Child’s Play: A Lesson in Musicality
I found this video very enjoyable to watch, and I am so glad I watched it all the way through and didn’t miss the ending. To me, this is the perfect combination of seriousness and joy, virtuosity and innocence. The intensity in this young boy’s face mirrors the feelings about the dance I carry inside of me. When you love something, you engage in serious play until you collapse from joy.
On a more practical (but still playful) note, this video actually provides a great exercise for dancers. Homer and Cristina Ladas use an exercise in their classes called Tai Chi Tango, in which partners face each other with their palms touching and take turns leading the hands in movement and compressions to the rhythm, syncopations, and other effects in the music. What this video demonstrates – air conducting – is a similar way to open up creativity and musicality in dancers because it removes judgment of right or wrong moves and focuses instead on serious play that can unlock our ability to hear and interpret the music in bodily form. Who ever said practicing isn’t fun?
Thank you to Ms. Hedgehog for sharing this video!
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