What instructional DVDs/Videos you have?

[Safran]

Hey maariku, which one you've got?

Secrets of Stage 1

 

[Reen.Blom]

I wouldn't recommend this for a beginning dancer or even a beginning zill player. I think if you've mastered Ansuya's zill video, or have used zills minimaly in a class, this would be a nice next step. Mesmera doesn't teach any belly dance moves or technique on here. It's assumed you have a basic movement vocab and musical knowledge like counting 4/4 time.

First part is a naration about Harry Saroyan, the guy sings, makes zills & coins, plays doumbek, etc., and is a big personality in the U.S. BD community, especially the AmCab scene. I met and chatted with him at his Rakkasah booth once. He's really nice.

Then Harry S. comes on and talks about zills for a couple of min.

Then there is a zill dance performance in the classic AmCab style by Mesmera. After she dances she explains *briefly* about picking out zills, wearing them, sewing the elastics, and muteing them. This should have been a bit longer. If you don't have this knowledge from somewhere else, you need a different video or a teacher. She demonstrates the ring, click, and clap sounds, then shows a box and a layered ring.

She *briefly* explains counting music. This would be confusing for a bare beginner I think. She does cross her hands at the wrist so your right is her right when she is facing the viewer. I did like that a lot. She demonstrates triplets, rolls, and altenates.

Next she demonstrates how she uses syllables to re-inforce triplets (123) with movments i.e. take-a-step, drop-your-hip, etc.

She goes over arm positions while wearing zills and reminds everyone to keep using their arms when playing. She talks about volume increasing and decreasing when playing. There is some beledi playing while she does triplets.

A really nice thing happens next! Jerimiah Soto and a couple of his other drummers come out and play live. Just basic rhythms though. Still, always nice to see the musicians! They play Beladi, Maqsoum, Chiftitelli, a 6/8, and Kashlima. Mesmera plays along and coaches when she changes how she's playing. The sections are short for a sustained practice, but have nice ideas. She played a Baladi over a Chiftitelli (I love layering 4/4 rhythms) but never explained the hows and whys, which would have been nice for the intermediate zill players to know. I did like the suggestion of playing zills with the melody, although she never develops the idea further.

After all that, there's a bit of a Saroyan Cymbals infomercial, a wrap up speech, another Mesmera dance demo with zills and veil (which was never touched on in the video) and a thanks/goodbye from H.S.

Wow thanks for the review!!!! Really detailed! I will have to be looking at some other DVD thyen- sounds too complicated for a newbie like me...

 

[Jane]

Wow thanks for the review!!!! Really detailed! I will have to be looking at some other DVD thyen- sounds too complicated for a newbie like me...

I'd get Ansuya's first, if you're new to zills, then get the Mesmera. I re-watched it while I did my ironing.

Anyone have the FatChance zill video? What's it like?

 

[Damariz]

This thread made me realize how many videos I have (Is it 20 already?) as well as how many I don't practice with. Yikes!

Out of all the ones I have, I love watching/working with:
* Raqia's 1995 and 1996 workshop. At $10 each, these are a fantabulous find! The 1995 video teaches 3 choregraphies. One is to pop music, the second is a malaya leff, and the last is to Inta Omri. The 1996 video has a saidi/beledi choregraphy and a raqs sharqi one. Lots of stomach pops and knee shimmies.
* Yasmina Ramzy choreography vol 2. Great beledi routine using Samy Ali's music (banned in Egypt)
* Shareen el safy's Saidi for the stage. Love this choreography to Ala Nar. Great on history. Shows movements of Mona el Said, fifi, Dina and Nawga.
* Saida's Bellydance vol. 1 and 2. Each volume has two discs. Disc one contains rhythms and combinations and disc two has a choregraphy.
* Bellydancers of Cairo. Has footage of Dina. nuff said
* Dances of Egypt by Aisha Ali. It was refreshing to see real tahib and not a ballet influenced one.

My Wishlist (just in case anyone wants to make an offer or even review these)
*Little Egypt presents a Fifi abdu workshop (both sat and sun)
*Dina in Dallas
*Turkish bellydance with Artemis mourat
*Shareen el Safy Walla Marra

 

[adiemus]

I just had the nicest correspondence with Michelle from CheekyGirl Productions Cheeky Girls Productions - Instructional and Performance Belly Dance DVDs - and ordered her 'drills, drills, drills' - if her DVD is as nice as her emails, I think I'm going to enjoy it!!

