Literature Review A

Ear Training for the Body (A Dancer’s Guide to Music)

(Katherine Teck 1993)

Katherine Teck is a highly experienced dance musician and founder of the International Guild of Musicians in Dance, New York. This book explores the relationship between music and dance, providing the dancer with knowledge of relevant theoretical and artistic musical components. Part one of the book ‘Musicality in The Dancer’s Art’ examines the technical side of music relevant for dance. There are many aspects covered; how to practice musicality in class, body percussion, percussion patterns, muscle memory and the collaboration of music and choreography. The second part, ‘Fundamentals of Music’ relates music theory to movement and examines how choreographers use this in their work. The author collaborates with highly acclaimed dance artists sharing their experiences of developing musical awareness allowing them to achieve greater artistry in performance.

‘The goals are to add expressivity and accuracy to dancers’ technical work in class, to enhance the artistry of performers onstage and to enlarge choreographer’s palettes of musical possibilities for their new works – whether these are full scale theatrical productions or more modest projects for a workshop or improvisational class.’ (Teck, 1993, pvii)

Theories

The author states that learning about music should be parallel to dance education and therefore be a fundamental aspect of the dancer’s training. Teck discusses the value of developing listening skills to identify different layers and textures of sound.  By understanding the structure, the performer can analyse and acknowledge the components they wish to use artistically. By learning music theory and terminology dance professionals can articulate the qualities required from the movement in order to reflect it in performance.

A common phenomenon known to dancers is how music informs muscle memory and can be used to recall choreography. Upon learning choreography, dancers listen to the music religiously to reinforce the connection between music and movement set. Having experienced this, I am aware upon hearing the music the body instinctively knows what to do, similar to how a particular song sparks a memory or a feeling.

Advice on selecting appropriate music for choreography was particularly useful for me as I seem to spend days, sometimes weeks trying to find the right music. As a creative starting point, the music sets the tone and provides the basis for developing choreography. When choosing suitable music for a particular age group or ability it is necessary to consider the complexity, tempo, time signature and relatable feel of the music.

 ‘Anybody who wants to be a dancer should study music. In dance there has to be a harmony. You may know nothing formally about music, but there is still a sense of harmony: You will see that something is happening, and be with it. You have a sense of being there. You are making poetry, almost painting in space.’ (Carlos Orta, p261)

The book gives an account of an experimental workshop, ‘The Carlisle Project’ held in Pennsylvania 1984, for dance artists and choreographers who lacked artistic freedom in their early training. In the workshop, participants were nurtured and encouraged to explore their creativity, the experiment provided evidence of how individuals interpret music differently. During the workshop participants picked out different aspects within the music to base their movement upon, some picked certain instruments and others identified with varying rhythm patterns. They also interpreted the phrasing differently and many began and completed a sequence of movement at varying times. The experiment showed that everyone hears music differently and will therefore interpret it in their own unique way.

‘Those dancers who are open to many styles of music may well be the most likely to appear onstage professionally.’ (p12) Suggests that the awareness and experience of working with a broad spectrum of genre can produce a more versatile and conscientious performer. An intriguing choreographer whose work is heavily influenced by a diverse range of music is Mark Morris. ‘Mr Morris’s musical sensitivity is a fundamental feature of his artistic personality. Not only is his taste eclectic, it is original. In every case the choreography realises the essential character of the music, both structurally and stylistically.’ (Dale Harris, Wall Street Journal p254)

‘Music is a partner; it’s not something that is just keeping a beat for you. The music is swelling: What do you do? Does that make your movements swell? It might. Or are you going to go in contrast to that? If it is an adagio, you might give something very fast against it. But how do you use the music so that it becomes an organic living thing, where the music and dance come together to make one statement? If you take everything away from your dances – costumes, stage, lights, everything (and this has happened to us on tour when the tape machine has broken, or the lights), then you should still be able to have sense of a musical dance. (Carla Maxwell p261) This quote reminds us that music and dance are an artistic collaboration, both of equal importance and even in the absence of music there is still a rhythm to movement.

