Let’s talk music! When you listen to a song, what do you hear? What do you feel? Does it bring up memories? Does it move you?

For the final project this fall, we're using music as the inspiration for making a dance. What's fun is we're making music videos for this assignment.

To begin, we study the music. The students choose a piece of music and we discuss its elements and structure. We then count it out to make a music map, listen for imagery and brainstorm ideas for their concept. Then it's time to plan a dance.

Let’s use our imagination to create an original concept around a song and arrange a dance in a chosen music video style, making our homes the production stage! 

Lessons 1, 2, and 3 will take you through the planning process and lessons 4 and 5 offer methods and guidelines in making the choreography for the music video.

In your house:
Lesson 1: Map Out Your Music
Choose a song you are drawn to and would be interested in working with: 

• Why did you choose this particular song?
• What does it make you think about?
• How does it make you feel?

Map Out the Music

• Determine what the time signature is. Most pop songs are in 4/4 time so you will be able to count it in eights. Some are ¾ time, you can count this a couple ways, sixes (like a waltz) is most common. 
• Map out your music using tick marks.
• In your mapping, establish changes in music, different sounds, etc.​

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​Lesson 2: Listen to the Music
Brainstorm

• Music can evoke emotions and images. Listen to your song and let your imaginations go. In your notebook, describe the emotions you felt, stories or memories that came up, and draw any images that appeared while the music played.
• Pay attention to the music elements like tempo, dynamics, pitch, they will contribute to the emotions. 
• Study your page and begin to assess what you have. Is there a general theme? What type of movement will complement these ideas? 

Lesson 4: Tips and Tools for Making Your Dance 

Use your Music Map, Brainstorm Page, and Concept Outline to help choreograph the dance. 

• ​​​Determine how you will set the scene, camera angle, environment, dancer’s position.
• Determine when to cut the music. It should be a place that makes sense in the music, not abrupt and out of nowhere.​​

• Remember to change your tempos, you don’t have to move fast or slow the entire time. Sometimes holding a pose is the most effective.
• Think about how you want to tell your story. Do you need gestures? Do you need long phrases? Do you need to walk, run, freeze? Laugh, cry, shake, twist?
• Listen to the lyrics and create movements that represent the words and emotions in the song. Gestures are great for representing words. These can be repeated and manipulated to elaborate on your concept.
• Listen to the music and pay attention to the rhythms, clap out the rhythms that you hear. Then create these rhythms with your body, they will not always be audible, you are amplifying the music with different  parts of your body.

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Lesson 5: Putting It All Together:  Make a Music Video

Overall Structure:

• An introduction that sets the scene and tone.
• Beginning that complements the introduction. (This is usually the first verse in the song).
• Middle section that continues to develop your concept.
• End section that creates a resolution or wraps up your concept.

Choreography Guidelines:

• The movement must complement your concept.
• 2  8counts that is a full body movement. Using your arm, torso, legs, head. Dance BIG!
• One movement from the new warm-up or combination.

Filming and Editing Guidelines:

• Choose a location in your home to record the dance. Decorate? Use furniture or props?
• At least two different camera angles.
• 1 ½ to 2 ½  minutes in length. Find a good place to cut the music if the song is more than a minute.

Have fun and tell the story in your own style. ​

Dance Is Home is back and focusing on lessons for getting to know new and returning students while we continue to embrace our unique dance spaces. Personal stories will drive each lesson and inspire future topics, playlists, and culturally relevant teaching.

Distance learning has inspired me to organize each unit with activities that stand on their own but can be combined into a multi-layered piece. 

The first unit will focus on birthdays. We all have one. The dates, astrology signs, stories, and traditions create a fun platform for dance making and conversation. I’m looking forward to sharing this new series.

Let’s celebrate our special day with some dance making during #distancelearning

Project #1: Birthday Chance Dance
Still at home, birthday celebrations continue.

In your house:
Lesson 1:

• Create a short phrase with your birthday, month and day, using the movement numbers below, (In sequential order).

Month_ _/ Day_ _
0- Jump
1- Run
2- Spin
3- Punch
4- Melt
5- Rise
6- Skip
7- Explode
8- Balance
9- Kick

Example: 11/08= Run, run, jump, balance.
*if your number repeats, create two variations of the movement.

Lesson 2:

• Look up your astrology sign and choose two personality traits that represent you best.
• Create two shapes that describe each word.
• Determine how you form the shapes (this can be added to the more advanced classes). 

Lesson 3:

• Write about a memorable birthday.
• Write about your families birthday traditions or how you celebrate with them.
• Choose a sentence from one of the above writing prompts and make it into a movement sentence. 

Lesson 4:

• Movement practice: choose a short section of the warm-up from the dance class.

Lesson 5: Put it all together!

• Construct a dance using a chance procedure of your choice.
• Demonstrate how you determined your order in photos or video.

DETAILS:
HOW TO MAKE YOUR BIRTHDAY CHANCE DANCE:

• Use a chance procedure to determine the sequence. Make sure you include Shape #1, Shape #2, Movement Sentence, Birthday Chance Dance and Warm-up phrase.
• Record a demonstration of your chance procedure using Time lapse, photos, or other create ways. Example: time lapse the mathematical equation you used to create the sequence, video record the procedure of choosing the sequence out of a hat.
• Add music. Consider music that reminds you of birthday celebrations at home, festive songs, etc.
• Choose a location in your home to record the dance. Decorate? Use furniture or props?
• 45-90 seconds maximum. Make sure you get all four movement tasks and the chance procedure demo in this time frame.
• Have fun and make it festive!

​Suggested educational resources:
Bringing words to life: (Lesson 2 & 3)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1&v=gb67f2HLVGM&feature=emb_logo

Bill T Jones discusses Story/Time.
The creative process and putting stories together in a random order. (Lesson 1 & 5)
https://vimeo.com/34480831

Merce Cunningham and Chance Procedure (Lesson 1 & 5)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=11&v=zhK3Ep4HiI0&feature=emb_logo

*Academic schedules vary, determine the lesson order to fit your particular needs, environment, and level of the dancer.

Are you zoomed in or zoomed out? New habits for connecting while we #shelterinplace

In your house:

1. Study your next zoom meeting.
2. List the mannerisms and body language you see.
3. Find inspiration from the camera angles and focus.
4. Put these observations in order, illustrating your experiences in a dance.

​​​Let’s dance about our zoom experiences. Zoom can be comical, frustrating, friendly, heartfelt, flat and so many other things. The gestures, body language and mannerisms speak to movement. This study encourages you to embody your current online practices in a fun and cathartic way. Use any of the suggestions below to expand on this mini-dance. Remember this can be as simple or complex as you want. It’s yours to make. Take your time and play.

Can you:

• Make movement from freeze frames and lag time. 
• Add gestures from the reactions toolbar or any other effects to keep the zoom moving.
• Represent someone in your zoom.
• Amplify your observations, have fun!
• Flick, press, swirl, stare.

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Today’s focus: RELATIONSHIPS.
Happy dance making!!

I’m super excited to see your zoom stories through movement. 
Would love to see your #danceishome
Please tag me @jonesdanceco so we can see what you made.
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