The Music Center's Study Guide to the Performing Arts
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DANCEMUSIC TRADITIONAL ARTISTIC PERCEPTION (AP) ® CLASSICAL CREATIVE EXPRESSION (CE) Artsource CONTEMPORARY HISTORICAL & CULTURAL CONTEXT (H/C) The Music Center’s Study Guide to the Performing Arts EXPERIMENTAL AESTHETIC VALUING (AV) MULTI-MEDIA CONNECT, RELATE & APPLY (CRA) ENDURING FREEDOM & THE POWER THE HUMAN TRANSFORMATION VALUES OPPRESSION OF NATURE FAMILY Title of Work: About The Artwork: 1) Playas del Alma (Beaches of the Soul) from Flamenco Piece 1: Playas del Alma from Flamenco Directo. Here a Directo traditional flamenco form, “Alegrias” (joys) is danced to 2) Solea X Bulería Concierto Flamenco the inventive music of Cañadú. This modern example of Creators: an Alegrias uses a movement language informed by Company: Nuevo Ballet Español modern and jazz dance and music. Choreographers: Ángel Rojas and Carlos Rodríguez Piece 2: Solea X Bulería. An excerpt of a solo from Music: Cañadú Concierto Flamenco. Danced by Ángel Rojas, this piece displays the dancer as percussionist, supported only by Background Information: the hand-clapped beat and eventual outbreak of song Nuevo Ballet Español (NBE) was founded in 1995 by supplied by two singer/palmeros (clappers). Ángel Rojas and Carlos Rodríguez, two young dancers Creative Process of the Artist or Culture: who built their reputations dancing with many leading The history of flamenco is a multicultural story: Spanish dance companies. Raised in Madrid, they Flamenco is woven into the culture of southern Spain trained with flamenco master, José Granero, while also (Andalusia) with its roots in the gypsy community. studying other dance forms such as ballet, modern and Believed to originate in northern India, the gypsies were jazz. In forming their company, Rojas and Rodríguez nomad tribes, some of which migrated across Europe wanted to create a 21st century vision of flamenco that and Africa. As they went, they gathered a multicultural could appeal to a young audience, without betraying weave of dance and musical influence until they settled the essence of the form. As they have said, “In art, there in Andalusia in the mid-1400s. By then the Moors had are hardly ever any revolutions as such, rather there are occupied Andalusia for over seven centuries, so flamenco evolutions, new pathways over routes that have already music contains strong Moorish threads along with those been trodden…This is a flamenco that reflects our of Jewish, Catholic and local music. Towards the end of generation…No one can say we’re not dancing 15th century the Catholic flamenco, with the palmas (hand clapping) and cantes Kings expelled the Moors, (songs), but it’s infused with funk, jazz and classical.” initiating a two-century era of The dancers are trained in NBE’s unique style of persecution of non-Catholics. flamenco influenced by modern dance. Also (Continued on page 2.) distinguishing the work of NBE is its collaborative relationship with the equally creative music groups, Cañadú and Mahera. Both dance and music entities Photo: © Vallinas are committed to exploring and expanding the “This is a flamenco that boundaries of flamenco by drawing from other forms reflects our generation…” and styles. Ángel Rojas & Carlos Rodríguez Creative Process of the Artist or Culture Continued: • Explore palmas (musical clapping) using the pictures Flamenco expresses the pain of the gypsies during this in Level I Sample Lesson. dark period, much as the Blues was born of the • Discuss gesture which is a way of speaking without suffering of black slaves in the United States Over time, words. Identify some gestures seen in the NBE video flamenco has enjoyed spurts of evolution provoked by excerpts. Ask students to compose a sequence of exposure to other forms such as jazz, Indian, hip-hop gestures that they can repeat. In partners have students and Latin music as well as tap, ballet and modern teach each other their gesture sequences. dance. Some purists feel these influences and fusions LEVEL II contaminate the form but others recognize that as long * • Study both NBE video excerpts. What parts of the as its practitioners maintain artistic integrity, the art body can be used to create percussive sounds? What form is simply staying true to its multicultural origins. different sounds can these produce? Assign teams to Discussion Questions: produce each of these sounds, e.g. clapping, stomps After the video has been viewed: (golpes), slapping the chest and thighs, snapping the • What other kinds of dance have students seen fingers. or participated in? Compare them to flamenco * • Using clapping (palmas), one group maintains the dancing (e.g. flamenco is strong, grounded, and steady beat while other teams explore the different earthy, while classical ballet is light and aerial). rhythms that can be done against it. Define the order • What is the beat (e.g. the constant, unchanging and number of times each group will perform their pulse in a piece of music)? See Vocabulary, page 3. pattern. Compose an ending that all participants will • What other things in