How to belly dance hip drop
Core Movements of Belly Dancing
by adminpar | Feb 24, 2019 | Blog
In this artice, you will learn about core movements of belly Dancing. Following are the core movement that make up Modern & Classical Belly Dance, grouped according to the shape you are drawing with your body, and then sub-grouped according to the body part used to draw that shape.
Following are two core Movement that create Belly Dance:
- Drops and Lifts
- Slides
Drop & Lift Movements
On Lower Body
Basic Hip Drops & Lifts
- Stand in Basic normal Pose.
- Bend your knee to drop the hip, then straighten the knee to lift the hip.
- Always lift before a drop and drop before a lift to highlight the movement.
- Always keep the knees released, never lock the knee while straightening.
- Activate your thigh muscles to either pull the hip down, or push it up.
So the movement naturally comes from the knee and the thigh muscle/hip.
Classical Hip Drop
- Weight in supporting leg, knees soft, right foot forward on ball of foot (Toe position). Stay centered, don’t lean back.
- In this case lift your right hip, slightly upwards.
- Drop right hip downward in a strong accentuate move.
- Upper body stays steady.
- A big deep-seated drop on the count of 1 & 3 which is followed by a lighter “half drop” on the count of 2 & 4.
- Like brushing the sand off the carpet kick, working foot softly on the half drops on the 2 & 4 counts.
Classical Hip Lift
It is the opposite of the Drop, less grounded and more energetic. Lift the working hip upward and slightly forward in a strong accentuated move. Operate your hip and the outside of your thigh to give the movement oomph. And, as stated above, drop slightly first before you lift.
On the Mid BodyChest Drops and Chest Lifts
A small but effective thrust of the rib cage with an accent either downwards or upwards. Remember, to go down you must first go up and vice versa. Imagine a string attached to your spine in the center of your chest. Visualize a puppeteer pulling this string upwards on a 45 degree angle. Produce the movement from the inside of your body and you will have a much more juicy and beautiful movement.
On the Upper Body
Shoulder Drops
The only way is to bring your shoulders up together, then let both go. Careful not to draw and shrug your shoulders forward and up to your ears which locks your upper back and your energy flow. Fast Shoulder Drops look great while shifting weight on legs and swaying your body from side-to-side.
The Slides Family of Movements
On the Lower Body
Hip Slide
- Take Basic Pose with feet under hips etc.
- Shift your weight from one leg to another, straightening supporting knee and freeing the other.
- Get into the flow of this and then slide your hip out, to side as weight transfers into that foot, then back in connecting to your center, so on.
- Visualize you have your arms full of groceries and you push the car door shut with your hip!
Variations:
- Isolated, small.
- Larger, more assertive, more thrusting to the side.
On the Mid BodyChest Slide
- Visualize a string attached to your spine behind your heart.
- A puppeteer pulls that string to the right, your rib cage moves to the side, independently from your hips and shoulders.
On the Upper Body
Head SlideWhile facing ahead, keep your neck as horizontal as possible and use the muscles behind it to slide your head to the right, then to the left.
Move when framed with your hands crossing above the head or crossing in front of your face. This movement needs to be very small to be effective, so do not strain yourself. This move takes time to master as it is difficult.
The other core movements of belly dancing are as follows:
- Shimmy
- Twists
- Circles
- Figure 8’s
- Undulations
Learn a cute belly dance hip drop combination, step by step.
Latest NewsHelen
Do you struggle to think of ideas for moves when choreographing a belly dance routine?
Today I’m going to help you get unstuck by proving that choreographing doesn’t have to be complicated. We’ll be looking at the mother of all belly dance moves (and probably the first belly dance technique you were taught). Of course, it’s the hip drop!
Many of my students worry about their routines looking too simple.
The anxiety that this fear generates then promptly leads to choreographer’s block and then a dip in confidence. Not good! 👎
With this class, my hope is to give you the confidence to take “basic” belly dance moves and be creative with them. You are more creative than you think!
Choreography inspiration – a study in hip drops
In today’s express belly dance class I’ll teach you a very cute belly dance hip drop combination, step by step.
If you keep clean technique, maintain perfect timing and sport an engaging expression, you’ll easily look like a pro!
Thank you so much for watching, I’d love to know what you think! Be sure to leave a comment under the video on YouTube.
Your belly dance assignment
Master your technique and timing with the combo. Pay special attention to the transitions between the different hip drops – keep it seamless.
