There are few performances more elegant than traditional Thai Dance with its graceful movements, its brilliant colour, its soft rhythm and a presence that radiates strength. Thai Dance, known as “Ram Thai”, was originally an art performed for the royal courts of old Siam. The dance troupes were formed within the courts and their precision and beauty was the highlight of every performance. Today, although “Ram Thai” is still a very important part of royal performances, the dancers are selected and trained from among the general population and dance performances themselves are often an event for the general public.
The majority of Thai women grow up learning at least a few styles of Ram Thai – it is ingrained in their culture. There are a wide range of regional folk dances performed at festivals and celebrations, displaying regional influences.
A modern Thai painting of children dancing. Note the position of their fingers. Various finger positioning is one of the most recognized traits of Ram Thai.
Our long time resident Ram Thai performer, Yalaporn, chooses from 5 regional styles of dance for her demonstrations on Thursday nights here at EV Ranch, after creating her authentic Thai cuisine along with Jaranja, Wanna, Tum and Mihoko.
To follow is an overview of these styles:
Ram Uayporn: contains newly created movements and lyrics using the beautiful sounds of Soi Son Tad music. The tune itself is beautiful. The gestures are graceful. Ram Uayporn is a popular form of entertainment at many auspicious Thai occasions.
Rabam Loburi: reminiscent of old style folk tales. Characteristic of Thai idols, pictures, scultures, statues of bronze, gold or stone or the rear guard gate of a monestary of the ancient places found in the Loburi period
Rabam Srivichai ( Srivichai folk dance) is a style derived from the traditions of Jawa and Bali folk dance as some of the movements i.e. the actions of the hands, hip twisting and the use of yakgo (moving the neck up and down) are commonplace in these styles.
Rabam Sukhothai
Rabam Tawarawadee ( Tawarawadee folk dance) is an old tale folk dance designed by the evidence researched by Tawarawadee archaeological studies.
Ramwong is a Thai folk dance which was evolved from Ramthone - a popular seasonal entertainment of a certain region. ’Ram’ means dance and ‘Thone’ is a small drum. Ramthone is best described as dancing to the beat of the drum.
As the Ramthone grew in popularity and spread to many provinces, varieties of songs were ad-libbed. The Ramwong or Ramthone became a favourite form of entertainment for all walks of life during the second world war. The goal of the dance was for everyone to keep a regulated tempo in a synchronized fashion. Ramwong has been popular among Thais and foreigners since 1941.
The music of Thailand includes classical and folk music traditions as well as modern string or pop music. Thai musical instruments are varied and reflect ancient foreign influences; they include the klong thap and khim (Persian origin), the jakhe (Indian origin), the klong jin (Chinese origin), and the klong kaek (Indonesian origin).
Ram Thai is one of the most significant statements of Thai culture and history. We are very fortunate to experience a taste of this every week here at the ranch, not to mention the fun that is had by all as we join in with Yalaporn and Jaranja during the Ramwong.
Following every exquisite Ram Thai performance by Yalaporn, Jaranja brings together the group to help digest the energizing Mango Rice Pudding with sesame seeds (for one example), with an uplifting Ramwong – and we may get it wrong this time, but it feels so good; and by the end it feels so right!
Nan Dove and Claudia Buhler photos
