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Mini History of Jazz Dancing

 

WHAT IS JAZZ?

When you hear the word Jazz what do you think of? 

Better yet, when you hear about jazz as a style of dance what comes to mind? 

Do you think of the Charleston? Or does your mind go straight to broadway? 

The evolution of jazz dance spans over history, and takes on many forms. 

Jazz began as a social style of dance at the turn of the century when African American dancers began blending traditional style African steps with European movement.

With that combination it allowed dancers to create a conversation with the musicians and their instruments. Like jazz music, jazz dance was centered around improving and a call and response between the dancers and musicians. 

No matter where and when jazz always has had a performative feel.

Here are some steps every beginner should know:

Ball Change: A quick transfer of weight from one foot to the other.

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Jazz Square: A four step movement in which the dancer steps across, back, and to the front. Creating a square pattern with feet on the floor.

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Chassé: Step out in any direction in píle, then jump and chase the first leg. Like a gallop.

 

A list of some famous jazz dancers throughout history:

Bob Fosse: June 23, 1927- September 23, 1987

An actor, choreographer, dancer, director, and screenwriter. 

He was known for his distinct style with his use of the pelvis, arm, and hard isolations, and rounding of the shoulders. He gave jazz a new dimension. Winning 8 Tony Awards for choreography. Some of his major works include ‘Chicago’, ‘Kiss Me Kate’, ‘Pippin’, and ‘Cabaret’. 

Jack Cole: April 27, 1911- February 17, 1974

A dancer, choreographer, and theater director.

He is considered as the “father of jazz” technique. He combined jazz with modern steps. 

Jack choreographed Marilyn Monroe’s ‘Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friends’. ‘There’s No Business Like Show Business’, and ‘Les Girl’.

This opened the floodgates to new talent and modifications to the dance form. 

Jerome Robbins: October 11, 1918- July 29, 1998 

Theater producer, director, and dance choreographer. 

He was a world renowned choreographer, know for his contribution to ballet, theater, movies, and television musicals.

His works include: ‘Fiddler on the Roof’, ‘Funny Girl’, ‘West Side Story’, and many more.

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Learn More About Tap Dancing 

Since it first appeared in the public, tap dancing immediately enchanted the public in the North America, becoming a vital part of mainstream musical culture.

This style of dance can ingrain itself into any type of genre in the modern day. Traditionally tap is separated into two distinct styles – Jazz/Rhythm dance that is focused on musicality and tradition of tap dance, and Broadway that is used by stage performers who weave the dance into the theater stories.

Tap dance is based in indigenous American dance genre that evolved over a period of some three hundred\ years. Initially a fusion of British and West African musical and step-dance traditions in America, tap emerged in the southern United States in the 1700s. The Irish jig and West African gioube (sacred and secular stepping dances) mutated into the American jig and juba. 

Common tap steps include the shuffle, shuffle ball change , leap shuffle, hop shuffle, flap, flap ball change, running flaps, flap heel, cramproll, buffalo, and Maxi Ford.

Many of these steps also have single, double, and triple versions.

Tap dancing can also be done with an a cappella method, in which no music is provided and dancers create their own “music” through the sounds of their taps.

When it comes to the shoe itself in the earliest years of tap dancing, tap shoes often had wooden soles, but most tap shoes since have had leather soles. Depending on manufacturer and model, tap characteristics can vary considerably. For example, some taps have relatively low weight and small footprint whereas others may be thicker and fill out the edge of the shoe more, making them heavier as a result.

Here of some of the major players in the world of tap! 

A popular duo was “Buck and Bubbles,” which consisted of John “Bubbles” Sublett tapping and Ford “Buck” Washington playing a piano. The duo performed Class Act, a routine in which the performers wore tuxedos, effectively distinguishing them from the older minstrel show concept of tap dancers as “grinning-and-dancing clowns

Bill “Bojangles” Robinson: Well versed in buck and wing dancing along with Irish Step dancing. Bojangles joined the Vaudeville circuit in 1902 in a duo with George W. Cooper. The act quickly became famous, headlining events across the country, and touring England as well. In 1908, Robinson began dancing solo, which was extremely rare for a black man at that time. Despite the barriers created in society, he had tremendous success. He went on to have a leading role in many films, including the Shirley Temple movies.

Along with many other amazing tap artists such as;  Savion Glover, Gregory Hines, Fred Astaire, The Nicholas Brothers, Ann Miller, Vera Ellen, Lady Di (Dianne Walker), and the list goes on.

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Contemporary Dance

What Is Contemporary Dance?

Contemporary dance is a genre of dance performance that developed during the mid-twentieth century and has since grown to become one of the dominant genres for formally trained dancers throughout the world, with particularly strong popularity in the U.S. and Europe.

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The genre of Contemporary blends elements of multiple dance styles. This form of dance lets dancers express emotions through movement and breath.   

Contemporary dance is a style of interpretive dance that embraces blending improv, innovation, and technique from various styles of dance such as; jazz, modern, lyrical, and classical ballet. 

Within this genre you focus more on floor work, body shapes, and expression. Instead of relying on the strict rules that govern traditional dance styles it RELIES on your ability to move through improvisation and versatility. It allows you to have creative freedom with your movement. The fluidity of movement allows dancers to explore their mind-body connection. 

It is often referred to as a form of story-telling. Contemporary routines tend to communicate abstract ideas, moments in time, personal or historical moments. The costumes and music will typically reflect and help set the tone of the piece. Some choreographers will have their performers dance to spoken word poems, or have the dance/dancer make “music” with their bodies. 

Major power houses who helped influence contemporary included:  

✨Isadora Duncan, who was an American ballet dancer that rejected the rigid technique of classical ballet to embrace the human bodies natural lines. 

✨Martha Graham was a choreographer known for being the mother of modern dance. Her innovation laid much of the ground for contemporary movement. 

✨Lester Horton was an American choreographer who helped developed modern dance techniques inspired by Native American dances. He was also one of the first American choreographers to insist on racial integration in his performances. His legacy lives on in the work of notable contemporary choreographers including Alvin Ailey.

There are many factors, styles, and innovators who have made contemporary what it is today! This style is forever growing, and has the ability to reflect the times in a way of art movement.

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✨The hidden secret of successful dancers✨
The strength you gain as a dancer will not only help you in class and performances, but will help improve your every day life.
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The power of strength training 

Strength training is the staple when it comes to improving performance. Culturally, specific strength training has not always been a part of dance training due to stigmas in the performing arts community. Strength training helps dancers in many different ways. Training in strength as a dancer can help you leap higher, control your movements, and perform more consistently. Most importantly strength training helps prevent injury. 


Why is important for dancers to strength train? 

Dancers are required to jump, leap, catch partners, incorporate floor work, move down to the floor swiftly, and perform other explosive movements. All of these movements require muscular strength and power. Although technique classes can help improve muscular strength, power, and proper execution they don’t always focus on increasing strength and power as one of the main goals.

 

What happens when we strength train?

When we add strength training to our daily dance training everything changes. Not only do you see the results physically, you can see them within your technique. Every movement and trick becomes more substantial. You begin to have more power within your dancing. The more you train your strength along with your technique the safer your dancing becomes. You will be able to achiever harder movements and tricks. Most importantly your body with be protected, and you chances of injury lessen.