 

[Safran]

Adiemus, I also ordered the Drills' DVD for keeping myself busy over the summer without regular dance classes taking place.

I finally had the time to go through the Secrets of the Stage 1 dvd the ther night. The first chapters are nice, there are a lot of practical hints. When the dancers talk I kept thinking "I know that... So why am I not doing it!?" :lol:

I loved the exercise part! On the practical side - the exercises are not exclusive to the dvd, you can take the idea and work with it on your own music. And the exercises really make you think how to use your body and dance vocabulary in as diverse way as possible.

I'm happy with this purchase :clap:

 

[Shamsa]

i have many IAMED dvd's and i love to work with them!

 

[adiemus]

I've just made a comment on the other thread about 'Drills, drills, drills' - it's great! Just what I was looking for as a set of drills before working on improv or choreo, going over the basic isolations and strengthening, and --- well I haven't got that far yet, but so far it's great. Definitely recommended.

 

[Mosaic]

I received Today:
Drills, Drills, drills & Gypsy Passion Haven't looked at them yet.

I have:
Belly Dance With Veil ( Sarah Skinner shakemyday.com)- Love this, Sarah has some great veil moves and shows you slowly how to execute them. If you like veil I think this is a great DVD to have.
Belly Dance Basics (Cheeky Girl productions) excellent beginners DVD, but I still enjoy just to get back to basics sometimes
Pop, Lock and Shimmy, I love this ( Cheeky Girl Productions), I like the way Michelle shows you how things "work" or should work.

Arabian Spices - Tribal Fusion by Sahira It won't be every ones cup of tea, but I love it. It breaks the choreo down into 11 combos and Sahira is very clear in her explanations and execution. I tend to stop at the end and just watch her dancing the choreo, it fascinates me

I have 3 Neena & Veena DVDs - they are OK, but I prefer others these days.

Secrets of the Centre - Keti Sharif, I like her style, Her more recent DVDs are more bellydance fitness orientated, I don't have those and I believe from write ups they are far more advanced and for those who wish to teach BD fitness.

One of my earlier DVDs is Learn to bellydance - Trisnasari from Underbelly Studio teaches on this DVD. Trisnasari is a beautiful Australian dancer. I still enjoy this one. I don't think it is for beginners. I found it quite hard as a beginner, and rather frustrating. Now I enjoy it.

I have 6 Tribal style DVDs (Gypsy Caravan & ATS with Kajira of Tribal Bible fame)

East Coast tribal with Sera( which is more fusion style) Sera's arm work fascinates me, I can't see myself being able to accomplish that in a million years.

I have zills one as well, very basic zills though, worth while if you are just learning. It is an Aussie production Zills with Zahira

I have on my wish list:

Perfect Hips bellydance Workout ( Cheeky Girl productions)
Body By Bellydance ( Cheeky Girl Productions)

Ultimate Belly Dance Combinations Taught by various dancers e.g:Aziza, Amaya, Fahtiem, Elizabeth Artemis Mourat & others.

There is a new one out called Raks Habibi belly Dance with Victoriya. Sounds more of a performance DVD rather than instructional, but there is quite a number of different dance styles on it which sounds good. write says:
Viktoriya performs traditional and modern egyptian and Lebanese belly dance. As well as Saudi, Khaleegy, Gypsy Dance, and other folkloric dances of the Middle East. Performances Include - Houwa Sahihe - Bent Il Balad - Shadi Alhan - Oriental Accordion - Modovian Dance - Melaya Laff - Ya Msafer - Halawah - Desert Queen - Te Quiero - Solo Tabla - Harem Street Special Features - About Bellydance - Dancer's Biographies - Interactive Menu - Chapter Selections
That is my wish list for the moment.
~Mosaic

 

[CrossEyed]

Here's my newbie rookie non-dancer opinion of the Bellytwins 3 dvd set:

Basic Dance
Beyond Basic Dance
Mystic Dance

For someone like me who never dances (I didn't dance in high school either) these dvd's should be just perfect. Very basic.

