TRADITIONAL

FOLK AND
ETHNIC DANCE
 COMPETENCIES

Engages in moderate to vigorous

physical activities (MVPAs) for at least 60
minutes most days of the week in a
variety of settings in- and out of school
 OBJECTIVES

● Identify the different traditional folk

and ethnic dance in the Philippines
● Demonstrate the selected traditional
folk and ethnic dance in the Philippines
What is Dance ?
1. Simply defined, dance is the human body
rhythmically moving through space and time
with energy or effort. Dance engages the
dancer's physical, mental, and spiritual attributes
when performing dance as a work of art, a cultural
ritual, a social recreation, a health and wellness
activity, or an expression of the person.
It provides variety of functions throughout history due to its
multidimensionality. Although there have been immense comparative
differences in period and culture, people still dance mainly
for four reasons:
 To please the gods;
 To please others;
 To please themselves or self-
expression; and
 To build community within an ethnic
group or social interaction (Myers,
2005)
BENEFITS OF
DANCING
PHYSICAL
 Develops cardiovascular and muscular endurance
 Improves coordination, balance, flexibility, and body
composition
 Lowers risk of cardiovascular diseases
 Lowers mass index
 Lowers resting heart rate
 Improves lipid metabolism
 Enables joint mobility
 MENTAL OR EMOTIONAL

 Helps keep brain sharp

 Decreases incidence of Dementia and Alzheimer’s
disease
 Decrease depressive symptoms
 Increase self- esteem and improves body image
 Aids in releasing emotional and physical tension
 SOCIAL

Gives sense of togetherness within a

group
Encourages social interaction and
interpersonal relationship in a group
Contributes to the individual’s potential
for self-actualization in society
 CULTURAL
 Promotes cultural values
ELEMENTS OF DANCE
Philippine Folk Dance
 What is Folk Dance ?
Folk dances are the indigenous dances of any specific “folk” or the
common people. They are traditional customary or recreational dance
forms of a given country which have evolved naturally and were handed
down across generations. Folk dances are related to everything that are
important in our daily lives, such as customs, rituals, and occupations of
a specific group of people. Most of these dances are related in origin to
religious belief, stemming from emotions, superstitions, festivals,
ceremonies of birth, courtship, marriage, death, war and countless
themes common to all people
around the world.
 What are the difference between folk,
national, and ethnic dances?
Folk dances are traditional dances found in a certain country, while
national dances are also traditional folk dances but have a national
scope. They are popular and widely danced throughout a given
country, often with a number of regional variations
Ethnic dances or ethnological dances are those performed in
primitive tribes and have retained their close kinship with
religious rituals and community custom. These dances may
“require a certain level of special performing skills”
Below are few examples of the different
types of ethnic dances:
 Ritual Dances
 Life – cycle Dances
 Occupational Dance
 What are the different types of Philippine
Folk Dance?

 Tribal dance from the Cordilleras

– It includes no-Christian dances from the Cordilleras.
 Lowland Christian dances
–These come from places with Western influences such as that of the Tagalogs, Ilokanos,
 Muslim dances
–These are from the people of the Southern islands of the Philippines such as in Mindanao
and Sulu
 Life-cycle dances – It serve as ritual as one passes to a different stage in life such as from
birth to childhood to adulthood.
Below are some different dances that portray life-cycle:
Courtship dances
Example: (La Kuratsa)

 Occupational dances – Dances that depict the means of livelihood of the
Filipino people.
Example: (Magsasaka)
 Ritual and ceremonial dances – Dances performed as part of the rituals and
ceremonies of a certain tribe or group of people.
 Mimetic or drama dances – Dances that mimic animals, inanimate objects, or
other people. The dancers get into roles other than themselves and become
actors, totally immersed in the story behind the dance.
 War dances- Dances that express feud and enmity wherein to male dancers
engage in physical combat with spartan like intensity .
 Social amenities dances – Dances that express social graces, hospitality, and
offerings of gifts to friends.
An understanding of fundamentals of movement is necessary before
dance can be used as a means of expression or communication.
Movement may be axial or loco-motor, using personal space or
general space. Axial movement is a movement of the body or any
part of the body over stationary based support. Flexion, extension,
rotation bending, stretching and twisting, or any combination of these
movements plus a forceful release of energy produces an interesting
design pattern