A Musical Meetup
31 Oct 2019 - Richard Horridge
An accurate depiction of what the sessions will include
I'm looking to get a group of people together who are interested in music and its relationship with dance.
No musical experience would be necessary - although it would be helpful! The plan is to create a relaxed environment where we can talk about the (very rich) history of music and how it relates to dancing of all kinds.
While my main focus has been on Ballroom and Latin American Dance, there is a lot more to dancing than just those 10 dances. Many genres and styles are out there, from partner dances to group and solo dances, stage performances and theatrics. Building an understanding of how these dances evolved from one another and how they became what they are today would, I think, be very interesting!
Dance is intimately tied to music and one of the many things that we are told is to try to really feel the music as we are dancing. For many people who are not musical (and even many of us who are!) this can be quite confusing and difficult to do at first. By taking a step back from the performance for a little while, we will be able to appreciate this in more detail than you have a chance to on the competition floor.
I'd like this to be as interactive and inclusive as possible and this means, of course, involving instruments! For anyone who hasn't played an instrument before, I have a few to choose from and we can begin making music quite quickly. One idea I had is to try and learn to play a particular type of dance music (e.g. Tango, Samba, Viennese Waltz) and examine what makes that music unique.
Another question I'd like to answer is one I get asked sometimes - what can I dance to this song? People find that they can dance, for example, a Cha-Cha to a song because it has the right tempo (speed) and number of beats, but it doesn't feel as good as dancing to a proper Cha-Cha.
Finally, it will be an opportunity to broaden our academic knowledge of dance and music - to learn new techniques for footwork and style, to ask questions of more experienced dancers and musicians, and to learn some new skills!
I'm keen to get this going soon - it's going to be hard (as always) to fit it in my schedule! I'm often away climbing at weekends (or at dance competitions) and three nights of the week are usually taken! Hopefully some of you are interested and we can definitely make this happen.
