What dances are there in the mountains of northern Philippines?

Under the rule of Spain and the United States, there are still many ancient folk music and dances in the mountainous areas in the north of Luzon Island, Muslim settlements in the south of Luzon Island and some remote islands. A few tribes in the northern mountainous area of Luzon Island are still chieftain tribes, and the residents belong to the ancient Malays. People believe in polytheism. They have a strong national character. During the colonial rule, they kept the Spanish colonists out by relying on steep mountains, so they can inherit the ancient national culture. Song and dance are an indispensable part of local life. People are accompanied by singing and dancing in rice planting, harvesting, marriage, driving away diseases and funeral activities, and their dances have well preserved the original style.

After the independence of the Philippines, these dances were refined and processed by professionals, creating works such as kettle dance, wedding dance and festival dance, which were put on the stage and attracted the audience with their strong local color. Almost all Philippine song and dance groups regard the simple and dignified folk dance in the northern mountainous area of Luzon Island as a preview program for the evening performance. The Filipino people regard the dance in this area as its oriental root and a symbol of indigenous culture before Spanish rule, and cherish and admire it with deep feelings.

1. Yidu dance is a kind of tribal dance, which shows the life of an ordinary family in mountainous areas or plateaus: the father cultivates the fields and the mother takes care of the children's lives. During the performance, a local singer sang "Art Capital" or lullaby to rest the baby. A dance originated from lullaby, which describes the different roles of family members.

2. Dinoya dance is very famous in Ifugao, and it is usually performed during the Lagavi Festival. In this dance performance, three kinds of gongs will be used: ordinary gongs, brass gongs with open palms and gongs that tap the inner surface of gongs with corks. People beat gongs while dancing, and beat different gongs to perform different roles. It's interesting to follow the rhythm of the gong with cheerful steps.

3. Bendayan Dance, better known as Bendian Dance, is used to celebrate the arrival of headhunters. During the performance, the dancers formed a circle to show their energetic traditional dance steps. The dance action is rough and bold, the form is relatively free, and it has the original ecological dance style.

4. Rumagan dance is a tribal dance and a traditional gratitude dance of Kalinga people, which is used to celebrate the harvest, the birth of the first child, the victory of the battle and the wedding. Dance is religious and ceremonial, and different activities are expressed through specific dance movements.

5. Palok Dance

The local people in Kalinga will perform this dance in most social activities. During the performance, the male dancers hold Gonza or Gong (a percussion instrument made of copper) and hit them with wooden sticks.