• The narration is great
• They go slow. (I'm clumsy and it's hard for me to learn the movements when they go fast.)
• They tell you the name of each movement.
• Each dvd breaks down the movements to the most basic elements and then you drill that element. Then they add additional elements until the movement is complete.
• They show several variations to the movements and tell you what you can do to make the movement more sensual. IE: 'to make the movement a little more sensual lean back slightly with the upper body....."
• Each dvd is built upon the previous one so in the 2nd dvd you basically do the same dance as the 1st dvd but each movement is an advanced version.
• Marina, Lochia & Sohaila have dance solos included at the end of the dvd's but I was disappointed that the Twins didn't have any.
• Each dvd gives you the option to do the entire video with the music and no narration. Very nice option.
• DVD 3 covers basic veil work and they use half circle veils. When they do the routine at the end 1 twin has a veil and the other does not so you get to see how the movements look both ways.

If you are an experienced dancer these dvd's will probably put you to sleep. If you learn dance movements quickly these might be too slow for you.

I like the shiney tights they wear w/matching top because toward the end when you were doing the routine you just learned they were wearing them under their skirts and I thought that was kinda cool.

This is the first set that I purchased.

I have to agree that I like the fact that they move slowly, and break down the movement as they go along. They start with showing moves for the upper body, and they gradually make their way down.

The way the twins are dressed for the video also it makes it easy to see the moves. The feet and legs aren't covered, so it's easy to discern the placement of feet and legs.

There's not a whole lot of extreme close-ups of the face or abdomen area, and that also helps to see what the twins are doing in the video.

In summary: I think this would be a good set for beginners like myself, although I can see how this set could be a bore to those who are more seasoned.


Other videos I own:

Tribal Fusion Belly Dance: Technique and Conditioning with Sharon Kihara --

The first review on the Amazon page about that DVD sums everything up quite well. It was hard to see what she was doing due to the clothing she chose to wear doing the shooting, and she was more worried about her hair at times when she should have worried about the execution of a move, and it was hard to see her at times because the camera was a bit too far away.


The Bollywood Dance Workout with Hemalayaa --

Not really belly dance video per se, but worth a mention...

The instructor is bright, bubbly, and incredibly bouncy.
It's a fun workout to do, but if you're a little out of shape, the floor work can be a bit of a problem. I kind of feel like a goober doing this workout because she insists on incorporate some facial expressions (and sounds) that would probably elicit laughs if done in front of someone while doing this workout.


Sensual Bellydance with Blanca --

I just got this video, and I have watched a good portion of it.
This is a beginner/intermediate type of instruction, but I think this would be a decent video for anyone. It's a fairly long DVD (about two hours), but she describes the moves quite well and executes them equally well. She also goes into how to align your body.
The best part about this particular video is that nothing is fast paced.

...And those are my two cents.

 

[LLAIMA]

Raqia Hassan's DVD

I prefer Raqia Hassan's first tape and two workshops. The very first tape is more of a teaching one with actual instruction rather than the later ones which are real flashy and harder to follow.
Aida Nour's workshops are the follow the leader type but have some really good things.

Does any body else own any of the Raqia Hassan series? that would like to give me their imput?

In terms of video filming quality, which one is the best? I mean I don't mind the follow the bouncing butt style of teaching, but when the butt is being blocked It is pretty anoying, also does she face the camera all the time or does she do front and back demostrations?

I apreciate all the help you can gv me on this.

 

[Mya]

I just got Nourhan Sharif's Raqs Assaya dvd - i really like. She does everything nice and slowly and then she builds on it but she keeps coming back to the most basic movements every once in a while. I think it's a pretty good learning instrument providing you have no other resource for it - like a live instructor. I think that by following along with the cd one can develop a fundamental relationship with the cane to prepare for live instruction later on.

I did not like the constant references to formal dance positions. While i think that this may be useful for people with an actual dance background it was just plain confusing for me trying to figure out/remember where 6th and 4th and 5th were while making sure that my feet were in 1 1/2 and dancing with the rest of my body.

All in all i enjoyed it and i think Nourhan is so beautiful i'd probably watch it over and over just to look at her.

