42 Shimmies with Leyla Jouvana

The exciting triple shimmy workshop taught by Leyla Jouvana, featuring live drumming by her husband Roland, became one of the most remarkable memories from the Oriental Pearl Belly Dance Festival 2013.

No one can Shimmy like Leyla

An exclusive and comprehensive teaching format for shimmies classification and introduction, with regards to the rhythms and belly dance styles context, historical and geographic background, breaks down the techniques used for each shimmy and reffers to the muscles involved.

In general, shimmy can be defined as a fast vibration of the body, mostly of the hips or the shoulders. But have you ever thought of a hand, head or even a tongue shimmy?

The Layers

Belly dancing is all about separation into the parts of the body. Shimmies and travelling steps are often combined with soft movements of the upper body and hands. Performing different movements together requires awareness and training of each movement separately and then layering one on top of the other.

This is how the 1001 variations were created. Mixing 2, 3 or even 4 different kinds of shimmies simultaneously, layering Camels, circles, ribcage moves, 3/4 walk, Hagala step and so on, creates an endless number of variations. All you have to do is to use your imagination and to exercise.