styles, we’ll see more of that influence come into their dance.

4. More individuality of style. There seems to be less people copying whatever Rachel or Zoe’s troupes did last year and more drawing from your own sense of style, or doing costumes that specifically fit the theme of the performance. Will it spread? I think so. I think the genre is maturing enough that people don’t feel like they HAVE to copy the big names to prove that they’re authentic tribal dancers. I think the trend is now towards originality, creativity, and finding some material or embellishment that no one else has never used before.

5. Headdresses are shrinking. I was worried for a while there that we were going to get into Vegas showgirl territory, with towering feather creations stretching towards the heavens, but I think we finally hit the limit of how big you could make a head piece and still be able to belly dance under it. Some performers — mainly the temple style dancers for whom it is most fitting — are still wearing large, elaborate headdresses but in general they seem to be shrinking down to a more reasonable medium size. Will it spread? I suspect so, because smaller pieces are easier to wear and to travel with.

6. Italian is the next Balkan. There were several amazing Italian dancers on the Tribal Fest stage this year and several of them danced to Italian music. Check out this folksy tambourine ATS piece by Barbara Giannantoni, for instance. Isn’t that music GOOD? And with Violet Scrap teaching at TF next year, I think we’re going to see a lot more interest in the Italian dance scene. Will it spread? I’m guessing YES because we’re overdue for an infusion of fresh musical influence.

Do you have any trends you like to add? Do you disagree with any of my predictions? I’d love to have a discussion in the comments section!

Niyaz at MIM!

May 27, 2015Sophia Ravenna

Still a couple stops left on their May tour!

Remember when I went to the Musical Instrument Museum a couple months ago and said I hoped to return soon? Well, I went back last night, but not to see more exhibits! Instead, I was there to see my favorite band Niyaz perform live in MIM’s wonderful theater!

I splurged on front row tickets, because seriously, they were only about $5 more than tickets further back in the theater, and am I gonna skimp when the band I love is finally in my state? No, I am not. Although, the theater had a really nice slope to it so I have a feeling that there’s not a bad seat in the house, and that even the back rows probably had a good view, because it wasn’t an especially large venue. And of course, since it was specifically built to host concerts in a museum dedicated to music, I’m sure the acoustics were amazing no matter where you sat. I know the music sure sounded great in the front, though, without being too loud — neither Chris nor I had “concert ear” at the end of the night.

The show was a mix of songs from their new “The Fourth Light” album and a few old favorites. You can see which musicians are touring with them on the flier above. I have to say, in addition to of course loving Azam Ali’s voice, I was so impressed by Didem Basar’s kanun playing! It was so incredibly beautiful, and it was amazing to watch her hands as she played faster. The kanun is one of my favorite instruments and one I rarely get to hear played live, so that was a special treat.

Niyaz’s music is incredibly danceable, although I spent most of the show swaying in my seat next to my non-dancing husband. I finally got up for the last song of the night, and when Azam acknowledged me with a smile from the stage, I almost swooned like a teenager at her first boy band concert! Then when some of my old Plaza dance pals ran down the stairs to join me, we had a wonderful mini-dance party and agreed that we all should have gotten up a lot sooner!

My only complaint was that the show was pretty short. It started at maybe 7:20, and after one song encore, a chat with my friends after the show, and a quick trip to the lady’s room before the long drive home, it was 9:05 when we got in the car. I would have liked a couple more songs in the set… Or, you know, an all-night concert covering Niyaz’s entire repertoire. That’s not too much to ask, right? Especially since it was over a 4 hour round trip?

All in all, I’m so happy that I was able to attend this show and I hope Niyaz will come back to AZ again before I move away next year. In the meantime, if you live in California, they will be out your way next, so catch one of their shows if they’re anywhere near you!

Inspiration: Musical Instrument Museum

February 18, 2015Sophia Ravenna

The most "metal" mandolin ever. — The most “metal” mandolin ever.

Did you know that there’s a Musical Instrument Museum in Phoenix? I’d known about it for a while but never had the chance to visit it, as my time up in Phoenix was usually jam-packed with dance happenings. However, we’re currently entertaining my in-laws who have escaped the frigid confines of NY for some sunshine and fun, and they thought MIM sounded like a fun thing to do on our daytrip to Phoenix, so I finally visited.

I had this image in my mind of MIM as a very small specialty museum, kind of like the Bead Museum that used to be in Glendale. When I read that they recommended at least 4 hours to see the whole thing, I figured that was probably an exaggeration. Well, we were there for 2.5-3 hours and we didn’t even see half of it!