Then, use this combination in your own routine and see where it takes you! This style of combo is also great to pull out of your tool kit when your improvising and is perfect to weave into your balady performance. Use it as one of your “go to” moves!
Learn with me online
▶️📲 💻If you’d like the full experience of belly dance training with me, let’s hit the ground running distance learning style!
“I have gained so much from joining SMBO at the beginning of the year. My dancing has progressed and I have had a breakthrough with writing choreography due to Helen’s help. The website is amazing with a huge amount of tutorials for all levels of dancers. Helen is very accessible and answers all questions really quickly and fully. It is great value for money. I love it and would recommend it to anyone.” SMBO student, Sue Powell
Get access to my full length, comprehensive classes, drills, choreography sequences, movement tutorials, technical preparation exercises at Santa Maria Bellydance Online.
You can learn with me anywhere and any time you have internet connection at just £15 a month for the entire (growing) library. Go to www.santamariabellydanceonline.com to find out more and get started now!
We now have our very own private, bonus SMB Online facebook support group where you can get bespoke feedback from me live-streamed! Free for all current SMBO subscribers.
Thank you so much for reading and being here 🙏.
Happy dancing to you, with love and shimmies,
Helen xx
Ps. Subscribe for blog updates with bellydance tips to get on track and stay inspired. Plus receive my free online class!
Belly dance (oriental dances) in St. Petersburg
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Dance school "Divadance" (Esenina street)
(4 reviews)
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Dance school "Divadance" (Koroleva Ave.
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Dance Studio 25.5 (4th Upper Lane)
(5 reviews)
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Dance Studio 25.5 (Kurskaya St.)
Dance Studio 25.5 (Gulliver Shopping Mall)
Dance Studio 25.5 (Sadovaya St.)
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Dance and fitness studio "DanceMania"
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Dance school "ShapeFIT"
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Dance Studio "DIVA" (Moskovsky Ave)
(6 reviews)
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Dance studio "DIVA" (Budapestskaya st.)
Dance studio "DIVA" (Simonova st.)
Dance studio "DIVA" (Svetlanovsky pr-t)
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Dance center "ProMotion"
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Dance School "Gloss"
(5 reviews)
Dance studio "DIVA" (Simonova street)
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Dance studio "DIVA" (Budapestskaya st.
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Dance studio "DIVA" (Svetlanovsky pr-t)
Dance studio "DIVA" (Moskovsky pr-t)
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Dance school "Cosmo Dance" (Bolshevikov Ave.)
(9 reviews)
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Dance school "Cosmo Dance" (Balkanskaya sq.)
Dance school "Cosmo Dance" (Lensovet street)
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Dance school "Divadance" (Koroleva Ave.)
(4 reviews)
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Dance school "Divadance" (Esenina street)
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Dance school "Monte Carlo"
(3 reviews)
Dance studio "I'mpro"
(6 reviews)
Dance School "ARKA OF THE SUN" (Shlisselburgsky Ave)
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Dance school "ARKA OF THE SUN" (Middle Avenue V.
O.)
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Sports Center "Puma"
(5 reviews)
Dance School "ARKA OF THE SUN" (Middle Avenue V.O.)
(2 reviews)
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Dance School "ARKA OF THE SUN" (Shlisselburgsky Ave)
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Fitness and dance area "PLOSHCHADKA"
(4 reviews)
Dance School "Cosmo Dance" (Lensovet St.)
(3 reviews)
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Dance school "Cosmo Dance" (Balkanskaya sq.)
Dance school "Cosmo Dance" (Bolshevikov Ave.)
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Author's dance studio
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Sports Center "Primorsky"
(5 reviews)
Dance school "JenaviCLUB"
(2 reviews)
Belly dance is one of the best dance styles for women.
And it's not just about extraordinary femininity and a mild stimulating effect - this bewitching, sometimes even hypnotizing dance is also extremely beneficial for the female body, especially for the reproductive system.
Belly dance is considered one of the most ancient dances of our time and it originated in the East, and scientists could not name the birthplace of the dance exactly like that. Throughout its existence, this dance has absorbed the cultures of many peoples and countries. By the beginning of the 20th century, oriental dances became popular in the West, and also acquired their professional, stage variety. Modern belly dance combines elements from:
- Egyptian women's dances with emphasis on hip movements
- oriental dances of Persia, Turkey and Greece, which are rich in graceful movements of the arms, body and head.
POS
Oriental dance is one of the best modern women's dances, and all thanks to its extraordinary plasticity, rhythm and endless femininity, which helps a woman to feel her uniqueness, charm, feminine strength and beauty.
