Giving students, teachers, and parents an edge in dance education
Welcome back! I hope everyone enjoyed Part 1 of Tap Is Music (And I Can Prove It). We’re halfway there so read on, true believers! So far we have covered how tap dancers can control their dynamics to make steps loud and soft and how they can sustain certain “notes”. This article will focus on [...]
Without a doubt, one of my most commonly asked questions by students of all ages is, “why don’t you play music with lyrics?” It isn’t that I refuse to play music with lyrics but for so many reasons, I find music without lyrics better supports my teaching philosophy, my mission, and my lesson plans. Here’s [...]
Tap dance is two things: sound and movement. Here we focus on the sound of tap dance. Tap dance is tied more closely to music than most of us realize.
The studio I work at has three studios – one large and two small — as well as a small theatre space that seats about 100 people. The two smaller studios and the theatre space have an upright acoustic piano, and the larger studio has a baby grand piano. I actually prefer to play on the upright acoustic pianos as I find their tone more appealing – not to mention the fact that I can get more emotion out of these pianos!
The very first ballet class I played for was a big surprise, because I had no idea what to expect or what would be expected of me by either the teacher or the dancers. I walked into the studio and the first person I saw was the teacher (who seemed to me to be very old), holding a lit cigarette in one hand and a cane in the other!
Musical creativity (or musical artistry) is the ability to connect with accompanying music, interpret it, or phrase and add movement dynamics that relate to music even in the absence of accompaniment, in a way that is unique or interesting. Musicality in dance then might be considered a measure or degree to which a dancer is receptive and creative in his translation or rendering of music through movement.
I’ve used this exercise with students before (usually in preparation for moving to the chosen selection). What I’ve noticed is that when listening to music, the students easily observe and express their reaction based upon what they’ve heard coming through the speakers. With very little prompting, they come up with vivid ideas, even without the benefit of lyrics as clues to the song’s intention.
I love holidays in the dance studio and Halloween can be especially fun. Here is a list of songs and albums that may inspire you to get a little ghoulish in your classes this year.
Congrats to our winners! And thanks to www.richardmaddock.com for donating!
There’s no questioning Michael Jackson’s influence on our current pop music and dance culture. His life was somewhat of a tragedy but his talent was a gift. So, in honor of this icon, I’m taking a moment to celebrate that gift.
Richard Maddock is an accomplished musician as well as a seasoned dance class and exam accompanist. He has graciously offered five of his CD’s for review here. To top it off, he agreed to donate nine CD’s to give away to nine lucky Dance Advantage readers!
There are many inventive ways that dance teachers can lay a foundation for musicality and a competency in musical theory within their classes. The suggestions (or perhaps more accurately, principles) below are by no means a complete guide to accomplishing the task but, hopefully they’ll prime the pump of your own creativity.
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