The Assiko is a popular

dance Dance is an The arts, art form, consisting of sequences of body movements with aesthetic and often Symbol, symbolic value, either improvised or purposefully selected. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...

from the South of

Cameroon Cameroon, officially the Republic of Cameroon, is a country in Central Africa. It shares boundaries with Nigeria to the west and north, Chad to the northeast, the Central African Republic to the east, and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the R ...

. Originally based in the Bassa country, this rhythmed dance takes its name from two words: ISI, changed into ASSI, which means earth or ground; and KOO meaning foot. The Assiko is danced dressed in a simple T-shirt and a full skirt with a pronounced, billowing waistline that emphasizes hip movement. The

choreographies Choreography is the art of designing sequences of movements of physical bodies (or their depictions) in which motion or form or both are specified. ''Choreography'' may also refer to the design itself. A choreographer creates choreographies thro ...

of Assiko use several lop-sided walks, successive small close walks that the dancers make at different heights, standing up or crouching, which makes you feel they float on the stage. There are also demonstrations of sense of balance, contortions and physical strength calling to the exhilalaration of dance or trance. The Assiko is also a musical style. The band is usually based on a singer accompanied with a

guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...

, and a percussionist playing the pulsating rhythm of Assiko with metal knives and forks on an empty bottle.

Double bass The double bass (), also known as the upright bass, the acoustic bass, the bull fiddle, or simply the bass, is the largest and lowest-pitched string instrument, chordophone in the modern orchestra, symphony orchestra (excluding rare additions ...

drum The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophone. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a ...

s and some

brass Brass is an alloy of copper and zinc, in proportions which can be varied to achieve different colours and mechanical, electrical, acoustic and chemical properties, but copper typically has the larger proportion, generally copper and zinc. I ...

can complete this base. Leds Jean Bikoko "Aladin is the creator of this rhythm is one of the well known assiko artist of Cameroon. FestivalMbogLiaa38.jpg FestivalMbogLiaa9.jpg FestivalMbogLiaa19.jpg FestivalMbogLiaa32.jpg FestivalMbogLiaa12.jpg File:FestivalMbogLiaa29.jpg File:FestivalMbogLiaa2.jpg File:FestivalMbogLiaa26.jpg File:FestivalMbogLiaa35.jpg File:FestivalMbogLiaa.jpg

External links

Watch Assiko music videos
{{Genres of African popular music Cameroonian styles of music African dances