ISSN: 2466-3913 (ONLINE)
ACCELERANDO:
BELGRADE JOURNAL OF MUSIC AND DANCE
ISSUE 2
FEBRUARY 2017.
Editor-in-Chief:
Editor-in-Chief: Maja Marijan, M. Sc. (Serbia), President and Art Director of the Belgrade
Center for Music and Dance; A member of CID-UNESCO (majamarijan@bcmd.edu.rs).
Co-Editor-in-Chief:
Co-Editor-in-Chief: Aleksandar Prnjat, PhD (Serbia), Professor of Philosophy of Arts, Ethics,
Cultural Studies, Political Theory, Business Ethics, Ethics in Sport at Alfa BK University, Belgrade;
Vice Rector for Research at Alfa BK University, Belgrade (aleksandar.prnjat@alfa.edu.rs;
aleksandar.prnjat@gmail.com).
Managing Editor: Vera Obradovic, PhD (Serbia), Choreographer and professor of dance
movement, University of Pristine, Faculty of Arts, Kosovska Mitrovica; Member of the World
Dance Council – CID UNESCO, and Vice-President of CID UNESCO Belgrade section
(obradovic_vera@yahoo.com).
Editors:
Anna Galikowska Gajewska, PhD (Poland), Stanislaw Moniuszko Academy of Music in Gdansk, Poland
(a.gajewska@list.pl)
Ratko Delorko, Dr. (Germany), Hochschule für Musik und Darstellende Kunst, Klavier, University of
Frankfurt (delorko@gmx.de)
Viktor Ivanovič Kosik, PhD (Russia), Russian Academy of Sciences and Arts, Institute for Slavic Research, Moscow
(kosikviktor@mail.ru)
Dra. Dafne Muntanyola-Saura (Spain), Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Departament de sociologia, Barcelonaa
(dafnemuntanyola@gmail.com)
Dr. Femi Abiodun (Nigeria), The Editor-in-Chief, WAJMAE Obafemi Awolowo University, Graduate Programs
Department of Music, Ile-Ife, Nigeria (femoo.femoo@gmail.com)
Joseph Peters Ph. D (Singapore), National University of Singapore, Mahasarakham University, Graduate School at
the College of Music; Musical Director of the NUS Rondalla, an advisor to the National ARTS Council, Singapore
Indian Orchestra and the MusicSG project of the Singapore National Library Board. External Examiner for the
University of Wales till 2011, Lison Officer for ICTM, Committee Mixte Member of RILM, and the Asian Co-ordinator
for Latitude South35. (sonicasia@singnet.com.sg)
Vedrana Markovic, PhD (Montenegro), University of Montenegro, School of Music, Cetinje, Department for music
theory and solfeggio (vedrana.mark@t-com.me)
Iivi Zajedova, PhD (Estonia), Lecturer of IR, Department of Social Sciences, Institute of History, Head of BS
Programme, Department of Applied Creativity, Institute of Fine Arts, Tallinn University; Visiting Lecturer, Department
of PS, IR, Erasmus Study, Charles University, Prague; Recipient of White Star Order of Estonian Republic
(iivi.zajedova@gmail.com)
Dr. Fatimah M. Palmer (Nigeria), University of Benin, Department of Fine and Applied Arts, Benin City, Edo State,
Nigeria. (fmpalmer2256@gmail.com)
Nadezda Mosusova, Ph.D., musicologist and composer (Serbia)/honorary member, Scientific advisor of the
Musicological institute SANU (Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts);Professor of music history at the Belgrade
Faculty of Music (now in retirement); Member of the Executive Board of International Council of Dance (CIDUNESCO); Coordinator of the Project Contemporary Serbian musical scene of SANU; Former member of the Jury for
Monaco Nijinsky Dance Award in Monte Carlo
EDITOR’S NOTE
Belgrade Centre for Music and Dance (BCMD) is a founder and publisher of
Accelerando: Belgrade Journal of Music and Dance. BCMD is founded to establish
cooperation and communication between local artistic and scholarly scene and the
world’s. In order to achieve that goal BCMD launched Accelerando: Belgrade
Journal of Music and Dance as an open access, double-peer-reviewed online journal.
This journal allows Serbian scholars, artists, and educators to have permanent
scholarly communication and interchanging of knowledge and information with the
world’s renown artists, scholars, schools and universities.
Since knowledge is fluid and dynamic in nature, and transmitted through discourse,
it is important for those who have a stake in advancing the knowledge base to
participate in the discourse. Writing, as a form of communication, and publishing are
ways of participating in the discourse. Research article is the end product of an
investigation that has focused on a specific set of research questions. Research must
be carefully planned, conceptually grounded, and methodologically sound, and must
provide answers or possible answers and implications for further investigations.
Accordingly, the effort of editorial board members and reviewers of Accelerando:
BJMD is dedicated to help authors reach the goal and craft the articles in a way that
successfully, effectively and persuasively communicates the importance of the study.
Through this mutual effort, work, and cooperation we hope that our journal promote
values, expanding the base of knowledge and contribute to the discourse.
With best regards,
Maja Marijan, Editor in Chief
CONTENT
PEDAGOGY, PRACTICE, PERFORMANCE
#1 Maja Marijan
The Self-Regulated Learning Model and Music Education
#2 Otukile Sindiso Phibion, Fana Rabatoko & Shirley Marang Kekana
Music Teaching in Botswana Secondary Teacher Training Colleges: A Case of Molepolole College
of Education
#3 Amy Patricia Cadwallader
Pole Dancing Auto-ethnography: Practice, Pedagogy, Performance
#4 Natalia Sokovikova
Современные стратегии в хореографическом образовани (Modern Strategy in Dance
Education)
EFFECTS OF MUSIC AND DANCE ON SOCIETY
#5 Deng Liang
Reviews on Rzewski’s Leftist Political Piano Variations
The People United Will Never Be Defeated
#6 Femi Abiodun
Music Preference and the Issues of Social Challenges Among Nigerian Youth: Implications for
Moral Development
ARTISTIC, HISTORICAL AND PHILOSOPHICAL INQUIRIES
#7 Sanubar Baghirova
Poetry and Music of Medieval Azerbaijani Ashygs in the Context of Mystic Practices
#8 Viktor Ivanovich Kosik
Русские мастера балета на белградской сцене в XX – начале XXI вв. (Russian Ballet Dancers
and Choreographers at the Belgrade Stage in the 20th and Early 21st Centuries)
#9 Anna Galikowska-Gajewska
The Sound in Movement Interpretation of the Selected Music Pieces by Debussy, Cage, Penderecki,
Szalonek, Dobrowolski, Olczak, Kaiser
#10 Maxwell Xolani Rani
No Simple Answers: A Holistic Approach to Issues Concerning Obesity and African Dance
REVIEWS: CONFERENCE REPORTS
#11 Olena Kononova
History and Perspectives of European Culture Development
#12 Saša Božidarčević
Traditional and Contemporary in Art and Education: A Summary of the Scientific Meeting
PEDAGOGY, PRACTICE, PERFORMANCE
Accelerando: Belgrade Journal of Music and Dance
Issue 2, February 2017
ISSN: 2466-3913 (online)
UDC:159.953.5
37.036:78
37.015.3
COBISS.SR-ID 229880588
The Self-Regulated-Learning Model and Music Education
Maja Marijan1
1
BCMD Belgrade, Serbia
majamarijan@bcmd.edu.rs
Received: November 15,2016.
Reviewed: February 5,2017.
Accepted: February 8,2017.
Citation: Marijan, Maja. 2017. "The Self-Regulated Learning Model and Music Education.” Accelerando:
Belgrade Journal of Music and Dance 2:1.
Abstract
Self-regulation and self-regulated learning (SRL) are important features in music
education. In this research self-regulated learning model is presented as a complex,
multidimensional structure. SRL starts with the self-regulation. Self-regulation is formed
through interaction with the environment, thus self-learning, self-analysis, selfjudgment, self-instruction, and self-monitoring are the main functions in self-regulatory
structure. Co-regulation is needed, and helps self-regulation to be activated and
monitored. In music education, co-regulation refers to the instructions that teacher
introduces in the lessons. These instructions have to enhance learning and develop
regulation over emotions, cognitive, auditor, and motor skills in students. Learning
techniques and learning strategies are core components in music education. Adapting
those, students become aware of their learning processes, actions, thoughts, feelings and
behaviors that are involved in learning. It is suggested that every teaching methodology
has to develop learning techniques, as well as metamemory and metacognition in
students, in order to gain expertise. The author has emphasized her attention to every
aspect that is believed to belong to SRL. There are not many articles on the SRL in
music education, written by musicians, in compare with those written by psychologists
and neurologists,. Therefore, the author has suggested that this paper would encourage
music teachers and performers to take an advantage in the research of SRL. These
researches would help music educational systems and teachers to develop and promote
learning techniques and strategies. The results would show improvement in student’s
learning and self-regulation.
Keywords: self-regulation, self-regulated learning, learning techniques, metamemory,
metacognition, music education
MAJA MARIJAN
THE SELF-REGULATED-LEARNING MODEL AND MUSIC EDUCATION
The only man who is educated is the man who has learned how to learn;
the man who has learned how to adapt and change; the man who has
realized that no knowledge is secure, that only the process of seeking
knowledge gives a basis for security. Changingness, a reliance on
process rather than upon static knowledge, is the only thing that makes
any sense as a goal for education in the modern world.
Carl Rogers,
Freedom to Learn
(Columbus, Ohio: Merrill, 1969), p. 290.
Introduction
Practicing an instrument and learning the music are considered to have impact on cognitive abilities
such as reasoning, processing speed, and working memory (Bergman Nutley et al. 2013), enhance
IQ (Schellenberg 2005, 317-320, Schellenberg 2004, 511-4), improve sub-cortical encoding of
linguistic pitch patterns (Wong et al. 2007, 420–422; Miendlarzewska and Trost 2013), phonetic
abilities and linguistic organization in brain (Patel and Iversen 2007; Milovanov and Tervaniemi
2011). It has been shown that there are no pre-existing neural, cognitive or motor markers for music
skills, therefore the structural enlargements in the musicians' brains are due to musical training, but
not an inborn features (Norton et al. 2005, 124-34).
According to mentioned researches, we should reassess the hypothesis that learning music
makes us smarter. What about mathematics? Does learning mathematics enhance our cognitive
abilities as well? Yes, we would become smarter if only we applied the right learning technique(s)
which would help us understand the laws and relationships in the subject. Furthermore, if we are
learning music without good organized learning model, we would be unable to deal with music
events and structures. In another words, one has to be aware and recognize the patterns, elements,
and the rules that govern their relationships. Therefore, to be able to acquire knowledge, and
understanding on the subject, one has to recognize what, where, and how to approach to the
knowledge. "There is no such thing as Scientific Knowledge, there are only individual perceptions
of what appears to each person to be such knowledge" (Rogers 1977, 281-337).
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While the hypothesis in education would suggest that the musicians have to rely on multiple
learning styles (visual, auditive, aural, kinesthetic, analytical, emotional), it has been shown that
majority of college students use mostly one or two of them (Mishra 2007, 1-19). These different
approaches in practicing, learning, and performing the music have to be complete, i.e. they have to
gather all learning styles into one unique learning structure. This learning structure has to be
complex, since in music education all sensory structures are involved: vision, touch, audition, and
aural, as well as cognitive, motor, emotional, and behavioral features. Learning techniques and
learning strategies involved in music education have to be introduced by the teacher, and later, to be
developed by the student, since the teacher's role is to guide the student in the learning process. By
monitoring own learning process and gaining self-regulation, one is approaching the expertise in
his/her field (Zimmerman 1998, 73–86).
In the previous research, the author started with the hypothesis that introducing well-organized,
qualitative strategy in the music education would result in the student’s development and
improvement of musical skills: auditory, motor, and analytical (Marijan 2016). The results
confirmed the proposed hypothesis. However, in this research, the author will put focus on the selfregulated learning (SRL) as the multidimensional phenomenon which is developed within the
person and in the interaction between the person and the socio-cultural environment. The SRL
structure will be explained through the examples from the music teaching methodology aspects as
well.
Therefore, in the author’s approach to the self-regulated learning, two types of self-regulation
emerge. The first type refers to the regulation of actions, thoughts and feelings in accordance to the
external stimuli/environment. The second type is the regulation of the internal processes that occur
within the person. In author’s opinion, these two types of self-regulations are the two interrelated
actions on which human beings operate, where consciousness and awareness in the learning process
are highly involved.
