Dance and Rhythm Group 2 BSEE 3B

Republic of the Philippines
CAPIZ STATE UNIVERSITY

Fuentes Drive, Roxas City, Capiz, Philippines
Tel. No. (036) 6214-578 fax No. (036) 6214-578
website: www.capsu.edu.ph email address: roxas@capsu.edu.ph
Dance and Rhythm

Dance refers to movement set to music where there emerges organization, structure and pattern.
It is a composition that implies arrangement of parts into a form.
Dancing is a means of expressing one’s emotions through movement disciplined by rhythm. It is

an act of moving rhythmically and expressively to an accompaniment. The word dancing came from an
old German word “ danson” which means to “ stretch”. Essentially, all dancing is made up of stretching
and relaxing.
Rhythms is a term which denotes an aspect of a quality of movement that is sometimes thought
of as dance. When an individual moves in response to a particular rhythm or music we call the
movements as rhythmic movements or rhythms. Structured forms which start creative rhythmic
movements are called rhythms.

Rhythmic activities are the physical manifestations of the mental and emotional response of the
individual to rhythm. They are activities which a child responds to physically, socially, and mentally to
regular patterns of sound.
1* History of Dance
From the earliest moments of known human history, dance accompanied ancient rituals, spiritual
gatherings and social events. As a conduit of trance, spiritual force, pleasure, expression, performance and
interaction, dance became infused into our nature from the earliest moments of our existence - from the
moment when first African tribes covered themselves in war-paint to the to the spreading of music and
dance across all four corners of the world. Without a doubt, dancing remains one of the most expressive
forms of communications that we know.
Dance is a form of expression of oneself through rhythmic movement. Dance is an integral part of
Filipino culture that dates to the period before Ferdinand Magellan stepped foot in the Philippines. The
traditional dances of the Filipinos are vibrant and colorful, capturing the history of the archipelago.
Before the Spanish, Various tribes were scattered across the more than 7,000 islands, each with
its own unique traditions and dances. The Igorot tribes lived in the mountains of Luzon; a handful of these
tribes still reside in the mountains, having successfully resisted Spanish colonization. Many of the dances
have been handed down through the generations. Dance expresses this tribe's love of nature and gratitude
to the gods. To imitate the wonders of nature, dancers often swoop their arms like birds and stomp their
feet to represent the rumbling of the Earth. However, many other tribes in other regions are disappearing,
and only a few of their dances survive. Thanksgiving, worship and prayers for a bountiful harvest mark
the style of these dances.
The dances of the Muslims, known as Moros, are alluring and colorful. Female dancers wear
costumes studded with jewels, while male dancers brandish swords and shields. The Moros use languid
Accredited: Accrediting Agency of Chartered Colleges and Universities of the Philippines (AACCUP)
Member: Philippine Association of State Universities and Colleges (PASUC)
Agricultural Colleges Association of the Philippines (ACAP)
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arm movements to imitate the world around them such as the wind, the sea and the fish. Each dance is
punctuated by the haunting sounds of the kulintangan, a set of small gongs. Like the Igorots, the Moros
were able to resist Spanish rule, which is why many of their dances continue to flourish.
Maria Clara In 1521, during this period, Western culture spread through the islands, including
such Western dances as the waltz, fandango and polka. With a little Filipino flare, they quickly became
part of the culture. This "new" style of dance was named Maria Clara after the tragic character in Jose
Rizal's novel "Noli Me Tangere."
2* Dance and Music