our world have a beat perform together (in unison), then perform the work. (e.g. clocks, machines, the heart)? • Learn how to do golpes (flamenco foot stomps) using • What is rhythm (e.g. changing patterns of beats directions in Level II Sample Lesson. Divide the class and offbeats)? See Vocabulary, page 3. in two. Have one group clap a steady beat with a leader Audio-Visual Materials: dictating changes in tempo (speed) while the other • Artsource® video excerpts: Playas del Alma from the group does golpes, one golpe for every two claps. show Flamenco Directo. Solea X Bulería from Concierto LEVEL III Flamenco. Courtesy of Nuevo Ballet Español. • The term “isolation” in dance refers to the moving of • Photos: courtesy of Nuevo Ballet Español. only one part of the body at a time. For instance, the Additional References: robotic movement that is often an element of Break • Flamenco – a documentary film by Carlos Saura Dancing is made up of isolations. What parts of the showing the array of flamenco styles from traditional to body most lend themselves to distinct separated modern. Juan Lebrón Productions 1994. movement (e.g. the head, shoulder, hips, hands)? • Latcho Drom - a documentary film by Tony Gatlif Students explore these possibilities by creating their showing the connections between the dances and own isolation sequences. Try hip-hop music or simply music of gypsy cultures worldwide. New Yorker Video a steady beat supplied by a group of students clapping 1998. in unison. • Flamenco World website: www.flamenco-world.com. * • Assign groups to create choreography for each rhythm Sample Experiences: pattern of the percussion music created in Lesson II. LEVEL I Use a variety of steps, shapes, contrasting qualities and * • Learn strategies for viewing a dance by studying the floor patterns. Take turns being musicians and dancers videos of Playas del Alma and Solea X Bulería. to perform the final dance. 2 * Indicates sample lesson Vocabulary for this Unit: Spanish Vocabulary Flamenco – a dance form from Spain Andalucia – Andalusia - southern Spain Nuevo – new Español – Spanish palmas – musical clapping of hands palmas sordas – mute sounding claps palmas claras – sharp sounding claps golpe – stomp of foot or feet zapateado – footwork cante – song English Vocabulary percussion – musical sound produced by striking something beat – the constant, unchanging pulse in a piece of music offbeat – beats between the main beats of music (produces syncopation) rhythm – changing patterns of beats and offbeats. tempo – speed locomotion – traveling in space locomotor step – a traveling step gesture – movements (usually with hands or arms) that communicate something without words to another person or people isolation – moving a body part on its own choreography – the creation of and planning for a dance choreographer – the creator of a dance score – piece of music, musical composition unison – all participants doing the same thing at the same time 3 DANCE LOOKING AT A FLAMENCO DANCE ENDURING VALUES and FREEDOM & OPPRESSION LEVEL I Sample Lesson INTRODUCTION: The experience of a dance is in the relationship between the audience and the performers. An audience that is practiced in looking at the various components that go into a dance is better able to appreciate it from different points of view. Through multiple viewings of a dance, guided by questions and followed by discussion, students learn to see, appreciate and describe the various parts that go into making it. The task of analyzing, making comparisons and then describing what one has seen develops an Playas del Alma from Flamenco Directo awareness of the creative possibilities Nuevo Ballet Español of dance-making. This is a creative Photo: © Vallinas process in itself. OBJECTIVES: (Student Outcomes) Students will be able to: • Demonstrate knowledge of the various components that go into choreographing a dance. (Artistic Perception) • Discuss their deeper understanding of the nature of flamenco dance. (Aesthetic Valuing and Historical and Cultural Context) • Analyze and make comparisons between the steps, shapes and qualities used in the dance. (Aesthetic Valuing) • Use a richer descriptive vocabulary. (Artistic Perception) • Describe, discuss, analyze and connect information and experiences based on this lesson. (Aesthetic Valuing) MATERIALS: • Artsource® video of excerpts of Playas del Alma and Solea X Bulería 4 • Background information on flamenco and the Nuevo Ballet Español PROGRESSION: • View both segments of the Artsource® Nuevo Ballet Español video several times. The viewings can be done on separate days. When both have been viewed and discussed, then students can compare and contrast their perceptions. The following questions can be used to discuss both pieces. • How are the rhythms made? • In what different ways are percussion sounds produced by the dancers and musicians? • Especially notice the palmas (musical clapping) and discuss how it is used by both musicians and dancers in the piece. The hands become musical instruments that can make distinctly different sounds. Look at the palmas directions below and try them out.