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Our​ Dance Philosophy

There several philsophical tenets that govern the way we teach and operate our school.

 

1.  Dancing is natural and instinctive.

     A..  Every culture develops some form of dance.

     B.  Small children move their bodies in repsonse to music.

2.  Every dance begins first with the music.

     A.  The music is invented first.

     B.  Dancers take what they already know and adapt it to the new music.

     C.  The dance then evolves.

           1.  The first form is the social form where the dance is performed is a social setting.

           2.  People enjoy watching good dancers perform.  So then the next form is the exhibition form.

           3.  Then, the practictioners form competitions to against each other and the competition form comes into being.

3.  Every form of dance shares a similar evolution.

     A.  The first form of dance to evolve is the social form of dance.

           1.  The first type is the nonscientific type of social dance.

                a.  This type does not attempt to conform to the Laws of Physics.

                b.  This type does not adapt to the efficient, effective, and appealing use of the body.

           2.  The second type is the scientific social type of dance.

                a.  This type conforms to the Laws of Physics.

                b.  This type adapts to the efficient, effective, and appealing use of the body.

     B.  The second form of dance to evolve is the Exhibition form of dance.

           1.  The first type here is the competitive type of exhibition dance.

                a.  This type is found in competitions.

                b.  This type has restrictions on tempo,duration, and theme.

           2.  The second type is the noncompetitiive type of exhibition type of dance.

                a.  This type is not found in competitions but rather in shows.

                b.  There are no restrictions on tempo, duration, or theme.

     C.  The third form of dance and the last to evolve is the competition form of dance.

           1.  The first type is the serious competition type of dance.

                a.  In this form the competition is authentic.

                b. The participants compete against others of the same age, sex, and level of expertise or they are competing with                       the judges concept of perfection.  

           2.  The second type is the nonserious type of competition dance.

                a.  In this type, everyone wins first place.

                b.  The judges base their judgement on favoritism or laziness.

4.  There is no absolutely correct way to dance but there are relatively correct ways to dance.

      A.  The first criteria that determines the correct way to dance is the history and evolution of the dance.

            1.  Every dance has a beginning.  In this beginning the movement was performed a certain way.

            2.  As the dance evolved, the participants developed the movement technique.

            3. Dances continue to evolve as long as they are being performed without standardization.

            4.  Standardization occurs when it reaches the competitive form.

      B.  The second criteria for correct dancing is the influence of the music.

            1.  Every dance was invented as a reponse to a type of music.

            2.  The music has a particular rhythm and this rhythm possesses particular accents.  

            3.  There are rhythmic and melodic accents and these accents determine how the dance is performed.

      C.  The third criteria is the cultural bias.

            1.  The cultural bias is found amongst the current practitioners of the dance

            2.  If the dance or movement is part of a competition, the cultural bias is found with the judges of the competition.

      D.  The fourth criteria is the marketability of the dance or movement.

            1.  The marketibilty if a dance or movement is defined as the appeal and ease in which it can be learned.

            2.  There are several factors that determine the marketibility.

                 a.  It must be simple enough that the average person can learn the basics.

                 b.  It must be flexible enough to allow for improvisation.

                 c.  It must have the potential for complexity that maintains the interest of the more advanced dancers.

      E.  The fifth criteria is the science involved.

            1.  Every movement or dance must conform to the established Laws of Physics.

            2.  Every movement or dance must conform to the limitations of the human body.

      F.  The sixth criteria is the person.

            1.  The personality of the dancer comes into play here.

            2.  The physical proportions of the dancer such as height, weight, age, arm and leg length as well as physical condition.

5.  Out of finite variety come infinite variation.  A person can only twist the body in a limited number of ways but these ways

     can be combined in a infinite number of variations.

6.  Learning to dance is a process.

     A.  The first level is the learning level where the student is in lessons.

     B.  The second level is the thinking level where the student can dance and think.

     C.  The third level is the mastered level where the student can dance without focusing all attention on the dance.

     D.  The fourth level is the teaching level where the student can impart to others what is known.

7.  Dancing is controlled, graceful falling.  The key words here is controlled and graceful

8.  Dancing starts in the heart, then moves to the mind, then to the feet and finally to the rest of the body. 

9.  Every person can acheive a high level of expertise given enough desire, time, and training.

     A.  The first factor is talent.

           1.  This is the least controllable and also the least important.

           2.  Many successful dancrs have acheived a high degree of proficiency without a lot of talent.

                a. The overcoming traits of less talented dancers are discipline and perseverance.

                b. These traits compensate for the lack of talent.