It is unlikely that any human society (at any rate until the invention of puritanism) has denied
itself the excitement and pleasure of dancing. Like cave painting, the first purpose of dance is probably
ritual - appeasing a nature spirit or accompanying a rite of passage. But losing oneself in rhythmic
movement with other people is an easy form of intoxication. Pleasure can never have been far away.
Rhythm, indispensable in dancing, is also a basic element of music. It is natural to beat out the
rhythm of the dance with sticks. It is natural to accompany the movement of the dance with rhythmic
chanting. Dance and music begin as partners in the service of ritual.
3* Dance as Ritual
Ritual practices in the Philippines take a multitude of forms and take place on any number of
occasions, reflecting the intentions that motivate the practice. There is a great range of variability in the
degree of elaborateness and sophistication and in the way that they employ narratives and symbolic
gestures. Despite the commonality of intentions and content, similar rituals may exhibit marked variations
in the way certain elements are emphasized. It is not uncommon to observe differing versions from
neighboring villages . Depending on the significance of the ritual and the potential beneficial effect it may
have on the community, certain rituals can be performed simply and without much preparation. On the
other hand, where the practice is performed for the benefit of an entire locality, the ritual may extend to
period of weeks and involve the entire populations of several towns.
Folkloric dance is often thought of as being a separate and distinct component of rituals. In
practice, however, this distinction is not as clear cut. Oftentimes, the dance itself constitutes the ritual, and
the movement and symbolic gestures are interpersonal and blended into the entire ritual performance.
4* Dance as Ecstasy
Ecstasy (from Ancient Greek ἔκστασις ékstasis, in turn from ἐκ (ek, out) and ἵστημι (hístēmi, I
stand) is a subjective experience of total involvement of the subject, with an object of his or her
awareness. In classical Greek literature it meant the removal of the mind or body "from its normal place
of function."
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Ecstatic dance is a form of dance in which the dancers, sometimes without the need to follow
specific steps, abandon themselves to the rhythm and move freely as the music takes them, leading
to trance and a feeling of ecstasy. The effects of ecstatic dance begin with ecstasy itself, which may be
experienced in differing degrees. Dancers are described as feeling connected to others, and to their
own emotions. The dance serves as a form of meditation, helping people to cope with stress and to attain
serenity.
Attitudes to ecstatic dance have varied widely. In the 1920s, musicologists such as Paul Nettl
and Fritz Böhme considered it primitive and unrefined. More recently, it has been compared to dancing
in raves and in club culture, the anthropologist Michael J. Winkelman and the musicologist Rupert Till
finding in these forms elements of ritual, spirituality, and healing. The philosopher Gediminas Karoblis
relates early ecstatic dance to religious ritual, and notes that all well-executed dance borders on ecstasy.
5* Dance as Entertainment, as Display

The basis for entertainment is to take the observer to another world, to delight, or to create an
emotional state of being different from the way they felt when they walked into the theater. Entertainment
dances come in many forms, such as story dances, exotic dances, folk dances, contests, recitals, and
concerts.
Why is it that dance can be as entertainment activity?
The many forms of dance provide entertainment for all age groups and cultures. Since it
combines many forms of entertainment – music, movement, storytelling, theatre – it provides a good
example of the various ways that these forms can be combined to create entertainment for different
purposes and audiences.
6* Basic Course in Dance

1. Learn the basic rhythm of your dance style and learn to move to it. Getting your feet and
arms used to the movements with the rhythm is actually the most basic aspect of any dance. All dance
styles are based on a certain rhythm to establish the proper movements.
2. Get used to moving your arms. This is closely related to the rhythm, although most of us do
not think about our arms when we first start to dance. If you watch yourself in the mirror, you might
notice that an absolute lack of arm movement looks unnatural. So once your feet have the beat, get your
arms working!
3. Watch your kicks. Learning how to kick is one of the most fundamental dance basics. Kicks
are important both for a smooth motion and to keep you from taking up too much space (or kicking
someone else on the dance floor). Apart from ballet, your toes should be pointing toward the floor.
Practicing this in front of a mirror can help you reduce your movements and to learn to kick in time with
the music. Kicks can be difficult because our natural reaction is to move quickly, but like the steps, kicks
need to be timed with the rhythm.
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4. Ground yourself for turns. Nearly all dance styles include turning and spinning. You need to
make sure you find your balance and pick a point of reference for the turn. Usually dancers pick a spot on
the wall or picture to focus on when they stop. This will help you to keep your balance.
5. Be confident. You will make mistakes, and yes, you probably will look silly when you start,
but you have to learn to commit to your movements. Confidence is everything, even when you’re not sure
of the steps! If the audience can see that you’re having fun, your performance will be much more
entertaining to watch.
7* Elements of Dance
Dance can be broken down into the following five elements:
1. Body : Who Dances? The Dancer!

