reflections on dance

This post is written by a contributing writer whose name will remain undisclosed.

Having reflected on dancing in general as of late, but having only practically dealt with three or four different styles (the "s" word, I swore I wouldn't use that), I can logically deduct the following statements. As a disclaimer I will state that I represent just one small voice out of millions.

• Rhythm permeates everything, from the first heartbeat audible to the unborn child to the cyclical life and death of a galaxy. Let the dance emerge, and dismiss any feeling of having to censor yourself. It is basic evolution - your dance will be expressed if you let it. Any patch of dirt will be inhabited by a plant sooner or later, unless someone is to tear it from the ground.
  

• If you have learned thousands of combinations and have worked endless hours on your body language, but haven't mastered basic social dancing at a level which your non-dancing friends or the crowd around you can follow, you have not gotten your time or money's worth. The simple task of conveying music does not lie in technicality alone.
  

•  Choreography, especially in the jaded world of "HipHop dance", is a useful tool to be applied in performances, shows and the like. It should not be considered a mandatory part of mastering the dance. There seems to be no solid argumentation that choreographing steps and moves can stimulate individual forms of expression in students. This mentality is NOT opposed to routines, sequences, drills, or systematizing your material. The task of choreographing one's body in time and space, if practiced in a dance class however, is apparently meant for the instant gratification of the student only. It does not foster the structured and highly organized beauty of an emergent system.  Emergence is the way complex systems and patterns arise out of a multiplicity of relatively simple interactions. Proper technique seems to lead the student on a path towards realization of self, a path that lets one investigate the core resources of the individual.

More uninformed ranting will follow.