From improving your internal rhythm, to leveling up your finger cymbal speed, the metronome is totally your new best friend!
In this video, I will break down how to use a metronome effectively to supercharge your zill practice. ***Join an incredible free community full of finger cymbal enthusiasts sharing their love of the zills: https://www.facebook.com/groups/zillicious***
Practicing with a metronome builds rock-solid timing, sharpens your musicality, and ensures you’re always on the beat, no matter how fast or slow the music.
Join me here to learn the metronome essentials you need to sync up your cymbals with confidence and precision, so you can dazzle on stage with flawless, confident rhythms.
Whether you’re a beginner or a seasoned dancer, using a metronome in your practice is a game-changer – so hit play and take your finger cymbal skills to the next level!
Find connection, confidence and empowerment as you explore the beautiful world of belly dance . Learn more at https://TheBellyDanceJourney.com
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The older I get, the more gratitude I find in daily life for the little things.
I don’t know how much of this is due to aging and how much of this is due to the decades that I have spent learning about the inner workings of the mind and the science of happiness.
It may also have something to do with the daily yoga/meditation/gratitude practice that I have been following now for the last three years.
So while my newfound gratitude is probably due to a mix of all of the above I have to admit that it has been a big game changer in my life.
After my daughter was born I experienced an intense postpartum depression that flattened me for over two years. Coming back from that was incredibly challenging, and that is when my study of happiness and the science of the mind began.
One of the many things I’ve learned is the power of our words over our emotions and perception. In honor of this time of year, I would love to share this idea with you.
The way we speak – even if it’s just to ourselves in our own head – is a huge influencer of how we feel and the way we view the world.
For example, when we say “I HAVE to practice now.” or “I HAVE to cook dinner.” it’s taking away our authority and choice on the matter, and making the activity feel like a chore or an obligation.
What happens if we instead say “I GET to practice now.” or “I’m GOING to cook dinner.”? While a seemingly tiny difference, this neurolinguistic programming builds a pathway in our mind that colors the way we look at and feel about these activities.
So today I invite you to join me for this moving gratitude practice, and to learn a beautiful belly dance combination in the process.
Light a candle. Take a deep breath. We get to dance now.
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If you would love more of this mindful, empowering movement, I invite you to check out my one-of-a-kind belly dance program – The Belly Dance Journey. Find connection, confidence and empowerment as you explore the beautiful world of belly dance .
Does whether you are right-handed or left-handed matter when it comes to playing finger cymbals?
Should every pattern start with your right hand and then alternate? What if you’re a lefty?
Have you ever notated a pattern R R RLR R RLR, and then got home and had no idea how to play it?
These questions are ones that confuse a lot of dancers when it comes to playing their finger cymbals.
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Get a rock-solid foundation for your finger cymbals practice so you can feel confident and competent on the dance floor. Join me free “ZillStar” course now and become the zillstar you are meant to be!
Believe it or not, there was a time in the history of our art form when hand patterns were mandated by teachers, and only certain methods of playing were allowed.
Though this is changing, there still remains a lot of confusion as to which hand to use at what point within a finger cymbal pattern.
In this video I am here to demystify the best way to pattern your hands when playing the finger cymbals and to call total BS on hard and fast rules that require everyone to play the same way.
So whether you are right-handed, left-handed, or somewhere in between this video will break down the ways you can choose to approach your zills so that you can find the best method for your practice.
Get a rock-solid foundation for your finger cymbals practice so you can feel confident and competent on the dance floor. Join my free “ZillStar” course now and become the zillstar you are meant to be!
By drilling the Egyptian and Hip Shimmy mindfully in this way you can quickly train your body to create seamless shimmies no matter where your weight lies – which is the secret to strong, confident and effortless shimmy layers.
Let’s do it!
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Do you sometimes struggle with keeping your shimmy relaxed, big and even?
Check out this FREE masterclass that will show you 5 simple tips that will revolutionize the way you create your shimmies, allowing you to discover your most delicious and reliable shimmy.
Did you know there’s a free online community just for you where belly dancers come together for connection, support, and dance inspiration?
Welcome to The Shimmy Society! It’s a fabulous gathering spot where dancers like you can chat, share practice videos, and find motivation with others who love this art form as much as you do!
Inside, I’m sharing tips, tricks, and tutorials that you won’t find anywhere else! This video is a sneak peek of one of those sessions, where I break down belly dance layers with a special method that will allow you to dance with confidence and ease.
Come be a part of this supportive, joyful community—join us for free at The Shimmy Society today!
In an earlier conversation you told me loud and clear that there is no upper limit when it comes to age and belly dance. And I am totally with you! This is a folkloric dance for every age and every body, and a powerful way to find more confidence and self-expression.
