TINIKLING (FOLK DANCE)

A WRITTEN REPORT

SUBMITTED TO PROF. BOYLIE ABENIR SARCINA DEPARTMENT OF PHILOSOPHY AND HUMANITIES

SUBMITTED BY AMILA MACARAMBON FEBRUARY 17, 2014

TINIKLING (FOLK DANCE)

Tinikling is the most popular and best known dance of the Philippines, receiving acclaim as their national dance. The dance is similar to rope jumping, but instead of a spinning rope, two bamboo poles are hit against raised blocks on the floor and then together. Tinikling actually means "bamboo dance" in English. The dance requires one person to operate each end of the poles, and one or more dancers to move in and out of the poles.

Origin Tinikling originated in the Visayan Islands, on the Island of Leyte. Dancers imitate the tikling bird's legendary grace and speed as they walk between grass stems, run over tree branches, or dodge bamboo traps set by rice farmers. Different stories of tinikling have been passed down through oral histories and folklore. One of the stories of it's origin may or may not be true. The story says that the dance started by the people who worked on the fields and paddies in the Philippines. When the Spaniards conquered the Philippines, the natives were sent to the haciendas. The natives lost control of their land because they were under an economic system that is largely based on rural and agricultural operations of large farmlands administered

by caretakers for the King of Spain. The natives had to work all day to please the Spaniards. The people of the Philippines worked in the fields and paddies for almost four hundred years (1500-1898). The people who worked too slowly would be punished. Their punishment was to stand between two bamboo poles cut from the grove. Sometimes, the sticks would have thorns jutting out from their segments. The poles were then clapped together to beat the native's feet. By jumping when the bamboo sticks were apart, the natives tried to escape this cruel form of punishment. The matrix for the dance was probably laid out when the workers would return home with their feet bruised and bleeding from the punishment. By practicing to escape the bamboo sticks during punishment, tinikling soon became a challenge, an art, and a dance. Now tinikling is performed on certain Sundays in the Philippines. Since it is no longer a punishment, the sticks are smooth and the clapping is gentle. Another source says that the tikling is a bird with long legs and neck. The
birds are considered as the worst enemy of the Warayfarmers because they molest the rice fields as they prey on the ripening rice grains. To prevent this, the farmers would place some bitik (calledsi-ay or patibong in Samar), traps made of bamboo to catch the annoying birds. The birds, however, would still manage to escape from the traps. The tinikling dance imitates the movements of the tikling birds escaping from the bamboo traps set by the farmers. The bamboo poles are indeed used to try to trap the dancers feet for fun. This spectacular dance is usually accompanied by a folk song about the trap-setters. The funny lyrics of this song given below is found in the book Mga Ambahan (1906) of Vicente de Veyra (from Jaro, Leyte). Equipment Tinikling equipment may be bought commercially, but is more economical to supply yourself. The following items work well and are inexpensive: 1. Wooden closet dowels from the local lumber yard (8-18 feet long, depending on number of dancers). 2. Pieces of free 2x4 scrap or inexpensively bought 2x4's may be cut as blocks (approximately 30 inches long). 3. Free carpeting samples may be cut up and glued to the bottom of block ends to protect wood floors and to decrease vibrating of blocks when they are hit. 4. Tape marks may be placed on blocks to approximate the width to separate the poles to hit them on the blocks (14-18 inches apart, depending on size of dancers).

Types of steps Tinikling dance steps are usually described as combinations of only three basic 4/4 steps: Singles, doubles, and hops. Singles and doubles refer to the number of feet that touch the floor at a time during a given step. Hops refers to a specific category of singles steps, although sometimes a step involving just one foot at a time actually contains a leap, since the body weight is transfered from one foot to the other foot. Learn Tinikling Basic Dance Steps! All the dance steps are combination of only three basic 4/4 tinikling steps. These steps are called Singles, Doubles, and Hops. Four people should be two boys and two girls. The first couple performs the dance and the other couple operate the bamboo poles by hitting them together and also tapping them on the floor in rhythm to the music. When the first couple dancing makes an error in their dance steps, the other couple takes their turn and this is where the fun starts especially when the dance speed gets faster and faster. Further, tinikling is very similar to jump rope, but instead of a spinning rope, two bamboo poles are used. WARNING: Ensure that very flexible poles are used. Use hollow bamboo, not rattan, which is similar looking, but solid.
1. Singles: When the poles are on the dancers right side (right foot lead) the foot work of two Singles steps would be as follows: Count Count Count Count Count Count Count Count 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 Hop on left foot outside poles Hop again on left foot outside poles Step on right foot between poles Step on left foot between poles Hop right foot outside poles Hop again on right foot outside poles Step on left foot between poles Step on right foot between poles

2. Doubles: The foot work for two Doubles Steps (with right side next to poles) would be: Count Count Count Count Count Count Count Count 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 Hop Hop Hop Hop Hop Hop Hop Hop on both feet outside poles again on both feet outside poles on both feet between poles again on both feet between poles on both feet outside (straddling) poles again on both feet outside poles on both feet between poles again on both feet between poles

3. Hops: The footwork for two Hops steps (right foot lead) would be as follows: Count Count Count Count Count Count Count Count 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 Hop Hop Hop Hop Hop Hop Hop Hop on left outside poles again on left foot outside poles on right foot between poles again on right foot between poles on left foot outside poles again on left foot outside poles on right foot between poles on right foot between poles

References: People.bethel.edu/~shenkel/PhysicalActivities/Rhythms/Tinikling/Tinikl eIdeas.html http://www.likha.org/galleries/tinikling.asp http://www.burbank.k12.il.us/schools/mccord/classes/PE/clip%20art/t inikling_steps.htm http://en.wikipilipinas.org/index.php?title=Tinikling