MAJA MARIJAN
THE SELF-REGULATED-LEARNING MODEL AND MUSIC EDUCATION
Self-Regulated Learning
Self-Regulation is Based on a System of Tension-Relaxation Continuum
Self-regulation refers to learning the skills and actions by self-observation, self-experiment, and
self-judgment. Through these actions we are aware of ourselves: our own thoughts, actions and
feelings (Janbush 2016; Zimmerman 2002). By adapting self-regulation over mental processes,
motor actions and emotions involved in learning, we construct learning strategy that would help us
in enhancing and expanding our knowledge and skills.
Self-regulation must not be replaced with self-control. These two have separated centers in the
brain (Shanker and Bertrand 2013). It has to be understood that self-control could be considered as
a part of self-regulation, or in another words “self-regulation makes self-control possible” (Shanker
2016).
According to Dr. Stuart Shanker, in self-regulation two systems are involved. The fist one is
stress-load which deals with the arousal of energy, and second one is the stage of recovery. These
two systems are constantly applied in continuum (Shanker and Bertrand op. cit.). Therefore, selfregulation allows us to control the amount and frequency of tension, created by external and
internal stimuli, by which we arouse our opposite action – relaxation. These actions we can
compare with breathing. When we inhale, our body starts to extend, so we need some amount of
energy for this process. In the point when we can’t inhale anymore, we reach the final point of the
inhalation procedure. Our stomach and chest are stretched to the maximum, we cannot gain more
energy, and as a result, we exhale, relax our muscles, gather new energy for the inhalation. The
learning process is similar. If we are studying, after a while we realize that we loose our
concentration. We have to take a break. It has been shown that after 25-30 minutes, our energy
break-down, so we need to make a shift and take a pause. After a break, we gain the energy for the
continuation of the study progress (Lobdell 2011). In fact, the interaction between the tension and
the relaxation processes is the basic driving action in the learning procedure. Therefore, knowing
the principles of the tension-relaxation action will impact the span and quality of our mental and
motor behaviors.
The control over tension-relaxation action is very important in music practice/instrument
practice where motor, auditive, cognitive, and emotional behaviors are constantly involved. We,
Accelerando: Belgrade Journal of Music and Dance
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musicians, have to organize our practice in such a way that we could obtain enough energy,
strength, and concentration for the particular practice session. In the preparation for concerts or
competitions, where performers are obligated to prepare very large repertoire, self-regulation and
organization of actions involved in the instrument practice have crucial role. Therefore, in order to
have strength for long-hour practice, and positive motivation and concentration over emotions,
cognitive, auditory and motor/kinesthetic functions, awareness over tension-relaxation process is of
enormous value. This process manages the whole structure of functions in self-regulated learning.
Self-Regulated Learning Structure
As the author has stated above, self-regulation plays an important role in learning activity. Selfregulated learning (SRL) is obtained through self-thought rules, self- management and reassessment
over mental and physical activity, behaviors, and personal traits in the learning process. Personal
traits have important role in SRL. If a person is self-observant, self-reliable, self-critique, or selfmotivated, he/she would learn more easily. Optimism, temperament and personality traits are also
important factors in SRL. It is shown that advanced music students high in self-efficacy beliefs are
more successful in learning than those with low self-efficacy beliefs (Nielsen 2004). Habits and
attentional behaviors such as time organization, planing activities, and awareness on deadliness for
task completion, are part of SRL and one's personality. Physical abilities such as motor activity and
kinesthetic movements are very important in music learning. Without physical strength, no
performer would be able to manage to practice for hours. However, not everyone is granted with
physical strength. Therefore, through self-observation, self-analysis, and self-awareness over
physical capacity limits, a performer would be able to overcome his restrictions. Mental abilities
refer to cognitive abilities such as perception, elaboration, forming the mental images, awareness on
different learning techniques, making decisions, memorization techniques, and metacognition.
Self-regulated learning includes all the aspects within a person. How do we manage and
approach consciously to all these behavioral and cognitive activities within us? According to
Jabusch (2016), SRL comprises three phases: forethought or strategy planing, performance phase
(application of the strategy), and self-reflection or self-judgment. These phases can be considered as
self-generated thoughts on personal behavior, task, time organization, goals, and applied strategies.
Therefore, SRL is a process of self-learning, and self-regulation of activities involved in learning.
MAJA MARIJAN
THE SELF-REGULATED-LEARNING MODEL AND MUSIC EDUCATION
Furthermore, similarly to Janbusch (2016), SRL can be regarded as a complex structure of
interrelated cognitive activities, emotions, and behaviors, being managed trough three phases
(Figure 1). The first Planning Phase starts with self-motivation (ability to motivate oneself), and
self-organization (organizing and managing learning time, organizing and managing learning space,
organizing possible learning techniques, overcoming physical, intellectual limitations and
discomfort). The second Elaborative Phase includes self-control (regulation over emotions,
cognitive actions, and behaviors involved in the learning process), and self-knowledge (knowledge
on own personal characteristics, habits and believes, physical strength, and cognitive abilities and
skills). And finally, in the Summary Phase all previous actions and current result are subjected to
the self-judgment, self-assessment and self-efficacy.
Figure 1. The SRL structure and its processes
Self-motivation is a starting point in SRL structure which triggers other activities: self-organization,
self-control, self-knowledge, self-efficiency, self-assessment, and self-judgement. Assessment and
evaluation over person, task, learning processes, learning strategies, and the final results, control
further learning activities. Self-judgment, self-assessment, and self-efficiency beliefs would induce
motivation again (see Figure 1). That is to say, personal overview between goal settings and gained
results triggers the “need” for better results, the challenging feature which will have positive impact
Accelerando: Belgrade Journal of Music and Dance
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on intrinsic motivation, learning and academic achievement (McMillan and Hearn, 2008, 40-49;
Schunk, 1990, 71-86; Zimmerman 2000, 82–91).
The author has pointed out that SRL is achieved through three phases. However, those phases
subordinate upon other structures: social, personal, cognitive, and educational. All these structures
have impact on SRL activity, and make SRL possible. In Figure 2, the author shows how SRL and
other structures comprise the whole activity of intra-personal and interpersonal events:
Figure 2. Various structures, that are interrelated, make SRL possible
SRL and other structures
SRL and Socio-Cultural Environment
Where are the roots of SRL? Self-regulation is the ability to respond and adapt to the environment
in the behavioral, emotional, and mental domains. Self-regulation starts from the age we were born.
Person is developed emotionally, behaviorally, cognitively, and physically through interaction with
the socio-cultural surrounding.
MAJA MARIJAN
THE SELF-REGULATED-LEARNING MODEL AND MUSIC EDUCATION
The socio-cultural structure, presented in Figure 2, refers to the interaction between the social
environment and the individual. This structure is the core base from which other structures emerge
and enable SRL. According to the author, the relationship between the person and the particular
social milieu determines to what extent skills and abilities will be developed. However, it has to be
mentioned that environment, as a broad term, encompasses physical surrounding (Ferguson 2013,
437–468), cultural contexts (Valsiner 1997; Schech and Haggis 2000), and educational context
(Petrill et al. 2010; Hart et al. 2016). Therefore, interaction between the environment and the
individual the author represents in the socio-cultural structure, the structure with which SRL begins.
Development of children’s mental and physical abilities, in educational domains, depends
upon qualitative and quantitative recognition of their abilities, teaching methodologies which
employ qualitative learning techniques and strategies, educational systems, and parent-child-teacher
interaction. Moreover, Vygotsky’s approach to child development can be significant for the
following discussion. He proposed (Vygotsky 1997) that a person learn in the environment and
developed with it, i.e. learning and development are regarded as socio-cultural processes. According
to Vygotsky, there are two levels in learning: intraphysiological a n d interphysiologycal
(Rohrkemper 1989, 143–167). The first “intra” level refers to the child’s personal cognitive
development. The second “inter” level refers to child’s learning and development through peer
interrelationship, in groups, or in the interaction with the teacher who conducts and directs child’s
thoughts, emotions and action. This "inter" level is the key for understanding children’s abilities
because “(…) profound thinkers (…) never entertained the notion that what children can do with the
assistance of others might be in some sense even more indicative of their mental development than
what they can do alone” (Ibid.). The interaction between these two levels in learning, personal and
mutual or "intra" and "inter", Vygotsky called Zone of Proximal Development.
How can we define this “Zone”? The Zone of Proximal Development can be regarded as
evolving process between the present/individual developmental level and the potential
developmental level. Moreover, this Zone of Proximal Development explains the base of the
interaction between person, environment, and learning. Whatever level in the cognitive or motor
domains the child might show in the moment, these can be significantly improved by learning
techniques and strategies. More advanced peers, parents or teachers can enhance child’s inner level
of development and learning.
Accelerando: Belgrade Journal of Music and Dance
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Also, this theory takes into account the distinction between child’s years of age and his/her
mental age. Determination between child’s mental age and his/her physical age is needed in order to
employ proper learning techniques and strategies. That is to say, techniques and strategies implied
in learning have to be adjusted to the student’s mental capabilities, not to to the student’s physical
age (Vygotsky 1997, 29-36). This way, child’s inner abilities will be developed further, and from
this point, we can predict to what extent child’s abilities will have been developed by the certain
age. This view is very important for the educational systems and teaching methodologies, and have
to be encounter into music education as well.
Finally, the author suggests that Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development enables selfregulation and manifests through three main stages in the educational environment:
•
guidance and co-regulation
•
competitiveness
•
optimization
Guidance and Co-Regulation
Self-regulation is achieved through interaction between the person and the environment. All starts
with co-regulation (Shanker and Bertrand op. cit.; Siegel 2010). In the early stages of life, children
learn through parent-child, child-child, and child-environment relationships; in childhood and
adolescents they learn through teacher-student, student-school, and student-social relationships. Coregulation also shapes temperament and personality features.
Guidance and co-regulation begin with sounds and words, thus children's tool for controlling
their environment and their own thoughts starts with the language. They interact with their
environment through adopting speech, symbols, and representations (Özdemİr 2011). Secondly,
children learn how to self-regulate through games, songs, and physical activity. Children’s games
introduce certain rules that modulate their thoughts, behaviors, and emotions. Therefore, while
playing, children learn to regulate themselves through mutual co-regulation. Furthermore,
acquisition of skills and knowledge through games will enable children to adapt themselves to the
environment. For this reason, the author suggests that teaching methodologies in the early education
have to be based on the principles of the children’s games and to include them in teaching systems,
for the reason that most of the games incorporate learning as the primary action. Consequently,
children will learn easily, because they are familiar with the games and their rules. Moreover, by
MAJA MARIJAN
THE SELF-REGULATED-LEARNING MODEL AND MUSIC EDUCATION
introducing familiar content in education, learning would become active and interesting cognition,
thus development would be made possible for all participants involved in the process. There are
plenty of researches that support author’s thoughts and opinions on this subject (Moursund 2006;
Kirriemuir and Mcfarlane 2004). However, it is suggested that games should be instructional, and
properly chosen in accordance to learning requirements (Hays 2005; Randel et al. 2016, 261 – 276).
Competitiveness
In the socio-cultural environment, person is influenced by other people, whether they are peers,
parents, teachers, colleges, celebrities, social groups, communities. All these have influence upon
the person's modulation of his/her characteristics. In author’s view, there are three types of
competitiveness. First type deals with person to person “rivalry”. By observing and comparing with
others, one shapes his/her personal traits. Being aware of the characteristics of others, one is
becoming aware about own capabilities and limits. Second type deals with self-competitiveness and
academic achievements. Thus, it is shown that students with predominantly Ego goals have ability
to motivate themselves in order to achieve the best possible results (McCallum 2004). Finally, third
type of competitiveness is developed between the person and the socio-cultural environment. If the
environment supports the achievements, and promotes them, then this type of competitiveness will
enhance self-regulation in students with high intentional goal-settings. Therefore, according to
author, the particular socio-cultural surrounding would have influence on self-regulation and
develop self-regulatory skills such as: goal-settings, responsibility, self-analysis, self-reinforcement,
self-motivation, self-instruction, and self-judgement.
