Bozenka belly dancer biography templates

Definition by Presentation

by Tasha Banat

Author’s Note: Before we even discuss styles like Egyptian, Lebanese, Turkish, Greek, Armenian, Persian, Tribal, Fusion, and everything else that is currently out there, let’s just assume that all movement between the knees to top of your head defines Belly Dance, just for the sake of this article and within this genre.

I believe firmly still that belly dance is comprised of movements such as Figure 8s (rib and hips) as well as all vertical and horizontal directions, etc. that define the foundation of the dance; everything else–such as choreography, steps, props, costuming, etc. is what makes the dance an exciting and ever-expanding visual artform, but of course, there is the traditional style belly dancer like myself who worked predominantly in Arabic, Persian, Armenian, and Turkish night clubs. (I’ve danced since 1966.) As a matter of fact, my only belly dance teacher was Yasmena, an Iraqi, who in the early ‘70s taught me about dancing with veils as well as floor work used by American dancers. That training, along with the Debke, defined my style of Arabic belly dance. Until that time, I performed pretty much only Debke, wearing a baladi and cabaret combined style of belly dance costume. 

That costuming and style actually worked for me because the musicians were mainly from Asian/Arab countries anyway and everyone belly danced to those songs. As a matter of fact, the most popular albums in those days were the “Port Said” by Mohamed El Bakker (Asian/Arab Debkes) and theEddie the Sheik and George Abdo collections, which were also Asian or Arab Debkes. There was also Aram Araklian (playing the oud), Armenian; the Ozel albums, Turkish; and the “Café Feenjan” from New York City, whose songs came from all Mediterranean countries and beyond.  The list of albums from that era goes on and on. 

There were many highly orche

Elena Ramazanova Speaks About the League of Bellydance Masters

An Interview by Iana Komarnytska

We had the pleasure to meet with Elena Ramazanova, president of The League of Bellydance Masters in Russia, artistic director of “Ramiza Dance Group”, and a successful dancer and teacher at the open beach party of the Seventh International Belly Dance Festival titled “Expression of the East” in Berdyansk, Ukraine.

Iana: You are the president, Elena, of the League of Bellydance Masters (LBDM) that annually hosts more than forty different events .  At the same time, you have your own soloist dance career as well as the dance group known as “Ramiza”. Is it difficult to combine all these activities? 

Elena: Of course, it is a little bit difficult, Iana, since different hemispheres of the brain should work to resolve different tasks. When you are a creative person, you worry about different aspects of an event than you would as an organizer. However, I should say that LBDM consists of people who are self-sufficient; they give me suggestions and advice. Without them, I would not be able to manage everything. I really adore them! Otherwise, I would not have invited these teachers to join LBDM.

Iana: When you decided to create LBDM, did any similar organizations already exist in Russia? Did they share their experiences with you? How is LBDM different from these organizations?
Elena: Of course, such organizations already existed, but nobody was willing to share their experience. The only exception was Natalia Kuzmina who ran the belly dance organization in Yekaterinburg and now has a big organization in Cyprus as well. She was (and still is) my friend. She helped with some ideas about organizing LBDM.

LBDM was created because I saw that the future development of the field of belly dance differed from what there was at that time in Russia.  I think that people’s desire to ea

Musical artist

Karim Nagi is an Egyptian musician, composer, ethnic dance artist, and DJ. He specializes in traditional Arabic music but is widely known for his innovative approach. In total he has released fourteen CDs and six DVDs, and he tours internationally performing and teaching.

Karim Nagi has been an invited speaker and master class instructor at Brown University, Princeton University, Yale University, the University of Chicago, New York University, Boston University, and the University of California Los Angeles, among many others, including international institutions. He has been a featured ethnic dance artist at Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival and a featured music artist at the American Folk Festival in Bangor, Maine, in 2004 and Lowell, Mass., in 2005.

In 2001 Karim Nagi started the program Arabiqa, aimed to educate children and adults alike on Arabic culture through music and arts rather than through religion and politics. He is a member of the New England Foundation for the Arts, through which he is a New England States Touring (NEST) artist.

Under the name Turbo Tabla, Karim Nagi has released four albums, two of which were distributed internationally by Universal Records. These albums feature Karim's pioneering technique and unique aesthetic in mixing traditional Arabic sounds with hip hop, techno, and house. More recently, he has been exploring English language spoken word fused with his signature Arab percussion and electronic remixes.

He produces the annual Arab Dance Seminar, now in its fourteenth session, where he invites native and expert instructors to teach dances and culture from around the Arab world over three days every November. He is also the director of the Sharq Ensemble, a group of three to thirteen Arab and American musicians that revives and performs traditional Arabic music. The Ensemble was featured, to