Ghawazee vs Awalim - influence on modern-day Egyptian raqs

shiradotnet

Well-known member
In a different thread, Kashmir posted this:

The ghawazi had not real influence on raqs sharqi. Show me one ghawazi styled move. It was based on the awailm and Mohamed Ali Street dancers and the social dance of Egyptians.

I'm not sure I agree.

First, when the term "Ghawazee" is used today, many people's minds jump immediately to the Banat Maazin, who have been the most high-profile, acclaimed dancers of this style in Upper Egypt. Perhaps that's what you were referring to when you said what you did?

However, the term "Ghawazee" and its usage to mean "dancers who performed for mixed crowds at such public events as moulids" predated the Banat Maazin by more than a century and a half. There were the Sumbati Ghawazee of the Nile delta area (who inspired part of Fifi Abdo's shtick on her Concert at el Emailia video), and their dance style was entirely different from the modern-day Banat Maazin.

By extension, isn't it logical to think that Cairo Ghawazee would also have differed from Upper Egypt Ghawazee? Perhaps Cairo Ghawazee had a dance style similar to that of the Awalim, who were also Cairo-based?
 

Kashmir

New member
I was using ghawazee it its modern sense which are rural performers possibly of a different ethnicity. Morocco's work suggests that these people have only been in Egypt for a short time.

It would appear they are not the same as the public dancers described as "ghawazee" in earlier centuries. At that time the term `awalim was used for educated women who sang, created poetry and danced a little. In modern times the term seems to describe what used to be "ghawazee" ie in the 20th century the `awalim were the public dancers you would hire in Mohamed Ali Street and similar places. They were not educated poets - and they performed for both men and women.
 

Amanda (was Aziyade)

Well-known member
I only know of one move in particular, but it's been confirmed as Ghawazee by several leading Egyptian instructors -- it's a weird backwards stomp which also pulls the low belly backward. This got translated into Sharqi (I think Shareen el Safy calls it the Arabic Pony) as a move where the front foot steps down and the belly is released down, and then the back foot steps and the belly pulls in. 2 counts. For more beledi styling, you accent the forward step. Oriental usually accents the back/pull in step.

I'll try to find video of it because I don't think I gave a very good visual picture.


(This actually came up in conversation a while back over a discussion about current instructors who came from the Awalim tradition versus the folk troupes.)
 

Safran

New member
Aziyade, we call it "The pony" too, but we differentiate between a forward pony where by moving one's pelvis the front foot is lifted and the stomp is caused by stepping down, and a backward pony, which is what you describe. I have never ever heard anything of its origins though.

I have taken several workshops that claim to have been ghawazee, but I can not recall much of the information given there, I have to check my notes. I also took one workshop on the topic of "30ies awalim", but there was just a lot of styling similar to golden era, plus an extra bit of cheek and flirt.
 
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