Top Ten Dance Forms

There is perhaps hardly anything fulfilling and beautiful as dance, when the entire body sways to rhythm and the dancer ceases to hear the music and becomes the music itself. This list compiles a list of the ten most beautiful dance forms of the world.

 

1. Ballet

This form of dance evolved sometime in the sixteenth century in Europe and has changed dramatically since. Now it has become an art that requires grace and practice, and is choreographed to orchestral music in a flowing, acrobatic style. There are different types of ballet in the present age all of which retain crucial elements of their progenitor.

 

2. Salsa

A recent dance form born in the heart of the Caribbean, salsa is an energetic mix of European and African dance forms. It combines these two heritages together and creates an explosive fusion of smooth movements, gaining popularity all over the world in popular culture with each passing day

 

3. Indian dance

To couple all of the Indian dances in one paragraph is a crime, but not to do so will exclude several other types from around the world. There are several Indian dance forms such as the kathak, kathakali, bharatnatyam, odissi, mohiniattam, manipuri, and kuchipudi – all of which are classical dance forms and have very old roots. Every one of these dance forms is an art in itself and requires lifelong practice to achieve excellence – and each one is supremely beautiful.

 

4. Belly dance

The traditional Arabic dance form, raqs sharaqi, is popularly known as the belly dance in the western world. There are many different schools of belly dancing such as the Egyptian, Turkish, and Western – each of which is highly sensuous, and comprising of fluid hip movements to the music.

 

5. Samba

This is the famous Brazilian form of dance that the whole worlds identifies the carnival at Rio de Janeiro with – where scantily clad samba dancers gyrate to the primal beats of the drum. This dance has its roots in African and European dance forms and has spread throughout the major portion of South America.

 

6. Popping

Popping is a fresh dance style in which the dancer has to contract the muscles of his limbs to deliberately create a jerk in his body – known as a pop. This dance form is primarily associated with hip-hop culture but is slowly evolving onto a more general platform. It is fast gaining recognition among the masses.

 

7. Ballroom dance

This dance too has its roots in the sixteenth century European society and was restricted to the privileged class who used to gather for ‘dances’ on special occasions. These partner dances have several different styles as the Waltz, Troika, etc.

 

8. Tap dance

This is a form of dance which involves the sound of ‘tap’ (created with the use of metal plates fixed on the soles of the shoes) used by the dancers to give rise to a rhythm while dancing. This dance form was predominantly influential in the UK, and later in the African subcontinent.

 

9. Merengue

This is another dance form that is of Latin-American origin. Here the partners dance in a closed position to a two-step beat. The music is typically very frenetic and the tempo of the dance very exciting – making this dance very popular among the youth.

 

10. Polka

This is a form of Central European dance that originated sometime in the mid-nineteenth century. It has since then evolved into several variants such as the ‘Polish Polka’, and the ‘Slovenian Polka’. This dance has a unique musical associated with it, both in American musical schools and in the classical musical school.

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2 Responses

  1. melanie

    This is a good post for students who are looking for searching for the types of bal room dances.
    This really helped me.
    thank you!

    Reply

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