The earliest Javanese people believed in animism, and most of the dances at that time were based on simply imitating the forms of animals. Indonesian Buddhist legends are highly respected by people, so the plots of many dances are mostly based on myths and legends, and focus on expressing the emotions of the characters. Javanese court classical dance is even more unique. It mainly comes from the palace. The storyline usually runs throughout, with lyrics and dances telling classic love stories and myths and legends in history. It is called classical court dance by later generations. Dancers mainly use swords and masks to perform in an imitative way. Classical court dance in Java is divided into different genres according to different regions. For example, the classical dance in West Java is dominated by the Sundanese genre, while the classical dance in Central Java has two genres, Yogyakarta and Solo. However, all genres have one thing in common, that is, they are mainly performed at important ceremonies.
The movement patterns of Javanese classical court dance: Keep your legs in a half-squat, the body cannot lean forward or backward, the head should be kept upright, and the gaze should always be diagonally downward. Only in specific scenes can you move with your eyes. . Like Thai classical dance, Javanese classical dance contains a wealth of gestures. Each gesture has a conventional meaning, and the emotions of the dance are expressed through different gesture changes.
Most of the historical data cannot be verified, but we can also capture some of the unique and charming style of Javanese classical dance from Indonesian carving art. Wood carving is one of Bali's specialties, and the "Boxwood Dancing Girl" is a classic in wood carving art. The sculptor chose the most beautiful moment in the dancer's dance: the dancer's bright eyes are shining with hope, her slender and full body limbs, her soft body curves, her head resting just right on the left arm raised above her head, and the dynamic streamers. Echoing the arms, it conveys a sense of stretch and proportion, with the waist and hips bending sideways almost perfectly. Looking carefully at this sculptural work, it seems that the audience is brought into the moment when the music is playing. The swaying dance has been played over and over in the mind. All body language echoes the heartbeat, vividly showing the beauty of Oriental women. Soft.
Speaking of the stylistic characteristics of Javanese trance dance, according to data records, each Javanese ethnic group in Indonesia has a different local interpretation of this trance dance. Therefore, each region has derived its local characteristics and developed Various forms of ecstatic dance have emerged, and their names vary from region to region and language. However, there is no definite record of the origin of dance. From a cultural perspective, culture will inevitably undergo certain changes in social changes. Whether it is religious beliefs or ideologies, conflicts between cultures will lead to new concepts in the long-term integration process. The performers of the ecstatic dance are Muslims, so Muslim culture will naturally be integrated into Islamic ideas. At the same time, they are also trying to maintain the originality and legitimacy of ecstatic dance.
The reason why ecstatic dance has a certain degree of representativeness is naturally inseparable from the characteristics of music style. Music plays a powerful role in dance. It can not only attract the audience's attention instantly and quickly bring the audience into the artistic conception of the dance performance. It is also an indispensable "right-hand assistant" for the dancers. Only when paired with fascinating music , the performance will be more ritualistic, and the dancers can change the formation and movement rhythm better and more standardizedly. Since the development of ecstasy dance, blindly inheriting it is not a long-term survival plan. As dancers’ performance experience increases, the form of dance will continue to innovate and change. During the performance, the music style is constantly changing, including Javanese mash-up songs, popular street music, traditional folk songs, etc. Islamic songs are often used to accompany performances, demonstrating efforts to integrate into the predominantly Muslim community.
Generally speaking, kendang drums, hanging gongs, brass pianos, milk gongs, Western jazz drums, electronic keyboards, etc. are all commonly used instruments for ecstatic dance. It is mainly percussion music and is composed of simple melody repetitions or variations. The rhythm is generally named according to the movements and styles of dance. Various rhythm patterns are used as loop variations to accompany the vocal parts and serve as the background music for dance movements.
The Kendang drum is used to control the backbone of the entire music performance. It not only controls the changes in rhythm, but also changes in coordination with the dancers' dance movements. It is extremely important in all aspects of the ceremony and serves as the basis for the ceremony. It creates an atmosphere full of strangeness and sacredness. During the performance, the repetitive rhythm of the Kendang drum gives the dancers a drowsy feeling. This hypnotic effect can better put the dancers into a trance state. For the audience, the rhythmic changes of Kendang Drum can also stimulate different emotional changes in each stage of the ceremony. Kendang drum closely links every aspect of the ceremony, making the whole ceremony complete in one go. The agility of Kendang Drum lies in the fact that the ceremony never ends, and neither does the music. It controls the atmosphere of the entire ceremony, the rhythm of the dance, the steps and emotions of the dancers, and also inspires the curiosity and awe of the audience.