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 Legong dancer |
 ali, the island of the Gods.Bali, island of the Arts. In this little paradise on earth, situated in Indonesia, east of the island of Java, art is so much a part of everyday life that there are no specific words to designate art or artists. In fact, everybody is simply an artist. At the end of a long and hard day of work in the rice paddies, balinese people just take their brushes, their tools, and become painters or sculptors. It is the same for dance. It is part of everyday life, and accompanies every festival. But Bali is also the island of the Gods. And religion is present in every action of the day. The gods recieve offrerings of flowers or rice every morning, as well as prayers. And can you imagine a more beautiful offering than these graceful dances. |
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The religion parcticed in Bali is hinduism. Indonesia, the biggest muslim country in the world nowadays, has not always been muslim. Between the 7th and 15th centuries, Indonesia was buddhist or hindu, depending on time or place. It is only from 15th century on that Islam imposed itself in Java. Repelled on the island of Bali, javanese hindus settled there, and the small island kept its religion until now. Although founded on the same texts as indian hinduism, and having several epics in common, like the Mahabaratha and the Ramayana, hinduism practiced in Bali is quite different from the one practiced in India. In particular, the casts system doesn't exist in Bali. Balineses dances are very often based on mythological or historical stories. Let us first decribe Legong. These dances were primarily meant to be performed in Palaces. The Legong dancers carry magnificent costumes embroided with gold, and headdresses decorated with flowers. |
 Legong dancer |
 Legong dancer |
The balineses dances obey to extremely precise rules.
The dancers always keep their lips closed. The movements of the eyes have a very strong
importance, like the movements and positionning of the hands and fingers. The music accompanying the balinese dances is also characteristic of the island. It is executed by an orchestra called gamelan. It is mainly composed of percussion instruments, like gongs or metallophones, and completed by flutes and drums. |
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The Legong dances are usually executed by very young girls. The precision of the gestures in the balinese dances requires a long and difficult learning. The extremely complex movements of the hands and eyes demand a perfect coordination. Apart from the magnificent costumes, the legong dancers use some accessories like fans or flowers that the dancers carry in little braided bamboo baskets. |
 Legong dancer |
 Baris dancer |
Another dance performed on the island is the baris.
The Baris is the balinese warrior. This dance is performed by young boys. Despite its warlike character, this dance is also performed inside the temples during religious festivals. One of the most famous dances of the island is called the barong dance or also sometimes the kriss dance. It owes its first name to the mythical animal that appears in the dance and its second name to an accessory also appearing in the course of the dance : the balinese knife with its ondulating blade : the kriss. In balinese mythology, the barong is the symbol of the positive forces of the universe. It is opposed to the witch Rangda. The latter manages to have the people fighting on the side of the barong to turn their knives against themselves. It takes all the magic powers of the barong to avoid the death of his companions and to defeat Rangda. In the course of this dance, the kriss dancers go into a trance. |
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The Barong is animated by two dancers who enter into a costume : one of them occupies the front part of the animal, the other one its rear part. The head of the animal is made out of a wooden mask, and the dancer cracks its jaws during the dance. Its furr is made out of long and silky hair, it is decorated with gold and mirrors and carries a beard decorated with flowers. The barong is depicted as fearful, a little naive, but has a lot of courage and is devoted to good deeds. |
 The Barong |
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The kecak (pronounce ketchak) is the most recent balinese dance. It only appeared at the beginning of the century.
The kecak depicts an episode of the Ramayana, the well known hindu epics, in which the army of the monkeys, commanded by
Hannuman, helps Rama to rescue his wife Sita, prisonner of Ravana, the king of Lanka, who abducted her.
As many as one hudred dancers are seated around a fire, et they produce themselves the rhythm of the dance, shouting 'tchac - tchac - tchac'
to immitate the sound of monkeys, and giving its name to the dance : kecak. |
 Kecak dance |