hagala, or "shimmy walk" question...

[Yasmine Bint Al Nubia]

Hi Nayila, I was taught a step called the Samiha by Cassandra Shore of Minneapolis. I must also say there is a slight difference in movement from the Haggallah step as described by Jillina and others.Because of regional terminology, it's easy to become confused about the movements. Please feel free to add your vocabulary! This way we can all learn from each other.
The Samiha: Starting on the right side, twist rt, hip forward with the foot landing on ball in front of lt. foot.Bring the heel down on the rt. foot thereby causing the rt. hip to drop. At this point you lower body will be slightly angled to the left. Now twist the lt. hip forward and with the foot landing on ball. Again bring the lt. heel down to drop the lt. hip. When done in succession, you will create, a nice travelling foot forward or sideways. Depending on the music(fast tempo) it can look like a shimmy, or(slow tempo) it can look sharp and defined, esp for drum solos.
Haggallah step-there can many variations and terms, but this a version I know.Starting on the right,push the rt. hip back, the rt. leg will straighten while the opposite leg remains flexed, then switch weight to the lt. foot. Bring the lt. foot forward and push the left hip back(again the lt. leg will straighten while the opposite leg remains flexed). This is another good travel move and can accent percussive elements or done to a fast tempo for shimmy action. It's important to keep the feet flat during the Haggallah, to create a more earthy look and feel. I've also added a slgt tuck in the middle for a more Africanized version. Don't forget your posture! Both of these moves will look sloppy without it.
Yasmine

 

[Nayila]

hagalla help

thanks ..that is as close to what i know as the hagalla and it fits the counting. the Samiha is nice and i will try to practice this one. I wonder why the 3/4 shimmy in USA is called that...but we all mostly know what it is. My instructor is actually a brazilian who was trained by egyptians. It follows that she liked to add latin steps and i like to add african...it turns out to be an earthy and fun fusion, favoring faster tempos for me personally. the posture is always critical in well executed dances which is fine---it is the arms that i struggle with. African dance typpically has percussive arms instead of flowing arms. I have enjoyed learning and internalizing the arms though. it makes a huge difference thoguh.

 

[Ludmilla]

Hi Ludmilla, Yes this is an awkward move for me too. We use this style of shimmy in one of our choreos and everyone has initial diffifculty with it. Just like your choreo, the move itself is only for a few counts. For me it's a matter of maintaing my posture and centeredness while maintaining my shimmy, this is not my favortie way to shimmy and travel. I prefer the 3/4shimmy or choo-choo shimmy. Ask your teacher to demonstrate what she wants and break it down further. There are some moves in the Oriental dance universe that is just plain difficult no matter how much you practice. So in cases like these your attitude whie dancing can carry you through.
Yasmine

Dear Yasmine -- Thanks for this follow-up! (gee, this is a challenge, like many steps, but "anybody" can walk so doesn't seem as tho' it should be such a 'stumper'.) (Yes the 3/4 shimmy or choo choo are just better-looking and more attainable. But I know I do benefit by trying to do some of the more "icky" "counter-intuitive movements" and eventually improve -- Anyway, everything you say helps so, soo much and thanks again!! Ludy

 

[joyisadancer]

funny, funny, funny

tonight in my dance class we learned (attempted ) the hagala? for the first time. Our teacher looked great. We looked so funny we had a hard time standing up we were laughing so hard. I think its great that I can come on this forum and immedatly see a thread for the very move that was giving me trouble. Thanks guys. Oh and considering I have been taking lessons from many different teachers for three years and this is the first time anyone has taught this move I would have to say this particular move is not very prevalent in the USA. (just my opinion and might be regional) I've seen it performed but never encountered it in class.

 

[Shanazel]

Free water shimmy is what sometimes happens to dancers who have had several children and corresponding loss of control of certain muscles...

 

[Suheir]

Free water shimmy is what sometimes happens to dancers who have had several children and corresponding loss of control of certain muscles...

HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA! You're getting specialist, now!

 

[Yasmine Bint Al Nubia]

Free water shimmy is what sometimes happens to dancers who have had several children and corresponding loss of control of certain muscles...

Shanazel i just LOVE you!:lol:
Yasmine

 

[Shanazel]

Thanks, Yasmine- I love you, too.

 

[Nayila]

free water shimmy.....

Shanazel--how clever...I can also see this happening.......:shok:

nayila

 

[Irene]

3/4 shimmy - Egyptian walk - choo choo

I also don't like the name "3/4 shimmy" because it brings to mind 3/4 music, which is very misleading. Actually, it's done on 4 beat music, you do 3 movements and 1 pause = total 4. Or you could count it, when done quickly, as and - a - ONE, and-a-TWO, and-a-THREE, and-a-FOUR

I was taught this thing as Egyptian walk. My two teachers taught a completely different accent:

One of them (Suraya el Hilal school) says: hip to side, opposite hip up and down (two counts, including a pause), The accent is down.

