Editorial – Page 53

Dance Anywhere

March 16, 2011 by 4dancers

Just a quick note to point out that Dance Anywhere is taking place on March 18th, 2011. This event is a simultaneous worldwide public art performance and YOU are invited to participate…

You don’t have to be a professional dancer–or even involved in dance in any formal way. The only requirement is that you want to be in on it. Artist Beth Fein first created dance anywhere® in 2005 …what if there was a public celebration of dance anywhere and everywhere simultaneously? Why wait for a performance opportunity to come your way?

Curious? Want to get involved? Take a look at how you can participate–and enjoy the day with dance! Pass the word…

To All College Dancers: Success is Just a Mentor Away

March 7, 2011 by 4dancers

When I was a freshman in college I had an English professor who told the class the key to becoming successful in your career is to find a mentor; someone who is successful at your chosen profession, someone who inspires you, who can help guide you and teach you. My professor knew nothing about dance but he knew about life. You can’t do it alone. You need someone to guide you, someone who has gone down the path you are about to take and can prepare you for the potholes in the road or cheer you as you reach one of your destinations.

You can have many mentors. In fact, you should. My first mentor was a senior dance major when I was a freshman. She inspired me not only with her dancing but with her outlook on life. She would answer my questions that I was too embarrassed to ask my professors. She helped me navigate all the newness around me. I learned how to be successful in the dance program because I picked someone to guide me that was extremely successful in the program. I was fortunate that she was also kind, gracious and giving.

I would recommend all incoming freshman dancers to shadow a dancer who has been in the program for a while. Ask her or him questions about classes, teachers, etiquette, etc. Gain as much information as you can. Learning is not reserved just for the classroom or studio. [Read more…]

Finding Inspiration

March 2, 2011 by 4dancers

Catherine L. Tully in 1987 — Catherine L. Tully, 1987

I’ve been thinking a lot about inspiration. Where it comes from. I know that it is different for everyone, but I don’t believe it is a magical, mystical process. I think it can be explained. Perhaps not well, but I think I can at least trace mine much of the time…

For me, inspiration comes from outside. I can’t be inspired if I turn inward. That is the filter that things run through, but the source of the inspiration itself must be something I see, hear, touch or experience. Sometimes it’s a piece of music. Other times it’s a phrase someone says, or even who they are. I’ve even been inspired by the feeling of wind across my face.

Oddly enough, nature doesn’t usually have that sort of impact on me. I love the scenery, but find it relaxing, not motivating. I know a lot of people who differ with me on that point–especially visual artists.

Also, there is a “simmering” time that the actual moment of inspiration needs to sit through before I do anything with it. The image or words or thought will stay in my mind and begin to formulate something–gradually. Sometimes it’s a phrase of movement. Somtimes an image. Rarely is it fully formed.

I then go through a process of revising things until they feel “right”. If I think about things too much at this point, I lose the thread. If I don’t, the idea and the process merge, creating something.

I think inspiration for me comes straight out of my subconscious–and that’s a good thing. By the time ideas or emotion hits our conscious mind, we begin to want it to fit neatly into our lives and thoughts. Sometimes things just don’t fit neatly. Creating something gives you a chance to express that which you cannot say.

After all, there aren’t always words for everything.

I’d love to know what others think about this subject. How do you get inspired? What is your process like?

It’s such a personal, almost private thing that it’s almost uncomfortable to talk about. I don’t know if I’ve done a “proper” job of tracing mine for you, but I hope you can get a feel for my pattern (as much as there is one) by what I’ve shared with you here…

World Dance Workout – An Inside Look

February 28, 2011 by 4dancers

Today we have Sandy & Ryan with us to talk about the CD “World Dance Workout”. They’ll give you a peek into the “behind the scenes” work that went into it, as well as let you know what you can use the CD for if you are a dance or fitness instructor…

1. How did the idea for the World Dance Workout CD come about?

Sandy: World dance workout cd was created for a fitness class based on dance moves from around the world. The needs of the original and innovative class inspired the customized music.

Ryan: Once Sandy started sharing with me her needs for her class, I jumped at the opportunity. The concept of real drummers who love dance and have real experience playing for dancers getting into a studio and recording an album is something I have always wanted to do. The tracks on the album are original in essence, but they are based on a number of African Diasporic dance music styles that I love (as do countless people the world over). I arranged these rhythms and grooves to Sandy’s tempo and song length requirements, and we went into the studio. It is worthy of note that this album was tracked and mixed at Solid Sound in Ann Arbor, MI – a true recording studio with an incredible live room. This is remarkable because studios of this quality are fewer and fewer – due to the popularity of heavily produced (and often synthesized and or electronic) music. A lot of contemporary music can be recorded in a simple home studio… but the kind of music we were after – real, raw, and made with acoustic instruments – needed a real live room built to handle that kind of acoustical presence. The popular “Behind Barres” albums are all tracked there as well.

2. Who are the musicians involved and what do they play?

Ryan: There are four musicians on this album; Ryan Edwards, Chinelo Elegua Amen-Ra, Abass Camara and Matthew Bell. All of us share a love of dance and have more or less been raised (either literally, or since we started playing) in the dance tradition. Matthew and Chinelo live in the greater Detroit area of Michigan, Abass lives in Fort Wayne, IN and I now live in Boston, though I am from Michigan originally. The list of instruments we played on the record is a pretty long one, but I will try to summarize: we played congas, bells, shekeres, balafon, drumset, djembes, dununs, surdos, snare drum, ago-go bells, cylinder shakers, pandiero, triangle, goat toe-nails (actually on a few tracks!), cajon, calabash, bass djembe, and I am sure a few more…. you can see a pretty cool video on our website, www.worlddanceworkout.net of us making the record in the studio. It is just a few excerpts from the session, which we did in one day. [Read more…]

Best Ballet Shoes Blog – How I got started

February 21, 2011 by 4dancers

Today we have a guest post from Lara–the editor of the Best Ballet Shoes blog….

My name is Lara and I recently began a website and blog all about the best ballet shoes. Having a low arch and a longer second toe, finding ballet shoes that fit was a bit of a challenge for me. But, it was worth the hunt – a great fitting shoe makes all the difference in your confidence and ultimately, your performance.

It must have been hard for my mother to drive me to ballet classes 4 times a week and buy me new shoes all the time. My mother had always dreamed of being a ballerina, but her immigrant parents didn’t have the money to send her to classes – so the dream continued through me, her first daughter. I felt I owed it to her to indulge in her dream for a while, and then I learned to love it. [Read more…]

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