Preserving Heritage through Movement: Philippine Folk Dance
Among the 5 classification of Philippine Folk Dance, I think I already dance Maria Clara or the Cariñosa dance. When I was in my elementary days, there was an event celebrating in our school and our section join and dance the Cariñosa. At that time, our teacher said that Cariñosa dance is the kind of dance where you can use when you are courting your love ones because it is a courtship dance that portrays acts of flirtation between a man and a woman. For me at old days Cariñosa dance is good than other dance because it attracts more when it comes of women and it is not hard to dance so you can enjoy dancing with your partner. Whithin the Philippine culture essay I want to discuss what is the role of Philippine Folk Dance.
To start with, for me, a folk dance implies a traditional dance that has been passed down through the generations. It will consist of a series of steps and figures performed in a particular order. Their children will learn it and in turn pass it on. Ethnicity is defined as a group of people living within a larger group with a different culture so my understanding of an ethnic dance is therefore a style of dancing which is peculiar to that group of people from the larger group's point of view. For example Spanish people living in England might perform the Sevillanas or Flamenco. They are not folk dances as they do not have rigid prescribed sequences. You could therefore say Sevillanas or Flamenco are ethnic dances as they are limited to Spanish people and not many English people know how to dance them. Likewise English people living in Spain could be performing Ballroom and Latin (baile de salon) and the Spanish would refer to it as ethnic dance from their point of view.
While I was reading “what makes filipino unique” essay I found curious infornation about one more Philippine Folk Dance. Tinikling also one of the most famous dances in the Philippines. The movements of this Filipino folk dance imitate the movements of the tikling bird as it walks around through tall grass and between tree branches. People use bamboo poles to perform this Filipino traditional dance. Tinikling is composed of three basic steps which include singles, doubles, and hops. Maglalatik, a folk dance in Luzon, is not just any other traditional dance in the Philippines that mimics the movements of animals. This dance in the Philippines has a meaning. It is a mock war dance that depicts a fight over coconut meat, a highly-prized food.
The Filipino folk dance is broken into four parts: two devoted to the battle and two devoted to reconciling. The dancing men wear coconut shells as part of their costumes, and they hit them in rhythm with the music. Maglalatik is danced in the religious procession during the fiesta of Biñan, Laguna as an offering to San Isidro de Labrador, the patron saint of farmers. That's only a little difference of Cariñosa dance in other dance they just differ in costume and tradition.
The role of Philippine folk dance in our society is to introduce our place, to show our Filipino talent people dance for all kinds of reasons to mourn, to celebrate, to heal, to give thanks, to demonstrate physical prowess, to assert individuality, to provoke and to entertain. Almost anyone can dance, regardless of age or ability. To specify, there is a type of dance which reasonably preserves the cultural heritage and treasured legends. Folk dance plays an imperative role to nurture and maintain cultures and identities. To keep these alive, folk dance is performed to refresh and value the remarks as well as treasure the built civilization of their ancestorsforefathers. It displays how colorful their culture is wearing festive and localized costumes, and combining it with their native song. We can say their creativity reflects the way they live and their identity. Folk dance serves as an entry for identification which makes it easier for us to recognize people in different places. These different places showcase the beauty of their folk dances to drive awareness and recognition for millennials or for this generation since they are now tremendously exposed to the new genres of music and dance. Folk dances are only some of the important sources of depicting early life and cultures of native people in our society Folk dances are dances bound by tradition with movements passed down through the generations. Folk dance is not just one singular style of dance, but a collection of many dances. Each style of folk dance can date back several generations (or centuries) with ties to the Old World. Many folk dances trace their origins back during times when dance was distinguished between the different classes of society: common and country folk versus the high society, royalty and elitists. The term “folk dance” was originally meant as a derogative term by high society elitists to demean the common people. Country dance styles of today contain mixes of both contemporary folk dance and ballroom dance. Even several ballroom dance styles originated from folk dance. So the role of Philippine folkdance in our society is to Unite Filipinos and to have an identity for each other in different places in the Philippines
In conclusion to filipino traditions essay, it is important to know the history of Philippine Folk dance because mainly due to the fact that actual, real “folk dance”, as practiced by tribal or peasant peoples all over the world, is disappearing rapidly. There are simply no tribal peasant groups left unaffected by the “modern” world and its communication, transportation, and money. There are remnants of folk traditions left and followed by aging small groups of people who have been 'left behind', or chosen to live their lives as such. Still, folk dance is important. As a student for me i observed that the folkdance is no longer exist now a days or should i say some people already forgot it but their are some people not forgot it too. For me to preserve and strengthen our folkdance through promoting and performing it in any ways like group dance competitions in school either local, national or international through the help of teachers. Philippine culture is exceptional and unique in nature. It was also discussed that culture separates its distinction from the rest of the world since the country showcased colorful and lively culture that makes distinctly Filipino. This includes traditions, language, arts, music, literature, etc. which are found in museums, churches, and galleries within the heart of the key cities. Also, provinces have their own identifying folk dances showcasing the elegance and beauty of the way people do things, dress, and illustrate different paintings as they have been influenced by events that happened in history. The preservation of the cultural heritage of one country is as important as the understanding of the historic wealth where the culture comes from.