Educational system can introduce competitiveness through various means. In music schools,
for example, frequent public performances can direct students to self-regulate their emotions,
behaviors, as well as their cognitive skills and learning strategies. Furthermore, particular goals will
be carried out successfully if the teachers introduce learning strategies and implement them in
lessons (Berns and Erickson 2011). However, parent involvement in the learning process will be of
particular interest for the child (Wood 1993).
Music competitions as well as appraisals can serve to modulate learning. However, it is
known that unsuccessful performance and failure in the music competition can have negative
influence, but on the other hand, it can arouse self-evaluation, that will have influence on
development and further learning process. The author suggests that failure must be presented as
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something that can be overpowered. Failure should be understood as an indicator of the wrong
methods employed in the learning process, so trying to make change in the approach would be of
significant value for student’s further development. Moreover, it is shown that competitions which
promoted extrinsic motivation followed by the “under pressure” effect, would have negative
influence on performance and discard the intrinsic motivation (Reeve and Deci 1996, 24–33). On
the contrary, some studies pointed out the significance of the competitions. For example, in the
competition condition participants better improvised and were creative, and intrinsic motivation
was increased, while in no competition condition there was no improvement in creativity (Eisenberg
and Thompson 2011, 129–136).
It has been stated that very large number of students do not know how to self-regulate
themselves in the learning process, therefore teachers are suggested to introduce learning techniques
and metacognition that will help students to construct their own learning strategies. Several teacherfeedback types important in the learning strategy are: verbalization and valuation of the steps
applied in the strategy, effectiveness-feedback statement, and effort-attributional feedback
(Manning 1991). These help students build self-reflection, self-awareness, self-esteem, selfefficacy, as well as other self-monitoring attributes (Schunk 1989, 83-110).
Also, as stated before, in the Vygotsky’s hypothesis the feedback will not be provided by the
teacher only, but children involved in the group would increase their abilities more than when they
are learning alone. Gathered in the group, children acquire knowledge and skills by cooperation,
competitiveness, discussion, dialog, and social behavior. More advanced peers, regardless of the
age, can be of significant importance for the mental growth for their less advanced peers (Vygotsky
op. cit.). It is important to underline that children learn through imitation. The actions undertaken by
advanced peers in the given tasks, will be imitated by their less advanced companions. Vygotsky
has observed that the imitation is crucial for children’s learning and development because this
process enables a child to go beyond personal limitations and capacity. Therefore, educational
systems have to encompass and embrace this valuable kind of child-child feedback.
The involvement of peers and teachers is important in music education. Music has been
regarded as an integrated part of the human society. Songs and dances have been played as parts of
social events, whether religious or secular in nature. Through those social gatherings, children could
have been introduced to musical patterns, rhythms and melodies. They have learned in the groups,
by imitating adults, and inventing their own songs and plays (Lévi-Strauss, 1962). In music
MAJA MARIJAN
THE SELF-REGULATED-LEARNING MODEL AND MUSIC EDUCATION
education, it is important to learn from these experiences. Children have to learn music gathered in
ensembles, playing with peers, and playing with their teachers. Besides, Howe (Howe et al. 1998,
399-442) has claimed that early experiences, habits, and influences have a crucial roll in the later
expertise. Therefore, starting to learn music as early as possible, children would develop music
skills and competences much faster, but only if the educational environment offers adequate sources
and qualitative feedbacks. Moreover, learning from more advanced peer would be advantageous,
but even more profitable is to have a teacher who is a good musician ( Interview with Zoltan
Kodaly). Expert music teacher/musician will be able to make music lessons as optimal as they need
to be, i.e. to set special musical tasks, to play/sing for the students, to play/sing with the students,
and to engage them fully in the leaning process.
Optimization
Setting optimal conditions for learning is another important activity that helps self-regulated learner.
Favorable learning ambient can be regulated by the socio-cultural surrounding, educational
environment, and the person himself/herself. Person can enhance learning by creating optimal
learning area, having learning materials such as books, scholarly journals and magazines, knowing
how to use the internet for the educational purposes, having personal instrument to practice,
reaching peers and teachers for questions and help. Educational environment can offer the optimal
conditions for the personal development by setting adequate school space, providing educational
materials, and internet access, promoting qualitative teaching strategies, hiring experts and
professionals, and introducing competitions between the schools, ensembles or individuals. Lastly,
the roll of socio-cultural environment in setting optimal learning conditions refers to organizing
educational and cultural events, including educational and qualitative radio and TV programs,
enabling access to scientific databases, libraries, and internet, creating space for physical activities,
lowering traffic noise in the urban areas. However, in the present world some researchers are
concerned with the pollutants, food, noise, housing, and many other factors that can have impact on
children’s development and cognition (Ferguson et al. 2013, 437–468). Therefore, optimal
development and learning depend upon conditions that can be monitored by individual and/or
environment. The more the conditions are optimal, the more development and learning will be
successful.
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Temperament and personality in the SRL structure
Temperament
Temperament is a structure of specific biologically based behavioral activities within a person and it
is regarded as “evolutionary conserved core, from which personality develops” (Rothbart et al.
2004, 357-370). Temperament makes individual differences in reactivity and self-regulation in the
emotional, motor and attentional domains (Gartstein et al. 2017). But also, self-regulation
modulates the temperament by controlling the intension and duration of emotional, motor and
attentional actions (Rothbart and Posner 1985, 93-123).
Therefore, temperament can be regulated by the person and by others in the co-regulation
process. It is shown that parents, whose infants are high in negative emotionality, have to enhance
sensitivity and responsiveness over their children (Gartstein et al. op. cit.), so to help their children
to moderate self-behaviors. Moreover, it has been shown that sensitivity, child attachment, and early
physiological development have impact on future regulatory and emotional development (Calkins
and Fox 2002, 477-498).
Personality
Culturing our temperament in the social environment, through self-regulated activity, we develop
personality. Thus, self-regulation is considered to underline personality (Denissen et al. 2013, 255–
260). Garstein (op. cit.) has stated that older children and adolescents have greater self-regulatory
abilities which enable them to observe and analyze their own reactions as well as behaviors of
others, and through these actions implement different behavioral strategies. Following this
statement, self-regulatory skills are developed through the experience and interactions, thus
qualities of personality are merged.
Furthermore, self-regulatory processes develop self-beliefs, self-expectations, and selfgenerated thoughts about one-self and others. This self-concept shapes personality. The more
established self-concepts and attitudes are within the person, the more characteristics of certain
personality would be apparent. In Figure 3 we show how temperament, personality and selfregulation interact between each other:
MAJA MARIJAN
THE SELF-REGULATED-LEARNING MODEL AND MUSIC EDUCATION
Figure 3. Self-regulation conducts over temperament and personality. Temperament is the biological base of
personality. Through self-regulation in the social environment, we develop self-concepts and attitudes from
which personality emerges.
Self-regulation operates learning process, where peculiar features of temperament and
personality emerge. It is shown that correlation between big five personality traits and learning
strategies overlap to some extent (Bidjerano and Dai 2007, 69–81; Zhang 2003, 1431–1446;
Chamorro-Premuzic 2007, 241–250). Overall, it has been proven that Openness, Consciousness,
and Agreeableness have important role in Deep and Achieving learning approaches, Neuroticism
has been linked with Surface approach to learning, while Extraversion has no important link to any
of learning approaches (Zhang op. cit.). Therefore, personality traits can predict to some extent what
learning strategy will be employed. Nevertheless, regardless of the congruence between personality
traits and learning strategies, teachers have to employ the best possible techniques and strategies for
their students. Using deep approach, students are more eligible to elaborate their ideas more
spontaneously by employing personal experiences in learning (Chin and Brown 2000, 109-138).
Temperament and personality role in music practice
Music can evoke different emotions and reactions. It is known that personality traits can predict
preferences toward different musical styles. However, some researches show that empathy has an
important role in music preferences, and the link between empathy and preferences is independent
form of the Big Five personality traits (Greenberg et al. 2015, e0131151). In music practice, it has
been shown that different forms of musicianship develop skills that can have impact on
development of personality, but also certain skills developed in the childhood can make
predispositions towards different instruments and styles (Kemp 1996). Conductors or singers are
supposed to be extrovert, soloists introvert, chamber musicians collaborative, etc. Thus, the
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personality of a musician depends upon featured musical skills, behaviors, and experience. Learning
music involves time, strength, will, patience, concentration. Therefore, to be successful as a
musician, the student has to make an effort and arouse will in the learning process. Knowing how to
overcome some features of temperament and personality or how to have benefits from them is a
part of self-regulatory structure in the music practice. How the musicians employ self-regulation
over temperament and personality, the author has seen in two different behavioral modules.
Self-regulation over behaviors and thoughts in the performance. In the public performance, the
musician does not express his/her personal emotions, but revives and reconstructs the emotions
expressed in the musical structure. However, it doesn’t mean that the performer should dismiss
his/her personal emotions, but adapt them to the logic of musical structure and flow. That is to say,
the expertise in music performance is shown when the performer is adapted to the music, not
adjusting music to personal feelings, attitudes or limits (Barenboim Masterclass). Playing or singing
on the stage are similar actions to the actor/actress performing his/her dedicated role. Actor/actress
has to transmute himself/herself into certain character, thus to give us impression of that character
and to convince us in the presence and reality of that character. Accordingly, musician has to give
impression of the music and its moods. However, music is changeable in mood and expression, so
the performer has to regulate his/her emotions accordingly. Moreover, while playing in ensemble,
musicians have to adjust their own emotions and temperament, and create one unique “feeling” or
“active body” which derives from the music structure. It is interesting to observe how different
temperaments and personalities, gathered in the process of performance, create unique musical
expressive form.
Controlling own behaviors and thoughts while practicing. Musicians need to take advantage over
their emotions to be able to regulate processes involved in learning and practicing the instrument.
For example, everyday practicing is needed in order to gain strength, technique, and control. From
the early age, teachers have to introduce an effective learning strategies which will help students to
get control over their cognitive and motor skills. Although students employ different techniques and
strategies in learning, it is shown that not all of them are effective and successful (Mishra 2002, .7486; Dickinson 2009/2010, 271-283). However, whether students use their own techniques or
employ those taught by the teacher, learners have to overcome temptations and repel distractions in
order to achieve the best possible results. This way, they will gain self-control and self-observance
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in their practice. Long-term practice and stage performing will take advantage over emotional
control and will shape personality.
Moreover, despite some presumptions that types of learning strategy and personal traits may
overlap (Bidjerano and Dai op. cit.), the author has suggested that deep approach to music learning
is very important, because the music is complex phenomena of the visual, motor, auditory, and
emotional events. Through Deep Approach musicians will be able to deal with musical patterns,
make predictions, have ideas on peculiar forms of different styles, memorize, create, perform and/or
improvise. However, Surface Approach can be useful at some levels in learning: sight-reading and
re-reading the score. Therefore, different learning techniques and strategies are not only useful, but
by implementing them in the learning process, they become the main tool for development and
acquisition of knowledge.
Learning techniques and SRL
In this section we will discuss different types of learning techniques which are mostly involved in
the music practice. However, before we examine different learning techniques, we have to make a
distinction between the terms "learning techniques" and "learning strategies". Learning techniques
are special methods of dealing with various elements employed in learning and practicing the
music. The knowledge on how to choose, use, process, combine, and implement techniques at
different learning stages refers to learning strategy.
In learning and practicing musicians implement certain techniques which help them learn and
memorize. These techniques entertain certain skills that allow the musicians to understand, perform
and improvise. There are vast majority of techniques that are used in understanding musical
symbols and forms, and employed in instrumental practice as well. Certain famous pedagogues and
performers were known for their suggestions on different learning techniques. Carl Czerny and his
pupil Franz Liszt suggested that “the repetition is the mother of skill”. Josef Hoffman (1920)
suggested that every pianist had to frequently renew pieces that had been already learned, in order
to keep those in “mind and fingers”. Also, he advised that studying short pieces would enhance
skills, improve memory, and amend sight-reading (Ibid.). Other pianists and pedagogues, such as
Walter Giezeking and Karl Liemer in their book Piano technique developed a model for
learning/memorizing through careful analytical approach of musical structure (Leimer and
Gieseking 1972). Accordingly, Rubin-Rabson in her study has stated and presented that analytical
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training and guidance as well as mental/silent practice are very important in learning and
memorizing (Rubin-Rabson 1937, 220-220). Edgar Ross in his experimental study proved the
hypothesis that guided analysis of constructive elements and principles, employed in the music
composition, reduced significantly learning time, improved knowledge and understanding of music
(Ross 1964, 269-278).