The human body is what others see when they look at dance. A dancer can use the whole body, or
emphasize individual body parts, when moving. Dancers use their bodies to take internal ideas, emotions,
and intentions and express them in an outward manner, sharing them with others. Dance can
communicate this internal world, or it can be abstract, focusing on shapes and patterns.
2. Action: The Dancer Does What? Moves!

Action is any human movement involved in the act of dancing. What do dancers do? They move
– this is the action they perform. Movement can be divided into two general categories:
1. Non-locomotor or axial movement: Any movement that occurs in one spot including a bend,
stretch, swing, rise, fall, shake, turn, rock, tip, suspend, and twist.
2. Locomotor movement: Any movement that travels through space including a run, jump, walk,
slide, hop, skip, somersault, leap, crawl, gallop, and roll.
3. Space: Where Does the Dancer Move? Through Space!

Space is where the action of dance takes place. It can be indoors or outdoors. Dance moves
through space in an endless variety of ways:
Level: Is the movement on the floor, or reaching upward? Are they performed high, medium, or low?
Direction: Does the movement go forward, backward, sideways, right, left, or on a diagonal?
Place: Is the movement done on the spot (personal space), or does it move through space (general space,
downstage, upstage)?
Orientation: Which way are the dancers facing?
Pathway: Is the path through space made by the dancers curved, straight, or zigzagged? Or is it random?
Size: Does the movement take up a small, narrow space, or a big, wide space?
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Relationships: How are the dancers positioned in space in relationship to one another? Are they close
together or far apart? Are they in front of, beside, behind, over, under, alone, or connected to one another?
4. Time: How Does the Body Move in Relation to Time?

Choreographers have to make decisions about timing. We can think of time in the following
ways:
Clock Time: We use clock time to think about the length of a dance or parts of a dance measured in
seconds, minutes, or hours.
Timing Relationships: When dancers move in relation to each other (before, after, together, sooner than,
faster than).
Metered Time: A repeated rhythmic pattern often used in music (like 2/4 time or 4/4 time). If dances are
done to music, the movement can respond to the beat of the music or can move against it. The speed of
the rhythmic pattern is called its tempo. \
Free Rhythm: A rhythmic pattern is less predictable than metered time. Dancers may perform movement
without using music, relying on cues from one another.
5. Energy: How? The Dancer Moves Through Space and Time With Energy!
The effort the dancers use can communicate meaning, depending on the energy involved. Energy
is crucial in bringing the inner expression of emotion out to the stage performance. Some ways to think
about energy are:
Attack: Is the movement sharp and sudden, or smooth and sustained?
Weight: Does the movement show heaviness, as if giving into gravity, or is it light with a tendency
upward?
Flow: Does the movement seem restricted or bound, with a lot of muscle tension, or is it relaxed, free,
and easy?
Quality: Is the movement tight, flowing, loose, sharp, swinging, swaying, suspended, collapsed, or
smooth?

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Republic of the Philippines

CAPIZ STATE UNIVERSITY

Dance and Rhythm

Dancing is a means of expressing one’s emotions through movement disciplined by rhythm. It is

2* Dance and Music

5* Dance as Entertainment, as Display

Why is it that dance can be as entertainment activity?

6* Basic Course in Dance

1. Body : Who Dances? The Dancer!

2. Action: The Dancer Does What? Moves!

3. Space: Where Does the Dancer Move? Through Space!

Orientation: Which way are the dancers facing?

4. Time: How Does the Body Move in Relation to Time?

Attack: Is the movement sharp and sudden, or smooth and sustained?

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