ELEMENTS OF DANCE

TECHNIQUE Technique is a set of rules or standard for a method of training. It is the manner in which technical details are treated or used in accomplishing a desired result. For a dancer, the technical line is where balance and full extension is found. ARTISTRY Artistry is the finesse of the dancer. Artistry adds color to a black and white palette, black and white to a color palette, light to darkness, shadows to light, and angles and lines beyond space. Artistry is found in the lines of a dancer created by inclinations, length and angles. Artistry is expressed through the eyes, by the use of joints, legato and staccato motions as well as dynamics. PHYSICALITY Physicality is the stamina and strength of a dancer. It is the blend of the white meat and the dark meat of the muscle. This refers to endurance strength and the quick burst of energy needed for virtuosity. Physicality is developed through endurance and stamina classes as well as time and experience. The advanced dancer learns to use a blend of artistry and physicality for the professional performance. MUSICALITY Musicality includes rhythm, dynamics, shaping of a phrase, and style. The dancers musical understanding expands the depth of his/her performance. Musicality begins with simple counting but advances to texture, mood, and interpretation. The study of musical and dance eras and styles are parallel. SPACE Space for a dancer begins from the floor and expands above and beyond as far as the imagination will carry you. Choreography is set to cover space whether the dancer is a soloist or a corps de ballet member. Motion through air can appear to float, drift, flow, and cut to name only a few ways. Space is only limited by the imagination. The use of space is an adjudication point of choreography as well as performance. INTERPRETATION & CHARACTER Interpretation and Character develop the dancer as an artist and performer. Acting and pantomime are used for character development while the way the body moves, angles, and facial expression reveal interpretation. The elements of air, water, earth and fire are woven into artistic characters of dance just as in the theatre or on the artists palette. Character also may refer to nationality and ethnic style. PRESENTATION The way that a dancer presents art and himself/herself to the audience is called presentation. The presentation must compliment the mood, character and interpretation of the choreography. The presentation must also be in style with the work and era. (See: Discipline of the Arts - The twelve disciplines of the arts are a progression of development which result in confidence and poise on the stage. Confidence is not a discipline but rather the result of the twelve disciplines.) Presentation also includes the costuming, make-up, lighting and scenery or staging of a work of art.

DANCE COMPOSITION When we talk about dance composition, we mean that we choose a choreographic material, we arrange it according to an aesthetic idea or project and we fix it. To do that, we need first to have some choreographic fragments to work with. In contemporary dance, one of the most common methods for producing that first content of choreography is the practice of improvisation. We use it with the intention of developing innovative movement ideas and generally as the first step in the dance composition process. (Dance improvisation on stage has a different purpose and is another big independent topic. Im only talking about improvisation as a part of dance composition, because this last one is the subject of this page.) Improvisation before composing usually leans on ideas, music or any kind of associations referred to the piece that is being created. Now, there are as many ways to compose, as choreographers (or even projects!) exist. Theres really no better method or composing strategy. Every choreographer has her/his own goals and interests and every project usually demands its own methodology. The following text is the description of a possible way of composing choreography. If you know another great composing method, well all be glad to hear about it. Since the beginning of the XX century and thanks to Rudolph Laban, modern and contemporary dance use some conceptual tools that allow us to generate movement by the exploration of some of its own basic components: BODY, SPACE and TIME. This is from an abstract perspective, without the need of subjects, images or external inspirational themes. Now, to improvise this way in the search for movement, imagine that composing dance is like assembling a puzzle. Different kinds of pieces are used and put together to create a whole organic unity. Lets talk about those pieces. We can improvise to create them, exploring the three main categories mentioned above: BODY: movements of the joints (example: knees, hips, elbows), movements of the six main segments of the body (legs, arms, trunk, head), movements of parts of those main segments (example: forearms, feet, hands), movements of the whole body (the center of the body has to be involved), movements that involve the contact of body surfaces between them or with something else (a partner, an object, the floor), movements that involve supporting the weight of the body on other parts than the feet (on the shoulders, on the back, on the forearms), and other possibilities concerning movements of the body that you create SPACE: there are two possible different ways to think about space. - Kinespheric space: it surrounds the body until the limits that our extremities can reach and travel with us across the scenic space. To dance with the whole body considering the kinespheric space it is necessary to move the center of the body. We can also move parts of the body within this space without involving the center. Kinespheric pieces for a

dance composition puzzle are considered as movements in place (not travelling more than changing weight from one support to another). Of course there are a lot of other possibilities to search for jumps. Think about leaps that start and arrive, from and to, other parts of the body. Youll see how many pieces for your dance composition puzzle youll find. TIME: time is a feature that affects both BODY and SPACE movements. It gives them length, allows us to dance rhythmically and offers a possibility to construct choreographic phrases with a musical sense. Before talking about how to apply time variations to our movements, its good to be sure of the meaning of some of the terms concerning the TIME category. - Beat: is the basic unity and reference for measuring time. It is what we count when defining the length of a movement or phrase. We establish the speed of the beat according to the dance needs. This speed (or frequency per minute) is expressed in numbers and is called tempo. -Tempo: (or bpm: beats per minute) this is a word borrowed from musical language, but it is used in dance with the same meaning. It expresses the frequency of the beat of any rhythmic pattern, in numbers. For example Tempo= 60 or Tempo = 120. This means that there are 60 or 120 beats in a minute respectively (the higher the number, the fastest the tempo). Tempo is measured by a tool called metronome. -Length: is the amount of beats that a movement lasts (example: walking forward in four beats or counts, if you prefer). When dancing rhythmically, it is always dependant of the tempo. When dancing without rhythm we can measure length in seconds (the chronologic units) which is the same as having Tempo=60. -Phrasing: organizing movements into choreographic fragments that have unity and the feeling of a beginning and an ending. So, all your BODY and SPACE puzzle pieces can be manipulated in terms of their timing. We can give as many lengths as we decide to one same movement and create different movement qualities. We can vary the tempo, and by doing so, decrease or increase the speed throughout the whole choreography. We can organize our dance in phrases, according to a rhythmic-musical feeling, and make it match to a corresponding musical piece. TIME category allows us to modify movement, creating new shapes and qualities that enrich the shades of our choreography. Like in a deck of cards, in this group of puzzle pieces theres a special one between those we already mentioned (some people consider it as belonging to the time category): The Pause: (theres not much to say, but anyway) quietness or stillness. It has a length and is part of choreography as well. We can create contrasts by the use of the pause. Seems evident but it is not. It is another piece to work with.

DIFFERENT FOLK DANCE COSTUMES