 

[kayshier]

Two DVD's I've just enjoyed: Jenna's 'The Next Level' - although I do agree that it's quite a jump from her 'Basics and Beyond'. I enjoy her presentation style, and her breakdown of each part. She does refer back to the Basics if you're having trouble with any individual parts, which is a good idea.

The other is Sarah Skinner's Belly Dance with Veil. This is such a great DVD! And her presentation style is relaxed and fun. I think it's awesome value with breakdown of hand and arm positions, entrances and wraps/unwraps, turns, cascades, travels, switches - and most importantly, how to recover from mishaps!! Of course, you always meant to drop the veil like that?!! (except if it's a choreo and you're in a group...hmmmm)

A full choreo is part of it, and I really enjoyed it.

And she has The Most Amazing range of veils and costumes, that she makes herself. Well worth getting.

I'm now considering a zill DVD - but have a bit to go through before I do.
BTW they're not a replacement for lessons with a LIVE instructor, but great for a practice pep-up, or to review something specific, or if you just want to explore something before developing it a bit more.

I agree with you on Jenna's the next level and Sarah Skinner's dvd.
I have them and love them both. the information on the fabric choices for veil work is also very helpful.

well i also endorse Jenna's basic dvd, and drum solo one (heart beat of bellydance which i also have) they provide good explanation and instruction.

although i havent read all of the thread...and please don't kill me if this question was asked before, but has anybody ever used or own the 2 Mario Kirlis/Saida dvd's? I understand they are fantastic, but not very easy to track down..

there are a few more i would like to get probably list them at another post.

 

[kayshier]

I just got Nourhan Sharif's Raqs Assaya dvd - i really like. She does everything nice and slowly and then she builds on it but she keeps coming back to the most basic movements every once in a while. I think it's a pretty good learning instrument providing you have no other resource for it - like a live instructor. I think that by following along with the cd one can develop a fundamental relationship with the cane to prepare for live instruction later on.

I did not like the constant references to formal dance positions. While i think that this may be useful for people with an actual dance background it was just plain confusing for me trying to figure out/remember where 6th and 4th and 5th were while making sure that my feet were in 1 1/2 and dancing with the rest of my body.

All in all i enjoyed it and i think Nourhan is so beautiful i'd probably watch it over and over just to look at her.

that's a dvd i am definitely looking forward to getting soon.

has anybody ever got the "every shimmy in the book" by Bozenka? how good is it?

 

[Damariz]

Saisa's dvds are great. Both bellydance Vol.1 and Vol.2 are 2-disc sets. Disc one introcuses rhythms and combinations. Disc two teaches a choreography. You can get them on ebay for about $20-25 each volume.
2 DVD SET LEARN TO DANCE BELLY DANCE SAIDA MARIO KIRLIS - eBay (item 290253712481 end time Aug-19-08 08:10:50 PDT)

DVD LEARN TO DANCE BELLY DANCE SAIDA MARIO KIRLIS VOL 2 - eBay (item 290253345430 end time Aug-17-08 11:53:09 PDT)

 

[missanime]

Please share with the world what instructional material you have/use and what you think of it!

Here I go:

I've got several of the Belly Twins, which I am not too mad about, cos most of them are fitness oriented (except for Mystic Veil, I like to use this one for the relaxed ambience it creates.)

I've got Neon's Instant Belly Dancer vol 1&2. I enjoy that one, cos her graphic schematics really help me to understand how this or that move "works"! Unfortunately she does not teach combo's on it, so I use it as a reference type thing - a mini encyclopedia of basic Belly dance moves!

I was given 2 Rania's DVDs Exotic belly dance of rania(99.9%fitness) and Rania's choreography, which I also dont use, cos i really do not like her as a dancer, her stiff arms get on my nerves! LOL

I have Jillina's Level 1 which is quite fun!

And I am currently waiting for Jenna's Basics and Beyond and Heartbeat of belly dance to arrive!