Furthermore, techniques employed in music learning and practice do not refer universally to
cognitive actions only. Some studies present techniques which have positive effect on physical
tension and relaxation in performers, such as Alexander Technique (Ying et al. 2015).
Therefore, music learning requires techniques to be implemented, whether they refer to
cognitive actions or physical and motor control. The teacher has the responsibility to introduce
various techniques to the students in order to enhance learning. In the following lines, the author
will present some of the most important techniques that are to be used in music learning.
Imitation
This technique is very important in developing self-regulation, motor and auditive skills. Imitation,
in author’s opinion, starts with visual stimuli, i.e. children often imitate what they see. Therefore, in
music lesson, teachers have to show the proper way of sitting/standing, kinesthetic posture, position
of the hands, fingers, different body movements (Yehudi Menuhin Violin Tutorial). By imitating the
instructor the students will acquire stability and strength, and become aware of their apparatus.
Later on, the basic imitation has to evolve from the kinesthetic to auditory. That is to say, students
have to connect two different sensory structures: motor and auditory. In this stage of imitation,
teacher has to introduce different qualities of the sound while singing and/or playing, by
implementing special manners to emphasize different expressive qualities (Vengerov: Sibelius
(Violin Concerto) - 'This Is Beauty'). By listening and watching the instructor, advanced peers
and/or expert musicians, the novices will try to imitate certain movements or sounds. Thus, through
the imitation, development of music skills will be successful and the link between the motor,
auditory and visual information will be reinforced.
Repetition
The basic idea in this technique is the Latin proverb: “repetitio est mater studiorum”. However, the
repetition can be the two-side coin. If we use repetition as a method of learning certain skills or
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THE SELF-REGULATED-LEARNING MODEL AND MUSIC EDUCATION
music elements, firstly we have to establish the proper way for producing a sound or a movement,
and secondly, to exercise those by repetition. However, repeating auditory and/or motor tasks in
incorrect way will not solve the problem. This is the main reason to suggest that imitation has to be
done prior to repetition in music education. The teacher has to lead the way and show by example
how the student will practice by repetition.
Mnemonics
This technique is used to enhance learning the abstract information by linking it with the familiar or
stored knowledge (Bakken and Simpson 2011, 79 -85; Neisser and Kerr 1973, 138-150). It has been
shown that music mnemonics can help with memorization. Melodic-rhythmic template, when
introduced along with non-music material, can significantly enhance memory for non-music
information (Yeoh 2014; Thaut et al 2014; Pallison et al 2015, 503-517; Peterson and Thaut 2007,
217–221; Knott 2015). However, some studies revealed that musical mnemonics is significantly
efficient with musicians more than with non-musicians due to musical training (Baird et al. 2017).
In music education several mnemonic techniques have been implemented. Mnemonics in
music learning is based on representation of music material through visual, aural, affective, and
motor means. Accordingly, it is important to underline that mnemonics applied in music learning
has to develop the network between auditive, visual, and motor functions in the brain. The author
supports this idea by the suggestion that mnemonics in music can be employed in three ways, that
will be explained briefly below.
Relating the auditive and visual stimulants. It has been suggested that visual stimuli, such as
paintings, presented with certain music elements can enhance listening skills (Shank 2003).
Furthermore, it has been proven that despite differences in neural mechanisms, there is a brain
tendency to bind visual and auditive information. In the study of Jeong (Jeong et al.) when the
auditory and visual stimuli were presented sharing the similar emotional quality, visual information
was seen more expressive, i.e. the music intensify the expression of the given visual information.
On the contrary, auditory stimuli not sharing the same emotional data with the visual information,
diminished the emotional context of the visual information (Jeong et al. 2011, 2973–82).
Furthermore, regarding blind people, in the study of John Hopkins University neuroscientists has
been stated that the sound stimuli activate the sight regions of the brain (Rosen 2015). They also
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made a remark that the brain in the early childhood is very flexible and has a prominent capacity for
functional adaptation, thus brain centers that are “qualified” for certain sensory activity, in certain
circumstances can be “awakened” and modified by different senses. Furthermore, it has been
shown, by other researchers, that audiovisual interrelation lies not only in the cross-modal
abstraction, the “conscious sensory metaphor that is consistent between people”, but in the
chromesthesia as well, the neurological phenomenon within some individuals that deals with sound
to color synesthesia (Duthie 2013). They have suggested that cross-modal perception is not the only
reason that enables people to relate different arts, but also, chromesthesia, as a phenomenon in some
people, enables the perception of different sensory stimuli as a unique multi-sensory event.
However, the cross-modal perception between the two sensory modalities is not governed by the
same rule. It has been found that binding tendencies in the temporal and spatial tasks do not
coincide, thus there is no universal parameter in the brain that governs this process. Instead, the
binding tendencies are governed by stable but distinct perceptual biases within different domains,
i.e. temporal or spatial (Odegaard and Shams 2016, 583 – 591).
In music education, binding tendencies over auditive and visual information can be
strengthened through mnemonics. Accordingly, the elements of music can be presented in line with
the colors, shapes, and other visual stimuli, in order to better understand melodic shapes, harmonic
and instruments timbre, or formal structures. Also, the students in composition can experiment with
different temporal or spatial tasks of the audiovisual events, where the sensory reactions of the
listener will get the new form. Thus, mnemonic technique can be valuable for development of
learning, the artistic creativity, illumination, and deeper apprehension of music.
Connecting auditive, visual and motor information. It has been suggested that audiovisual mirror
neurons are responsible for the planning, execution, and recognizing certain motor actions (Kohler
2002, 846-8). The best example for this audiovisual and motor integration we can find in the
Neisser’s theory of “complete” or multimodal perception (1976):
"When we look at someone who is speaking, the visual information about his lip
movements supports the auditory information about the movements of his tongue
and his articulators. We call this "hearing him speaking", but is really a multimodal
enterprise because it is based on multimodal anticipations. When these anticipations
are not fulfilled, as in dubbed movie, the result can be very disturbing."
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This interconnection between audiovisual and motor processing in music education is possible
only if the awareness over audio-visual-motor link is created. This link has been developing
from the time we were born and by later experience, but the actual awareness and knowledge
over this process has been created through education. Music education plays valuable roll in the
development of the multimodal perception. For example, in piano practice, playing chords in
very loud dynamics (forte, double or triple forte) in both hands, such as in the beginning of the
Tchaikovsky’s Piano concerto no.1 in b-flat minor, the performer uses whole arm to be able to
express and produce strong and loud sound. The audiovisual information we collect and connect
with the kinesthetic movements of the performer. In the situations when we only hear this tune
or similar music we can evoke or imagine kinesthetic movements, because we have already
made a link between motor actions and audiovisual event from the previous experiences.
Furthermore, the author has stated, from her pianistic experience, that expert performer is able
to create audio-motor mental images by visual/analytical approach to the score, where no motor
or auditive feedbacks are involved, because the pre-built knowledge database of visual audiomotor juncture has already existed in performer’s mind as a result of long term musical practice.
Moreover, Kate Covington (2005) has stated that rehearsed music is much easier to hear in “the
mind’s ear” due to mental schematic representations of the musical patterns and events that have
been built during learning and practicing (Covington 2005, 25–41).
Also, awareness over visual, auditive and motor events is very important in the “mental
practice”. "Mental practice" means that a musician is imagining visual elements of the score,
movements and auditory events that he has been using during actual practice. This technique
has been used by majority of famous musicians, music professionals, and composers (Newcomb
1921; Schonberg 1987). Although some researchers have suggested that mental practice can
lead to motor control dysfunction due to plastic changes in the brain (Pascual-Leone 2001, 315–
329), mental practice is very useful in the final stages of practicing, as a tool for shaping
interpretation and mental organization of the visual, auditory and motor information (Lotze
2013: 280).
Creating linkage between the auditive event and motor action. Instrumental practice involves
activation of both motor and auditory systems. Every teaching methodology has to develop auditory
and motor skills homogeneously in students. This way, the students will approach to musical piece
as an impetuous structure of movements and sound.
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Motor or kinesthetic knowledge gathers information on musculature, finger positions, body
movements. Kinesthetic information is structured in the motor cortex in the brain. The awareness
on the movements, the way of placing fingers properly, the knowledge on how to use different parts
of the hand and body in order to produce particular sound, passages, melodies and phrases, in
another words, possessing certain skills in the motor domain is called technique.
In contrast, auditory knowledge refers to the perception of the auditory information that is
perceived through listening. It is shown that every auditory event is structured in the special places
of the auditory cortex (Krumhansel 1991; Deutsch 1984). However, auditive learning does not refer
only to the acquisition of simple sound components, such as perception of simple sound features,
but involves many other factors such as inner hearing, sensitivity to dynamics, rhythm, articulation,
changes in tempo, harmony, and timbre. All these features of auditory learning are part of music
performance. But how motor and auditory structures interact? Auditory and motor integration can
be explored through neural, emotional, and behavioral domains.
Some studies has revealed that audio-motor interaction is based on shared neural structures.
Zatorre and Penhune (2007) have suggested that when auditory feedback is interrupted, the motor
control is disrupted accordingly, because listening (while performing) and playing “depend on a
single underlying mental representation”. Following the same research, scientists have shown that
auditory and motor imaginary structures overlap, i.e. when one of the feedbacks is excluded, the
other one arouses (Zatorre et al. 2007). Similarly, the motor cortex in musicians is activated by
auditive stimuli and without any physical movement involved (Zatorre and Halpern 2005;
Hauenisen and Knösche 2001). Accordingly, both of these imaginaries are different in processing
within the brain regions, but interact in sensory-motor integration system (Lotze et al. 2003, 1817–
1829; Maes et al 2014).
Furthermore, musical training and music learning are important in development of the
auditory-motor integrated system (Brown and Palmer 2013: 320; Pascal-Leone 2001, 315–329).
Famous Soviet pedagogue and pianist Henrich Neuhaus has suggested that the physical movement
is reciprocative to the sound produced, i.e. the level of the weight and hight of the hand corresponds
to the sound volume (Neuhaus 1973). Therefore, motor and auditive functions are hardly separable
in musical training. However, it has been suggested that, despite their interrelation, auditory
learning and auditive imaginary skills in advanced musicians are performed prior to motor learning,
because they mostly rely on auditory representations (Brown and Palmer 2013). But with novices it
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THE SELF-REGULATED-LEARNING MODEL AND MUSIC EDUCATION
is the opposite: they rely mostly on motor representations and kinesthetic memory (Chaffin 2007).
These findings support the hypothesis that experts first employ analytical and auditory imaginary
approach, because pre-built structures of auditive and motor knowledge allow them to concentrate
on the musical idea and create the artistic representation of the music piece.
Humans’ basic reaction to the music is expressed through body movements. This reaction is
exercised through listening. It has been shown that listening to music can evoke various physical
movements in listeners (Leman et al. 2009, 263–278; Mitchell and Gallaher 2001, 65-85; Leman et
al.. 2013). Further, it has been shown that different types of music, energizing or calm, have
adequate tactile responses in physical exercise (Terry and Karageorghis 2006, 415–419;
Karageorghis and Priest 2012, 44–66). Moreover, some teaching methodologies, like Dalcroze
method, insist on the body movements that can help in learning the music (Greenhead and Habron
2015, 93-112(20); Vongpaisal et al. 2016: 835). However, body movements are not only
psychophysical reactions to music, but they incorporate emotional expression as well. This
emotional datum can be regarded as an integrated part in the music learning. It is manifested
through gestures and mimics in the music performance (Addessi 2000; Caterina et al. 2004;
Delalande 1988). Also, gestures and mimics can often serve as performing cues in memorizing
strategy (Rubin-Rabson 1939, 321-345; Chaffin op. cit.; Miklaszewski 1989, 95-109; Gabrielsson
and Juslin 1996, 68-91). Therefore, physical mnemonics can enhance learning and understanding
the music, and according to previously cited researches, it is suggested that kinesthetics and mimics
can be included in music education as a tool in learning.
Chunking
Chunking is the cognitive ability dealing with the perceived stimuli. It has two functions: to break a
very long string of perceived information into small units called chunks, and then, to group separate
chunks into larger units. Chunking enables better apprehension, storage, and retrieval of
information. Chunking, as the special ability of the memory to collect information, was introduced
by Miller (Miller 1956) who has proposed that STM and working memory can perceive and store
more amount of information by grouping the perceived data into chunks (Cowan 2015, 536–541).
