My struggle in choreographies and maybe even dancing in general is with doing it on time with the music... Often, I am slightly too fast. I have had a revelation recently.
Our teacher will also be teaching drumming soon. I decided that I might try to learn, if only because it will give me a better understanding of rhythms and I've also heard that it helps with zilling. Someone I know (no names will be disclosed, so as to protect the innocents) would potentially like to learn to drum too but he's scared that he will be the worse student. I tried to convince him that the worse student might be me... and this is based on something, not just me putting myself down.
So, why is it that I think that I might not be the best drummer? (and, actually, it might be hard for me to learn drumming) I based that opinion on some previous music experience that I've had and then something hit me... Here goes. I took recorder lessons when I was a kid and then I switched to piano lessons. I was quite good with one exception: when I know my piece of music too much, I tend to speed up... Remind you of anything???? Exactly like me dancing and trying to stay with the beat but speeding up.
But there is hope! lol When I was doing my bachelor's degree, I took some piano lessons as part of like those extra credits that one needs to do outside of your degree (we have that in Quebec and I'm not sure if that is true here too or not). Anyway, the teacher was used to teaching to piano majors so I was waaaaaaaaaay below that level... but he brought me to that level. With his help, I managed to learn to stick with the beat and not speed up. All he did was tell me to listen to myself playing. Sounds silly or evident but it was hard for me to do at first but I managed to do it. Well, and he would tap on the piano, marking the beat and I followed... ;o) But, basically, it involved (as my teacher has told me countless times now) to just ease in to the music and let it flow.
Anyway, that piano teacher was quite mean at times but he was so proud of his accomplishment and of me that it made it all worth it (I was obviously very proud of myself too). I'm pretty convinced that I could start playing piano or recorder again and still ease in to the music. Now, I just need to do the same with dancing!
And I know what one of my problems is with dancing... the more I know the music, the more I know the accent, the more I want to try to hit the accents but then wind up missing them because I am trying to hit them ahead of time. I would like to hit them exactly when they happen but that's not working. I had a good example (albeit not with dancing) when hubby and I were at Ozzfest. While Iron Maiden were playing, I knew the accents and was waiting to hit them but would hit them early... GRRR! I need to listen, ease in, let it flow! Repeat. Listen. Ease in. Let it flow. ;o)
Oh and my hubby told me countless times, too, that, really, dancing is "reacting" to the music so it would be better to hit those accents a fraction of a second late than ahead of time. Again. Listen. Ease in. Let it flow. lol
So this is my new mantra: Listen. Ease in. Let it flow.
Yup, I need to meditate on that.
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