Klarinet Archive - Posting 000207.txt from 2002/12

From: "R. Williams" <rwilliams@-----.net>
Subj: [kl] Re: OT Notation -- of a different sort
Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2002 11:28:56 -0500

Hi:
I used to date a dancer before I married my lovely wife of 25 years (in
case she reads this..g).

There are several dance notation systems in use that go into varying
degrees of information, but some of them do cover placement of extremities.
There are also blocking diagram systems which get incorporated into these.
It is also common to videotape dress rehersals which become performance
libraries so that a new person can see what is being done. But the main
thing is rehersal on rehersals. Dancers get abused compared to
musicians...bg!

Also, just as an FYI, you can make notation on stage fencing as well since
each movement has a specific term, such as thrust in third, beat parry in
4th etc. I was a competitive fencer and the stage system differs slightly,
but having coached a few actors, it makes it simplier if they learn the
basic parries and you write out the sequence. BTW, before anyone asks, 99%
of actors cannot fence and would end up dead in 5 seconds in a real sword
fight. Of the famous fencing actors, only Basil Rathbone actually fenced
as a school club fencer. As the actor makes the wide-grand movements a
real fencer would be poking dozens of holes in them...g
Best
RW

>From: Bi6W@-----.net (Bill Wright)
>Subject: Notation -- of a different sort
>Normally ballet and modern dance don't do much for me, but I was channel
>surfing tonight and I saw a modern dance for two Mozart piano concerto
>(sonata?) excerpts. 20 dancers or so, moving with pools of golden
>light in a black void, very angular and muscular, done with rapiers and
>other props.... it knocked me out, frankly.
>
>...anyway, this list often discusses musical details that aren't (can't
>be) specified precisely by notation. The dance made me think about
>dance notation. Perhaps there is some method of 'writing' a dance, but
>given all the details of how body parts can move, I find it difficult to
>imagine.
>
>How did they pass dance 'scripts' from one troup to the next before film
>and videos? Memory, pure and simple?
>

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