Grouping smaller chunks into bigger and bigger chunks enables one to gather large number of
similar data into one compact unite. The action by which we gather consonants and vowels to create
words, or phrases to create sentences is called chunking. Chunking is applied in the visual,
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motor/kinesthetic, and auditive domains, thus the author suggests that chunking is the basic
technique by which musicians perceive and acquire musical ideas, forms and elements. Even
though chunking is natural function of the brain, in music education it is important to turn chunking
into a conscious learning technique which will help flexibility in storing the knowledge.
Accordingly, it has been suggested that chunking enhances processing speed, and it can be a
powerful tool for learning (Jones 2012). Therefore, the author suggests that chunking or grouping
employed as learning technique will be of significant value in music education. Furthermore, there
are three grouping categories employed in music learning: motor, auditive and visual.
Motor grouping. It has been shown that the brain has the function to bind as more as possible
separate motor movements into a unique kinaesthetic structure (Foulsham 2012). In music
education, motor chunking technique applied in instrumental practice can be regarded as a process
of grouping various physical movements of the hand and body into an organised and logic
kinesthetic form.
All elementary motor exercises begin with one tone. These are to be executed with the
extreme attention given to the sitting/standing postures, hand movement (up-down motion), stability
of the each finger, the quality of the produced sound, etc. Further exercises are composed to group
the other fingers in succession, hand postures and movements. In order to allow students to be
concentrated on the motor task, the technical exercises are designed in such a way that visual
information overlaps with the hand/fingers posture. In Example 1 (a, b) the author shows how the
note-group and hand position share the same “phrase”.
Example 1a. Five finger position is visually similar with the music phrase.
Clementi Muzio. Gradus ad Parnassum op.44. Editor Carl Tausig (1841–1871) Publisher Boston: Oliver
Ditson & Co., 1882. Plate 48858. Copyright Public Domain.
http://imslp.org/wiki/Special:ReverseLookup/3743
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THE SELF-REGULATED-LEARNING MODEL AND MUSIC EDUCATION
Example 1b. Octave range scales are visually easy to notice, because each scale represents octave range
musical phrase with an upward motion. Carl Czerny. The School of Velocity op. 299. Editor Max Vogrich
(1852-1916) Publisher Info. New York: G. Schirmer, 1893. Plate 10414–10417. Copyright Public Domain,
http://imslp.org/wiki/Special:ReverseLookup/1000
However, in advanced music literature very often the music material presented in the
composition, and the "logic" of the hand movement do not overlap often. The method of grouping
musical elements into logic motor/kinesthetic units is known as technical phrasing. Technical
phrasing enables the performer to structure the music material in a specific way to fit the laws of the
fingering, hand movements and positions. For example, pupils often struggle with the long phrases
and uncomfortable jumps. For this reason, Egon Petri (Lieberman 2001) put towards his pupils the
following task shown in the Example 2:
Example 2. Broken tenths. (author’s picture).
After some unsuccessful attempts to play these tenths, Petri revealed the “secret” to his pupils (see
Example 3) by allocating the notes, grouping them into “accessible” broken octaves:
Example 3. “Secret revealed”. Broken tenths are now visually easy to apprehend, and thus to play.
(author's picture)
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Furthermore, in the Example 4, the performer breaks down the long line of notes into
smaller groups of broken chords that fit to hand position. The groups (chunks) are marked with red
lines:
Example 4. F. Chopin, Etude op.10 no.1.
Alfred Cortot editor. Copyright Public Domain.
http://imslp.org/wiki/Special:ReverseLookup/367492
Therefore, technical phrasing is the ability to chunk the visual information into the smaller
meaningful units that fit to various hand positions. This way, the performer will easily brake down
the long melodic lines into the smaller phrases that correspond to finger/hand logic momentum.
Auditive chunking. Auditive chunking is the ability to group the auditory information perceived
through auditive sensory structure. But, how do we collect and chunk auditive information? The
answer lies in the early childhood and in the child’s apprehension of the language. Several studies
have shown that music and language have similar syntactic processing, i.e. neural mechanisms that
process syntax in both language and music overlap (Koelsh et al. 2005, 1565–1577; Steinbeis and
Koelsch 2007, 1169-1178; JUncke 2012; Besson and Schön, 2001; Tallal and Gaab 2006, 382–390;
Patel et al. 1998, 717-733). Patel has suggested that there are also some intuitive propositions made
by some researchers and musicians, that music of a certain composer “sounds” similar to his native
language (Patel 2009). These notions about similarity in the syntactic processing of the music and
language drive us to another notion that language and music are both presented simultaneously in
the earliest stages of child’s learning.
Language and music connections begin with the speech. Every vowel is a sound, every word
has specific articulation and dynamics, every sentence has a shape and “melodic” line. Letters make
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THE SELF-REGULATED-LEARNING MODEL AND MUSIC EDUCATION
words, words make sentences, and sentences make phrases. The same is unfolding in the music.
Notes are grouped into the motives, motives into phrases, phrases into music sentences. What we
hear when listening to music, is actually a succession of sounds and harmonies. Ability to group the
tones that are perceived through audition, enables us to understand musical language. However, in
early music education music and language are presented simultaneously. This connection is rather
intuitive in children's songs and games. Musical content helps the verbal, and vice versa (McIntire
2007, 44; Kolb 1996, 76). In fact, children’s games are constructed of simple words accompanied
by simple rhythmic and melodic patterns. The sounds and rhythms of the music follow the rhythm
and vowels of the words. Verbal sentence overlaps and “dictates” the musical sentence. This way
children have been adopting the verbal logic, acquiring the meaning of musical language at the
same time. When we speak we change our diction, breathing, and emphasize some words by
speaking them loudly or quietly, furiously or peacefully. The same flow can be seen in the music.
The understanding of musical language arises from early ability to gather the sounds into
“musically meaningful” groups or melodic-rhythmic sentences and phrases created as the
“background” of the verbal content. How do we begin to “chunk” auditive information? The author
is introducing the chunking process by an example of the children’s song “Jingle Bells”.
Example 5. Chunks are being grouped into the increasingly
larger chunks after repetitive exposure to the song.
The chunking hypothesis suggests that if the material is presented once, each datum of perceived
information will be stored as a separate chunk. If repeated, the larger number of information will be
grouped as one chunk, thus the chunks will be expanded (Miller op. cit.). We perceive the starts and
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ends, beginnings, flows and cadences of the melodic lines that overlap with the syntax in the
language. In the Example 6 the author shows how the song “Jingle Bells” is “grouped” into to
phrases:
a (first phrase):
b (second phrase):
a (third phrase):
b1 (fourth phrase):
Example 6. The music and language syntactic principles overlap.
From the Example 6, we can see how musical syntax overlaps with the language syntax. These
small phrases are merged into larger groups that create larger form. The poetic text as well as the
music "text" are structured in the in binary form: abab1. However, while the text is the same for the
first /third and second/fourth phrases, the music changes and intensifies the meaning in the language
syntax. For example, in the second phrase b, the cadence is on the Dominant, i.e. the phrase ends on
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THE SELF-REGULATED-LEARNING MODEL AND MUSIC EDUCATION
the fifth degree of the C Major scale. This melodic line has the upwards motion, so the voice will
rise – this indicates that the song will continue. The final (fourth) phrase b1 has different “meaning”
from the second phrase b. That is to say, the fourth phrase b1 has the cadence on the Tonic, i.e. the
phrase ends on the first degree of the C major scale, the melodic line has downward motion, and the
voice will fall silent – this indicates the end of the song.
Therefore, not only that structural properties of the language and music overlap in the
children’s songs, but both stand in the specific interrelationship as well. Music can help with the
understanding of principles that govern the sentences, and the language can help in learning and
understanding the music structure. It can be proposed that, in children’s songs, language, intonation,
and melodic-rhythmic structure overlap. The awareness over this notion will help processing the
music material more easily.
Visual/analytical chunking. This technique is applied in the analysis of music, the process that
involves silent and sight reading the score. It is shown that the main difference between the
musician and non-musician in the processing of visual perception of the melody lies in the ability to
group the long string of information into “chunks” which reduce the memory load (Halpern and
Bower 1982, 31-50). This superior chunking ability is enabled due to the familiarity, qualitative
elaboration and stored knowledge. The knowledge structures of music have been already stored in a
musician’s mind, thus these structures will enhance the processing of perceived musical
information. For novices or unexperienced student, the score is just a bunch of dots and lines.
Musical training is the key for fast sight/silent-reading and chunking. Therefore, quality and
quantity of the perception of music, between the musician and non-musician, lie in the long-term
practice and expertise in the field.
In music education it is important to learn how to read the score. Reading the score without
the instrument, auditory or motor actions is known as silent reading. Since the music score is not
just dots and lines but a multidimensional set of different elements of music, familiarity with each
of the element will enhance perceiving and reading of the score. The visualization of the music
score employs the auditory and motor imaginaries as well (Karpinski 2000). Furthermore, a
musician has to have knowledge on motor and auditive chunking techniques, so that auditive and
motor imaginaries are aroused during visual perception (Brodsky et al. 2008, 427-445; Brodsky et
al., 602-12). Therefore, it is very hard to distinguish visual, auditive, and motor in the music
learning and score reading, since all these behaviors are dependent of each other.
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The visual approach to the music score is complex action. It is the process of grouping the
music material, in which auditory and motor imaginary structures play important role. When
musician observes the score, he/she hears the pitches, timbres, melodies, rhythms, harmonies,
tempi, articulation, dynamics, and other signs which give the meaning to the music. (Hubbard 2010,
302-29). Moreover, a musician is also able to feel and “see” the kinesthetic movements. Far more,
the musician perceives structural elements of the music such as keys, clefs, modulations, phrases
and other features. In the Example 7, the author emphasises the way of perception/analysis the
music score employed by the musician:
Example 7. The music is visually perceived as groups of structures of musical elements, where auditory and
motor imaginaries play important role. In this example of Chopin’s Etude, it is shown how chunking is
activated. Lines above the notes represents the size of chunks at different levels of perception. Frederic
Chopin Etude op. 10 no.2, a minor. Editor: Alfred Cortot. Publisher: Maurice Senart.
Copyright Public Domain
http://imslp.org/wiki/Special:ReverseLookup/367492
Analyzing this Etude (see Example 7), expert musician cognitively chunks the visual
information fast, due to stored knowledge. Firstly, to be able to read the score, performer has to
establish the key and meter (a minor, four beats). These two are the ground for the further
orientation. Secondly, at the first sight, it can be observed the shape of the melodic line (upwards-
MAJA MARIJAN
THE SELF-REGULATED-LEARNING MODEL AND MUSIC EDUCATION
downwards motion), and the simple rhythmic pattern which underlines melody (sixteenth note
pattern). Finally, the formal structure will be perceived (2+2 bars phrase), as well as the underlying
harmonic progression (Tonic - Dominant to Tonic). After this roughly visualization, the performer
will start with the brief perception. While analyzing the upper (right hand) part, the performer will
perceive the chromatic scale, separated as “chunks” of four-note units in upward, downward or
combined motion. Furthermore, on every beat, these four-note groups are merged in triads (with
inversions included), and this will activate the motor imaginary. In the following Example 8, the
author further elaborates how motor imaginary is activated by visual perception and notational
audiation:
Example 8. First group of four-note pattern (picture on the left) is imagined as one hand movement, i.e. it is
created the mental picture of the hand striking from above the keys, playing the group, lifting and preparing
another similar motor action for the second group. In the bass-clef staff, there is a broken a-minor chord that
represents a tonic harmony which lasts half-bar. The “hand movement” pattern in the left hand is a usually
used model in the pianistic literature (picture on the right). However, these imagined “hand groups” represent
the motor chunks, organized not only by the rules of kinesthetic motions, but by harmonic progression as
well (picture on the center).
As the author shows, chunking is the basic mental activity that helps perception of visual
information. The speed of processing depends on the level of expertise. The author has stated, in the
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Examples 7 and 8, that the visual perception of music can be considered as a multidimensional
process where chunking plays a main role. In these examples, there are several types of chunk
structures: auditive (pitches, durations, scales, harmonies), motor (hand movements, fingering),
structural (form, harmonic progression, cadences), and expressive (dynamics, articulation, phrasing,
use of the pedal).
