UNIT 3: Dance as a Cultural Expression

Dance comes in different forms. All dance styles are not alike and are
distinct.

Lesson 1: Folk Dance

Folk dances are dances identified with and performed by a specific
community or tribe. They are the cultural, traditional, or
recreational dance styles in a given country that have developed
and handed down from one generation to another.
Filipino dances like Cariñosa, Curacha and, Pandango, which are
common all through the region, are examples of national folk
dances.
There are three distinct categories of ethnic dances: ceremony, life-cycle, and
work.

a. Ritual dances – dances that are part of the ritual ceremonies.

Examples: Dugso (Bukidnon) and Pagdidiwata (Palawan)

b. Life-cycle dances – dance forms related to the day-to-day life, such as their
wedding, courtship, birthing, or funeral
Examples: Binasuan (Pangasinan) and Daling-Daling (Muslim courtship dance
from Sulu)

c. Occupational dances – dances that are related to the daily work and
lifestyle in the community.
Examples: Mag-asik (Cotabato) and Mananagat (Cebu)
 Types of Folk Dances
Philippine folk dances can be classified in numerous ways.

1. Tribal dances from the Cordilleras – from the Cordilleras, it includes the
non-Christian dances.

2. Lowland Christian dances – dances with Hispanic and European

influences like the ones for the Tagalogs, Ilokanos, Pampangueños,
Pangasinense, Bisayans, and Bicolonas

3. Muslim dances – the dances in the South Island of the Philippines like
Mindanao and Sulu that are influenced by the Arab and Indo-Malayan
cultures.
Philippine folk dances, apart from their classifications, may also be
categorized as:

▪ 1. Life-cycle dances – Dances that act as a rite, it

celebrates the milestones in life like birth to maturity; from
courtship to marriage; from life to demise.
▪ 2. Festival dances – Dances that are performed in
honor of something sacred or secular, usually a
patron saint, and are also related to recurring
occasions of particular importance such as harvest
season that includes festivities.
▪ 3. Occupational dances – Dances that show people's
livelihood activities. One example of it is a dance
called Palay, a dance where dancers depict various
phases in rice production including planting,
harvesting.
▪ 4. Ritual and ceremonial dances – Dances are
performed as part of the customs of a
particular community of people.
5. Game dances – Dances that are local folk
games derivation. One example of this dance
is the Pukol dance of Aklan and Capiz in Panay.
6. Joke and trickster dances – Dances that
include jokes or tricks performed by a dancer
on another dancer or a group of dancers.
7. Mimetic or drama dances – Dances that imitate creatures,
subjects of animals, objects, or other people. The dancers
become characters in the dance and telling stories through their
movements.
8. War dances – Dances expressing feud and enmity, in
which two male dancers engage in physical combat.
9. Social amenities dances – Dances that expressed social
graces, entertainment, and gift offerings to friends. These
social ballroom dances are all "Filipinized" Western dances
that show the fellowship merriment among those members.

Example : Minuete Yano