This is a huge, two-level museum that is divided into regions of the world. I of course wanted to see the Middle Eastern section (more on that later), and we had to go through Africa to reach it. Many of Africa’s countries were represented, with musical instruments and some dance regalia, and information on the different influential tribes in each country and the evolution of their musical traditions.

At most museums, I have zero interest in using the little Walkman-like radios they give you, preferring to read and go at my own pace, but at MIM the audio is tied to video clips in almost every display, showing the music and dance of the region. Curious about what that unusual-looking instrument sounds like? It might just be in one of the informative clips. Without this touch, I feel like the museum would not have been nearly as interesting, because while many of the instruments were beautiful in form, of course sound is their primary function.

This 10-string Indian guitar was just one of the many really cool instruments we saw.

And yet… in some ways, the audio recordings overwhelmed me. I stopped and listened to/watched almost every clip in the Middle Eastern section, soaking up some inspiration. Although the Egypt section was currently under maintenance and only had the video screen up with no actual instruments on display, the rest of the small exhibit was packed with ouds and riqs and neys and more. The video clips included a live Oum Kalthoum performance and so many gorgeous oud solos. But the problem was, you only got a little snippet of each song! Because I have a pretty strong emotional reaction to good music, this actually made me very anxious… I felt like instead of getting the natural progression of riding along with a song from start to finish, I was in a constant state of being pulled along by the most emotional parts of a song, without being calmed down by a nice ending. Does that make sense?

I feel like to really do this museum justice, you need to be there all day, and you need to give yourself some breaks. There are plenty of benches out in the hallway, and a restaurant downstairs, and outdoor seating, and a gift store, so there’s ways to take yourself out of the music and decompress. It would be a good idea to bring a journal or sketchbook to jot down any sudden inspiration.

I definitely want to go back to MIM again and see the parts I missed. There’s currently a special exhibit of drums that we opted not to check out, since we were on a limited time frame.

One thing to keep in mind if you are also planning on visiting MIM is that it is way way on the north side of Phoenix. It’s still within Phoenix itself, but it’s way out there and there’s not a lot of other stuff around it, so plan your day accordingly!

Choosing the right song.

May 29, 2014May 28, 2014Sophia Ravenna

In case you missed it, yesterday’s post was about finding new music. But now that you have all of this awesome music, how do you know what to dance to? Which song is right for which venue? This is especially difficult for tribal fusion dancers as many of us dance to a huge range of music and perhaps at a wider range of events. That’s not to say that Egyptian, Lebanese, Turkish, and AmCab dancers don’t have their own challenges, but dancers more experienced and knowledgeable in those areas have already written great things on that subject. I’m going to focus more on the pitfalls that a fusion dancer faces.

There are so many factors to take into consideration when choosing what to dance to at any given event. What is the audience like? What is the setting like? If you’re part of a larger show, what will everyone else be doing? This post will probably be a little scattered because I can’t decide what order I want to discuss things in and how best to organize my thoughts, so here goes.

1. Your audience should be your first consideration, because you’re dancing for them. Overused songs that make an audience of dancers roll their eyes might sound fresh and awesome to the general public. A heavy Goth piece is not going to fly at a Lebanese restaurant. People at an outdoor festival probably want something fun and flashy, whereas your fellow dancers might prefer something more soulful.

2. Setting should be next. Floorwork is awesome on a raised stage when everyone can see you, and awful in a restaurant where the floor is dirty and only a few patrons can see you once you’re down there. The black costume you wear for that heavy metal piece looks beautiful against a red velvet curtain and gets lost against a black backdrop. An outdoor festival during the windiest time of the year is not the time to do that cool fire eating fusion. A venue with a lot of ambient noise is not ideal for a quiet, subdued slow song.

3. Back to your audience. Is there a good chance that they’ve seen you before? What did you do last time they saw you? Make sure you do something completely different so they don’t think you’re a one-trick pony.

4. Do you expect to get good video at this event? If so, definitely choose something that you don’t already have video of, and that is really awesome, because then you’ll have something cool to add to your YouTube channel.

5. Do you expect to get good photos at this event? If so, choose a song that goes well with a new costume you want to show off, and that has lots of really photographable moments.

6. Does the event have a theme? If so, don’t go for the most obvious interpretation of the theme. I promise, you are not the only one thinking “I’ll do Roustabout for the circus show!” and if I see one more person do “Airship Pirates” at a steampunk festival I will scream.

