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Finger Cymbals with Ansuya

 This DVD is an IAMED production and the quality shows. It is one of their earlier productions, so it does not contain the elaborate sets found on their more recent releases but the video quality is clear and the sound is generally well done.

 Ansuya starts the video with an explanation of the different names for finger cymbals and mentions several of the better manufacturers. She then explains how to wear the finger cymbals and how to strike them together in order to get a ring.

 After the introduction Ansuya proceeds to explaining how to play with four different rhythms. First, straight-four (Ayub) which she plays using threes played in the Turkish manner rather than the Arabic manner. She pairs this rhythm with the basic Egyptian which she also explains. Next, she covers Beledi, including the pick-up. She breaks the rhythm in half to help a beginner learn the beats. She adds a hip circle to beledi. The next rhythm Ansuya covers is Bolero paired with the cross step (referred to as the basic step). Again she breaks this rhythm into two halves to teach it. Finally she covers Chifti-telli which she breaks into three sections and teaches with the up-to-down undulation.

 After a brief explanation of when to use the various rhythms she has a drill, moving between the patterns and the movements she has taught to help the dancer achieve smooth transitions between the rhythms while dancing. During this segment she calls the zil strikes by dum, tek and ka, so you really need to have mastered the four patterns to be able to effectively follow along. We are then treated to Ansuya performing three different numbers in costume followed by some outtakes.

 Advanced Finger Cymbals with Ansuya

 First of all, when they say advanced on this DVD, they mean it! This video is also produced by IAMED and formatted like the previous one, though I was not as pleased with the sound quality (there is feedback from Ansuya’s finger cymbals and towards the end the music is obviously not synchronized with her playing).

 On this DVD Ansuya teaches three different rhythms. 6/8, 9/8 and masmoodi. She does not break down the rhythms as she does in the first DVD, though she does speak both the drum beats and the hands a couple of times through before she demonstrates the rhythms. She includes small combinations with each rhythm and after all three are explained she drills moving between the rhythms.

 After working with the different rhythms, Ansuya explains the different noises you can make with your finger cymbals: ring, tek and clack. She then covers playing the 6/8 rhythm using a tek on some of the strikes, 9/8 using clacks on some of the strikes and masmoodi striking the thumb zil with the zil on the opposite hands middle finger.

 The last topic covered is improvisation zilling. She does a quick review of Ayub, Beledi and singles and then shows how to use singles to embellish any of the rhythms covered in either DVD as well as how to use a wrist rotation to increase your speed and decrease the fatigue felt by your arms while playing your finger cymbals. Once again we are treated to a costumed performance at the end of the DVD.

 All together I found both DVDs to be excellent. Ansuya demonstrates all the patterns with various arm positions. She also starts each rhythm slowly and then builds speed until you are (hopefully) playing with a fast piece of music. I would definitely recommend the first DVD to any intermediate level student and any beginner that wants to get a jump start on playing finger cymbals. A word of caution though, she does use the Turkish method of playing threes instead of the Arabic method I teach. I would wait on the second DVD unless you are in an advanced class. Even then, a fairly good understanding of Middle Eastern rhythms would definitely be helpful to get the most out of it.

Purchase at IAMED

E-mail Huraiva at huraiva@huraivaalimah.com