Dance can be an engaging way to exercise, express emotions, and simply have some fun! Plus it provides an ideal opportunity for socialization between participants.
Dance rarely develops without some form of musical accompaniment, as both involve rhythmic patterns.
History
Dance to music has long been part of human culture, adding transcendence to spiritual rituals and creating bonds within communities. Although styles may change throughout time, dance remains one of the most expressive physical art forms. While musicians and dancers tend to treat them separately as two separate art forms, musicians should instead strive to work harmoniously together instead.
Dance music has experienced remarkable global growth over the past several decades. Now its most celebrated artists sell out stadium shows without fail and initially small labels have grown into premier world brands – hard to imagine that only decades ago dance music was just another dot on an otherwise monotonous world stage!
Dance music refers to any form of electronic music intended to be danced to, from ballads and ballad dancehall to electro house beats. Genres included in dance music are jazz, rock n roll, disco, R&B hip hop drum n bass jungle techno and trance music.
DJs use software like Ableton Live or Traktor to mix tunes together. A mix is recorded during this process and played back later at a club or party; its playback can demonstrate their skills of reading crowds and creating appropriate blends of songs for the moment. A “breakdown” refers to any section where all instruments except drums and percussion temporarily stop playing; typically this section of dance tracks provides most excitement.
Most non-Western cultures have always been intrinsically connected with music, with dynamic movements synchronized to rhythmic musical chants and vocals. Even Western traditions like folk dancing and country dancing incorporate musicality. African American musical culture made significant contributions to dance across several genres of popular music from jazz and R&B through rock ‘n’ roll and funk before disco and modern electronic dance music.
Rhythm
Music often dictates the rhythm of dance. This may be seen in choreography set to music or, more typically, with improvisational dance; either way it serves to guide movement of dancers. No matter whether the rhythm comes from music or dancers themselves, its importance can be key in successfully carrying out a given movement sequence; whether that means setting it with one beat like in songs with basic tempos, or through complex combinations like drum pulsing and guitar riffing.
Although most people intuitively understand what rhythm is, its definition can be difficult to pin down and distinguish from other concepts like meter or time. A basic definition of rhythm could include the repetitive use of two distinct but complementary elements – for instance a strong beat followed by soft or weak elements – in an effort to generate unity within groups such as ancient tribal war crying or modern combat unit drumming; all activities which use rhythm as part of their routine to generate sense of togetherness between its members.
Pedagogic approaches to rhythm vary considerably. Dance educators such as Margaret H’Doubler have utilized phenomenologically informed pedagogy that awaken students to experience temporality as flows of energy – as opposed to studio-based training which often equates rhythm with accented accents synchronizing with particular meters.
As part of learning to dance to music, it is beneficial to first determine the tempo or speed of a song. An easy way of doing so is tapping your foot or fingers along with its beat until you have an intuitive feel for its rhythm – this step will allow your body to internalize its beat more readily, helping you dance more fluidly.
Another key component of rhythm is intensity or phrasing. Some songs feature fast tempos while others are much slower; rock songs tend to feature upbeat beats while ballroom pieces of music often feature steady, slow rhythms. A song’s intensity often manifests itself through vocals, instrumentation and its overall tempo.
Syncopation
Musicians use syncopation to add rhythmic surprise. Offbeat accents give swing its swing, while unexpected drum beats make a rock song danceable. Syncopation is a universal language that spans genres and cultures alike.
Experiments where participants were instructed to tap their fingers with imagined dance steps were conducted by scientists and showed that medium level syncopation elicited the greatest response for participants tapping their fingers along to music, whereas very low and high degrees didn’t. Scientists hypothesize this might be because groove experiences require listeners to connect with the rhythmic pulse within music’s pulse – when beat is predictable it becomes difficult for one to stay with its pace and join its rhythms.
Syncopation should be employed carefully as too much can become disorienting. Syncopation can create off-beat energy and tension by holding out notes longer than expected in chord changes, or by accentuating weak beats while the melody accents strong beats for an engaging call-and-response effect that’s very danceable.
Closer by Deadmau5 uses an upbeat, simple beat with off-beat percussion and melodic hits, making it easy for listeners to clap along. Furthermore, its emphasis on “2” and “4” beats known as backbeats allows listeners to easily clap along and feels more energetic than a straight 1 – 2 – 3 tempo; furthermore it’s likely to repeat itself and remain stuck in their heads longer.
Syncopation takes various forms, such as suspension, offbeat and missed beat. Suspension occurs when weak beats are held out longer than expected to build tension that’s resolved when strong beats appear; offbeat is when an unexpected beat appears out of place; missed beat is when an absent beat is stressed instead of substituted in.
Scientists recently conducted a research project which revealed that overt body movement ratings more significantly affected syncopation effects than musical training and past listening experience of groove-based music did, suggesting that groove is more about wanting to move and experiencing pleasure than cognitive synchronisation.
Listening
Dance to music means paying attention not only to its beat, but also how your body reacts in response. You might notice rhythms in words sung along with it or remember memories associated with it; additionally you might even take notice of how the musician moves during performance – from their face or hands moving during performance all the way to how their face or hands may move during their performance.
Music can be heard everywhere you turn – from commercials and songs on the radio, concerts by your favorite artist and record player in your home, and record player listening at work or home. Most often when listening to music it is passive – for instance while driving or working – but when actively engaged with it your heart rate increases and you become engaged with its sounds; that is active listening.
Many musicians and dancers listen sensitively to the music they perform with, changing their movements according to what’s happening within it. For example, they may detect rhythmic elements within a song or variations in volume, pitch, or tone within it and adjust their movements accordingly.
Studies conducted by researchers have demonstrated that when people dance to music, it activates the part of their brain responsible for action preparation. Lahar and colleagues (2007) discovered that pianists who were taught a new piece showed activation of both auditory perception and action preparation areas when listening to pieces they knew how to play but not to familiar pieces they didn’t yet understand how to play.
Dancers have also been observed to demonstrate an alpha ERD-ERS pattern when listening to their preferred genre of music, suggesting that listening to this specific type for years has enabled their cerebral responses to become more efficient in cortical processing and motor imagery processes associated with dancing.
Dopamine and other hormones that promote feelings of pleasure and affection, while simultaneously decreasing cortisol levels. Listening to music that you love has an immediate and dramatic impact on both body and soul – whether running to upbeat music to boost heart rates or singing along at a party! Listening to what speaks to you stimulates dopamine production while decreasing cortisol levels significantly.