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Welcome to another video in my “Zill Heros” series where I interview the zill movers and shakers who are inspiring others in the dance world.

In this video I speak with the lovely Melissa Gamal.

I connected with Melissa for the first time online earlier in the year when she was teaching sagat (finger cymbal) classes and then again when she hosted the amazing percussionist Hany Morgan for a series of sagat classes from Egypt. I was completely blown away by the unique technique and style of playing she was teaching in her classes – called “musician style” – and I am totally hooked on the amazing amount of musicality and creativity that is opened up when playing cymbals in this way.

So we sat down and geeked out on lots of things zillicious – from the musician style technique to the finer points of choosing when and how to play cymbals musically, to how we as dancers can incorporate this style into our dance.

Be sure to watch all the way to the end where I’ve included some clips of Melissa playing the sagat in this beautiful style – both with the dance and as an instrumentalist alongside the incredible Hany Morgan.

You can learn more about Melissa here: ya-amar.ca and on Instagram at @melissa.gamal

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Inspired? Join me for this free beginner finger cymbal jumpstart and become the zill star you are meant to be! SahiraBellyDances.com/zillstar

Early in my belly dance journey I was always searching for new moves… I was hungry for more, more, more and always wanted to learn the latest and greatest movements the belly dance world had to offer – like an avid collector wanting to complete the entire set. (Collect them all!)

Now, over two decades later, I think I might have finally done it.

WHAT!?! (I can hear you saying it from here.) You’ve learned ALL the moves? Impossible!

Hear me out – me saying that I’ve learned all the moves does not mean that I have nothing more to learn. In fact, I believe I will never get to that point. Never.

But you see, from a certain perspective there are only so many movements within this beautiful dance style. But there are INFINITE variations. These variations in texture, feeling, style and layering are what allow you to bring your own personal flare to the dance and this is what it’s really all about.

And it’s also exactly what I am going to dive into in today’s video tutorial – The Shaabi Figure 8. We are going to take our humble horizontal figure 8 and play with it – adding and subtracting layers and texture – to create a figure 8 that just might surprise and delight you!

Wanna play?

Let’s dance!

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Find joy, movement and creativity in this FREE 7-Day Beginner Belly Dance Jumpstart. Join today and dive into all that the beautiful world of belly dance has to offer.

SahiraBellyDances.com/Jumpstart

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A huge thank you to the amazing Miss Thea for the use of her music in this video. You can get her album “Siren Dream” on her Bandcamp here: https://missthea.bandcamp.com

Last month my long-time friend and fellow dancer Karen Barbee offered me the opportunity to dance with the Gafour brother band as part of a daytime rehearsal for her Project Band students.

I danced with this band for so many years here in Houston, first at al Boustan, then Ya Leil, then Layal and finally Byblos. Arabic nightclub after nightclub opened up with this incredible ensemble and I had the unique honor to dance with them at many of these venues. The last time I shared the stage with them was over six years ago. Then they stopped playing for the dancers at the club, and I stopped dancing at that club shortly thereafter (that midnight show was so much less appealing when done with recorded music instead of the band!)

So imagine my excitement when Karen gave me the chance to dance with them again! (And in the afternoon while the sun was still shining and I wasn’t falling asleep in my mint tea!)

I asked them to play a classic tune – Zay Al Hawa. It is one of my favorites. I can’t count the number of times I’ve danced this number with these musicians… but this time it felt so very different.

I would love to share the experience with you here.

A huge thank you to Karen Barbee for this amazing opportunity and to the Gafour brothers for making the music that inspires the dance.

I’ve been working up a new choreography for my students and found myself in class the other day walking them through one of my favorite movements – Egyptian Downs, or weighted hip downs.

This movement, however easy to understand in the brain, is definitely one that belongs in the “easier said than done” category. I attribute this to the fact that it’s pretty much the opposite of what we do when we walk (and we’ve been walking for quite a while now.) Do you know what I mean?

Check out this new technique video I created for you to see just what I’m talking about and discover a way to break down the movement that will make it much easier for you to wrap your muscles around!

Practice this for a while and you just might find that these counterintuitive downs may surpass their more upward sisters as your favorite variation of the move!

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Are you ready to take your belly dance skills to the next level! Join me in my online studio now to snag a few free in-depth classes to get you started!

http://SahiraBellyDances.com/JoinMe

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A huge thank you to the fabulous Miss Thea for the use of her music in this video. Grab her album (it’s fabulous!) online at https://missthea.bandcamp.com

If you are anything like me you know that owning just one pair of zills is like owning just one pair of shoes. I mean – I guess you can survive that way, but why would you when there is a wide world of zilliciousness waiting for you out there?

So I’m here to give you SUPER EXCITING NEWS!

The Bellydance Bundle is celebrating year five by giving away five sets of zills to 5 winners! ? (Totally crazy, right?!)

It’s time to enter to win yourself some zills!

http://SahiraBellyDances.com/ZillGiveaway

Enter NOW for a chance to win your package of 5 zills from Turquoise International. Keep them all for yourself or share with a friend! This year’s giveaway package is valued at over $270 USD and Tiffany will ship it anywhere in the world.

So come enter the giveaway and see if you’ll be one of this year’s lucky winners and celebrate year five of The Bellydance Bundle!

I’m totally entering now! Who doesn’t want new zills? ?

See you there, Zillstar!

http://SahiraBellyDances.com/ZillGiveaway

Enter by October 2, 2021 to be eligible to win!