7. Be authentic to yourself even when you’re trying to fit in. It can look really weird to do tribal fusion moves over Egyptian orchestral music. So if you’re at an event where Middle Eastern music is most appropriate, find something that will work for them but also fit your style of movement. Do a drum solo with lots of awesome pops and locks, or choose some world fusion music with an Arabic theme (of course if there’s any lyrics make sure to get a translation).

8. Let’s talk about pop music. It can be fun to dance to a pop song and sometimes the general public absolutely LOVES it when you’re either dancing to something they recognize from the radio or a cross-genre cover of an old favorite. But the problem with pop music is that it can get dated fast. I’ve already seen a meme that said something along the lines to “Can everyone please stop dancing to Radioactive already?” (My thought? “NO!” I love the Pentatonix/Lindsey Stirling cover of that song). Of course, if you’re an improv dancer it’s easy to do a pop song for a bit and then retire it. If you want to choreograph to something popular and mainstream, make it something fun and simple so you won’t feel bad when you have to remove it from rotation.

9. Make sure that you are confident about what you’re dancing to. Sometimes it’s tempting to rush to the stage with an awesome new song that you love, but you don’t want to show the audience a half-baked choreography or awkward improv! The same thing goes for a new prop, or a movement you haven’t quite mastered yet, or even something you are usually pretty good at but feel like you might not be able to do because of a healing injury or bad stage situations or whatever. Push yourself in class and while practicing, but on stage, present something you know you can own.

10. When in doubt, get a second opinion. I’ve been known to ask my teacher “What do you think of X song for Y event?” or to get my husband to watch what I’m working on and tell me if he thinks it’s ready for the stage. If you’re torn between two or more options, talk it out with a friend. They don’t even need to be a dancer or familiar with the songs you’re considering, just get someone to help you examine the pros and cons of each choice and what would be best for the event in question and what you could save the other pieces for.

I think that’s about all I have to say about music for now, but please, if you have any thoughts to add, share them in the comments section!

Find new music!

May 28, 2014Sophia Ravenna

[Portrait of Clyde Lombardi, Barbara Carroll, and Chuck Wayne, Downbeat, New York, N.Y., ca. Sept. 1947] (LOC) They're searching for new music for you to dance to. — [Portrait of Clyde Lombardi, Barbara Carroll, and Chuck Wayne, Downbeat, New York, N.Y., ca. Sept. 1947] (LOC) They’re searching for new music for you to dance to.

You know how annoying it is when you listen to the radio and every day they play that same slightly out of date song, you know, the one that was popular 5-8 years ago, and it’s an OK song and maybe you liked it a lot when you first heard it, but now you’re thinking maybe it would be nice to hear some of your other favorite songs from that year, or some of that artist’s more popular work, but no, the radio station has only paid for the rights to play that song, and play it they will, over and over and over again until that song that used to make you tap your feet and belt out the chorus when you were alone in the car now makes you just want to tear your hair out.

That’s how I feel about a lot of songs that dancers perform to. I have a list of songs that I never want to see anyone dance to again. Adir Adirim by Balkan Beat Box. The Bassnectar remix of Beats Antique’s Roustabout. Natacha Atlas’s version of I Put a Spell on You. All of these songs are great on their own merit, and beautiful dances have been performed to them, and I’m sure that somewhere out there is a dancer that can do amazing new things with them that give the song new life, but as soon as I hear the opening notes of any of the songs on my list, I just shut down.

Then there’s the songs that I’m not completely fed up with, but that I still see being overused. Depending on my mood, I’ll either be happy to hear an old favorite and see what someone is doing with it, or I’ll be a little bored of it and the dancer will really have to work to get me excited. This category is full of older Beats Antique songs, all the Helm stuff that ATS troupes love to use, and those Egyptian songs that I don’t know the names of but seem to hear every time I go to an Egyptian-heavy show.

So anyway, what I’m saying is that we dancers really need to be better about actively looking for new music. I include myself in this. I’ve been dancing to the Kid Beyond version of Wandering Star for 2.5 years, after all. I’m in desperate need of something new to inspire me so I can bring fresh material to my upcoming shows. So here’s some of the ways that I like to find music:

1. Use Pandora or Songza. Pandora is nice because it gives you recommendations similar to what you already like, but sometimes it feels like my station basically just plays the Beats Antique and Niyaz songs I already have and doesn’t give me much new stuff. Songza has playlists curated by DJs, including lots of world music. I also heard that Google has a new music thingie, but what I heard about it didn’t impress me so I haven’t checked it out yet.

