Hello Peeps
My letter for the Day is ‘E’
Eisa is a folk dance form and is originated from the Okinawa Islands, Japan. This dance form is performed by young people during the Bon Festival & All-Okinawa Festival to honor the spirits of their ancestors. It is one of the most important parts of Okinawan culture.
The Eisa dance form has come from ‘ninbuchaa’, which means ‘monks’.
How to perform this dance?
Eisa is performed by 20 – 30 men and women. They create double lines or circles and choreograph the dance uniquely. They all sing and play sanshin(Okinawan musical instrument)together.
Instruments:
The musical instruments that are used in the dance include sanshin,ōdaiko (a large barrel drum), shimedaiko (a medium sized drum) and paarankuu (a small hand drum). The men play the sashin and beat on the drums, women dance following the rhythm.
Costumes:
Previously, mild colors were used for costumes. Men wore robes of banana fiber cloth with straw sashes and kerchiefs, while the women wore robes of banana fiber cloth, or dark blue kimonos, with white kerchiefs. Now we can see changes in the costumes. Colorful knotted turban, special vests, leggings, and shoes are popular now.
During the Eisa Week, 10000 Eisa Dancers parade is the main attraction. Atthe end of the parade, there comes a large group of dancers called Eisa Pageant. This is a group of 1k selected participants who practice for 2 months to perform the dance together. The dancers perform on the street with the beat of taiko drum.
Sharing here some videos of Eisa Dance performance:
See what dance form I have shared for the letter ‘D’
What will be my next dance form for the letter ‘F’?
This post is in association with #BlogchatterA2Z
Are you enjoying this #DanceKaPunchnama? Please comment below.
Source: okinawa,Wikipedia
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