Caroline Adams, an ex-principal dancer and teacher from the Julliard School in New York coaches students for auditions, through her experience as performer she reflects, ‘I think the music is what dancing is about for me. If I couldn’t make sense out of the movement in relationship to the music, then nothing worked.’ (p257) With regards to her current role as a teacher of up and coming professional dancers, she too highlights the importance of exposure to a wide range of musical genre to establish a connection and create unity with choreography. ‘The dancer who instinctively knows how to find all the room for interpretation within a phrase. Without in any way distorting what is being asked, there is all that space for physical nuance to take place. To find that: to be inside the time and inside the sound; to find that movement range within the sound is really what it’s about. When one sees it, it isn’t something you can verbalise. You are absolutely – ZAP! – drawn to it. It is inescapable. It has nothing to do with being on the beat.’ (Caroline Adams, p260)

Conclusion

Reading this book has broadened my perspective on the many ways we can relate music and movement, I have discovered how individuals pick out certain elements that ‘speak to them’. I have discovered that musical interpretation is individual in artists' use of varying dynamics, highlights, rhythms and layers. I have gained an insight into the work of notable choreographers who utilise widely differing approaches to music. I now plan to research further the work of:

George Balanchine, an iconic choreographer, ballet master and classically trained pianist used music as the influential forefront for his choreography. Balanchine urged his dancers to ‘internalise’ the tempo, his ballets technically challenged his dancers with intricate rhythmical patterns and changes of pace. ‘I think that, with intelligent appreciation, any student can develop certain sensitivities to music that will improve the quality of her dancing immeasurably’ (George Balanchine p1).

Twyla Tharp presented her early choreography in silence ‘music is not always the first ingredient for me’ (p48). Tharp sometimes preferred to use the music as a form of scenery, meaning that she didn’t want to be directed by it and formulate her own ideas. On occasion when she chose to use music, it was more a background as opposed to a motivating force. ‘We rehearsed and performed in silence because music communicates emotion and structure more easily to most people than movement, and it was movement we wanted to explore. Still, many of the questions in our investigation of movement came from lessons I learned in music.’ (p243) I feel this approach allowed the audience to personally interpret what they saw without the musical influence .

Merce Cunningham was famous for adding music on after creating choreography, he believed that the movement should be independent from the music as opposed to a reflection of it. His work was abstract in which he explored non-conventional, alternative approaches using his signature method of ‘chance’. He worked in partnership with composer, John Cage who devised minimal beats, sound effects and whistles to accompany his work.

I would now like to experiment with some of these differing approaches in my own work. Upon learning about ‘The Carlisle Project’ I would be interested to find similar workshops which might provide inspiration for my professional artefact. Through further research I hope to evaluate various choreographer’s opposing methods and sources of inspiration.

Further Questions

How can I educate my students on the theoretical and artistic aspects of musical interpretation?

How can dancers achieve a greater level of artistry through developing music knowledge?

What approaches in choreography and artistry researched can I use to influence my work?


Teck, K. (1995) Ear training for the body: A dancer’s guide to music. United States: Princeton Book Company.

Updates on Inquiry Process

Tutorial 2/3/16

During my first tutorial of Module 3 with Paula we explored the potential areas of artistry to focus my professional inquiry. We discussed the concept of dance as ‘a living art form’ the purpose of which to evoke a reaction in the audience, to make them think and feel. I would like to lay emphasis on Musical Interpretation because it plays a key role in the influence and purpose of a particular piece of dance. It would be insightful to examine ways teachers, dancers and choreographers interpret music and how they have refined these skills. Investigate methods dance practitioners use to explore and develop forms of expression to depict mood, character and simply bring energy and dynamics to a performance.

I feel that I could incorporate approaches used by drama teachers in order to develop confidence in artistic expression. In terms of using drama within dance training, Paula suggest I look into the methods of Stanislavski and consider how this technique could potentially be applied to dance. I therefore plan to research his work and discover if dance practitioners use this to develop expressive performance.   

We discussed my Professional Artefact which could be in the form of a lesson plan created specifically to focus on ‘Artistic Development’. I feel that this will allow me to focus solely on musical interpretation as this can become lost within the quest for technical excellence. A lesson plan will enable me to demonstrate ways I could build student’s artistic skills and apply my newly acquired knowledge. This could include devising improvisational techniques, drama activities, exploring and discussing various genres of music. Develop creativity and choreographic skills, explore storytelling, mime and the development of certain roles or characters. It would of course be unethical to film me teaching this class due to parental consent and child protection issues, I will therefore write a concluding evaluation to record my findings.

Discussions

I have been engaging with my special interest group, (The Art of Performance) to determine ways teachers encourage musical interpretation in class. One teacher suggested using part of the lesson to listen and discuss varying genres of music and then perhaps set tasks to explore the expression in groups. Another teacher commented how the use of peer assessment encourages students to identify good performance and apply this to their work. Student’s confidence increases through regular performance experience and also by contributing their thoughts and opinions in class discussion.

