We explain what dance is, how it is classified and the elements that compose it. In addition, we explain what its characteristics and importance are.
What is dance?
Dance is a artistic form that is expressed through body movementsIt is usually performed to the sound of music, but it can also follow its own rhythm. It can be carried out for religious, expressive or entertainment reasons.
Although there are many types of dances and many occasions to perform them, a body language is usually identified in them that serves to express various emotional or cultural contents. To do this, the movement and position of the body in space must be perceived, as well as the cadence and fluidity of the performer’s movements.
Those who practice dance They are known as dancers or dancersdepending on the specific context of your dance.
See also: Fine arts
Origin of the dance
dance has existed since the emergence of the first cultures.
Anthropologists estimate that its social function was initially associated with ritual actions.
This would be the case of the famous dance to attract rain by certain North American aboriginal peoples.
It has also been observed healing dances that shamans performed around the sick in the primitive tribes that still survive.
Dance is one of the human activities par excellenceWhile other animals perform certain movements for communicative or reproductive purposes, they do not have the cultural function of human dance.
History of dance
The first to understand dance as an art form were The Greeks of Antiquitywho dedicated one of their muses to him: TerpsichoreDance in Ancient Greece was linked to the cult of Dionysus, and was part of theatrical practices, along with music and poetry.
Like all arts, dance evolved over time along with human societyIn some cases it accompanied acts of ritual significance (weddings, celebrations, religious rites), as it does to this day.
Also It was developed as a show and entertainment, thus becoming one of the so-called performing arts. In both cases it is usually accompanied by music, although sometimes it managed to become independent of it, as in tap dancing or tap dance.
Dance types
There is a huge diversity of dances, each with its own specific cultural context, so we could group them, roughly speaking, into the following categories:
- Folkloric dances. They are typical of local communities, generally small, and come from their ancient times, sometimes even inherited from disappeared ancestors. It is part of folklore, that is, the traditional popular manifestations of a nation or community.
- Artistic dances. Those that are performed as part of a visual spectacle, on a stage or a suitable space, without public participation and generally linked to central motifs of the dominant cultural tradition, that is, of the so-called “high culture.” We could distinguish two major trends: classical ballet and contemporary dance.
- Urban dances. Those that are performed hand in hand with urban rhythms, that is, music associated with city life and modern trends, such as break dance and others.
- Ballroom dancing. It is a set of couple dances that are practiced socially and competitively throughout the world, either as a party dance, as a sport or as a choreographic demonstration. Examples of these are the waltz, the bolero, the foxtrot, the pasodoble or the tango.
Elements that make up the dance
Dance It is made up of various interrelated elements which are followed and interpreted by the public as an expressive language. Their use, moreover, is not always uniform, and in a dance one may predominate over the other.
- Motion. The change in position of the bodies throughout the space determined for the dance, that is, displacement.
- Rhythm. The temporal sequence between the specific steps to follow, so that the dance occurs in sync with the music or with its own tempo.
- Space. The place where the dance takes place, and with which the dancers’ bodies will have some kind of relationship. This can be a stage, a square, a dance floor in a discotheque, etc.
- Style. The aesthetic, personal, social or fashionable way or inclination in the execution of the dance. Generally, the most conservative and classic styles are distinguished from the most aggressive and modern ones.
- Body expression. Corporal expression refers to the staging of the body, that is, to the use of the body as a vehicle of certain senses or meanings, whether through poses, suggestive movements, improvised steps, etc.
The choreography
This is the name given to the art of creating dances, that is, unite diverse movements to generate a new languageIt is equivalent to composition in music, since it involves creating new pieces that can then be performed by one or more dancers.
The people in charge of this type of composition and the training and direction of the dancers who perform it are known as choreographers.
Stage attitude
The stage attitude is the expressive content that the dancers embody during the dance and that they transmit to the audience, and it is made up of several elements:
- Motivation. The dancer’s motivation is his commitment to dance, his desire to give everything for the show, and often it can even compensate for his lack of talent.
- Self-confidence. The self-confidence and security that the dancer projects makes all his movements look like part of a whole network and allows him to project his image to the audience.
- Intensity. It refers to the degree of physical and psychological preparation of the dancer, which on stage translates into something that borders on perfection or borders on aesthetics, managing to move the audience in some way.
- Concentration. Dancers often exhibit high levels of concentration, as dance requires full mental and physical commitment.
Why is dance important?
Dance is a form of human creation, such as music, letters or painting. In it the human body is taken as an instrument and to demonstrate, as in sport, the beautiful forms that underlie it or the harmonious movements that it can execute.
Furthermore, in many human societies dancing has a social function linked to the expression of the joy of living, to courtship and desire. For this reason, it also fulfills an important daily function, although it does not occur in the same terms as on stage.
classical dance
Classical dance or academic dance is called ballet, a form of dance that approaches the human body through absolute control of its movements. It is linked to the “cultured” or elitist tradition of art and culture. It uses staging, classical music and central motifs or stories in the West and the world.
contemporary dance
Contemporary dance is one of the modern forms of artistic danceand arises as a reaction to the classical rigidity of Ballet. It uses body forms that were developed in the 20th and 21st centuries.
It was formerly known as Modern dance, although that term is out of use. One of the main criticisms and virtues of it is that it suggests an air of “anything goes” in their wayswhich can be borrowed from disciplines such as yoga, tribal dance or any other form of dance.
sports dance
Dance can also figure among human sports, as in the case of rhythmic gymnastics, figure skating or synchronized swimming. In these, music is used to coordinate a group of athletes who move in a synchronized and/or showy manner.