Following on from the recent Shakers and Movers show and the announcement that the new South London dance showcase would feature dance from different areas I thought I would post a link to a video I first came across about a year or so ago (unfortunately I'm unable to embed the video itself).  It features two musicians from very different backgrounds:  Lebanese National Treasure Wadi Al Safi and

I've just spent a wonderful afternoon at Shakers and Movers, 'a dance show case presenting different styles from the intensity of flamenco to the allure of Arabian dance' at the Polka Theatre in Wimbledon. Talented dancers, colourful costumes and lively music provided the perfect cure for Olympics fatigue. Yes, I know we won a lot of gold medals in Beijing this weekend and I should be

Alternative spellings include:  Oum Kalthum, Umm Kulthum, Om Koultoum, Om Kalthoum, Om Kalsoum, Oum Kalsoum, Omm Kolsoum, Umm Kolthoum, Omme Kolsoum

The most beloved and influential singer in the Arab speaking world, Oum Kalthoum was born somewhere between the years 1898 and 1904 (records vary) in the small village of Tammay-az-Zahayra, lying within the Daqaheleya Governorate.  Her father

A couple of clips courtesy of YouTube.  The first is one I haven't seen before, the second is an old favourite and always worth watching. 

Below:  Amani performing a tambourine dance.  I'll take a wild guess and say this was filmed at the Ahlan Wa Sahlan festival in Egypt (Raqia Hassan sitting in the audience is a bit of a clue).  I think this is absolutely beautiful.  Amani is such a graceful

I first wrote about digital download sites for the the original Belly Babes website last summer, but the world of digitally downloaded music is about to change quite significantly so much of that piece is now obsolete. Digital download sites are an excellent way for Middle Eastern music fans (and indeed fans of World Music in general) to discover new sounds, so it's worth revisiting them in the

Music is my first love, so I guess this blog is going to be mostly music related although I might stray into other areas occasionally!

I grew up in a house filled with music of all types. My father loved trad jazz, while my mother listened to a combination of Arabic music, jazz, lounge, swing and rock 'n' roll. By the time I hit my early teens, rebellion was in the air and I turned my back on

I'm absolutely delighted to see the International Bellydance Congress is returning next year. Despite all the problems in 07 with the venue, it was my favourite bellydance event of the year. It was amazing to have so many internationally renowned teachers and performers all in one place and I loved every second of it. OK, maybe not the hen and stag party weekenders who ended up sharing Butlins

The blog is yours to write about whatever you want, as long as it's in accordance with our Terms & Conditions. It doesn't have to be limited to bellydance and you have the opportunity to add tags to your blog entries so others can locate the blog topic easily. There is also a list of subject headings, which at the moment is quite limited so if you would like a particular subject heading added