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Kebyar Dance :
The Kebyar Dance is a male solo dance like the Baris.
There are various forms of Kebyar including the Kebyar Duduk
and Kebyar Trompong.
In Kebyar, the accent is upon the dancer
himself, who interprets every nuance of the music in powerful facial
expressions and movement. The most popular form of Kebyar in South Bali
is Kebyar Duduk, the "seated" Kebyar, where the dancer sits cross-legged
throughout most of the dance. By de-empasizing the legs and decreasing
the space to a small sphere, the relation between dancer and gamelan is
intensified. The dance is concentrated in the flexibility of the wrist
and elbow, the magnetic power of the face, and the suppleness of the
torso. The music seems infused in the dancer's body.
The fingers bend with singular beauty
to catch the light melodies, while the body sways back and forth to the
resounding beat of the gong. As the dance progresses, the dancer crosses
the floor on the outer edges of his feet and approaches a member of the
orchestra, usually the lead drummer. He woos the musician with side
glances and smiles, but the drummer is too absorbed in the music to
respond. Insulted, the Kebyar dancer leaves him and sets out for a new
conquest.
The Kebyar is the most strenuous and
subtle of Balinese dances. It is said that no one can become a great
Kebyar dancer unless he can play every instrument of the orchestra. In
Kebyar Trompong, in fact, the dancer actually joins the orchestra by
playing a long instrument called the trompong while he
continues to dance.
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