Therefore, the "mental learning" or silent reading are very important, because the performer
will be able to create the complete mental map of the music piece. Practicing silent reading,
musician will enhance own interpretation and ability to memorize music without an instrument.
However, it is recommended that only experts use silent reading as a learning technique, because
they have stronger auditory imaginary skills than novices. Without auditory imaginary, no
kinesthetic imaginary is possible in music learning for the reason that every movement is actually
“heard” at the same time. Thus, long-term “strongly coupled” auditory-motor learning will enhance
auditory imaginary in students and enable auditory-motor imaginary skills (Brown and Palmer
2012: 567).
Highlighting
Visual highlighting of the music material refers to instant visual impression of the score in the
process of silent and sight reading, where the “highlighting” or “magnification” of the specific
elements and events in the score helps the performer to organize the music material and actions.
The author suggests that before the student begins to learn the new piece, firstly he/she needs to
“scan” the elements presented in the score, and then to highlight or “magnify” the specific patterns
or features. In the Example 9, the author presents how experienced performers scan and highlight
the material from the first sight of the score:
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THE SELF-REGULATED-LEARNING MODEL AND MUSIC EDUCATION
Example 9. Experts scan the score and highlight the specific features.
Ludwig van Beethoven, Piano Sonate op.57, no. 23.
Publisher: Leipzig: Breitkopf und HUrtel, pp.165-90, Copyright: Public Domain,
http://imslp.org/wiki/Special:ReverseLookup/51795
The musician will highlight several elements which he/she observes in the score (Example
9): 1. broken chords in both hands (in downward and upward motion), 2. trills, 3. diminished chord
downward motion passage, 4. full chords in both hands upward motion, 5. left hand repetition of
one note. Also, basic harmonic progression such as cadences that underlie particular sections will be
highlighted. In the same example, the performer visualizes the structural characteristics of the form.
Finally, he/she creates an idea about motor actions that will be applied in the performance. These
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highlighted features serve as the main structural points with regards to which the performer
orientates him/herself during sight and silent reading. Other, middle components are to be
encompassed within these “highlighted borders”. Therefore, with this technique one is able to create
an instant image on elements employed in the score.
Auditive highlighting is activated when a musician spots specific sound quality (pitch, timbre,
timing, and/or volume), harmonic progression, melodic motion, or other unique features that will be
perceived through auditory sensory structure. The author shows, in the example of Bach’s invention
no. 8 (Example 10), how the musician perceives the melody by auditive "highlighting" the advents
of the melody:
Example 10. Auditive highlighting.
J. S. Bach, Invention no. 8 in F Major.
Editors: Carl Czerny, F. C. Griepenkerl, and F. A. Roitzsch.
Publisher: Leipzig: C.F. Peters. Copyright Public Domain
http://imslp.org/wiki/Special:ReverseLookup/19938
The Example 10 shows two-bar theme from the Bach’s Invention No.8. The Theme consists of the
melody that has two differently expressed counterparts. In the first bar, the specific feature of the
first part of the melody is upward jump movement on the broken tonic chord in the F Major scale.
The other specific feature of the first part is constant returning to the first note, thus expanding the
interval of the third to fifth and finally to octave (hidden polyphony). In the second bar (second par
of the melody), there is a downwards diatonic motion that finishes on the tonic, or the note that the
music has begun with. The most unique feature of the whole melody is the octave jump found
between the first and the second bars. The musicians have to pay main attention to and highlight
this octave jump, because it serves as a bridge between two opposite characteristics/parts of the
melody. Now, the musicians will have the clear idea about the melody, its features, and its motion.
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THE SELF-REGULATED-LEARNING MODEL AND MUSIC EDUCATION
Therefore, it is of significant value to students to learn how and what to highlight while listening to
music to be able to keep track on what is happening in the music.
Elaborative interrogation
It has been stated that expert musicians learn quickly due to pre-stored knowledge. These readymade patterns/chunks enable experts to encode immediately new data and store them for a while. If
the new information is elaborated further and practiced for a long-term period, it will be well stored
in memory, and thus its retrieval will be fast due to elaborative practice (Ericsson and Kintsch 1995,
211-45; Chaffin and Imreh 2002). The process which enables new information to be well stored is
called Elaborative Interrogation. As a learning technique in music education, elaborative
interrogation can be applied in two main processes:
1. Connecting new with familiar knowledge or skill, and
2. Comparing the styles, structures, and forms.
Connecting new with familiar knowledge or skill. Well-leaned compositions, in the auditory-motor
domains, will help the students to learn new music by using old knowledge and applying it in the
new information. Well elaborated motor movements will enhance learning the new kinesthetic
movements. Stored theoretical knowledge on music will help understanding the new information.
Elaborated auditive skills will help encoding new auditory events. Also, knowledge from another
fields can help elaboration of new ideas (see mnemonics).
Comparing the styles, structures, and forms. The musicians in every day practice elaborate scales,
chords, trills, arpeggios, and other elements in music. These elements are elaborated through
playing, singing or analyzing the score. The knowledge on those patterns, elaborated through
different sensory skills, will help perception, recognition and memorization of the similar patterns.
For example, in everyday practice we elaborate the scales playing them in various directions,
dynamics, articulation, changing meter and rhythmic patterns. The most common scale exercise is
the following (that the author shows) in Example 11:
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Example 11. Most common scale exercise.
F. Liszt, Technische Studien, S.146,
Editor: Alexander Winterberger, Leizig: J. Schuberth & Co., Plate 6259.,
Copyright Public Domain
The best example of how to apply elaboration in the practicing process is shown in the Franc Liszt’s
Technische Studien S. 146 (Technical studies). The diatonic scale is divided into smaller patterns
(example 12 a, b, c) and elaborated through various forms:
a) repetition of the single note of the scale:
b)five finger position:
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THE SELF-REGULATED-LEARNING MODEL AND MUSIC EDUCATION
c) parting the five finger position into two and three notes groups
with different rhythmical patterns, articulation, and dynamics:
Example 12. F. Liszt, Technische Studien, S.146,
Editor: Alexander Winterberger, Leizig: J. Schuberth & Co., Plate 6259., Copyright Public Domain.
These examples represent just few variant forms of the scale which the author has chosen to
present. There are unlimited number of elaborations of the scale employed not only in technical
exercises, but through composition as integral constructive unit.
Elaborative technique is employed not only to the scales, chords or other basic elements, but
also to the formal structure, harmonic progressions, and expressive structures. For example,
knowledge on the three-part/ternary song structure can be acquired by several processes: analysis,
composing, listening, playing, and improvising on the structure/form. Elaboration of the harmonic
progression refers to exercises where some bars in the written example can be left empty in order to
be full-filled by the student, or the student can improvise on the specified harmony as well. Finally,
elaboration of the expressive elements of music can be defined as acquiring the musical “taste” in
performance. Dynamics, tempo, articulation, agogic, and emotions, belong to the expressive
structure. The teacher has to show the student how to employ these elements into practice and
performance in various ways. The author suggests that elaboration over the expressive features is
essential for the expert performer.
Elaboration of different musical features will have impact on learning, sight/silent-reading,
memory, motor and auditory skills. Teacher has to point out where, how, why, and which music
elements are employed in different compositions, so the students will be able to recognize,
compare, and perform different techniques and procedures employed in music, and create concepts
on types of elements used in different styles and genres. In practicing an instrument or in
composing process, it is suggested by the author to abstract one element and work on it in many
variations as possible, as shown partly in the Example 12. This elaborative process on each element
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and its parts plays an important role in gaining expertise in arts. Not only in music, but we can also
observe that many great painters and sculptors, before starting and finishing their works, have made
sketches and elaborated each element in detail. Therefore, elaborative interrogation can be
described as “dissection”, exploration and elucidation of the methods, sources, and applications of
the music features by asking questions, setting problems and solutions, and connecting ideas.
Summarization
This technique is used to reorganize what has been previously learned and to get an overview on
learned information. It is a re-evaluation and recapitulation of learned information. In
summarization process the musicians rely on “the cues” which build the “mental map” (Chaffin et
al. 2009, 352-363). These cues or retrieval points refer to the motor, auditive, structural, and
emotional contents that have been learned and memorised through practicing, which help musicians
to build the mental map and “to travel” around it.
While practicing, performers start and stop on certain sections to elaborate them. Through this
processes, they develop retrieval structures on which experts rely in the performance process
(Chaffin and Imreh 2002, 342 – 349; Chaffin et al. 2009; Williamon and Valentine 2002, 1-32;
Williamon and Egner 2004, 36–44). In the author’s previous research (Marijan 2016) the student
was evaluated significantly higher after the author’s teaching model had been applied. This model
included, among other learning techniques, summarization as the most important technique by
which student used to organize his cues and get awareness over the mental map. The author pointed
to the important cues to her student (motor, auditive, expressive, and structural) in the music pieces,
on which he had to pay attention, learn and practice. The author found that these cues have
enhanced greatly student’s skills and understanding of the music that he was preparing. Student’s
mastery over these cues enabled him to build retrieval structures of motor, auditive, expressive, and
analytical features, which helped him memorize the music, and get confidence while performing the
pieces. Finally, by using this technique the quality of the performance was significantly higher.
Therefore, the conclusion is that the summarization technique helps the musician to get an
awareness over the performing cues, build retrieval structures and develop the mental map.
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THE SELF-REGULATED-LEARNING MODEL AND MUSIC EDUCATION
Learning techniques – conclusion
The author pointed out the important and valuable learning techniques employed in music
education and music learning: imitation, repetition, mnemonics, chunking, highlighting, elaborative
interrogation, and summarization. The summarization can be regarded as the process that has to
follow all the previous techniques. Understanding and awareness over the elements of the score,
which must be regarded as auditive, motor, expressive and structural units, are based on the quality
and quantity of learning techniques. The quality of learning techniques pertains to the method of
utilization of the technique. The quantity of learning techniques, applied in the teaching model, has
significant grandness to the student, as long as their attributes serve the educational and artistic
goals.
However, employment of techniques in learning is not enough for the self-regulated learner.
These techniques can enhance learning, but to have a full control over own learning process, the
musician has to develop learning strategies as well. Learning strategies involve complex cognitive
processes that control the whole learning process, thoughts, actions, memories, emotions, and
cognition. This control is gained through metamemory and metacognition.
Metacognition and metamemory in SRL structure
The knowledge on cognitive processes and the ability to regulate cognition, are the most essential
activities in SRL activity. These two actions are closely related (Sperling et al. 2004; Schraw et al.
2006). There are two types of cognitive structures that are employed in SRL:
•
metacognition — awareness over one’s own knowledge and processes involved in learning;
•
metamemory — self-judgments about memory and its content (Metcalf and Dunlosky
2008, 349-362).
Metacognition
Metacognition is regarded as a construct that is included in SRL (Sperling et al. 2004). Flavell is
considered a father of the concept of metacognition. For him, metacognition is knowledge “about
anything cognitive” (Flavell 1987, 22). Metacognition often refers to knowledge about one’s
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cognitive activity (Veenman and van Hout-Wolters 2006; Brown, 1978; Baker 1991; Flavell, 1979;
Veenman and Spaans, 2005). For example, it can be an awareness on types of learning techniques
that are implied in one’s learning process: " Think About Thinking—It's Metacognition!" (LSU
Center for Academic Success). These quotations explain the core meaning of metacognition: “A
person cannot teach another person directly; a person can only facilitate another's learning” (Rogers
1951). Teacher should only “act as a guide” (Simon 1999). “Children are their own best teacher.
They need to create their own metacognitive reality” (Manning 1991). Dirkes (1985, 96 -100) has
shown three basic levels of metacognitive strategies: connecting new information with previous
knowledge; conscious selection of efficient techniques; planning, monitoring, and evaluating
learning processes.
Accordingly, metacognition can be regarded as the (1) knowledge on how to change and apply
different learning techniques for the given problem, (2) monitoring learning process and
metamemory, (3) applying previous knowledge, (4) ability to review which techniques are used,
what may be used in the future, and (5)reviewing the results: if they have achieved on time and at
the level of expectations. Therefore, this high-mental ability manages the whole activity in SRL.
