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Your entrance is all important. How you enter the room or stage fixes you in the minds of the audience as a person to be watched or not. Pick music that has an exciting introduction so that people are really looking forward to you appearing on the stage. Often a magency has a bit at the beginning that sounds like a fanfare-thats what it is-it is announcing your arrival. Come on stage when the actual music really gets going. This is where you use your veil-for your entrance. Or if your budget stretches to it,this is when 4 guys carry you on in a shell, giant heart, dressed at the goddess Isis, Cleopatra etc etc. Its the start of your show-your chance to make your mark on your audience.
When you are choosing a magency to dance to you need to pick one that suits what you like to dance to. It will have an introduction which usually is the build up to the dancer coming on stage. Don't pick one that is too long, 30 seconds is about as long as a western audience will wait patiently for you. In Egypt or when people have an orchestra to watch you can stretch this much longer. 30 seconds is a long time for people to stare at bare stage and comments will made like "has she forgotten to turn up?" Then the first tune will begin usually upbeat and the dancers appears either with or without veil. This is you as a dancer introducing yourself to the audience at the end of this upbeat section there are usually 4 sets of 4 of drum beats, by this time you may have discarded your veil and you take centre stage. The next section is you establishing yourself centre stage showing the audience that you can can dance-not just flit about with (or without) a veil! Most magencys stick to this pattern for the first 3 sections Introduction-dancer off stage Entrance-travelling round stage with or without veil Centre stage theme- show them you can dance. From then on each magency can have various different music from the following styles of music in any order. Saidi Khaleegi drum solo baladi slow and lyrical section fast section waltz or rhumba rhythm taqasim (solo from a instrument) There may even be a section from the dancers favourite song. Depending on the dancer there may be other types of music for instance Camellia has a Spanish flamenco sounding section in her magency. If you are having one written for you, you can have what you like. Then the entrance theme will return which is the cue to the dancer to wind it all up And then finish. So what you like to dance to will determine wether it is a suitable piece for you
Here is one of my favourite magencys. Talisman from the CD Oriental Fantasy 12. Great magency I use a lot. No Khaleegi or saidi but it has a nice baladi section and a short drum solo. Here it is danced by Beata Ciffuentes who with her husband Horiato make up the Oriental Fantasy duo and do some fantastic shows and produce some excellent CDs available in the UK from www.aladdinscave.com If you watch this through you will see it consists of these parts 0-16 seconds-Introduction - off stage 16-56- seconds Entrance theme (this is edited so you don't actually see Beata enter) 56-1.05- these are the four sets of four counts of drumming I mentioned earlier done centre stage usually with hip drops-this is an important part of claiming the stage, 1.05-2.42- Centre stage theme Now the dancer has gathered all eyes on her and she can show she can dance 2.42- lyrical slow. Shows the versatility of the dancer with a change of mood 3.30- Accordian baladi section. here the dancer can be more playful and hit those accents 4.09-drum solo 4.47-return of the original entrance theme-time wind up by travelling round your stage and ending with a final flourish and ending pose so people know when to clap. Bear in mind that in Egypt this is only the introduction to a one hour or 45 minute show and you stay fairly cheerful throughout you are saying "hello this is me, welcome to my show and we are going to share it together"
Everybody has their own pace and their own way of entering the stage. Right from the beginning of your show you express your personality and establish yourself. Listen out for all the changes in the music Randa entrance with Isis wings (no sticks) Camellia entrance with veil Dina usually runs straight to the centre of the stage and starts dancing.No veil nowadays although she did in the past. She has used this magency for a few years now. Listen out for her singers singing her name before she comes on. I so want that to happen for my entrance!!!
Asmahan carried in on a throne Asmahan enters with isis wings Asmahan in a shell Asmahan-not sure whats happening here but I love it!!!! Fifi Abdo through the audience doing "Diva casual" Fifi Abdo with veil-her actual entrance is missing here she is on stage-but you get the veil discard and fabulous dancing
Aida Nour- with an Alexandrian flavour and four guys doing the Alexandrian folkloric thing.
Everbody is different BUT what all these ladies have in common is that they take charge the moment they come into the room. You watch them before they have even danced a step.
To pick one you are going to work with it has to reflect your personality as a dancer and it has to have the types of music you like to dance to. No use picking one with a Khaleegi section if you have no idea how to do that style of dance or if you hate dancing that style. If you are an upbeat jolly type of dancer its no use picking one that would suit someone who glides in elegantly. There are lots of magencys-some famous tunes that were written for famous Cairo dancers, some not, you can find one to fit you. So you can hear the music I've put links to performances on youtube if I can find it. Gawaher edited version from CD Bellydance connection, full version on CD Midnight Magic by Dr Samy Farag. A different version on Raqia Hassan Ahlan wa Sahlan Vol 1. Dramatic and mainly up beat. Saidi section but no Khaleegi. The full version (14minute) has a great baladi section and drum solo in it.
Tales of the Sahara-full length version on CD Raks Sharki 5 In a Beirut Mood. Edited version on Bellydance Superstars 3
Enter the Rakassa on CD Beyond the desert or also called Abdo By Mario Kirlis available as a download on Emusic or as an actual CD Mario Kirlis junto a saida slightly harder to obtain (browse Ebay or Amazon.com). I love this magency it has a great 1980s flavour and also lots of dramatic changes. Originally written for Fifi Abdo Mario Kirlis orchestra playing Abdo | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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A magency (magenci, mergence) is your opening number. (photo of me in action by Sabrina Owen) Your introduction. The start of your show if you are lucky enough to be able to do a full show. It works a bit like an overture in a musical in that it showcases different styles of dancing-that if you were doing a full show you would do later. If you were dancing in Cairo you would have a special one written for you that suits both your personality and the styles you like to do.
Asmahan enters!
Asmahan enters!!
Asmahan enters!!!
You don't have to use a veil, Dina doesn't, Randa sometimes does but if you are going to use one this is where it fits in. Egyptian style is not lots of tricks with it, you use it to get on with and then discard fairly quickly. Leila dancing with a veil.
If the Egyptian dancers use Isis wings they tend to use them like a veil for entrance only and then discard 
Al Amoura from CD Al Amoura by Outi of Cairo. I always use this in my magency workshops because it is a great example of how a modern magency goes through different speeds and styles of music.Each section is also relatively short with obvious cues in the music for the changes. Includes Khaleegi and saidi.
Helm el Raqs from Outi's Cd of the same name. I really like this magenci its a good pace and stays upbeat for much of the time.No Khaleegi.
Sukara - a good modern magenci on Sukara by Leila of Cairo includes Khaleegi and saidi
Nawaem-(there are lots of tunes called this) Nice version on Dandesha. Great saidi part
Another great magency is 
One of Nagwa Fouad's famous magencis in on CD Princess of Cairo. The track is sometimes called Girls of Alexandria, sometimes Princess of Cairo.