2. Have you ever purchased music on Amazon? If so, go have a look at their recommendations for you. The nice thing about living in the future is that you can easily listen to samples to get an idea of whether an album is something you might want to dance to. Also Amazon sometimes has music on sale for cheap, which is good when you’re on a budget, and so much of it is available digitally for that instant gratification.

3. Don’t forget to “like” all of your favorite bands on Facebook, because then you’ll know when their new albums come out and sometimes they’ll release songs for free as teasers, or have special remixes or other goodies available.

4. Get on the mailing list for bands you like and labels and stores that carry the sort of music that you like. It’s a good way to discover new bands within your preferred genres and to know when they’re having a big sale or when bands on their label are on tour in your area.

5. You know that one song you really like from that Bellydance Superstars compilation CD? Chances are that artist has entire albums of other songs you might also really like.

6. Go to live shows! Go see the bands you like, and chances are their opening act will also be something you’ll like. Go see bands you’ve never heard of who seem like they might be interesting. Go catch a DJ set at a local club. The more music you expose yourself to, the more likely it is you’ll hear something that inspires you.

7. Hear something you like in a class or workshop? Ask the teacher what it is, then go find something else by that artist or within that genre.

8. Ok, I’m just going to go ahead and say this: stop having music-sharing parties with your dance friends. Not only are you depriving the musicians of their money, but then everyone in your local community has all the exact same music, instead of everyone going out and buying something different, and then you all end up dancing to the same stuff all the time. Stop it! By all means, share recommendations, but that’s as far as it should go.

9. Recruit someone to help you. Do you have a friend with incredible musical taste? Tell them to let you know whenever they hear a cool new band or song. My husband listens to music all day while he works, and he’s always sending me something he thinks I might like to dance to. Some of it doesn’t work for me, and some of it becomes my new favorite thing that I dance to all the time. The nice thing about getting recommendations from someone else is that they probably listen to different genres than you do and lurk in different corners of the internet, so they’ll find things you never would have found. Just make sure that they won’t take it personally when you actually don’t like some of their ideas.

10. Occasionally go back through your old music. I think Mahin recommended this in a Daily Belly Dance Quickie? Anyway, sometimes music that made you go “meh” two years ago might suddenly jump out at you as amazing. Or you might find that you bought an album for one song you loved and then forgot to listen to the rest of it. I had Poison Berries on my iPod for years before one day realizing that it would be awesome to dress up as a faerie and dance to it.

This post is really long, so come back tomorrow for more opinions about music!

Inspiration: Lindsey Stirling

May 27, 2014Sophia Ravenna

Photo apparently courtesy of Instagram user @caffeicaddiction

Last night I had the pleasure of attending the sold-out Lindsey Stirling concert at the Rialto Theater here in Tucson. It was an inspiring evening, not just because it’s always inspiring to listen to good music, but because it was wonderful to see a stage full of people who appeared to really love what they do. Furthermore, I find Lindsey Stirling inspiring because she found her own little niche — dancing while playing the violin paired with dub step music, with forays into geeky themes — and became hugely successful with it. Many of her shows on this tour have/are sold out. She has over 2.5 MILLION fans on Facebook. And the show last night was filled with a wide demographic of people. I saw fans far younger than me and fans older than me. I ran into some of my gaming friends and my hip-hop teacher and later learned that one of our local drummers was there, too.

What I took away from this show is that it’s important to be true to yourself and what inspires you. Lindsey spoke about these themes a few times throughout the night as she explained the life events that inspired some of her songs. As artists, it’s a constant struggle to balance what you think people might like and want to pay you for, and what you really want to create. But I think the audience can tell when you’re being inauthentic, when you’re just chasing the latest trend or shamelessly pandering instead of showing them your authentic self. Oh sure, you might fool a few people and make a few bucks here and there, but you’re far more likely to burn out when you’re not doing what really moves you.

As an example, one of the songs Lindsey played last night was the Zelda themed. She rocked it out and seemed to have a great time with it and the audience loved it. It felt authentic. But if I were to do a belly dance to the Zelda theme, it wouldn’t have the same impact. I didn’t have a Nintendo when I was a kid, I’ve never played a Zelda game in my life, those aren’t my geek roots. To be true to myself, I’d have to dance to something about Dungeons and Dragons or the theme music from Guild Wars 2, because that’s my geek cred.

Obviously there’s no magic short cut to success. I’m not saying that if you find your own weird little niche and be true to it, that you’ll also get 2.5m FB fans and people screaming your name at your concert/performance/gallery opening. Your niche might not resonate with that many people. But it will resonate with somebody, and they’ll feel inspired in turn to be true to their own inspiration.