Karagio Leha is Kazakh, which means "dark horse". There is an old saying in Kazakhstan: "Song and horse are the two wings of Kazakhstan". Horses are indispensable tools and partners in Kazakh life, and "black horse riding" is one of the stunners. Its image is majestic, bright and black, its walking pace is steady and powerful, its posture is beautiful, and its hoofbeat is like a sonorous drum. Riding a dark horse is like entering an artistic realm. People are dancing and horses are dancing. As a result, the folk dance and music of the same name named after Karagio Leha were formed.
Karagioleha is an ancient dance. About its origin, there is a legend among Kazakhs: a long time ago, a young Kazakhs found a group of wild horses on the grassland, and he waved his harness and trapped a very wild black wild horse. The young man went through hardships and overcame many difficulties, and finally domesticated it into a good horse. When he rode back to Awule (hometown) on a black horse, the villagers came to congratulate him. The young people proudly and humorously performed the whole process of catching and taming the dark horse with various movements on and off the horse. Since then, Karajiaoleha dance, with horse riding as the theme and showing the vigorous posture of horses running on the grassland, has been circulated among Kazakh people.
Karagioleha men's movements are brisk and vigorous, imitating the walking, running and jumping postures of dark horses, and showing a bold and unrestrained style in the relaxed rhythm of the whole body.
Women's movements are graceful, stretching, lively and subtle, such as "flower praise" that shows the beauty and pride of girls, "shy peep" that peeks at lovers, and "hanging flowers with skirts" that lean forward and lean back. These male and female movements all contain specific contents, which are integrated with the inner feelings of the performers and humorous facial expressions, and can be freely played according to the dancers' own level, constantly adding new contents and movements. Performers often incorporate all kinds of dynamics with strong characteristics in their work and life into the dance, which enriches the dance vocabulary and performance content of Karajiaoleha, and derives dances such as Felt Dance, Milking Dance, Embroidery Dance and Lamian Noodles Dance.
Caragio Leha can perform at large gatherings or in small yurts. You can dance solo, dance in pairs, or perform in groups. The method of dancing can also vary from person to person and from place to place. According to the atmosphere and environment at that time, there were relaxed and pleasant performances, strong performances and humorous performances, thus obtaining various artistic effects. After grazing, Kazakhs often dance Karagioleha, singing and dancing with the voice of Dongbula.