Later on I really would like to get smth in "Tribal Fusion" Like Sera's or Darshan's and wonder if the "Arms and Posture" by Rachel Brice is any good...
But those are later, MUCH later, for financial reasons...LOL

i too have Neon's Instand BD I and II - i think it's great for the beginner and gives a good solid foundation and understanding of what you're doing. great reference dvd!

i just got Michelle Joyce's Pop Lock & Shimmy - i wanted something that would offer new challenges and drills to do on my own. she's very approachable and let's you know that her dvd is *meant* to push you a little further

then there's Jenna 's Bellydance The Next Level - again it pushes you just a little further, and she too has some nice drills you can do w/it. plus she has some easy combos to introduce for the beginner. again - very approachable and non-threatening.

i also bought a few more, but still waiting for them in the mail.

 

[missanime]

Hi Ladies, It seems we all shop for the same DVd's/videos .I have a lot of what's been posted already and I think each video is well made and covers a lot of information.I'm a visual learner so videos help supplement my learning, what's important to me is will I see their entire body including the feet. Does the instructor explain directional changes and weight placement? In terms of props, does the instructor give handy tips for hand placement and storage tips? Is there mention of the music used in the video so I might buy it? And finally am I encouraged as a student to inject my own personality so I won't look like a clone?
Additional vids that I have and recommend are:
Suzanna Del Vecchio-"Precision Motion", "Dynamic Combinations" and "Lock,Flutter and Roll". She is an excellent dancer and teacher. She strongly encourages students to maintain proper alignment and joy in the dance.Her videos are geared toward intermediate and advanced students.
Ayshe- Great video on how to wear and dance with Isis Wings. It's almost like a mini-workshop and well worth the money. Again she encourages proper body alignment, weight placement and directional changes. She thoroughly breaks down each movement and also body positions to avoid. I understand that Amar Gamal has studied with her.
Petite Jamilla -"Double Veil" video is good in that she breaks down the intricate patterns of the veils. She does a decent job in breaking down the hand and arm moves, but she spends a great deal of time spinning. For those of us who don't like to twirl and spin for 5 minutes straight:naghty: , there's not much info on a soft, lyrical double veil routine. She doesn't spend any time discussing which type of veils or fabrics work best in a double veil routine, or body alignment. I would think her video would be geared toward intermediate or advanced students, who are comfortable with veil routines already.
No matter which video we all have it's good to have videographic record of our favorite dancers and even if one doesn't feel the info is relevent now there is a chance that in the future where the information may be useful.
Happy Dancing
Yasmine

wow, thank you so much for these! i searched for suzanna's on youtube, found her website, and i think i like the 'dynamic combinations' one the best (for my current level and needs).

 

[missanime]

I'm also addicted to the DVD's
Here's what I have.

Amira's Bellydance 101, great 1st DVD, very basic
Jenna's Basics and Beyond, Heartbeat of BellyDance, these are my favorites of the collection, still use them almost every practice. :clap:
Neena & Veena's Discover BellyDance series. Ok, but slow and boring. I actually do them on fast forward :lol:
Ansuya's Magic of Bellydance (mostly choreo) it's OK
Ansuya's Hot Combos & All New Hot Combos, I like these.
Ansuya's Lavish Layers & Luscious Layers, they're ok, I was hoping for something more/different from her. I took a layering workshop from Aubre Hill and it was so awesome. Aubre should be coming out with an instructional DVD soon and I will buy it.
Jillina's level 1, ok for the choreo, I don't prefer her teaching style, I doubt that I'll pick up 2 or 3.
Neon's Instant Bellydancer 1&2, first impression was aweful, but I try them again every few months. It's too fast pace for a real beginner, but she does get you combining moves and travelling.
Aziza's Veil, haven't used much yet.
Ava Fleming's Dynamic Combos, I really like this one, lots of useful steps for travelling.
Rania's Bellydance fitness for weight loss series, Jane Fonda-ish aerobic routine with bellydance moves. IMO these will only reinforce bad habits. I only use her bonus workout material (probably should have tried to get my $ back)
Suhaila's Bellydance fitness fusion, these ones are great, maybe someday I'll be able to do a whole DVD in one session
Rachel Brice's Yoga, Isolations and drills. I skip the yoga but I love her drills. Another one that I practice with very often.

