'A series of set movements,
...to move rhythmically,
... alone or with a partner or people'.
'Can be accomplished through music, drums or quiet expression'.
Work like you don't need the money.
Love like you've never been hurt.
Dance like nobody's watching.
Sing like nobody's listening.
Live like it's Heaven on Earth.
It's the one moment in time that they can feel sultry, sensual, touched and even whispered to without having to think about anything else. There is no pressure other than trying to let themselves go and feel the swaying of the rhythms in their soul. If you want to experience the melting of your soul and if your lover cares enough to share this with you, you should never pass up a time to dance. You don't even have to go "out" either.
There are many ways to say, "pass each other in the hallway" and stop and rub up against him (while some good music is on of course), hinting that you just want to sway a few minutes with him.... Most times he will feel silly, but do it with you anyway, because he loves you.
And if you are fortunate enough to have a compatible partner in this very special moment who has the same control and rhythm and the same patterns as you, you should thank your lucky stars! For to feel another body in the same rhythm as you, swaying to the same level of emotion and drama is one of the most fulfilling moments you could ever experience. It's almost like having sex. But safer. You can totally let your mind go, and lose yourself in the music of your choice, while he is holding you, and in his strength, guiding you through the rush waves that envelope you. Some of you may think I'm crazy. Some of you may know exactly what I'm talking about.
Dancing can be such an intimate and beautiful
experience. And yet studies have shown that as soon as most couples are married,
their dating and "dancing" days fall off. Is it any wonder that young
people are shy from marrying. They see all the romance disappear in the
relationships of their parents and friends. A lot of women blame their men in
not wanting to "go out" any more. That could be true for most, but
then I ask, what was it that kept them going out in the first place while they
were dating you? Was it the mystique and mystery of your personality that they
wanted to know more about? Is it that people become "so desperate" for
companionship that it forces them to do things they would not normally do ? Or is
it just simply that you are both so busy with your married life, with kids, work
and commitments that you lose yourself in it all and forget about the things you
set out to do "on purpose" because you were single? Granted,
you probably didn't have the kids when you were dating (at least some of you),
but you probably had a job (statistically speaking), and you did have bills.
But you still found the time to "go out" and find that special person
to dance with, share with, and feel special with. So what is different now?
If
I still had children, I would pay any price to ensure my
"dating" time was still active with my lover. I would still make him
wonder about me, and want to get to know me more. Where better to do that than
in small increments, outside the home, over a quiet meal, and maybe a couple of
slow dances? It could still be at home, over a "shared" prepared meal,
simple and good, over candlelight with soft music in the background. Don't
forget to look extra nice for this special night. Remember that you would
do the same for him if you were freshly dating and going out anyway! And since
men are extremely visual, why not give him something to look at?
Now, I have so far promoted the "slow dance" in your lives. But there are others. There are the incredible rhythmic movements you can make without touching at all. The faster tunes that still send your soul to heaven as you express yourself alone but in front of someone you want to impress. It's all the same. The mating ritual.
A Little History
It's been done from the beginning of time. A way to express yourself to others and (even) for yourself.
As far back as history is recorded, there have been ritualistic dances. Some for pleasure and sexuality, and some for shear holiness and worship. Yes worship. There were the sacred dances of the Hebrews in celebration after they successfully crossed the Red Sea. With timbres and tambourines. It was joyous and yet sacred and holy celebrating their God for saving them from the dreaded Egyptians. Other histories of dance were celebrated with gestures of hand movements, from Thailand to China.
| The origin of Hula can be found in several versions depending on which Island representative you talk with in Hawaii. One is the chanting and gestures of worshiping the volcano Goddess Pele'. Hip movements in traditional Hula dance did not enter in until the 20th century for tourists groups and entertainment. It was purely a language of stories used with the hands to music. |
|
|
|
There are groups now who have given traditional Hula new life and have restored the authentic way of life. For to them Hula is not a dance but a way of life. And a religion. |
| Every country, creed and historical era always had
their different forms of dance. Some was for strictly entertainment to the
various monarchy or rulers of the time, or some were mainly for celebrations
like weddings and barmitzvahs.
|
| Today we have a vast and beautiful mixture of history in dance all blended into various forms some with their very own names. Some are just considered free expression. Today's dancing can be traced from combinations of all different countries and languages. |  |
Modern Western Dance is part of this global language and its roots run wide and deep. They can be traced to the taverns of Ireland and to the ballrooms of Europe, to the Czarist palaces of Russia and further back still to the fluid tribal rituals of Africa.
Waltz, a dance born in the suburbs of Vienna and in the alpine region of Austria can be traced back as early as the seventeenth century. Waltzes were played in the ballrooms of the Hapsburg court. The weller, or turning dances, were danced by peasants in Austria and Bavaria even before that time. Many of the familiar waltz tunes can be traced back to simple peasant yodeling melodies.
The history of Swing dates back to the 1920's, where the African Americans, while dancing to contemporary Jazz music, discovered the Charleston and the Lindy Hop
The word Rumba is a generic term for a type of West Indian music or dancing. The exact meaning varies from island to island. There are two sources of the dances: one Spanish and the other African. Although the main growth was in Cuba, there were similar dance developments which took place in other Caribbean islands and in Latin America generally. The "rumba influence" came in the 16th century with the slaves imported from Africa. The native Rumba folk dance is essentially a sex pantomime danced extremely fast with exaggerated hip movements and with a sensually aggressive attitude on the part of the man and a defensive attitude on the part of the woman. The music is played with a staccato beat in keeping with the vigorous expressive movements of the dancers. Accompanying instruments include the maracas, the claves, the marimbola, and the drums.
