First Zills (And Problems That Come With) - Page 2

Yasmine Bint Al Nubia · 05-23-2008, 09:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by maylynn

Also, there's a great cd by Solace, called 'Rhythm of the Dance' that is fantastic for practicing zills. Each song is a different style/time signature (e.g. beledi, chifti, masmoudi, saidi, etc) and in the liner notes it describes the rhythms really well and how to play along with your zills.

Yes, a great practice CD, for tuning the ear for Arabic rhythms, learning drum work and of course zill practice!
Yasmine

Reen.Blom · 05-23-2008, 10:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jane

This is a very good beginning zill video:

Belly Dance Video Finger Cymbals with Ansuya

Best of luck!

Ooh I think I want this one.....

Hey ladies and gentlemen, what kinda zills would you advice to buy to newbie? Does it make a difference wat metal, or is it just different look?

Yasmine Bint Al Nubia · 05-24-2008, 12:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Reen.Blom

Ooh I think I want this one.....

Hey ladies and gentlemen, what kinda zills would you advice to buy to newbie? Does it make a difference wat metal, or is it just different look?

Hi Reen.Bloom, there are many quality zills on the market:Zildjian, Saroyan, Turquoise and lesser known brands as well. The best zills have two slots at the dome so that the elastic will stay secure. Zills are made with different shaped domes(the bell portion) that helps create the sound. Some are mellow while others are high pitched. For newbies, small diameter of 2 1/16 should fit right. Incidently, at a Master class with Artemis last year, she recommended that most of us needed larger zills(we were proficient with the smaller sizes). since then I bought Turkish Pro and Tutankhamen zills which are 2 1/2 inches in daimeter.. It took a while to get used to them, but I like them better. Try small than work your way up.
Good Luck
Yasmine

khanjar · 05-25-2008, 12:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BellydanceFTW

I received my first set of zills yesterday (Sayoran, supposedly a good brand, and very bellish sounding) and have two questions regarding them. The first one is concerning how to play them. Do you play them by striking one against the other’s edge or by hitting them directly on top of each other, so their sides are always aligned? They sound more like I imagine they should when I use them like described first, but I don’t want to start doing incorrectly. The second question is what on God’s good green earth has happened to my zills? While they were a sheen bronze only yesterday, they are very dull and worn looking today. There are murky brown marks left under the fingerstraps that if you were to look close enough have my fingerprints in them, and this effect is echoed on several places on rims as well. Was a I gypped or am I too dirty for my own good, and is there anything that can be done to make them like they were (again, only yesterday)?

One of the problems with copper alloys, the acids and oils in the skin do affect the metal when in close contact and with close contact, perspiration. Remembering skin is an organ which helps rid the body of toxins.

I make jewellery out of copper alloys, bronze, brass, copper etc, and this is a problem I know. The only way to stop it I have found is to lacquer the area where skin comes into contact with the metal. The lacquer, can be clear lacquer, wood varnish and even clear nail varnish, that works, and it dries quickly. (Polish the metal first, then paint on the varnish)

Also to those that wear brass and bronze bangles, if you get the green skin from the metal, do as above, lacquer the skin side surface, or glue on some material or other, to keep a barrier between skin and metal.

I also work silver and prefer that material, when I can afford it

Andrea Deagon · 05-25-2008, 01:31 AM

I learned to play the zils (in 1976) by listennig to Ibrahim Farrah's zils on the old Eddie the Shiek Kochak records -- lovely and varied. The other thing I did that really did it for me was that I played air zils for about 18 hours on a bus from Ithaca NY to Durham NC. For whatever reason, that long obsessive session got my fingers to where they would do the thinking and come out with the rhythms and variations. But I play zils very unscientifically and instinctively -- I can play with nuance and lots of rhythmic variation when I dance, but if I'm trying to do set zil patterns with students or in a class, I mess up all the time. The rhythmic possibilities are always too enchanting.

