My Blog

I won 2nd runner up at the Eilat Festival Contest!

Sophie — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 00:56:14 GMT

Yay! I uploaded the video here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z5mNju-tMak and lots of nice pics could be found on my website http://www.bellysophie.com Hope you enjoy them!

Making a Ghawazee Coat

Sophie — Thu, 29 May 2008 17:52:37 GMT

Several people have asked me about the ghawazee coat that I wore at my last performance. I uploaded some pics with commentaries to my website. You can watch them here: http://www.bellysophie.com/2008/05/29/making-a-ghawazee-coat/#more-43

New Finger Cymbals Solo

Sophie — Wed, 28 May 2008 13:47:35 GMT

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mmg-S2x9N68

New Performance Video

Sophie — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 11:13:36 GMT

I uploaded a few fragments from my recent performance. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XGMh4254gMA

My Website

Sophie — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 10:25:29 GMT

My website has overgone a complete face lift. I upgraded to new wordpress version, changed the default theme and added 15 new entries. It has now my Istanbul trip blog, notes about my new school (Center for Middle Eastern Music) and a couple of entries on Israeli legendary dancers. Check it out: http://www.bellysophie.com/

Youtube video

Sophie — Wed, 04 Jul 2007 05:29:32 GMT

I added a video of me dancing at the Dolphin Reef in Eilat, check out my profile page!

Article for Gilded Serpent

Sophie — Thu, 07 Sep 2006 14:47:03 GMT

My article on the Oriental Dance Festival in Eilat is up on Gilded Serpent. You can read it here: http://gildedserpent.com/art37/SophieOritFest06.htm

"Artemis - Turkish Style Belly Dance" Review

Sophie — Mon, 26 Jun 2006 07:01:22 GMT

Introduction The video starts with an introductory description of Turkish Oriental Style. Artemis points out the similarities and the differences between the Turkish Oriental and the Egyptian Oriental Styles, using excerpts from the "Bellydance!" and the "Second Awards of Belly Dance" to illustrate her observations. Music and Rhythm Artemis introduces us to the 9/8 family of rhythms, specifically the Karsilama, and makes an important distinction between the Romani Karsilama and the Cabaret Karsilama, and how the difference between them affects the dance. Isolations There are total of 9 isolations presented in this section. Artemis shows each isolation from 3 different angles (front, side and back), her explanations are clear and she uses lots of imagery and creative ideas to get her instructions across. Most isolations are demonstrated to both the slow and the fast versions of Karsilama, and although most of the isolations would be familiar even to a beginner level student, they are tweaked to hit the 9/8 accents. The isolations are: head slides, shoulder shifts, shoulder shimmy, shoulder rolls, abdominal undulation top to bottom, pelvic isolation 12 o'clock up, knee-driven hip shimmy, hip circle, hip circle with knee bounce. Turns Artemis teaches 2 types of turns: 3 step to 9/8 with accent variations and the barrel turn. I was particularly fond of Artemis's instructions on spotting during barrel turn. Steps Once again Artemis demonstrates how familiar steps are adjusted to fit into both slow and fast Karsilama. She starts from the basic step (front-back-back-front) with embellishments, then proceeds to step-hip, travelling shimmies, step-together-step and travelling full-body undulations. Then Artemis teaches knee lifts and Eva hops. In the end Artemis combines the steps together, first to the slow and then the fast rhythm. Gestures In this section Artemis presents gestures that are intrinsic to Turkish Oriental style. She warns from over-indulging in gesturing, and suggests to rather use them as accents. She also points out on cultural differences between Greek, Turkish and Egyptian audiences that the dancer should be aware of. Combinations Artemis teaches 4 slow combinations, that employ many of the movements reviewed in previous sections. Then she moves on to teaching a short choreography to a fast Karsilama, using a very famous song 'Rompi-Rompi'. Performance This is by far my favorite part of the video. Artemis first dances to 'Rompi-Rompi' and then to 'Keman Karsilama'. Her performance is passionate, joyful, truly captivating, and it showcases her superior sense of music and rhythm, vast movement vocabulary and her zill virtuosity. Through her dance you could see the profoundness and uniqueness of Turkish style. Notes on Production As with other IAMED instructional DVDs the production quality is superb. The decor is unobtrusive, and Artemis's leotard is in good contrast with the background, we can clearly hear her voice and the camera focuses exactly on the parts of the body that are of interest to dancers. The credits contain information on music, costume, photography, as well as contact information of various artists. Total run-time is 2 hours! Wishlist I wish that Artemis would not look so often on the floor while demostrating the moves. She does look at her audience during verbal explanations, and she looks just ahead of her when she demonstrates the moves from the side and the back, however she often does not maintain visual contact with the camera while showing the moves from the front. I found it very distracting at the beginning, but got used to it quickly. I also wish there has been a zill section. Artemis shows great zill proficiency (speed, tonalities, taste) and I wish we could learn more from her on the subject. My last wish would be that the combination sections would have been shot in front of a mirror, so it would be easier to follow the steps. In conclusion, I enjoyed Artemis's instructional style and her warm presence and I would recommend this video to anyone who wants to learn more about the Turkish Style of Oriental dance.

