How to Belly Dance With Finger Cymbals

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By Christina Jordan
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You can learn to belly dance with finger cymbals with practice.

It’s fun to belly dance with finger cymbals. Finger cymbals (also known as zils or sagat) are often associated with belly dancers, but what most people do not realize is that the cymbals are really a percussion instrument. Finger cymbals have been used for percussion as long as drums have been in use----that’s thousands of years. If you are a beginning dancer looking to increase your belly dance prop repertoire by learning the finger cymbals, you can master them with just a little practice.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

Finger Cymbals
Needle and Thread
Arabic music

Step 1

BUY. If you want to belly dance with finger cymbals, you’ll first have to invest in a good set. A finger cymbal set includes 4 cymbals: one for each middle finger and each thumb. There are many online sources where you can buy finger cymbals. (See resource section below for sites where you can buy finger cymbals). Cymbals can range in price from $12 for student sets up to $100 for heavily-embellished professional cymbals. If you plan to perform with the cymbals, choose a set that is made of solid brass or silver. You want to be sure that your cymbals are made of good quality metal because these will make the most beautiful sound. Cheap zils will not sound pleasant.
Step 2

SEW. Sewing is an inevitable part of life as a belly dancer. When you get your finger cymbals, you will need to thread elastic through the openings, trim the elastic to fit your fingers snuggly, and then sew the ends of the elastic together. These elastic pieces must be tightly sewn, and you will want to use high quality thread. Silk thread, which is available at any fabric store, is recommended for its strength and the ease with which it glides through elastic. (See tips section below for how to sew your zils.)
Step 3

Belly Dance With Finger Cymbals

APPLY. After you’ve finished sewing, put on your finger cymbals. Wear one cymbal on your left middle finger, one on your left thumb, one on your right middle finger, and one on your right thumb. The elastic of your finger cymbals should lay across the bottom of your nail bed. Adjust your cymbals so that the insides will cling together when you put your middle and thumb fingers together.
Step 4

PRACTICE. If you belly dance with finger cymbals, you are essentially dancing around while playing an instrument. Finger cymbals are meant to play traditional rhythms in Arabic music and accompany the belly dancer. They should never be distracting, but rather serve to enhance the music. Learning to let your hands play a consistent rhythm while you move your body to a different rhythm can be challenging at first. It’s a bit like patting your head and rubbing your tummy. But with practice, you can learn to let your hands go at a different speed than the rest of your body. The best way to do this is to get some Arabic music and pick out the finger cymbal rhythm. There are many zil patterns you can play, but a good, easy rhythm to start with is Right-Left-Right, Left-Right-Left. Start practicing by listening to the music while sitting. Just sit and play the finger cymbal rhythm. When you've mastered the pattern while sitting, then you can begin to start dancing to one rhythm while you play a different finger cymbal rhythm.

Comments

savvyscarlett said

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on 2/25/2009 Belly dancing is so sexy and sensual. I love the idea of adding finger cymbals! 5*

MariM said

on 2/19/2009 I have always wanted to learn how to do this. Good tips. 5*

brantsbabe said

on 2/3/2009 Awesome tips on finger cymbals. I do a little belly dancing, although I haven't actually performed yet or anything. I would like to try this.