Jaipong or jaipongan dance, talking about Indonesian arts and culture, seems endless. A country with an area from Sabang to Merauke with tens of thousands of islands along with its unique and distinctive culture causes the ink to keep writing and perpetuating this noble culture.
This time the loveinshallah.com website will write and share with visitors everything about the typical West Java dance, namely the Jaipong Dance. When talking about West Java, what comes to your mind? Of course there are various kinds of culture, recreation areas, beaches, culinary delights and others. The art is very much ranging from ber, ain angklung to jaipongan.
This time we will discuss about the jaipong dance starting from its meaning, who created it, the characteristics of jaipong, the history of the jaipongan dance to its history. So read on this article until it runs out.
Jaipongan dance has been known and popular as one of the typical Indonesian dances that have been known throughout the country, even this dance has become a typical icon of the Pasundan area of West Java. The jaipong dance is widely practiced in various art events, celebration events or guest welcoming events, as if the jaipongan dance is mandatory, this is how popular this regional dance is.
To be more familiar with Jaipong dance, let’s see how the following understanding of Jaipong or jaipongan dance is.
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Understanding Jaipong Dance
Jaipong or Jaipongan is a Sundanese dance from West Java which is very popular. Jaipong dance can be a collaboration of several typical West Javanese arts such as pencak silat, puppet show, and a combination of tilu tapes. We can pay attention to this, with the presence of some of these art movements in the soul of Jaipongan dance.
Jaipong originated from an area in West Java, namely Karawang, this area was the first to introduce the Jaipong dance. In practice, the jaipong dance is played individually, in groups or in pairs. The movements in this dance are known to be very dynamic and attractive.
Movement in Jaipong is dominant using the hands, hips, shoulders and all of them are moved agile, simultaneously and dynamically.
While the musical instrument that will accompany the Jaipong dance is degung music, and this is an important part of the implementation of the Jaipongan dance. Musical instruments that are usually used are the lute, drums, gong, and saron instruments. If this dance is played together or with a partner, a person’s movements will look harmonious and in tune with the movements of his partner.
Not only that, in playing collectively or together, with a partner, jaipong dance can display beautiful and dynamic and amazing attractions.
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Jaipongan Dance Creator
Who created the jaipong dance first or introduced it to the punlik? As history circulates in the community, the origin of the jaipongan dance was created by an artist from Karawang, namely H. Suanda. Since 1976, the Jaipong dance began to be introduced and spread through cassette media under the name “Suanda Group”.
At that time, jaipong dance was still very simple as an instrument. In that time, they used drums, gongs, taps, kecrek, and rebab. At that time, it turned out that the presence of the jaipongan dance was warmly welcomed by the local community and they often used it as entertainment at event venues such as weddings and others.
The next period, the Jaipong dance became more widely known, where Gugum Gumbira then introduced jaipong to the people of Bandung, West Java. One goal is to develop the dance to the Bandung community so that it is not only known by the Karawang people.
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The History of Jaipong Dance and Its Origin
Initially Jaipong, which the Karawang community is better known for, is an expression in a banjet performance. banjet is a dance show performed by a funny dancer (dancer bodor). The dance is performed according to or following the beat of the sound, this is the purpose of inviting the audience to laugh as entertainment.
The Jaipong dance is a work of art from an artist from Karawang, he creates this work of art by combining movements from pencak silat, mask banjo, puppet show, tepak mask, tap tilu and tarling.
In the 1960s, Gugum Gumbira, an artist from Bandung, wanted to make this art valuable. The aim is to promote folk dance which is then combined with contemporary dance. Initially, the combination of traditional arts with contemporary dance was strictly prohibited because contemporary dance could be considered a model of new colonialism or a new form of colonialism.
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Furthermore, in the 1980s the artist Gugum Gumbira made a new breakthrough, namely creating the Karawang jaipong dance, the sinden that was dancing in the Bajidoran dance. Karawang and Subang typical dances as well as contemporary dances.
Subsequently, a new dance from the collaboration was successfully created and named the new style Tap Tilu or tap Tilu development. In subsequent art developments, he also succeeded in creating another dance called Daun Pulus Keser Bojong and the Rendeng Bojong dance.
Then, finally a new dance style emerged as a result of the collaboration and fusion of the three types of dances and was given to Jaipongan. Not ending here, Gugum Gumbira also continues to create and create new dances, namely other jaipongan dances or new jaipongan with new musical accompaniment as well. Among other dances which are a development of Jaipongan are Oray Welang, Toka-toka, Kawung Anten, Pencug, Sonteng, Rawayan and Setrasari.
First appearing in public, the jaipong dance is considered a modern dance capable of bringing emancipation. Jaipong dance also has the meaning of freedom and rebellion which is described through the movements of the hands, head, legs, body freely and freely.
The similarity of this dance is seen from the movements such as the pencak silat movement in the Jaipong dance, where it is the same between men and women. This is a form of equality and equality between men and women, so it symbolizes emancipation.
Characteristics of Jaipong Dance
To understand more easily and easily get to know Jaipongan dance, here are some of the characteristics of Jaipongan dance that you should know:
The movements are in tune with the music and are dominated by the sound of drums
The movements shown show more strength, muscle flexibility, so he looks always energized and full of enthusiasm.
Jaipong dance is not specifically played by men but is also played by women, there are even jaipong games that are mixed with men and women.
The number of Jaipong games varies, some are played by two people, three people, and some are played by ten people. The most important thing in jaipong dance is harmony, compact, dynamic with the rhythm of the music.
While the costumes of Jaipongan dancers have striking colors, are bright but beautiful and match the rhythm of the music. Generally, the colors used are gold, light blue and red.
The motifs of the clothes have a concept on nature, such as flowers, leaves, with beautiful shapes and variations.
The costumes also follow the curves of the Jaipong dancer’s body, this gives a slightly vulgar, exotic and sexy impression. It basically only aims to equalize music rhythm, costumes and movements.