The Polka was originally a Czech peasant dance, developed in Eastern Bohemia (now part of Czechoslovakia). Bohemian historians believe that the polka was invented by a peasant girl (Anna Slezak, in Labska Tynice in 1834) one Sunday for her amusement. It was composed to a folk song "Strycek Nimra Koupil Simla (Uncle Nimra brought a white horse)." Anna called the step "Madera" because of its quickness and liveliness.
The Meringue is the national dance of the Dominican Republic, and also to some extent, of Haiti, the neighbor sharing the island. There are two popular versions of the of the origin of the Dominican national dance, the Merengue. One story alleges the dance originated with slaves who were chained together and, of necessity, were forced to drag one leg as they cut sugar to the beat of drums. The second story alleges that a great hero was wounded in the leg during one of the many revolutions in the Dominican Republic. A party of villagers welcomed him home with a victory celebration and, out of sympathy, everyone dancing felt obliged to limp and drag one foot. Merengue has existed since the early years of the Dominican Republic (in Haiti, a similar dance is called the Meringue). It is possible the dance took its name from the confection made of sugar and egg whites because of the light and frothy character of the dance or because of its short, precise rhythms.
| The Mambo dance originated in Cuba where there were substantial settlements of Haitians. In the back country of Haiti, the "Mambo" is a voodoo priestess, who serves the villagers as counselor, healer, exorcist, soothsayer, spiritual advisor, and organizer of public entertainment. However, there is not a folk dance in Haiti called the "Mambo." |  |
The "Mambo" dance is attributed to Perez Prado who introduced it at La Tropicana night-club in Havana in 1943. It first appeared in the United States in New York's Park Plaza Ballroom - a favorite hangout of enthusiastic dancers from Harlem. The Mambo gained its excitement in 1947 at the Palladium and other renowned places such as The China Doll, Havana Madrid and Birdland.
Jazz World War I had ended and a social revolution was under way! Customs and values of previous generations were rejected. Life was to be lived and enjoyed to the fullest. This was the era of the "lost generation", and the "flapper" with her rolled stockings, short skirts, and straight up-and-down look. They scandalized their elders in the cabarets, night clubs, and speakeasies that replaced the ballrooms of pre-war days. Dancing became more informal - close embraces and frequent changes of partners were now socially acceptable. Only one kind of music suited this generation - jazz, the vehicle for dancing the fox-trot, shimmy, rag, Charleston, black bottom, and various other steps of the period. Jazz originated at the close of the nineteenth century in the seamy dance halls and brothels of the South and Midwest where the word Jazz commonly referred to sexual intercourse. Southern blacks, delivered from slavery a few decades before, started playing European music with Afro modifications. The birthplace of jazz has many origins: New Orleans, St. Louis, Memphis and Kansas City are just a few. But New Orleans was and still remains an important jazz center.
These are but a few dances with names to them that are celebrated throughout time and space.
|
|
Another way of feeling sensual and good about yourself is to take the time to dance for yourself! |
Even if you only have a small space in your home, or a rented studio floor, to dance for yourself is a glorious way of self expression, losing yourself in fantasy and toning up as well. Some like to dance in front of mirrors, and some prefer it in front of their own shadows by candlelight. To watch your shadow can be a sort of surreal removal of yourself as you watch the sultry movements of this dark form against the wall. Don't be afraid to let yourself go, and use your arms and hands often! They aid in keeping you well balanced and give good form to your movements.
My favorite time of the day is looking forward to dancing in my living room. I just arrange to have anyone in the house leave, anywhere they want, but not in the living room for my hour or two. Since dancing was my life at one point, if I can't go "out" as much as I want, I take the time to move in front of the stereo, with curtains drawn, only candles lit, and a vast variety of sultry tunes from new age for warming up and stretching, to ending off in a funky bunch of my favorite hip hop. The slow sexy sounds and rhythms keep me energized to keep moving as I fantasize in different ways, and the hard pumping faster music that gets me hip-hoping all over the floor till my heart rate is up to par, is something I know I'm doing for my health as well as my spirit.
Try it some time. You have nothing to lose, you will only feel stronger and healthier and far more sensual than the day before!
S L O W D A N C E
Have you ever watched kids on a merry-go-round
Or listened to the rain slap on the ground?
Ever followed a butterfly's erratic flight
Or gazed at the sun into the fading night?
You'd better slow down, Don't dance so fast...
Time is short, The music won't last
Do you run through each day on the fly?
When you ask "How are you?" do you hear the reply?
When the day is done, do you lie in your bed
While the next hundred chores run through your head?
You'd better slow down, Don't dance so fast...
Time is short, The music won't last
Ever told a child, "We'll do it tomorrow."
And in your haste, not seen his sorrow?
Ever lost touch, Let a good friendship die
'Cause you never had time to call and say "Hi"?
You'd better slow down, Don't dance so fast...
Time is short,
The
music won't last
When you run so fast to get somewhere
You miss half the fun of getting there.
When you worry and hurry through your day,
It is like an unopened gift... Thrown away...
Life's not a race So take it slower...
Hear the music before the song is over
© Copyright 2000 Graphic Town Productions. All rights reserved. All format material is used by permission. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.
Graphic Woman.com is a registered trademark of Graphic Town Productions.
|
|
