Guel Dance, Traditional Dances From Aceh

Guel dance is a traditional dance derived from the Gayo community culture in Aceh Province. This dance tends to be very different from the traditional dances of Aceh mostly, especially in terms of its motion. Guel dance has a very distinctive movement and also full of meaning, even impressed magical nuances. So it is not uncommon to make the audience as if hypnotized and carried the atmosphere when watching. Guel dance is one of the most well-known traditional dances in Aceh Province, especially among the Gayo community. This dance is usually often displayed on traditional or cultural events held there.

History of Guel Dance

Based on the folklore that developed in Gayo society, this dance was first danced by Sangeda, the son of King Linge XIII. The story begins with a dream of Sangeda, who in the dream he meets his dead brother Bener Meria. Bener Meria gives a clue to get a white elephant to be offered to the Sultan of Aceh at that time because the daughter of the Sultan is very eager to have the animal white elephant.



To get the white elephant, Sangeda and some of the inhabitants do prayers, tirakat and also a feast at the edge of a lake near the tomb of Bener Meria. After that proceed with the dance that accompanied by songs and traditional music. In the dance Sangeda then dances in accordance with what has been shown by Bener Meria. While singing a very sad song, Sangeda danced to the rhythm of music and also danced with movements such as packing wings, spinning and twisting about the grave of his brother.



The people who watched then danced to the atmosphere. Suddenly they were surprised by the arrival of a white elephant approaching the procession. Sangeda then approached the elephant and then did what Bener Meria showed to tame him. After that Sangeda took the white elephant to the Kingdom of Aceh and handed it to the Sultan.



That's where Guel Dance is created. Although the truth has not been scientifically proven, Gayo society believes in the truth of the story. Even the story has been handed down from generation to generation by the Gayo community to this day.

Functions And Meaning Of Guel Dance

Guel dance is initially more functioned as part of certain ceremonies among Gayo community, whether it is customary rituals or traditional celebrations. This dance then began to evolve into a performance dance, as a form of cultural preservation. For the Gayo community, this Guel dance is not just an ordinary dance, but this dance has the values and philosophy that represents from their culture. So that every round and movement in this dance contains messages and special values in it.

Guel Dance Performances

In the show, Guel dance is usually performed by a group of male dancers and female dancers. For the number of dancers Guel dance generally, consists of 8 (eight) female dancers and 2 (two) male dancers. But the number of dancers can be more, even less than that because it must be tailored to the dance group, stage and also the type of show.



Guel dance movement is very unique and the movement is adjusted to the sound of accompaniment music. What is interesting here is the movement of male dancers and female dancers tend to be different. Movement of male dancers is more varied and also dominates, so as not to get out of the attention of the audience who witnessed it. The basic movements in this guel dance consist of greetings (munatap), nukuk kepung, sining leeches, tin semer (sengker kalang) and also dah-board.



In addition, in Guel dance performances this usually consists of 4 (four) standard round, and in each round must have a different movement. The rounds are among others are your round staring, the round dep, the round ketibung, and also the jackfruit chopped. Each round will be played nicely so that not infrequently the audience will be amazed to see it.

Guel dance accompanist

In Guel, dance performances will usually be accompanied by traditional music and chant of regional songs or customs. Guelin dance music is generally consisting of canang, gong, gegedem, and also menong. While on the regional song that brought more themed sadness or sadness, so it is very appropriate and can make this Guel Dance show become more alive.

Guel Dance Costume

The costumes used in Guel dance performances are usually a typical traditional fashion from Gayo called kerawang clothes. In addition, one characteristic of the Guel dance costume is Ulen-Ulen cloth that is worn on the back of male dancers used as an attribute in dancing.

The Development of Guel Dance

In its development, Guel Dance is still continuously preserved and developed to date. Various creations and variations are also often displayed in every show, be it in terms of motion, costume, or dance accompaniment, to look attractive but not leave the hallmark and authenticity. In addition, this dance is not only featured in various traditional events but also often displayed in various cultural events such as art performances, cultural festivals, as well as tourism promotion. This is certainly done as an effort in the preservation and introduce to the younger generation and also the public will this Guel Dance.