In retrospect, I think one way the air zils helped me when I came to actually putting the zils on and moving to the music, is that for layering, at least one of the things you layer has to be automatic. Lots of air zils, or for that matter and even better, lots of real zil playing, will get it to be automatic. You can't be thinking about your zils when you dance, it has to come out your fingers on its own.

teela · 05-25-2008, 03:44 AM

i finally found a DVD ( drills, drills, drills) that has a zills section on it and has you practice the rhythms ( triplets, 3-1-3-1-3 or baladi, and 3 -3 - 7) with certain drill exercise. talk about feeling so klutzy but it is nice not to have to switch out DVD's to practice zills.

jenc · 05-25-2008, 08:01 AM

I have that one too - and it made me want to learn zills. I believe that the more things you do at once, the better you get at them as they have to be on auto. So I figure it will improve my dancing

Reen.Blom · 05-25-2008, 10:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Andrea Deagon

I learned to play the zils (in 1976) by listennig to Ibrahim Farrah's zils on the old Eddie the Shiek Kochak records -- lovely and varied. The other thing I did that really did it for me was that I played air zils for about 18 hours on a bus from Ithaca NY to Durham NC. For whatever reason, that long obsessive session got my fingers to where they would do the thinking and come out with the rhythms and variations. But I play zils very unscientifically and instinctively -- I can play with nuance and lots of rhythmic variation when I dance, but if I'm trying to do set zil patterns with students or in a class, I mess up all the time. The rhythmic possibilities are always too enchanting.

In retrospect, I think one way the air zils helped me when I came to actually putting the zils on and moving to the music, is that for layering, at least one of the things you layer has to be automatic. Lots of air zils, or for that matter and even better, lots of real zil playing, will get it to be automatic. You can't be thinking about your zils when you dance, it has to come out your fingers on its own.

Wow that's so interesting! Who would have thought of air zills.... think I can start now....lOL

Aniseteph · 05-25-2008, 10:45 PM

I'm an air-ziller! (Air sagat, actually).

da Sage · 05-26-2008, 12:40 AM

Air-zills! I used to do it on my commute all the time, except in horrid traffic.

05-25-2008, 01:31 AM	#15 (permalink)
Andrea Deagon Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Wilmington, NC Posts: 123	I learned to play the zils (in 1976) by listennig to Ibrahim Farrah's zils on the old Eddie the Shiek Kochak records -- lovely and varied. The other thing I did that really did it for me was that I played air zils for about 18 hours on a bus from Ithaca NY to Durham NC. For whatever reason, that long obsessive session got my fingers to where they would do the thinking and come out with the rhythms and variations. But I play zils very unscientifically and instinctively -- I can play with nuance and lots of rhythmic variation when I dance, but if I'm trying to do set zil patterns with students or in a class, I mess up all the time. The rhythmic possibilities are always too enchanting. In retrospect, I think one way the air zils helped me when I came to actually putting the zils on and moving to the music, is that for layering, at least one of the things you layer has to be automatic. Lots of air zils, or for that matter and even better, lots of real zil playing, will get it to be automatic. You can't be thinking about your zils when you dance, it has to come out your fingers on its own. __________________ "I am not contradictory, I am dispersed." (Roland Barthes)

05-25-2008, 03:44 AM	#16 (permalink)
teela Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Alaska Posts: 266	i finally found a DVD ( drills, drills, drills) that has a zills section on it and has you practice the rhythms ( triplets, 3-1-3-1-3 or baladi, and 3 -3 - 7) with certain drill exercise. talk about feeling so klutzy but it is nice not to have to switch out DVD's to practice zills.

05-25-2008, 08:01 AM	#17 (permalink)
jenc Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Colchester UK Posts: 690	I have that one too - and it made me want to learn zills. I believe that the more things you do at once, the better you get at them as they have to be on auto. So I figure it will improve my dancing

05-25-2008, 10:45 PM	#19 (permalink)
Aniseteph V.I.P. Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Sussex, England Posts: 1,465	I'm an air-ziller! (Air sagat, actually).

05-26-2008, 12:40 AM	#20 (permalink)
da Sage V.I.P. Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: MN Posts: 1,001	Air-zills! I used to do it on my commute all the time, except in horrid traffic.