Belly dancing is a unique remedy for the health of the female body: during active movements of the hips and work of the abdomen, the blood supply to the pelvic organs improves, thanks to which many female ailments disappear. It also normalizes the work of the intestines, which improves the skin of the face, and special breathing during the dance reduces the level of stress hormones and contributes to the release of endorphins - “hormones of joy”.
EXERCISE CLOTHING
Tight-fitting leotards and a comfortable top are quite suitable for learning the basics, and after learning the basic movements, be sure to get a special suit - in it you will feel like Scheherazade!
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Dance school – Balance Club
November 22, 2015
Belly dance or oriental dance is the most ancient dance art on earth.
There are many versions of their origin, but there is still no final one. In the last 25 years, archaeological, sociological and cultural studies, along with the latest discoveries, have significantly increased our knowledge of Eastern culture in general and belly dance in particular. Orientalists have more accurate ideas about the origin of oriental dance.
There are two main versions of the origin of Oriental dances:
Version №1
Oriental dances originated from ritual dances of ancient tribes. Many scientists suggest that belly dance arose from the ritual rites of the ancient tribes who lived on the site of modern India. After all, most ancient cultures had dance rituals associated with both religious and other aspects of life. However, there is no direct evidence of the occurrence of belly dance precisely from religious rites.
Version #2
Another hypothesis suggests that belly dancing was used by women as preparation for childbearing.
Through movements, experienced women showed expectant young mothers how to relieve pain and speed up the appearance of a baby. It is possible that the undulating movements of the abdomen were taken from the rite dedicated to childbirth, which is still practiced by many peoples of North Africa and the Middle East.
Myths about belly dancing.
There are many myths about belly dancing, most of which are based on Western misconceptions about the culture of the Middle East. Many of these myths date back to the 18th century, when European travelers made their first attempts to explore these areas. Stunned and fascinated by what they saw and heard, artists and writers depicted exotic scenes that were sensational for that time in their works, sometimes giving them an exaggeratedly erotic character. At that time, the East was often associated with dancing half-naked concubines, Turkish baths and a harem. In our time, these ideas about Eastern culture are not unsuccessfully reinforced by television and all kinds of magazines.
As a result, the perception of the Europeans about the East, even today, often does not correspond to reality. One of the most common myths is that the women of the Sultan's harems, in order to attract the attention of their master, competed in this way with each other in the sexual field. They danced half-naked, and at the same time treated the ruler with exotic fruits. Unfortunately, such fantasies have literally perpetuated a distorted idea of what 9 is.0167 belly dance . By the way, the root of the word harem - translated as "forbidden" - denotes a part of the house where not only women but also children live.
Another myth claims that belly dance is performed only by the fair sex. In fact, in the Middle East, such movements are used by women and men, and even children. This is how guests dance there at parties, clubs, weddings, etc., regardless of gender and age. Performing a belly dance at a party, for example, for an Egyptian, is as natural as club dancing for a Westerner.
Although, of course, the female performance of belly dance is different from the male. Of course, a truly folklore oriental dance, in nuances may differ from belly dance, the lessons of which are offered by any European dance school. Although, the basic basic movements remain unchanged. In any case, belly dancing classes will always remain interesting, exciting and undeniably useful, whether you are a woman or a man!
Belly dance today.
In our time, the time of the popularity of dance art, belly dancing is experiencing its second birth. Each dance class has oriental dance lessons in its list. Oriental dance video lessons can be easily found on the Internet. Not one dance competition is complete without the nomination "Oriental Dance". Belly dance today is a dance direction that is divided into many forms and techniques, ranging from traditional Egyptian and Turkish styles to American tribal dances. There are also mixed styles that arose as a result of the merger of oriental dance culture with the dance art of the west.
For example, classical choreography can be performed in an oriental style. Thanks to the choreographer's imagination, the graceful classical dance acquires a colorfully exotic performance. Also, many modern dance styles use techniques and exercises taken from oriental dances to diversify their technique.
Along with the increased interest in belly dance , there has been a noticeable increase in the amount of information available about oriental culture. Modern belly dancers have much more opportunities to expand their understanding of the original traditional dance forms of the East. A lot of information about belly dancing can be obtained from the Internet resource, there is a huge selection of books and DVDs with detailed training in oriental dances. It is also easy to find bellydance music in our time.
Unfortunately, there are still many dancers who are poorly informed about oriental dances, which allows some myths about belly dance to exist quite confidently in the minds of modern people.