Rachel Brice's Arms & Posture: a lot of you are asking about this one.
1. Preparation (warmup, stretches)
2. Dance movement preparation (short workout, squats)
3. Shoulder sequence (shoulder workout)
4. Examples of arm placement in dance (breakdown of a few shoulder moves)
5. Practical applications (short choreo using moves above)
6. Ending stretches
7. Performance
Great DVD, if her style is what you're trying to achieve. Every move is definitely "Rachel". She does a wonderful job breaking it all down and showing how to put it together. Not too much yoga on here, which is good for me. Performance was disappointing though, as usual with her too many angle changes/single body part close-ups, etc. I do wish she would smile sometimes.

wow, great reviews - thank you!
i just found rachel brice on youtube, and i wanted to know if you could maybe tell me where (these drills i found) where from: youtube.com/watch?v=g9swa3bUgc4

and also, about how long are the drills are in her 'Yoga, Isolations and drills' dvd? (i too would be skipping the yoga part).

thanks so much

 

[trang1808]

hope one day I have more DVDs to consult.ray:

 

[Khalida]

Delilahs bellydance workshop (DVD I, II and III) Very good DVD series, lots of different material (veil, floorwork, basics, layers, just everything the first DVD series I owned
Aziza's ultimate bellydance practice companion - LOVE LOVE LOVE, hope the next one comes out soon and hope she does traveling steps sometime. Use it almost daily
Veil with Aziza - very nice combo's, but the moves she teaches work best with a silk rectangular veil, lots of the combinations did not work for me when I used chiffon half-circle, now I got silk it suddenly clicks.
Suhaila Fitness Fusion DVD series: Like the Pilates and Yoga one best, jazz and buns are a bit less exciting to me.
Sharon Kihara Tribal Fusion technique - LOVE LOVE it, a great team-DVD for Aziza's practice companion. Has glute + abdominal drills, which I missed on Azizas DVD
Bozenka's every shimmy in the book - great practice/drill DVD, works best if you've also had the workshop because there's not as much explanation on the muscles used. good warmup and cooldown, although the cooldown would work better with some instruction so you don't have to stop and peek ;-)
Leyla Jouvana's 1001 shimmies an variations - excellent DVD quality and very good explanations of posture, weight distribution, the muscles used and timing for the shimmies. not all of them interest me as much so I have to use the remote control often to skip to my favorites. I missed a warmup/cooldown section, but could do that on my own I guess. Great explanation for flutter variations
Leyla Jouvana's 1001 shimmies II - still have to watch this one, but looks like an equally good quality practice DVD
Ava Fleming dynamic combinations - very nice DVD quality and she explains the moves and posture clearly The combinations are repeated often enough. I have not used this DVD very often yet because I have some trouble with balance and traveling steps overall. Which means I actually should use it even more for practice haha Am planning to do just that.
Spins and turns with Marguerite - great material, but explanations are a bit tedious so I tend to lose my patience before making it trough the entire DVD
Oriental arms with Katia - some good practice moves, but do not like all combinations
Drum solo with Sadie - excellent DVD, very good warmup and conditioning excercises, explains the drum solo moves clearly and has some fun and challenging combinations
Drills with Sadie - have not used the whole DVD yet for practice but looks very promising. starts with the basics and builds up with layers and speed
Drills drills drills with Michelle Joyce - good drills but lots of overlap with the other drill DVDs I have. This one I would use if practicing zills at the same time
Zills with Ansuya - did not do it for me
Poi spinning with Michelle Joyce - very good DVD, covers all the basics with good explanation and clear camera angles. focuses a lot on double poi/voi moves, missed single voi a bit.
Wings with Ayshe - good basics DVD, nice explanation on posture etc... I prefer trying to come up with my own moves/combinations for Isis wings in the studio so I use the DVD for conditioning excercises instead.
Stage dynamics with Katia - some very good tips here on effective use of space
Secrets of the stage with Michelle Joyce - excellent DVD, refer to it often in workshops
Secrets of the stage II - use it a bit less because it focuses on dancing for restaurant audience, not much use for that here locally
Magdy el Leisys workshop series - very nice combo's but are most useful if you already followed the workshops before, his accent can be a bit hard to understand on DVD ;-)
Ava's sizzling hips and sizzling torso - good for refining subtle moves
There's more but above are the ones I watch/use most frequently..

Khalida
Khalida Bellydance, 'Bellydancer of the world' 2007