Metacognition helps one to become self-regulated learner. In music, metacognition is
developed through learning, practicing, and performing. McPherson and Renwick have recently
shown that every child differs in the way of practicing the instrument. They noticed that the
children possessed the will to learn, regardless of the level of skill. However, novices, while being
exited to learn the instrument, mostly lack in the way of how to practice. The researchers have
suggested that the teachers have to create and develop strategies which will improve learning,
instead of simply indicating “what” to practice (McPherson and Renwick 2001).
If a student has learned how to use metacognition, he will be able to consciously process and
monitor his/her own thoughts, feelings, and eventually, develop self-regulation over mental activity,
which will enhance perceiving, processing, and storing perceived information. Furthermore,
metacognition will help student to form his own model and style of learning and acting.
Metamemory
Metacognition is a conscious control over one’s cognitive behavior. In music performance practice,
memorization is the most important behavioral activity. There are different techniques that can be
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THE SELF-REGULATED-LEARNING MODEL AND MUSIC EDUCATION
applied in memorization process. But, proper use of those techniques, choices over techniques, as
well as awareness over processes of the memory, require metacognitive knowledge and skills.
In music practice, it is difficult to separate learning from memorization because everything
that is learned have to be performed from memory. Playing by heart is supposed to have been
started from the 19th century. It was the practice of Paganini, Liszt, Clara Schumann, Chopin.
Therefore, in music, every learning technique can be suggested to be memorization technique.
Furthermore, metacognitive strategies applied in learning are also strategies to enhance memory.
However, not all metacognitive strategies refer to memory, but monitor memory. For example,
some metacognitive strategies refer to decisions to learn or not, setting time framework for the
learning session, learning different kind of content to help current learning, finding different
solutions for the same problem, judging the results, picking appropriate information which is to be
learned. But, despite metacognition, how can we be sure about the persistency and accuracy of our
stored knowledge?
There is a process within metacognition that helps us to be aware over our memories. This
process is known as metamemory. It is known that our memory is a structure of different levels in
which several cognitive actions are involved: attention, perception, encoding, storing, and
retrieving. The processing of information is not linear, but is elaborated through several stages
which are known as sensory, short-term, working, and long-term memory (Sutton 2016).
However, how well something will be memorized, in author’s opinion, depends on two
factors: external and internal. External features refer to the positive response from the student's
environment that will enforce his/her memory skills. For example, these external stimuli come from
the socio-educational environment – if the students are obligated to memorize or not; if they are
praised for their memory abilities; if they get enough support in learning from the parents; if their
teachers introduce memory techniques. Internal factors that enhance memory are self-motivation to
learn, the will to memorize, and the most important – employment of metamemory strategies.
Metamemory strategies
Metamemory strategies allow one to self-judge his/her memory capacity and storage. This ability to
self-judge and monitor one’s own memory arouses metamemory judgements, the processes which
operate under the metacognition. Metamemory strategy is not a memory skill, but it is an awareness
over stored knowledge. It is one’s ability of making judgements over own memories (Metcalfe and
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Dunlosky 2008, 349-362). Metamemory is activity of constant self-evaluation in the memorizing
process. It is an active reassessment over stored knowledge, that is supported by these questions:
“what I know/have memorized”, “what I have just learned”, “will I recall this correctly after the
learning session”, “have I memorized this really well or not”, etc. Metcalfe and Dunolsky (Ibid.)
have proposed several metamemory paradigms which the author is going to explain in the following
lines and direct to the music education.
Feeling of knowing judgement. According to Metcalfe and Dunolsky (Ibid.) this type of judgement
people create when they "know something, but do not know" at the moment. Feeling of knowing
judgement is activated when people are (1) familiar with the question/cue, or know about the
domain of the cue, (2) when "there is something in memory to be found out", and (3) it can be
regarded as partial knowledge.
The Feeling of knowing judgement can be described as the first level of metamemory skill,
where one examines the memory, but cannot retrieve the information at the moment. In music
education, the teacher can improve students’ memory and learning involving this metamemory
strategy. By using simple tests, students are forced to reassess their knowledge and memories. For
example, teacher gives the test where the students have to recognize a piece of music. If students
have studied it long ago, or heard it before, they can found themselves not recognizing the piece
immediately, but it can "sound familiar". That is to say, students will have the feeling that they
know the tune, but they cannot remember who is the composer, and how the composition is called,
but they can, for instance, recognize in which style the composition is created. The author suggests
that there has to be at least one current information that student is able to recall, so that he/she can
predict the possible answer. If the part information is available in the student's memory, than the
information has not been learned. Moreover, Joseph Hart, who was the first to explore metamemory
systematically (Hart 1966, 347-349) has shown that the feeling of knowing on the former test will
help in correctly choosing of an answer on the latter test.
Furthermore, feeling of knowing
judgements can be aroused through questioners, through filling-up musical assignments, listening
tests, and other tasks. The reliability of feeling of knowing judgements has to be continually retested, in order to check the knowledge by measuring the correlation between the former and latter
tests (Nelson and Narens 1980, 69-80).
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THE SELF-REGULATED-LEARNING MODEL AND MUSIC EDUCATION
Tip of the tongue states. Tip of the tongue statement is another response in metamemory probe of
memory, suggested by Metcalfe and Dounolsky (op. cit.). It is the statement that “I almost know
something, but I am blocked to say it!”. Actually, the tip of the tongue states can be non-blocking
and blocking (Metcalfe, J. & Dunlosky, J. op. cit.). Non-blocking states are when one knows one
part of the element that has to be recalled, but cannot retrieve the whole element. In music practice,
this statement is often made when students are sure that they know the melody or the piece, but
cannot recall it entirely, only some parts of it. The teacher can leave them to improvise on the
melody in order to revive all of the missing/forgotten parts.
Blocking tip of the tongue statements can be compared to the similar effect in the music
performance. The example of this is when the student has been practicing a composition for
months, and then goes to perform the piece in public. After having started, he/she suddenly stops
and cannot go further, as he/she is blocked. The student cannot even remember how the following
bars sound, because of the “intensively active gap” (William James, 1890) that is persistent. The
performer makes attempts one after another to remember, but fails. He/she gives up and leaves the
stage. After the failure, the musician is aware that his memory has been blocked, and that nothing
could be done to retrieve the further information from it, therefore it is not the stage fright to be
blamed, but the problem lies in the wrong learning method that has been employed during
practicing sessions. Furthermore, Nate Kornell and Janet Metcalfe (2006) have shown that blockers
are not the real cause of retrieval difficulty, but they act as annoyance (Ibid., 248–261). The same
study has shown that a period of incubation (i.e. taking a break) is helpful for retrieving the
information and removing a blocker. Accordingly, the author suggests that if the student cannot
remember what is going next in the piece, it is better to stop for a while, take a breath, and then try
from the beginning, or from the particular structural or other cue.
Judgements of learning. This metamemory strategy enables accurate judgements over the actions
involved in the learning process. However, some studies have revealed that people would often
have false judgements over their learning (Corinne L. and Heit 2011, 204–216). Furthermore,
judgements of learning are accurate in the following stages of learning: shortly after the study, but
not immediately (Dunlosky and Nelson 1992, 374-80); while studying by stopping and making
judgements over difficulties of information (Metcalfe and Kornell 2005, 463–477); after the study
by making estimation about the amount of learned, i.e. when someone has the ability to create
keywords on learned material (Thiede and et al. 2003, 66–73), or convert others' thoughts into own
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words, or make metacomprehension judgements (Dunlosky and Lipko 2007) after a restudy. In
music education, judgements of learning can be used after the practice sessions, and in the learning
process as well. While practicing, the students have to pay attention to the specific cues and work
on them in details in order to recall them accurately after the practice. Accordingly, they have to
chose which sections are less, more or the most difficult, so they will be able to organize their
further practice. After the practice, it is recommended to take a break, and after a while, review how
much is learned. This way, students are able to make judgements over the amount of leaned and
time spent. The relation between these two features enables students to properly review results,
actions, learning techniques and strategies which have been used, and to make decisions on how to
organize those in the further learning sessions.
Source judgements. T he source judgements refer to the origins of our thoughts and memories.
People can often miscarry the source of their knowledge (Dodhia and Metcalfe 1999, 489–508).
The problem of the source judgements the author finds in the complexity of the memory structures
in the musician's mind. Musicians are able to grasp large amount of auditive data, visual data,
kinesthetic data, analytical data, as well as emotional data, and develop structures that gather pieces
of information that correspond to each other. Musicians are able to access and conjunct these
structures of various knowledge by retrieval and elaboration of their inner elements. Now, how the
performer controls the source of his/her knowledge while playing? How can he/she be sure on what
images to rely on, i.e. what type of stored information to recall?
Musicians practice with and without the instrument, with the score and without the score,
using Holistic or Segmental approaches (Mishra 2002, 74-86). Therefore, various behaviors,
auditive, motor, analytical, emotional features are employed in practice, thus the problem of the
source of their memory at the final performance cannot be simply determined. However, during
performance musician relies on the performing cues which are elaborated and memorized during
practice (Chaffin op. cit.). These perceptual cues have to be distinctive in order to be accessed
easily. Ferguson (Ferguson et al. 1992, 443–352) has shown that when the perceptual cues come
from different sources, they are much easier to remember, than those which come from similar
sources. While practicing, performer activates not only visual memory or analytical memory, but
also auditive and motor memories. Also, emotions, feeling, and mimics, play important role in
gathering the information. With all these features, musicians are able to build their cues on which
their performances will reside.
MAJA MARIJAN
THE SELF-REGULATED-LEARNING MODEL AND MUSIC EDUCATION
To musician, the score is a multilayered body of different events. While performing, musicians
activate the cues that come from various-source memories. If the cues are well-learned, the
musician will be aware on the
particular cue and its source on which he/she will rely in the
performance. The awareness over the memory source is the awareness over the mental map in
which different behavioral aspects are activated simultaneously during the performance. That is to
say, during the performance the structural cues will be active, at some point kinesthetic cues will
arouse, or the expressive cues will be activated at a desired place. Thus, musicians cannot rely on
analytical memory only, because the performance will be dead, or kinesthetic memory as this will
lead to memory gaps and forgetting in the live performance (Chaffin 2007, 377-393). Furthermore,
well-learned performing cues enable musicians to access different sources of their memories. This
process, by which the performer activates the cues and control the performance is described by J.
Ginsborg, R. Chaffin, and G. Nicholson (2006, 167-194):
“The landmarks are performance cues – features of the music that the musician has chosen
to attend to during performance in order to ensure that things take place as planned.
Performance cues are established by thinking of a particular feature of the music during
practice, so that it comes to mind automatically as the piece unfolds during performance.
Performance cues provide a way of consciously monitoring and controlling the rapid,
automatic actions required of a performer or conductor, making it possible to adjust to the
needs of the moment.”
Remember/Know judgement. It is very important to make a distinction between what is
remembered, and what is learned. Remembering and knowing (RK) are two processes which refer
to the strength of memory (Wixted and Mickes 2010, 1025–1054). Remembering depends on
recollection, while knowing depends on familiarity. Recollection is characterized as slow,
intentional, attention-demanding, while knowing is fast, automatic and has low demands on
attention (Dunn 2001).
There are two different approaches to RK responses. The first is known as single-process
model, which is opposed to dual-process model. In the single-process conception or unidimensional
Single Detection Theory, RK responses are viewed as memory retrieving action on the base of
strength of confidence (Hirshman and Master 1997, 345-351; Wixted and Stretch 2004, 616-41).
Recent researches that support this kind of view for RK responses, have suggested that RK
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responses can be quantitatively different rather that qualitatively (Rotello and Macmillan 2006,
479–494). Dual-process model, on the other hand, RK judgments examines as episodic versus
semantic, recollection versus familiarity, the processes that arouse at different levels of
consciousness – autonoetic v e r s u s n o e t i c (Tulving 1985, 1–12; Dunn 2004, 524-542).
Remembering is a process of episodic memory and autonoetic consciousness, which deals with selfjudgments, self-recollection, and past to present events. Knowing is a distinctive process that
operates within semantic memory and noetic consciousness (Gardiner 2001, 1351-1361).
However, whatever model is used to RK statements, it is obvious that remembering is not the
same as knowing, thus these memory operations are processed differently. These two approaches to
RK phenomenon have been developed for the purposes to make a clear distinction between
remember – know processing. These phenomena are very complex to deal with. The author
approaches to these RK statements as to multidimensional structures. We can remember the
information from the very recent past or episodes from our experience (using episodic memory), but
also remember what we have stored long ago or have been familiar with (using semantic memory).