Now let’s talk about another aspect of belly dance – the professional performance realm.
I personally performed professionally in nightclubs, restaurants and private events for about 20 years – from age 23 to 43.
Why did I stop? Well, the answer might surprise you. I was pretty confident when I made the move at the time, but what’s happened since then has surprised me and even led me to wonder if I may have sold myself short.
So let’s chat about age and belly dance in the professional realm. I’d love to hear your thoughts.
Are you performing professionally as a belly dancer? When do you think you might retire from the restaurant circuit? If you have already stopped, at what age did you stop and why? Let’s keep the conversation going.
It’s kind of embarrassing to admit, but I’m being honest here because maybe you can relate.
I used to have a terrible shimmy.
I mean – my shimmy seriously sucked, and I struggled with it for years, even after I was working full-time as a professional belly dancer. My shimmy was small, unreliable, lop-sided and would start and stop at the most inconvenient moments. I was nervous on stage when it was time to shimmy and I felt like a total imposter in my dance!
After almost twelve years of struggle I finally made a breakthrough! (Several, actually…) I am thrilled to report that my shimmies today are strong, reliable and so much fun to perform… and I feel much more confident on stage.
I see fabulous dancers struggle with their shimmies all the time, and since sharing these breakthroughs with my students I can see the improvements in their shimmies too. And not just that – they also feel better and more confident about themselves and their dance.
I’ve taken these breakthroughs and created a special FREE TUTORIAL to help you unlock your most confident shimmy too – just head over to Sahira Belly Dances – Shimmy Tips to get it.
I can’t wait to see what you do next!
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The music played in this video is by the amazing Miss Thea. Support her and get her music at Miss Thea on Band Camp.
I have collected over 20 sets of zills over the last two decades and consider myself a bit of a zill aficionado.
While I have played all of the cymbals in my collection, I do not regularly play them all. (In fact, there are a few sets I keep around just as loaners for my students.)
Want to know which of the cymbals in my vast collection are the best of the best? Maybe get an idea of which cymbals you’d like to for yourself?
In this video I’m giving you the nitty gritty on my top 5 favorite cymbals – what they sound like, what I like (and sometimes what I don’t like) as well as a bit of compare-and-contrast between them.
So whether you are a total zill geek (like me!) and love to learn about and listen to finger cymbals, a new dancer looking to make an educated choice for your first set of zills, or a seasoned pro ready to add to your collection, dive in with me here as I take you into my studio and share with you the five best cymbals in my collection.
We don’t just dance… we also make the music that inspires the movement. And that, my friend, is pretty freakin’ incredible!
There is nothing quite as powerful as having total control over what is played as you dance. No questioning what that crazy drummer might dream up next…. just you and your finger cymbals creating the party.
So are you ready to make some magic? Today I’m sharing with you the companion dance combination for the ”Totally Triplets” zill riff you can also find here on my channel. (Learn it here: Advanced Finger Cymbals (Zills) Combination | Totally Triplets)
We’ll be using three different zill sounds – The Basic, the Clack and the Tick. Utilizing more than one sound with your finger cymbals is key in making dynamic and engaging rhythmic patterns! If you’d like more instruction on how to beautifully create these sounds, check out my tutorial here: Finger Cymbal Basics – The Four Basic Sounds
Now just because I said this is so much fun does not mean that it is easy! In fact, the best things in life are those that create enough challenge for you to grow. So I invite you to take up that challenge now and give it a try.
Practice nice and slow, and take a quick video of your practice today so you can compare it to your practice of this same combination a couple of weeks from now. If you’re not setting yourself up to see progress, your practice can become quite frustrating. So set yourself up to grow and win now!
Are you ready to find incredible confidence and creativity in those cymbals and take your zilling to the next level? Let’s do it!
Partially because I never thought anyone would want to listen 😝…but also because I didn’t think it was all that unique until recently.
A member of The Belly Dance Journey asked me how I started dancing. It’s a bit of a story to be sure, but she really wanted to know – so I shared – not only about my first-ever belly dance class experience, but how I made it my full-time work without ever really planning to.
This strange journey involved me sleeping in my tent, selling jewelry at a Renaissance Festival, living part-time in a friend’s garage, putting everything I owned into storage, dancing at The Dancing Pig Pub, dancing in the dirt, sleeping in a small wooden box, and not having enough money to pay rent for over two years.
It’s been quite a journey y’all. And I’m finally ready to share the story with you.
It’s been a crazy ride for sure. And I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Thank you for letting me share my story, and thank you for being a part of this journey. I love sharing the dance floor with you!
