The Folk Dances of Luzon
The Folk Dances of Luzon
The Folk Dances of Luzon
Jadrien Javier
7-Descartes
Abaruray
The offering is usually made by a young lady. She goes around with
a glass and a bottle of native wine offering a drink to the visitors.
This wine offering is a signal for the beginning of folk dancing and
singing. The musicians play the introduction of "Abaruray" music.
The girl who is offering the wine picks out a young man from
among the guests and offers him a drink. This is her way of hinting
at her desire to dance with him. The young has to accept it or he
commits a breach of etiquette and the girl is offended.
His acceptance of the drink will signify that he will dance with the
girl. He then stands and they begin dancing, with the girl leading
him on. The girl dances with the glass of wine on her head from
which the young man drinks. Her dancing skill is shown in her
ability to keep the glass on her head and in not spilling a drop of
the wine. The audience sing and clap their hands in time with the
music.
Carinosa
This a mock war dance between the Muslims and the Christians
that originated from Binan, Laguna, Philippines. The dance is
about a fight for the latik or coconut meat during the Spanish era.
Today, this dance is performed in honor of the town's patron saint,
San Isidro Labrador. All dancers are male and are naked to the
waist except for the coconut shells attached to their chests, backs
and hips. The Muslim dancers wear red trousers while the
Christian dancers wear blue. There are also coconut shells on their
thighs and knees. As they dance, they touch these shells with their
coconut shells on their hands.
Palu-Palo Dance