The second teacher (learned it in Cairo) says the same thing, only the accent is on the side:
Hip up, hip down, hip side, pause. Now repeat on the other side.

It's a wonderful mental exercise for me to be able to do the right one in each one's lesson!!!

 

[Amanda (was Aziyade)]

Just to make things more confusing --
In Jamila's book, she originally taught the 3/4 shimmy as being 3 movements to one beat, with usually 4 beats in the measure. Thus the 3/4 designation. (Jamila Salimpour is usually credited with "naming" this step the 3/4 shimmy.)


So it would look like this, with no pause for the invisible "4" :

ONE-two-three, TWO-two-three, THREE-two-three, FOUR-two-three

Where you step on the ONE, TWO, THREE, and FOUR


or to put it a different way:

DOWN-up-down, DOWN-up-down, DOWN-up-down, DOWN-up-down.
1 -right leg 2 -left leg 3 - right leg 4 -left leg


Done this way, it fits with 2/4 and 4/4 music just as nicely as with 3/4 and 6/8. You don't NEED a 3/4 or 6/8 to do the "pauseless" 3/4 shimmy.


And of course, there's endless variation:

down-up-down
up-down-up
up-down-out
out-up-down

etc.

I also don't like the name "3/4 shimmy" because it brings to mind 3/4 music, which is very misleading. Actually, it's done on 4 beat music, you do 3 movements and 1 pause = total 4. Or you could count it, when done quickly, as and - a - ONE, and-a-TWO, and-a-THREE, and-a-FOUR
QUOTE]

 

[Barbella]

Samiha vs Hagala

Hello everyone! This is my first post and I realize the thread was awhile back but I wanted to thank Yasmine for explaining the Samiha and Hagalla steps. I realize now on the Hagalla my teacher was saying hip out instead of hip back when we would begin the step and I was putting my hip to the side instead of to the back. Maybe I invented a new step? Anyway thank you for the uncomplicated descriptions. It makes sense now. Bye for now, Barbella

 

[Freddie]

There's a very good breakdown and demo of the hagallah shimmy on Beata Cifuentes's 1001 Shimmies video. She breaks down the differences between a few 3/4 walks/shimmies and it's a really well presented video.

 

[Kashmir]

Hello everyone! This is my first post and I realize the thread was awhile back but I wanted to thank Yasmine for explaining the Samiha and Hagalla steps. I realize now on the Hagalla my teacher was saying hip out instead of hip back when we would begin the step and I was putting my hip to the side instead of to the back. Maybe I invented a new step? Anyway thank you for the uncomplicated descriptions. It makes sense now. Bye for now, Barbella

Actually I do not put the hip back (as such) the weighted hip drops and twists and you allow the unweighted butt to go back. The difference? The butt is loose and can reverb along with the shimmy.

The hip out version is a type of 3/4 shimmy - but not a hagalla variation. There is also a variation with a down but no twist (down, up, down) and one with the twist but withour releasing the butt. I have heard both of these also referred to haggala but I don't think of them as the "folkoric" haggala.

 

[Darbla]

The Samiha: Starting on the right side, twist rt, hip forward with the foot landing on ball in front of lt. foot.Bring the heel down on the rt. foot thereby causing the rt. hip to drop. At this point you lower body will be slightly angled to the left. Now twist the lt. hip forward and with the foot landing on ball. Again bring the lt. heel down to drop the lt. hip. When done in succession, you will create, a nice travelling foot forward or sideways. Depending on the music(fast tempo) it can look like a shimmy, or(slow tempo) it can look sharp and defined, esp for drum solos.

I think Blanca does this in one of her instructional DVDs and calls it an Arabesque walk.

 

[Yasmine Bint Al Nubia]

Actually I do not put the hip back (as such) the weighted hip drops and twists and you allow the unweighted butt to go back. The difference? The butt is loose and can reverb along with the shimmy.

The hip out version is a type of 3/4 shimmy - but not a hagalla variation. There is also a variation with a down but no twist (down, up, down) and one with the twist but withour releasing the butt. I have heard both of these also referred to haggala but I don't think of them as the "folkoric" haggala.

I have seen these versions demonstrated as well...I think either version is authentic. It depends on well the move is translated with a dancer's individual body frame.
Yasmine

 

[Kashmir]

I have seen these versions demonstrated as well...I think either version is authentic. It depends on well the move is translated with a dancer's individual body frame.
Yasmine

I'm not saying are aren't authenic - just that the same name is used for slightly different moves. The one with the butt has a more Bedouin ie hagalla feel. The others are used more in beledi or orientale.

 

[jenc]

Egyptian walk Preparation lift R hip (and foot) before the one then on the beat Down then Out Sharply. Allow hip to bounce then repeat on other side. My teacher counts this up, down out - . I prefer to stat count with down as that is where accent is and and then I count down out - up. You count 3 out of the 4 beats so that is why it is also called a 3/4 shimmy