Note 4 — Personal Adornment, Dances, and Musical Instruments

The common dance, the tadek, is a part of nearly all gatherings of a social and religious nature. The music for this dance usually is made with three gansas4 and a drum. The gansas are pressed against the thighs of the players who kneel on the ground. Two of the coppers are beaten with a stick and the palm of the hand, while the third is played by the hands alone (Plate LXXXI, Fig. 2). The stick or left hand gives the initial beat which is followed by three rapid strokes with the right palm. A man and a woman enter the circle, each holding a cloth about the size of a skirt. The man extends his cloth toward the woman, and bringing it suddenly down, causes it to snap, which is the signal to begin. With almost imperceptible movement of the feet and toes and a bending at the knees, he approaches the woman, who in a like manner goes toward him. They pass and continue until at a distance about equal to the start, when they again turn and pass. Occasionally the man will take a few rapid steps toward the woman, with exaggerated high knee action and much stamping of feet, or he will dance backward a few steps. At times the cloth is held at arm's length in front or at the side; again it is wrapped about the waist, the woman always following the actions of the man. At last they meet; the man extends his hand, the woman does likewise, but instead of taking his, she moves her own in a circle about his, avoiding contact. Again they dance away, only returning to repeat the performance. Finally she accepts the proffered hand, the headman brings basi for the couple to drink, and the dance is over. The man sometimes ends the dance by the sharp snapping of his cloth, or by putting it on his extended arms and dancing toward the woman, who places her cloth upon his (Plate LXXXI, Fig. 1).