By asking, what did you like and why? What might you do differently next time? Can enable the children to consider ways they can progress creatively, this a method commonly used in mainstream education particularly in practical subjects. When teaching key stage one and two P.E (in dance, drama and gymnastics) last year, we often used this at the end of each class to positively evaluate each other’s performance as it is motivational. As a result, I have recently been encouraging competent students to demonstrate positive examples in class, which has proved more effective than when I demonstrate.

A teacher from my professional network highlighted the importance of encouraging expressive performance early on in training to build confidence and shed inhibitions. She also commented that the students who study drama are more expressive in dance performance. We both agreed that particularly young teenagers find dramatic performance challenging and it is therefore important to lay the foundations early on to avoid feeling self-consciousness.

New Ideas

I plan to identify and establish the link between music and dance as I feel this an integral aspect of building artistry. I will be reviewing specific literature focussing on how practitioners develop musical interpretation within dance class. I am currently experimenting with various approaches at Stagecoach where the frame work for classes is free and does not follow a syllabus. I have been working on a ‘Creative Movement’ project to explore their response to music and encourage freedom of creativity without the worry of steps or technique. I have be documenting this project in my reflective journal and will evaluate the outcome at the end of term.

From sourced literature so far, I have discovered that interpretation of a theme is unique in every circumstance and each version individual. To achieve a greater level of artistry requires courage to convey originality and from my own experience as a teacher I am aware that students will perform the same choreography differently. I hope to broaden my student’s understanding of this and make the point that they are not expected to look like clones, they should make an interpretation their own.

I feel that drama training will develop student’s confidence in expression, allowing them to explore human emotion, how we feel, how we look and discover ways to communicate these through dance. By taking dance technique out of the equation this will lay focus solely on the dramatic element in order to apply it to the interpretation of music.

Upon consideration I am drawn to the idea of presenting my professional artefact as an audio visual presentation as I feel that it will be more informative and interactive than a lesson plan. I have not done anything like this before and feel it will enable me to acquire new skills in audio visual, presenting and editing.

My next task is to review some in depth literature, I have created a mind map to help me source publications based around musical interpretation in dance:

Begining Module 3

Beginning Module 3

I found it insightful and enjoyable exploring the subject of artistry in Module 2, however I quickly discovered that it incorporated a vast array of elements, many of which overlapped. I researched several of these and found that my inquiry had potential for numerous pathways. I referred back to my mind map at the start of Module 2 which allowed me to revisit my initial ideas surrounding artistry in performance, through exploration of literature my research presented me with several further areas to consider.

Firstly I felt it necessary to define the term artistry within dance in order to identify the contributing elements. Through literature and interaction with professional networks I found each individual’s definition to be unique, the explanations collected so far have enabled me to appreciate the necessity of artistry within dance training and performance. I now feel it necessary to focus on one or two specific aspects of artistry and therefore created a new mind map to explain my thought process at this stage, as you can see I have identified the key interlinking aspects:

I now plan to engage with my peers and search for in depth literature on the following:

Musical Interpretation and Choreography

I feel it necessary to explore the musical influence on how choreography is devised and then performed. Through research I plan to identify how practitioners develop their ideas and ways they interpret a particular piece of music, the inspiration behind the choreography, its meaning and how it reflects the subject matter.

I have recently begun preparing for our annual school show case and will be recording evidence of my own creative process throughout in my reflective journal. I am in the early stages of choreographing several Ballet pieces and plan to document the following; why I chose the music, it’s relevance to the story, what I want to get across to the audience and what do I want them to feel. It will be insightful to analyse my thought process and decisions when developing the artistic aspects ready for the performance. I plan to amend my tools of inquiry to include the investigation of this topic.

Drama and Confidence

I explored this aspect to some extent in module 2 and found that many practitioners use drama activities to develop characterisation in dance for a particular role. Upon reflection of my own training I am aware that drama is a vital part of vocational dance programmes. I wish to research the value of implementing drama activities within the dance class to develop student’s confidence in expressive performance. I wish to gain awareness of how practitioners develop such skills and evaluate how confidence and skills gained from this can contribute to a more artistic performance.

I now feel it necessary to ask the following questions:

How does the music influence the way a dance piece is performed?

How can the students’ understanding of the music enhance their performance?

How do teachers and choreographers encourage awareness of musical interpretation?

How can we as dance teachers use drama to build confidence in student’s ability to explore and express emotion?