Posts Tagged ‘Non-native Philippine Folk Dances’

The Kalinga And The Cordillera Culture through the Lumagen Dance

Written by MichaelZ on January 22, 2010 – 10:11 pm -

The people of Cordillera is known for its rich culture and tradition, and the Lumagen dance is one product of its culture that helps make Cordillera what it is right now. The name Cordillera is a name that is rich in history too. This was the name that was given by the Spanish Conquistadores when they first saw the mountain ranges in the area. In their dialect, the term Cordillera means ‘knotted rope’ and the mountain ranges of the area appear a twisted and knotted rope from afar.

Geographically and politically the Cordillera where the Lumagen dance can be traced is the only land-locked region in the country and this region host the provinces of Abra, Benguet, Ifugao, Kalinga, Mountain Province and Apayao.

The city of Baguio is considered as the administrative center of the region. The region is home to the Cordillera Central mountain range and more importantly the region is home to many indigenous tribes called the Igorot which is the source of their rich culture and many dances like the Lumagen dance.

The Igorot is just one of the many tribes that contribute to the culture of the region which can be seen in its songs and dances and the other tribes in the region are:

. Bontoc
. Ifugao
. Benguet
. Kalinga

These are the tribes that reign over the region and the dance of Lumagen is from the Kalinga. These tribes want to be labeled by their own tribal names and don’t frequently want to be called by the collective term called ‘Igorot’. These tribes are identified to defend against the moves of the Spanish colonizers and if the other people in the lowlands were underneath the culture of colonizers, these tribes protected their common socio-cultural traits. These tribes hold common religious beliefs and these beliefs are often nature-oriented.

Dances of the Cordillera as expression of their beliefs

Among the many aspects of the culture of these many tribes, dance is considered as the most popular expression of their beliefs. Dances keep on to be the major expression of the community life that can animate their several rituals and ceremonies. Dances for these clans are self-edification for them and a form of entertainment for these who watch these dances. There are many other roles for their dances too.

They dance in order to appease their ancestors and to pay tributes to their ancestors. They also dance in for their gods in order to cure their ailments and they also dance in order to insure the success of war activities and they also dance in order to ward off bad luck and to pray that natural calamities may not do harm to their source of living and their everyday life. Dance is a form of socialization also for these tribes like the Kalinga and they frequently assemble in order for them to express their feelings.

Lumagen is a dance performed during thanksgiving

And since agriculture is their main source of livelihood, some of their dances too are linked to agriculture- from planting to harvesting. There will be dances that will signify that it is the start of the planting season, and there are tribal dance that are performed during harvesting. These dances are called thanksgiving dances and one example of these dances is the Lumagen dance from the Kalinga culture. The dance from a locale called Lumagen is truly a traditional dance that is performed frequently at Kalinga festivals as a way to rejoice Thanksgiving in time of good harvest. The dance is also performed during these events:

. Thanksgiving for the birth of a child in the family
. Victories in battle
. Celebration of marriage

This dance is considered as one of the most difficult dance to perform among the many dances in Cordillera. It can be said too that this can be one of the most difficult dances to perform from among the many Philippine dances.

Though this dance is difficult to perform due to the strenuous dance steps, still its high level of energy and the creativity involved in dancing the Lumagen makes this dance from the Kalinga one of the most entertaining to watch. There are times too when the Lumagen dance is performed in some festivals in the region and during special regional occasions.

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Graceful Movements and a Colorful Dance of Binasuan

Written by MichaelZ on December 31, 2009 – 3:45 am -

About Binasuan and it’s dance steps

Philippine dances in the Philippines are known for its creativity, and one such dance in the country that shouts creativity is the Binasuan. This dance is a local dance rooted in the culture of the Pangasinense people- people from the northern Philippine province of Pangasinan. In this province, the term ‘binasuan‘ stands for something. In the local language, this word refers to the use of a drinking glass. With that in mind it can be easy to realize that the dance from this province is performed with the utilization of drinking glasses. To be more definite, this dance has its roots in Bayambang, one of the towns in Pangasinan province.

What this dance demonstrates is elegant movements on the part of the dancer, balance and some amount of expertise. Dancing is done with three glasses that are half-full with water, with the first glass on top of her head and the two other glasses on both palms of the hand. Balance and expertise is revealed when the dancer drills for a turn, sit or roll without slipping the water or dropping any of the three glasses to the floor. The typical arrangement in this dance calls for one girl though there will be times when three or more are called upon to perform.

As with other Filipino dances, this Binasuan dance from Bayambang will call for a costume, the right count and music and the formation of the dancers just before the dance is started.

. Costume. In terms of costume, the dance calls for the Balintawak costume with the tapis and the pañuelo.

. Music. The music used in this dance is composed of two parts and then danced to the tune of Pitoy Oras.

. Count. Measure is essential and in this dance one, two or three to a measure is utilized.

. Formation. The dance begins with the dancer or the dancers enter the hall from one side of the room, stop at the center then face the viewers.

The Binasuan dance will start that way, with the dancers coming at one side of the room and then moving to the center hall and then facing the audience. While they are moving towards the center of the hall, the music A is played for the first time. Dancing this local dance of the north requires some steps that should not be take out of the program otherwise the program will lose its identity.

The following are the general steps on how to dance this local tradition.

. Dancers start with the right foot and she should take eight waltz steps forward to the center of the hall. The glasses should be held in front and the elbows should be close to the waist. The right hand must be moved next to the chest and down the hips alternately as the left hand moves down at the hip level and goes up to the chest level in an alternating method. The alternating movements of the two hands will go on for the next eight measures.

. Music A will then play for the second time and this will be the times when the dancer will dance sideward right and left alternately and doing this for eight times. The right hand will be raised to the head level and the left hand will be held to the waist as the dancer continues to waltz sideward to the right. The dancer will chance position with every measure. Again the movements of the left and the right hand will alternate upward and downward as with previous step.

. Music B of the list will then play and this will be the point when the dancer will begin on her right foot and she will take four waltz steps on a slope to the right. She then raises the right hand obliquely to head level with the left hand down to the hip for four measures. Hands once more shift upward and downward on alternating movements.

These movements are just the first half of the dance and a few more steps are required in order to complete the program. The Binasuan dance of the north will simply utilize the abovementioned steps and repeat these steps on the second half of the dance. At times, some new steps are introduced like the placing of weights at either the right or the left foot of the dancer, all with the intention of dancing gracefully without dropping the glass.

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