Adai-adai
was formerly song of fishermen. It was sung in groups by
fishermen to the sounds and rhythms of paddling oars to
soothe away tired limbs and waning spirits in their quest
for Allah's bounties on this earth. The
words of the song are sprinkled with humour, light teasing
and bantering, expressing fishermen's grief and happiness;
the pains beside joys of life. The Adai-adai dance created
from the calming melodies of the song tries to capture these
scenes and feelings through movements and expressions of its
graceful presentation.
Benari, also
known as Joget Baju Putih, is one of the Brunei folk dances.
The function of the dance in the community is to provide
entertainment during festivals or gathering such a the 'berjaga-jaga',
the 'berambil-ambilan' ceremony during the night after
marriage celebration, on the occasion of moving to a new
house or in fulfilling a nazar (pledge). The
number of couples involved in this dance usually comprises
three men and three women, although there are instances
where the dance is performed by male or female dancers only.
The
couples of dances exchange pantuns to the accompaniment of
the melodious sounds of violin and the energetic beats of
dombak or rebana. The
pantuns which accompany the tempo of the joget music are
pantuns of love and flattering persuasion to mirror the
situations and feelings of lovers in love; from the
heart-stopping moment or their first meeting, trials and
tribulations and finally their joyous marriage.
At times, when a couple of
pantun 'experts' are present, they will take the centre-stage
to banter joyously exchanging humourous and hilarious
pantuns, adding more colour to the occasion.
According to
the terminology of the Belait dialect, Alai means dance
while Sekap means skilful or active. Alai Sekap is one of
the Brunei Malay folk dance that closely resemble the bamboo
dance in the Philippines. The main difference is that Alai
Sekap uses wood while the bamboo dances in the Philippines
uses bamboo. Alai Sekap dance originated from Kampung Kuala
Balai in the Belait District, and was created by the fourth
generation of the Belait people. The gendang (drums) used in
this dance is called the gendang 'Sabih Gotu' of the Belait
people. The
function of Alai Sekap in a society is to provide
entertainment of families grieving over the death of one of
their members or during the death of dignitaries in Belait
such as the head of clan or tribe.
Dances
and Songs (Page 1) Museums