     B.  The second factor is physical limitations.

           1.  Kinds of physical limitations.

                a. Physical limitations can be outward as in being physically disabled.

                b.  They can also be inward such as a learning disability.

           2.. These limitations effect degree of proficiency acquired.

           3.  A major degree of proficiency can still be obtained through discipline and perseverance as long as the physical    

                limitations do not adversely effect the movement of th body.

     C.  The third factor is mental limitations.

           1.  A high degree or proficiency cannot be obtained if the dancer thinks it is not possible.

           2.  This factor is the result of assuming that talent plays a major role in dance skill.

           3.  Without discipline and perseverance, talent will only take the dancer so far.

     D.  The fourth factor is desire.

           1.  Talent without desire is wasted.

           2.  Desire can overcome any deficiencies in talent.

     E.  The fifth factor is the skill of the teacher.

           1.  The student will never be better than the teacher.

           2.  Once the studetn reaches the level of the teacher, the student then becomes a peer of the teacher.

           3.  An inferior teacher produces inferior students.

10  Dancing is a culture that has a history and etiquette.

      A.  The universal nature of dance etiquette allow a person to mix with many cultures and societies.

      B.  It gives people a common ground for meeting.

11. Dancing is holistic and carries over into every aspect of a person's life.

      A.  Postural Principles learned in dance carry over into everyday life.

      B.  Poise and balance learned in dance carries over.

      C.  Dancing develops self-confidence and good social skills.

      D.  Dancing develops good physical fitness.

      E.  Dancing develops good mental acuity.

      F.  Dancing provides emotional release through organized movement to music.

12.There is a best way to learn dance.

     A.  Isolate each body part.

     B.  Learn to control one aspect of that body part 

     C.  Make the control of that one aspect a habit.

     D.  Then isolate another body part.

     E.  Repeat the process until all the aspects of that part is mastered.

     F.  This is the key to the levels of expertise.

13. The Scientific Social Form of Dance is the most difficult to master.

      A.  The Competitive Form of Dance is the easiest form to master because of the element of control.

           1.  The couple is in charge of the choreography.  They both know the choreography and can dance it alone.

           2.  The couple is known to each other and have spent many hours practicing their moves together.

           3.  The movements are standardized.  The couple knows what knid of movements are required by the judges.

           4.  The music is standardized.  The couple knows that the music will always be the same tempo.

           5.  The other couples on the floor are also trained dancers.  All the dancers on the floor will have some training and will

                most likely be at similar levels of expertise.

           6.  The duration of the performance is controlled.  The couple knows that each performance will be of the same duration.

           7.  The audience is educated.  The important audience in a competition are the judges who are in most cases (serious                      competitions) knowledgeable  of the form of dance they are judging.

     B.  The Exhibition Form of dance is the next easiest form to master.

          1.  The couple has control of the choreography.

          2.  The couple has practiced many hours together.

          3.  The music has been pre-selected.

          4.  The movements have been learned and practiced extensively together.

          5.  Everyone on the floor know the routine.

          6.  The duration of the dance is known.

          7.  The audience is the only variable not controlled by the couple.  In the case of most exhibitions, the audience has little

               or no knowledge in the nuances of the dance.  They only know  if they like it or not  based on whether they were 

              entertained.  The audience appeal is the reason why exhibition dancing is more diificult than competition dancing.

     C.  The difficult form of dance to master is the Scientific Social Form because of a lack of control.

          1.  The choreography is usually improvised on the spot.

          2.  Since the couple may not know one another, they will not have practiced much together.

          3.  There is little control over the tempo of the song being played especially with a live band.

          4.  Their movements may have only been learned by one partner and then not proficiently.  They may also need to

               improvise to avoid problems.

          5.  Very few people sharing the floor will have had any training and then probably very little.

          6.  There is no control of the dance's duration.

          7.  Those watching the couple may not be very educated in dance but will know what they like.

14. There are six theoretical areas of study that flows from our philosophy.

      A.  Rhythm Theory - We teach the aspects of rhythm.

      B.  Partnership Theory - We teach the degrees of partnership

      C.  Movement Theory - We teach the rules of movement.

      D.  Figure Theory - We teach the keys to step construction.

      E.  Character Theory - We teach the guidelines for styling.

      F.  Improvisation Theory - We teach the priciples of Improvisation.

 

 

 

 

 

© 1998 by Kenneth Howard- All Rights Reserved

   

   

        

      

               

 

 

 

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