I'm the opposite!...I love All That Jazz . It gives me stimulus (with the right and willing partner ) to go way off the beaten track for a few minutes .Originally Posted by Minnie M
Originally Posted by DavidJames
I hate dancing to "All that Jazz" can't see what all the hipe (sp?) is An experience dancer can find the breaks in most (if not all) tracks, and that is MUCH more fun
--ooOoo--
Age is a question of mind over matter, if you don't mind, it doesn't matter
Leroy (Satchel) Paige (1906-1982)
Mickey Mouse's girlfriend, Minnie, made her film debut, along with Mickey, in "Steamboat Willie" on November 18, 1928.
That date is recognized as her official birthday.
I'm the opposite!...I love All That Jazz . It gives me stimulus (with the right and willing partner ) to go way off the beaten track for a few minutes .Originally Posted by Minnie M
I've noticed that it isn't cool to like "ATJ". People often say they can't stand it. I suspect it's the cheese factor. However, as far as I'm concerned I'm with you Gojive - the cheesier the better (every now and again).Originally Posted by Gojive
After a good number of dances where my attention is focussed almost entirely on the interaction with the guy with whom I'm dancing (which I love incidentally) , a track that's heavy on the breaks and predictable like "ATJ" gives me a chance to perform outrageously. Shameless I know
I thinks All That Jazz is great for that OTT dance.Originally Posted by Gojive
Give your biggest and best and show off for a minute or 2.
I love ALT. I love to pretend I'm Velma Kelly. I think I must've been a 20s vamp in a past life....Originally Posted by under par
Yes, but what do you do for the other 10 minutes of the track? (OK, maybe it just feels that long...)Originally Posted by under par
Seriously, there's what, 20 breaks in it? Too many - you can't get any sequences going, you pretty much have to plan your next break when the previous one finishes, no time to do anyhting but set the next one up. It's basically just a series of breaks occasionally interspersed with some music.
I prefer to have only 2 or 3 breaks in a track, that gives it more freshness and variety to my mind.
It is just a really FUN track that should be played only every once in a while.Originally Posted by DavidJames
Originally Posted by under par
OK, so you may not be able to do so many standard Ceroc/MJ sequencies to it, but you can have a real fun dance to it! . From the multiple breaks with great snappy 'bang bang" style body movements, the varying tempo through the track, to the great finale - all in all, to me it's a great piece of powerful theatrical music, that I can disappear into and escape from the more regular stuff for a short while IMHO. But I can understand why others wouldn't like it
Well I guess the feeling with regards to All that Jazz is that it is, like Marmite - you either love it or you hate it. Personally I love it so much that I have a favorite version (by Ute Lemper) but a breathy version that Peter Phillips has is really starting to grow on me.
This whole thread was started off by someone who said that they were a relatively inexpereinced dancer that wanted to learn how to use breaks. So all this talk about the relative merits of such a break heavy and theatrical peice of music is a bit academic to them. This is why I didn't include it in my "music to practice breaks to" list despite my love for it, because I felt it tough enough to put a beginner off rather than encourage them.
Whenever faced with a new challenge you have to go out of your "comfort zone". For the thread starter and anyone else wanting to use breaks (or aquire any new skill) you just have to accept that it is going to be very frustrating going from an area that you feel proficient to try things where you feel a complete klutz. The temptation is to just retreat into your comfort zone and not try anymore. My experience is that just when you are near to the point of giving up with something you suddenly get it. So if you find you can't handle the breaks of "all that Jazz" I would say keep trying - maybe you will come to love it when you find you and your partner hitting the acent points.
From another thread on "does doing weekenders change your dancing" a point was made that weekenders improve your dancing because you have a greater willingness to experiment there than you do at your home venue. The comments were that at your home venue that doing something new or different is "just showing off". This something about our culture I find baffling. Why on earth do we have the phrase "too clever by half"?
So can we just live an let live.
If you can do breaks (or spinning etc), or are trying too it is not "just showing off" it is just that we love dancing and just want to do it better.
People that try and fail have at least tried.
People that try and succeed are not "just showing off" or "too clever by half" they just had the combination of effort and talent that allowed them to succeed.
Wanting to excel at something is not being elitist. Trying to stop others is.
NOTE. These last comments are not aimed at anyone in particular. Just that in general, I have picked up from the forum the recurring theme that there is an "us and them" feeling. I am in neither camp - I just dance and want to be better next year than I am now.
Last edited by Chef; 16th-June-2005 at 12:28 PM.
Oh, I'm definitely in the "us" camp - it's just that everyone else is in the "them" camp...Originally Posted by Chef
to all your points, by the way
So glad you have said that Chef. I know it's slightly off topic, but I constantly find that I hold back when I'm at my home venue as a result of not wishing to appear to be trying too hard / too showy etc.Originally Posted by Chef
Perhaps one reason that musical interpretation is difficult to pick up as a relative beginner is that until you reach the stage where you are travelling to different venues / weekenders etc you daren't give it a go, and the more experienced dancers that one watches for inspiration are perhaps holding back too in fear of disapproval???
I say let's all give it our all, anywhere, anytime and hope that the inspiration spreads
Originally Posted by Rebecca
Couldn't have put it better myself!
Nice to see you on the weekend, btw. Only sorry we didn't have more time to chat. Or.. indead... dance OTT together.
I feel a bit uncomfortable at doing anything that might attract judgemental attention at my home venue, but if I'm in the right mood, what the hell!? At weekenders there's no need to worry, as I can give it my all safe in the knowledge that everyone else will be gazing in wonder at Victor or some other star in the MJ firmament.Originally Posted by Rebecca
[QUOTE=Chef]Well I guess the feeling with regards to All that Jazz is that it is, like Marmite - you either love it or you hate it.
For me all that Jazz is one of the best tracks to dance too.. All beginners should play and dance to it to get a understanding of basic musicality. Musicality is what real dance is about. Breaks and hesatations are fun why do so many modern jivers ignore them? I believe there are essentlialy two types of dancer. Talented Dancers who go with the music for them music is everything, and moves people that ignore all music and think moves are king, sadly 90% of dancers fit into the moves catergory.
Feel the music lead her with style make her smile.
At first you learn moves then one day you learn to dance it is so different,
I'd like to feel I was going that way. But sometimes I can't help feeling I'm just making a fool (an old fool) of myself.Originally Posted by Mr Smile
Bad follower! No cookie!Originally Posted by jivecat
(see this thread: Its official: ladies can lead a break)
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