Baile Folklorico
Encyclopedia
Latin America
Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...
n dances that emphasize local folk culture with ballet characteristics - pointed toes, exaggerated movements, highly choreographed. As mentioned below, baile folklórico owes its inception to Amalia Hernandez. Baile folklórico differs from danzas and regional bailes. "Folk dances", that is, "dances that you will find in the villages, not on stage" were researched and disseminated by Alura Angeles de Flores. A good rule of thumb is if the woman raises her hands about her head (thus showing her legs), it is folklórico. Each region in Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, the Southwestern United States
Southwestern United States
The Southwestern United States is a region defined in different ways by different sources. Broad definitions include nearly a quarter of the United States, including Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas and Utah...
and Central America
Central America
Central America is the central geographic region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. When considered part of the unified continental model, it is considered a subcontinent...
n countries is known for a handful of locally characteristic dances.
Dances
The state of JaliscoJalisco
Jalisco officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Jalisco is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is located in Western Mexico and divided in 125 municipalities and its capital city is Guadalajara.It is one of the more important states...
, for example is especially known for its jarabe Tapatio
Jarabe tapatío
The Jarabe Tapatío dance in its standardized form was first choreographed by the Mexican, in the early twentieth century to celebrate a government-sponsored fiesta that commemorated the successful end of the Mexican Revolution....
, son and el baile de los sonajeros which accompany its famous mariachi. One of the most popular songs is "La Negra". The state of Jalisco
Jalisco
Jalisco officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Jalisco is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is located in Western Mexico and divided in 125 municipalities and its capital city is Guadalajara.It is one of the more important states...
. The state of Guerrero
Guerrero
Guerrero officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Guerrero is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 81 municipalities and its capital city is Chilpancingo....
is known for its sintesis and tixtla
Tixtla
Tixtla is a town and seat of the municipality of Tixtla de Guerrero in the Mexican state of Guerrero.The name is Nahuatl, and means either "maize dough" from textli; "our valley" from to ixtla; or "temple by the water" from teoixtlen.The municipality stands between 17°20' & 17°43' N and 99°15'...
. Michoacán
Michoacán
Michoacán officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Michoacán de Ocampo is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 113 municipalities and its capital city is Morelia...
is known for its huetamo and “Historia del Traje de la Mujer Michoacana,” a dance which depicts a local folktale Alegria, 1995. Though the dances differ from region to region, the basic steps and style of dance are similar. Traditional bailes in Vera Cruz are characterized by a basic set of steps called zapateados which involve percussive heel-stomping.
Costumes
Costumes in the southwest United States are characterized by denim and western shirts while costumes of the Federal District of Mexico reflect a stronger traditional Spanish influence and those of the YucatánYucatán Peninsula
The Yucatán Peninsula, in southeastern Mexico, separates the Caribbean Sea from the Gulf of Mexico, with the northern coastline on the Yucatán Channel...
reflect indigenous traditions.
In the folk dances of Northern Mexico, men generally wear black Pants with Galas on each side of the leg, accented with a red tie and belt and a black wide-brimmed hat. The woman wear tighter fitting and shorter skirts and either white or black boots. The costumes from Jalisco entails the Women to wear brightly colored ruffled skirts trimmed with ribbons whose colors are local signifiers, shoes with heavy clog-like heels and ornate hair pieces. Shoes vary in color but usually they are either black, white, or red, depending on the song and region. For the region of Vera Cruz, the women wear beautiful white dresses that is full of lace. they use white shoes, and a small apron with a bandana that hangs off the side of the dress. Depending on whether the woman is married or not, will determine what side the bandana will hang and which side the floral head piece will lay. Married means that it would be on the left side and single is on the right. Sinaloa, from the coastal region, wear lighter dresses and more colorful.
Popularity
Amalia HernandezAmalia Hernández
Amalia Hernández Navarro was a Mexican ballet choreographer and founder of the world-renowned Ballet Folklorico de Mexico....
pioneered baile folklorico in the 1950s with her establishment of and leadership of the Ballet Folklorico Mexico. Additionally, she founded a school in Mexico City
Mexico City
Mexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole...
for the study and practice of classical and folkloric dance techniques.
Prior to the explosion in popularity among student and community groups, bailes folklóricos were (and currently are) performed as a part of large parties or community events. The mariachi musicians
Mariachi
Mariachi is a genre of music that originated in the State of Jalisco, in Mexico. It is an integration of stringed instruments highly influenced by the cultural impacts of the historical development of Western Mexico. Throughout the history of mariachi, musicians have experimented with brass, wind,...
generally stand in a line at the back of the performance space and perform without written musical notation, while the dancers perform in couples in front of the mariachis. Now days there are both private and public Folklorico groups that get together and compete, for example the USA Ballet Folklorico Nationals. There is also the website http://www.Folkloricoonline.com which is similar to Myspace but is focused only on Folklorico. It is a great way to communicate with other folklorico lovers and share ideas and tricks of the trade.
Central America
Central America has many Bailes Folkloricos. One typical dance from Costa RicaCosta Rica
Costa Rica , officially the Republic of Costa Rica is a multilingual, multiethnic and multicultural country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Caribbean Sea to the east....
is the Punto Guanacasteco.