Layali Yasmina

Sophie — Mon, 29 May 2006 22:17:25 GMT

This Sunday I spent about 2 hours digitizing 'Layali Yasmina' VHS that I recently got on sale from Nourhan's website. Now I have all the choreo bits as separate videos, and I put the first 2 parts on repeat and practiced them over and over again for about 2 hours. Damn it! This choreography is too fast for me, and it combines elements that are extremely difficult to execute even on their own. I genuinely suck at spinning (barrel turns), and this choreo is loaded with spins and turns, one on top of another. Our thick carpet doesn't help either: I'm afraid of injuring myself, but then, where would I practice? I was thinking of taking private ballet classes to focus on spins, turns and transitions, but now I truely believe that nothing will help, until I correct my posture, and it might never happen. Regarding the video: it's definitely geared towards advanced students. I dare to say that at times I don't agree with Yousry's interpretation, but then I don't have the CD with the music, so I might be missing accents here and there. I really like Nourhan's instructional style: she gives lots of performance suggestions, advises on variations and costume choices. I also find her pleasant voice very calming, compensating for the fuzzy background they decided to use (I wish Nourhan would have performed the choreo in front of a mirror). Overall I find the video very challenging and I doubt I could have practiced the choreo playing the VHS itself: I just wouldn't have the patience to constantly rewind. Perhaps the DVD version would be much easier to navigate through.

How to Survive a Weekend Workshop - a Definitive Guide by Sophie

Sophie — Thu, 25 May 2006 01:11:20 GMT

The best advice I could give you would be: "Don't do it!" Weekend workshops are very demanding, both physically and mentally. Unless you were blessed with eidetic memory or all the workshops were taped and you can afford to buy the videos, there is no chance you are going to retain even half the material being taught. So give yourself a break and take as much as one workshop a day and you would most certainly thank me for being able to walk the next day. If you keep reading this blather, it means that you are as much a stubborn maniac as I am, and you might find the below info valuable. - Plan the weekend in advance and exempt yourself from any domestic chores: you will be too tired even to remember about them once you get home after a day of dancing. - Pack your dance bag the night before the workshop. Prepare a checklist and follow it meticulously. Here is a sample checklist to start with: * A pen and a dance notebook * Water/Soft drink * A lunch snack - Take a bit more, so you could share with other exhausted souls * Props - Go over workshop descriptions and figure out what props you must bring. Then disregard the descriptions and bring all the props you've got: you never know what skills you might be asked to demonstrate. * A camera - It's true that photography is often banned, but you could videotape yourself or an advanced student (ask for their permission!) performing the most challenging movements and combos once the workshop is finished. You could also take stills of yourself and the instructor, so you could later brag about it on tribe.net and such. * A light tripod - in case you don't trust your fellow participants to not rotate the camera only to give you a horizontal video of your head. * Some cash or a check book, because at the least you will buy the music that was used throughout the workshop. * Dance shoes, dance paws or whatever footgear works for you. You never know what type of flooring you will have to bear with. * A yoga mat/towel/knee pads - in case there will be some strenuous floor work. A yoga mat will serve double purpose when you decide to stretch in between the sets. * A hip scarf, although I doubt you would forget it - Get a good night sleep the night before, and get up early so you have time to stretch and have breakfast. Finish your breakfast at least an hour before the workshop starts, or else belly rolls are out of question. - Get to the location early, otherwise spot nazis like me will obstruct your view throughout the workshop. - If you get tired during the workshop, don't just sit there: write down the combos into your precious notebook, so you could practice them later. - Once the class is finished do not attack your lunch box just yet. Stretch first: warm-ups and cool-downs are either not present or too short at such events, and stretching is important to prevent injuries. - Don't forget to network. Remember the extra food you packed? Use it as an ice-breaker if you're too shy. - After the class, introduce yourself to the instructor, provide feedback, and write down her /his contact info in case you happen to be in the area they regularly teach. I hope I didn’t miss anything important, so now you’re ready to knock yourself out! Disclaimer: Sophie is not a professional trainer, but she is a scarred survivor of several weekend workshops.

Rakkasah West 2006, From Drills to Drum Solo Workshop with Jim Boz

Sophie — Fri, 19 May 2006 18:46:01 GMT

This was Jim's first Rakkasah as a teacher, and I truly believe he's got a lot to share, especially with regards to class environment and organization. Any dancer knows how frustrating it could be when a teacher comes to class unprepared, or when he doesn't remember what music is used, or when she's unable to control the students (a situation that occurs rarely in the States, but is quite common in Israel!). Well, Jim's done his homework! He started the class passing around handouts with exaustive information on what we were about to learn, including the music being used, the outline of the drills, timelined(!) choreography notes and even the goals of the workshop! I mean, what more could you ask for? And yet he managed to surprise me once again. Being a musician, Jim rendered a custom CD to suit our "special needs". The drum solo was split into short excerpts, with each excerpt pasted numerous times, sometimes half or 3/4 time to accomodate our repetitions. He even introduced pauses in between the music for comic relief. No time was wasted and yet the class was so much fun! Add to this Jim's approachable personality, his sense of humor and precise technique and you will get a recipe for a perfect 3-hour workshop. Unfortunately I missed Jim's performance during second Rakassah weekend (looking for a parking spot, damn it!), but judging from his workshop demonstrations, he's got a charismatic stage presence and a fine sense of music. Links "http://www.jimboz.com" "http://www.rakkasah.com"