And what a provocative set of questions you have, Armando I consider dance, either "a dance" or "the dance" a language because they/it communicates, and in many dialects. Also, what Luke touches on is very important to keep in mind, every "speaker" or "dancer" does not mean the same thing and every "Listener" or "viewer" will not get the same message. I often use my newsprint space to convey these elements to the reader. > I have difficulties in thinking Contact Improvisation as a language. As a dance writer, me too. > Does it means that Contact Improvisation is not a dance? I suppose it can be incorporated demonstratively INTO a dance, but except in the hands and feet of a few experts, I see it as baby talk or, if you will baby steps. On its own it seldom interests me except as an intellectual exercise in observing the dynamics. Once the choreographer puts this extremely useful tool into making a full blown dance WITH AN AUDIENCE IN MIND, then it can draw me in, hidden as it were like scales or etudes in music. This is a very useful thread for discussion because it focuses on the most important question a choreographer, dancer or writer has to ask first: What do I want to say? Merilyn Jackson ----- Original Message ----- From: "Armando Menicacci" <armando@noos.fr> To: <dance-tech@lists.acs.ohio-state.edu> Sent: Thursday, March 28, 2002 7:14 AM Subject: Re: COSIGN 2002 - note: not just papers. > Hello, > I don't want to open a big and painful thread, nor I have the > intention to make a fight with Robert that I love as a person and as > an artist and with whom I worked and will work (more post to come > about that), but I'd like to point something in his mail although > it's not the center of Robert's posting. Unfortunately I have no time > to go to make a speach to next COSIGN too. > > I'd just like to ask him (and all) why dance is considered a language > in his (your) mind. I'm not so sure. And for many reasons. > > 1) We should make a difference, in my opinion, between "the dance" > and "a dance ". "The dance" is like "the language" or "the > blindness": it just doesen't exist as it. I think I should explain > priefly my point of view. There are languages, there are blind > people, but "The Language" and "The Blindness" do not exist out ph > philosophical discourse. The latter are abstract categories. In fact > abstract categories do not exist in certains native american > languages... > So my question is (I only have questions) : knowing that cerain > styles of dance (certain dances, certain techniques) are based on a > vocabulary, is "The dance" (as an abstract category) a language? I > have difficulties in thinking Contact Improvisation as a language. > Does it means that Contact Improvisation is not a dance? > > I think I understand Robert's point of wiew: if I don't mistake his > thougt he's pointing the fact that certain dances have a precise > vocabulary (Vaganova's classical technique or Cecchetti's for > instance) and that we might be able to discuss it from a semantic > point of view. I agree wth him but this leads me to another problem > with subsequent question. > > 2) I'd like to make a difference between a choreography and a dance. > Choreography in my opinion is the sequence of certains movements in > time and space, while the quality of these movement is the dance. If > you see a Cunningham's choreography danced by the NYCB or by > Cunningham's company > you see the same choreography but a different dance. To analyze a > choreography from the semiotic point of view seems difficult to me > (should we extract the dance to see only the choreography like a > labanotation score? Is it possible to analyze a dance regardless of > the choreography?). When I go to see Swan Lake I know the > choreography, I want to see the dance (interpretation) of a dancer. > INterpretation is more difficut to categorize as a language.... > > I'm sorry for the questions, but maybe we could work on some of it. > > > > Dance is, after all, a language of > >symbols and -- to my way of thinking, has something important to contribute > >to semiotics. i would like to encourage more dancers to send something in > >-- a piece description with supporting material, video (any format) if > >possible. > > > -- > ______________________________ > Armando Menicacci (Paris 8 University > > 75 rue Caulaincourt 75018 Paris > ______________________________ >
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