Thread: The hair toss

Originally Posted by Candide

Well put!

I do a hair toss everryyyy once in a while. And come to think of it, I've always referred to that thing where you roll your head and toss your hair while spinning as a "bimbo turn." Not that I don't LIKE a well-timed bimbo turn now and then...but that's still what I've always called them!

well call me a bimbo then- I'm used to it being blonde & well endowed... never mind most of the time I am well reserved & had one of the highest SAT scores in my graduating class...

I am glad I'm not the only one who actually likes hair tosses- I have a clip of Eva Cernik doing them & I absolutely love it! I didn't do them much until a recent workshop with Aradia but now it's stuck! I don't think I over use it (well, every once in a while I might get carried away, but I usually watch the video & *know* it was over the top & promise myself to watch it next time!) & spinning with the hair toss is just one of the most fun things I've ever done- great crowd pleaser too. I do it when I think the music calls for it, when the music puts me in the mood for it & I think it makes a great accent. Just like those big, fat, naughty hip circles I know some people hate, I think it is fun to pull out of the bag every once in a while, just for fun.

Of all the discussions about hair tossing, no one has considered this angle: that it could be used as a taunt to those who have kinky hair that can't be tossed.
The gulf region where the dance style originated, is close enough to North Africa that no doubt there were encounters with neighboring tribes who had kinky hair. As a matter of fact, in the time before cuneiform writing had been invented, tribes would differentiate each other in their art by the hair. Ancient steeles show the "black haired" tribe fighting against the "curly haired" tribe. We also know that many dances throughout Africa and the Mid East region were like dance-offs, where women would compete against each other. Tossing your long hair in front of someone who can't is like saying, "nyah nyah - you can't do this!"
Last month I saw a performance by Audie, an African American with flawless technique. (BellyRhythm.com). Her hair is like lamb's wool (as they described Jesus, from north of the gulf) She could never toss it if she wanted to. But girl, did she ever make use of everything else that she's got!
This point of view has nothing to do with sex appeal or lack of technique. I am trying to illustrate that hair tossing was sometimes used to provoke in a negative way. Once that was pointed out to me I saw it in a whole new light - even though I do like a good toss now and then as a punctuation mark, not the whole sentence. And never to say: "nyah nyah - look what I can do!"
But now that I have said all that, I have come to another personal conclusion about long hair in belly dance: I have had enough of this long mop that looks dated and keeps getting snarled in things. It's too much upkeep just for a few performances a year. I am going to get 6" cut off tomorrow!

Nadia Gamal doing head snaps that would look even more awesome if she had long hair, yet are still very powerful
Look at 3:25

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HksVZJv3KUc]YouTube - Nadia Gamal Traditional part2 - نادية جمال[/ame]

I love hair tosses...but, at the risk of being classed as the resident `old fogey` (I`m only 48 though) there`s something else to consider.
Some years ago, whilst exercising, I turned my head and neck sharply, as if to look behind my left shoulder, and blacked out. When I came to, I was in hospital and spent around three weeks being so dizzy I couldn`t stand or even sit unaided. To this day, I still suffer dizzy turns and see `stars` if I turn my head around too far or too fast.
Turned out my turning head had pinched one of the arteries in my neck, if that makes sense, temporarily nicking the blood flow to the brain.
Added to which, research has shown that moshers, or head-bangers as they used to be called when I were a lass with their frequent head shaking, can cause some quite serious and long term brain damage, and well, I guess it means head tosses are all down to personal choice and common sense. But maybe also taking the potential risks into account.
We always advise warmups and cooldowns for dance practice. I believe the edgier potential side effects of head tosses should be known too, and nope, they don`t just apply to the old fogeys amongst us. ..g.:
Okies, one old fogey bowing out stage left now...

Originally Posted by PatriciaMac

Added to which, research has shown that moshers, or head-bangers as they used to be called when I were a lass with their frequent head shaking, can cause some quite serious and long term brain damage, and well, I guess it means head tosses are all down to personal choice and common sense. But maybe also taking the potential risks into account.
We always advise warmups and cooldowns for dance practice. I believe the edgier potential side effects of head tosses should be known too, and nope, they don`t just apply to the old fogeys amongst us. ..g.:
Okies, one old fogey bowing out stage left now...

brings back memories of jr high- my friend taught me 'safe' head banging technique she had learned from her dad which gives the same wild hair effect with slower rotations & supposedly less stress on the neck & no headaches- so yes, even us former head bangers were concerned about long term effects, way back when... haha- strength conditioning for headbangers- yes it existed!

boy, I had forgotten all about that- maybe that's why I think hair tosses are so darn fun... but yes, just like back bends & floorwork, they should be done with knowledge of the dangers & proper training & conditioning.

I'm obsessed with the hair toss. I think it looks awesome. lol :P

Well, I'm kind of unable to do them, what with not having the hair and all. For what it's worth, though, my teacher did get us using our hair if we had it; I remember one sequence where she wanted us to start with our hair on one side and end with it on the other, using the momentum of the turn.

But I avoid flinging my head around because I only have the one neck and am aware of people injuring themselves, as listed above. I do actually use my head quite a bit in dance though; being a mirror queen I tend to leave my head facing front a lot, which can be quite nice, and the angle at which you hold your head can change your presentation quite a lot.

Right now I am teaching a dance in which I want my students to shift their heads from side to side as they travel forward, which looks kind of winsome, I suppose. So even though there is not hair tossing going on there is energy in the head.

Cassandra Shore uses her hair quite well, I think.

honestly, I think folks who practice regularly, do it safely & do warm ups & conditioning before hand are less likely to injure themselves. my mother messed up her neck kneading bread. It can happen to anyone for seemingly unrelated causes. I can promise you I have much stronger neck & upper back muscles than she does, & ideally, the shoulders & upper back should be involved in a lot of the head toss movements to reduce stress. I have absolutely no proof & I may be deluding myself, but wouldn't it seem that if you are actively strengthening that area you would be less likely to injure it? Just like anything else, if you have preexisting problems, don't do it (just like doing single leg knee shimmies might not be so hot for someone with knee problems)

& I think head tosses (adapted slightly) look just as nice as full on hair tosses- I definitely teach my short haired students as well- it is just extending movement to the tip of your head & can look very attractive when done well.

Originally Posted by elefeminate

Of all the discussions about hair tossing, no one has considered this angle: that it could be used as a taunt to those who have kinky hair that can't be tossed.
...Once that was pointed out to me I saw it in a whole new light - even though I do like a good toss now and then as a punctuation mark, not the whole sentence. And never to say: "nyah nyah - look what I can do!"
...

Most competitive feelings are based on "look what *I* can do"- whether it's hair based, movement quality based, speed based, goal based. Competition is setting one against the other. In this historical context- it was a two way competition, each trying to "out do" the other with whatever they had in their "arsenal". As dancers we play up our assets and we all have different and varied beautiful assets.
When I see someone with silky straight hair do that "waterfall" move, where they lift all their hair up and then let is slowly flow down from their arms- I'm always simply in awe and appreciation of that individual's beauty. I don't think "oh, she's putting me down 'cos I have curly hair and can't do it." (LOL, I've tried)
I like an occasional hair toss in belly dance and as Lara L points out a "head toss" or accent can also be beautiful. I love Khaliji and Iraqi social dancing.

i agree with Samira. I have never looked at someone doing a move and through it was a slight. Plus since when can't people with kinky hair not do a hair toss? I have seem many African dances with hair tosses in them. I personal like to do hair swings rather then tosses, when I perform with out a wig. I don't want breakage or split ends, it took me way to long to grow my hair out to be tossing it around!