How do you track your progress in dance? If you’re like most dancers, you kind of… don’t.

Maybe you go through phases in your practice where you go really hard, get inspired or motivated, practice a ton and then kind of burn out when you don’t see the progress you were hoping for. Frustrated, you switch focuses or hit one of those lows where you just don’t practice.

As a result you find yourself no closer to your goal than when you started, and probably feeling pretty crummy, which is never where you want to be with your dance practice.

I want to let you in on a little secret. One of the reasons you have these highs and lows in your practice is because you’re not tracking your progress.

“But how do I track progress in something like belly dance?” (I can hear you asking.) I’m so glad you asked! ? Here’s the tool that is going to show you exactly how to do it.

http://SahiraBellyDances.com/PracticeTracker

This new guide by the Belly Dance Bundle takes you through some different ways that you might be able to track your practice, has you set some goals, and then has a 30 day fillable tracker that you can use while you’re practicing! Download it now, and begin to track and see your progress in brand new and fabulous ways!

I’ve already downloaded mine and am blown away by the incredible suggestions inside. This is totally going to revolutionize your practice, fabulous dancer. I can’t wait to see what you do!

http://SahiraBellyDances.com/PracticeTracker

I would love to share with you this original shaabi choreography, showcased at an online Zoom performance event in the Summer of 2021.

This choreography is one that I created for my students – and I enjoy dancing it so much I decided to use it for this special event. I added zills (naturally) and was having so much fun that I didn’t want to stop once the music ended. So check out what I did instead!

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Are you ready to rock your zills like the Zill Star you are meant to be? Then join me for this free jumpstart course to put you on the path to finger cymbal success!

http://SahiraBellyDances.com/ZillStar

Do you find that sometimes the momentum you get after being on the dance floor – whether in performance or practice – gives you a fabulous feeling and great energy for the rest of your day?

One of the best ways to change our state and our emotions is though motion. So I invite you to do a little dancing today and see where it takes you! (Bonus points if you put on your zills!)

Are you ready to really rock your finger cymbals?

Would you like to not only play them with confidence but also dance with them with grace too?

I have been teaching and performing belly dance with finger cymbals – or zills – for over two decades and I’m here today to invite you to join The Zill Challenge – a 10 day event designed give you everything it takes to confidently play and dance with your zills.

http://TheZillChallenge.com

The challenge includes ten days of video tutorials via email followed up with a daily Facebook live session to interact and ask questions.

At the end of this challenge you will not only have a fun and funky new riff to play on your zills, but you will be moving to your beat too!

And did I mention there are prizes for participation? Saroyan Mastercrafts, the makers of the best finger cymbals on the planet have joined us for this incredible event and will be giving away some awesome prizes.

To join the challenge visit http://TheZillChallenge.com today!

You will get immediate access to the challenge workbook and online community when you register.

The challenge officially begins on September 7.

I look forward to making music with you there!

http://TheZillChallenge.com

I was recently invited to perform at a beautiful theatrical event here in Houston. The show, entitled “Nothing Without the Other” explored the intimate and deep connection between music and dance – the idea, as the organizer explained to me, “that dancing and music go hand in hand and one doesn’t function without the other.”

She asked me if I would create an acapella zill piece for the occasion. Of course I jumped at the chance.

While music is often the inspiration for dance and the two are most certainly inextricably linked, in the ancient art of Middle Eastern dance the musicians, dancer and audience all come together to create an ecstatic experience known as “tarab”. The music moves the dancer, who in turn moves the musicians, who are themselves being listened to and encouraged by the audience… It is all energy flowing in multiple directions that creates the beauty of the art form.

But what happens when the dancer and the musician are one and the same? This is exactly the question I have been exploring as of late and here is where I have arrived so far.

The finger cymbals are an ancient instrument linked to belly dance. They are often played by the dancer as she performs to live or recorded music, though many large musical ensembles in the Middle East today have a dedicated cymbal player, so often the dancer will not play.

In this improvised piece I’d like to share with you today I take turns leading with the music and leading with the dance until it all becomes a blurred line of flow and instantaneous inspiration.

I hope you enjoy!

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Are you ready to start your finger cymbal journey and get the solid foundation you need to become the Zill Star you are meant to be?

Join me for my free finger cymbal jumpstart here:

http://SahiraBellyDances.com/ZillStar

Do you feel a a bit nervous when you pick up your finger cymbals because you’re not sure WHAT you should be playing?

You are not alone! I am approached by dancers all the time who feel a bit lost when they find themselves with zills on their hands, music in the air and the expectation that they are supposed to just starting playing something. It can be a little scary, especially if you are under the impression that you could possibly make the “wrong” choice.

I’m here to tell you that you have a lot more options than you might think, and that short of playing something that is not in tempo with the music or doing something non-committal and sloppy, there aren’t too many choices that I would characterize as “incorrect.”

In this video we are going to explore 3 basic ways you can choose to play your zills. There are definitely more ways to be explored (more videos to come!), but these three will get you started confidently playing your finger cymbals the next time the music begins to play.

Are you ready to dive in deeper so you can put together fabulous zill patterns of your own? Join me for my FREE zill jumpstart course – ZillStar – designed to give you the foundation you need to become the zill star you are meant to be!

Join me here now: http://SahiraBellyDances.com/ZillStar

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A huge thank you to the amazing Miss Thea for the music in this video. You can pick up her album at her BandCamp here: https://missthea.bandcamp.com