"Knowing" is not a single process, but it is the overview over the stored information presented on
different levels in our mind. The information which has been learned long ago can be forgotten, but
some present actions or objects can revive particular stored information. Accordingly, it has been
shown that music can have impact on episodic memory. Some autobiographical events, that are
supposed to have been forgotten, can be revived by melodies or sounds that have been engaged in
particular situation. Although, not only the music itself enables recollection, but also emotions that
have been aroused by the music in those situations (JUncke 2008, 21; Schulkind et al. 1999, 948-55;
Janata et al. 2007, 845-60).
The author has observed that students better remember the information that refers to themselves
and when they are asked to create images. Furthermore, some researches have revealed that
"remembering" is better when the information is presented in the "self-judgment condition" where
self-referential attributes are linked with recollective responses, while "knowing" refers to semantic
processing of information where elaboration and imagined actions have been involved in learning
(Conway and Dewhurst 1995, 1-19, Conway and Dewhurst 2007, 125-140).
These researches can provide us some clues for RK responses in music education. How can we
make a distinction between remembering and knowing in music learning? Remembering as a
process of episodic memory can be prescribed to recollection of visual, auditive, motor and
MAJA MARIJAN
THE SELF-REGULATED-LEARNING MODEL AND MUSIC EDUCATION
emotional information perceived during lessons. All these sources being linked can shape memory
retrieval. However, the "remembered" actions will be changed during practicing sessions, thus some
of the "remembered" information will be modified, some elaborated, and some will be dismissed,
depending on the progression of the student's leaning process. Furthermore, in the learning process,
these remembered actions are merged with stored knowledge, and by linking the two, "remember"
will be converted to the "known". Thus, the author suggests that elaboration of the remembered
actions employed in the practicing is very important action in music learning. Therefore, we can
conclude that teachers have to introduce qualitative learning techniques and strategies which will
encompass visual, auditive, motor and emotional components, that students can easily remember
and employ them in their practicing sessions. Through elaboration of remembered features, students
will acquire knowledge, develop skills, and gain expertise. In performance practice, elaboration
over remembered information will enable actions and thoughts to become fast, automatic and
reliable.
Learning strategies – conclusion
Metacognition is regarded as the most important learning strategy that monitors all other cognitive
and behavioral actions. Metamemory is the structure within metacognition, which monitors our
memory processes. Metacognition and metamemory have to be incorporated as learning strategies
in learning. Employing learning strategies, the students will shape cognitive skills and actions as
well as their ability to memorize will be enhanced.
Music performance itself is an action where self-monitoring and self-judgment play an
important role. Self-instruction will enhance learning, and through self-regulation the student will
approach the expertise in music. Without learning strategies musicians will be incapable to learn the
music effectively, memorize, improvise, and perform.
Conclusion and further research suggestions
In this paper the author has been trying to approach to self-regulated learning SRL as a complex
structure of behavioral, emotional, and cognitive events developed through self-regulation in a
socio-cultural environment. SRL starts from the time we were born, in the interaction between the
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child and the environment. The forerunner of the SRL is co-regulation. This action is the base from
which self-regulation arouses.
SRL employed to music education, has important role in the improvement of the students'
cognitive, motor, auditive, emotional actions, skills, and behaviors. In order to become a successful
self-regulated learner, one has to develop self-features such as self-monitoring, self-judgment, selfanalysis, self-motivation, self-observance. These "self" actions are shaped through learning
techniques and learning strategies introduced by the teacher. Adapting these learning techniques and
strategies, students become aware of their own learning processes and actions involved in learning.
The author's suggestion to music teachers is to develop learning techniques and strategies
constantly, and to make researches on music learning and self-approach in music learning. These
contributions on how music students learn and can learn and develop and what learning strategies
can be helpful in the performing arts, will be valuable for further researches in music education and
have great impact on the educational systems.
Recommendation for further research
The author has found out another way to explore learning in music and self-regulation. Today, there
are a lot of Master-Classes that refer to music performance. Those can be beneficial sources of how
different learning techniques are to be introduced in student's practice. Since those Master-Classes
are held in a very short time span, usually in two-three lessons, the author suggests that these
classes can be made as examples of the efficiency or inefficiency of the learning techniques used by
the students. Further, in the end of these classes final concerts of the attendants are usually held. It
is very important to emphasize that the real value of the master-classes is not the final performance
of the students, but the introduced techniques and the future application of these strategies by the
attendants. If the instructor has introduced effective learning technique which can be applied in the
future practice at various stages, then the Master-Class proved its merit in overall student's
achievement. Therefore, these forms of the short-term lessons can provide researchers the insights
into the relationship between the teacher, learning technique, and the student. This relationship is
based on the teacher's ability to explain the technique efficiently, a choice of the introduced
technique, which has been accepted in the short-term period, and further elaborated, and cognitive
and motor abilities of the student. With this insight, teachers will be able to organize music lessons,
MAJA MARIJAN
THE SELF-REGULATED-LEARNING MODEL AND MUSIC EDUCATION
chose learning techniques and strategies which will serve to enhance learning and promote selfregulation.
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UDC: 371.3::78(688.3)"1995/..."
37.014:78(688.3)"1995/..."
COBISS.SR-ID 229881356
Music Teaching in Botswana Secondary Teacher Training Colleges
A Case of Molepolole College of Education
Otukile Sindiso Phibion1, Fana Rabatoko2, Shirley Marang Kekana3
1
University of Botswana, 2University of Pretoria, 3University of Botswana
corresponding author: phibion@mopipi.ub.bw
Received: September 13, 2016
Accepted: October, 2016.
Citation: Phibion, Otukile S., F. Rabatoko, and S. M. Kekana. 2017. “Music Teaching in Botswana
Secondary Teacher Training Colleges: A Case of Molepolole College of Education.” Accelerando: Belgrade
Journal of Music and Dance 2:2.
Abstract
The purpose of this study is to find out facts on music teaching in Botswana Secondary
Teacher Training Colleges. The authors conducted a formal study with regard to the
Diploma in Secondary Education with a component of Music Education Training in
Botswana. The study was conducted in Botswana at Molepolole College of Education
(MCE) which is the only government Secondary Teacher Training College, offering
music in the whole country. Data were collected over a period of time by the three
authors through meetings with staff and students surveys. The process was informed by
involving all three authors. The leading author consecutively moderated this college for
twelve years whilst the other two have been lecturers at the research college. This
experience facilitated a further exploration of the competence frameworks in music
education that they believed offered a narrow and technical view that neglected personal
attributes and qualities. Apart from observations, research information was obtained
through external examination/moderation reports review compiled consecutively over a
number of years. Some of the information was obtained through consultation of
government documents such as: The National Development Plan 10 (NDP 10), Vision
2016, Revised National Policy on Education (RNPE) and Education for Kagisano with
regard to prospects of music teaching in Botswana. In addition, Colleges of Education
documents such as syllabuses, regulations, and prospectus were also consulted. It
became evident through this research that music is accorded low status hence termed a
minor subject as compared to other subjects called major. This research revealed that the
admission process is also biased towards “Major” subjects. Initially there used to be
interviews for “minor” opting students selection which have been since abandoned. The
review found that lecturers at MCE were committed to serving for excellence yet strong
criticism was made of perceived limitations of the existing programme. This research
PHIBION et al.
A CASE OF MOLEPOLE COLLEDGE OF EDUCATION
also intended to find out the future growth of music at this college, possibly its
upgrading to the status of a major with increased teaching time.
Keywords: Major, Minor, and Elective, Music Education, College of Education,
Botswana, Teacher Education.
INTRODUCTION
Molepolole College of Education (MCE) first opened its doors in January 1985 as the first
institution in Botswana offering a Diploma in Secondary Education (DSE). The Diploma in
Secondary Education is a fulltime programme extending over three academic years with the
inclusion of Teaching Practice (TP). The first music education lecturers in Botswana graduated
from the University of Reading United Kingdom in mid-eighties and early nineties, and were posted
to Primary and Secondary Teacher Training Colleges in Lobatse, Tlokweng, Serowe, Francistown
and Molepolole respectively. Music education was initially offered as a major subject (a subject in
which a student specialises from which more credits are drawn) at MCE sharing the same status
with other teaching subjects until 1989 when its status was reduced to an elective. In 1992, music
education was accorded the status of a minor subject at both MCE and Tonota Secondary Training
College of Education (TCE). According to the Academic Regulations for Diploma in Secondary
Education, a minor subject is defined as “a specialisation subject that comprises courses with lesser
content/credits than the major subject”. At the end of 1998, the Music Education Department was
closed at TCE with all its instruments transferred to MCE still as a minor subject. This move was in
response to grouping practical subjects in order to reduce costs. Since then, music education has
been offered at MCE as a minor subject paired with major subjects which form the determinant
factor for admission. The major subjects with which music is paired are: Art, Design &Technology,
Setswana, English, Moral Education, Religious Education, as well as other core subjects such as
Foundations of Education, Communication and Study Skills, Educational Technology, and Special
Needs Education.
BACKGROUND
Whilst music education is currently offered at MCE, there are Primary Colleges of Education
offering a Diploma in Primary Education (DPE) located in Serowe and Tlokweng respectively.
Botswana College of Distance and Opening Learning (BOCODOL) is also offering a Diploma in
music. At the two colleges of education offering a Diploma in Primary Education, music is offered
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ISSN: 2466-3913 (online)
with other subjects such as Physical Education, Music and Art under the umbrella name; Creative
and Performing Arts (CAPA). This is meant to prepare teaching for primary schools. On the other
hand, the University of Botswana offers Music Education being part of a Bachelor of Education
(B.Ed. Primary) in the Department of Primary Education to in-service teachers. In this department,
some in-service students from both management and primary education degree programmes take
music education as either an elective, optional, or a core course for their practical specialization
teaching concentration. Furthermore, pre-service students from various departments are also
eligible to enrol for music education as an elective.
METHODOLOGY
This study was conducted over a period of twelve consecutive years through a qualitative approach
to explore and understand the selection, attitudes, perceptions and opinions of pre-service music
student-teachers at MCE. As qualitative research is often experience based, most qualitative
researchers rely on other criteria beyond validity and reliability to determine the quality of their
research (Huberman 1995 quoted in Carrillo 2015, 454). A case study was deemed suitable for this
research in which music facts on teaching at Molepolole College of Education were the main focus.
Practical participant observations during classroom teaching, teaching practice assessment,
document analysis and review including internal and external moderation reports and oral
interviews were employed. The research sample included year 1 to 3 music student-teachers at
Molepolole College of Education. In order to ensure credibility, the participants were actively
engaged in the construction of their narrative accounts throughout this process during which rapport
was established. As Carrillo (2015, 453) clearly stated, the rapport and trust that developed over the
course of the interviews allowed the participants to describe the context of their experiences, to
reconstruct the details of these experiences, and to reflect on their meaning.
Empirical data collection for this study took different phases of the study, which is the move
supported by Smith (2003, 81) in his assertion that analysis in qualitative research does not occur at
the end of the study as is the case with quantitative research. Following suggestions by Maree
(2010, 101), data was analysed through qualitative techniques such as: content analysis, discourse
analysis, conversation analysis, and narrative analysis. The choice of sample was determined by the
notion that pre-service music student teachers are insiders in the field of study, and therefore
regarded as the most relevant research participants towards collection of this empirical data. In this
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research, the sample of informants ranged from seven to thirty candidates at MCE. As Carrillo
(2015) stated when quoting Bronfenbrenner (1979), human beings develop as they adapt to the
changing conditions of their immediate settings and the larger contexts in which these settings are
embedded. The professional identity of teachers is therefore affected by complex personal factors
that are often interconnected.
DATA COLLECTION
Data were collected over a period of years through school visits for practical participant
observations during classroom teaching, teaching practice assessment, document analysis and
reviews including internal and external moderation reports as well as oral interviews were
employed. The research sample included year 1 to 3 music student-teachers at Molepolole College
of Education.
PURPOSE OF THE STUDY
This study is intended to investigate procedures associated with music education as a minor
teaching subject at (MCE). While this study investigates facts surrounding the teaching of music
education as a minor subject, it also examines the subjects’ status as compared to major subjects.
Furthermore, this study focuses on students’ attitudes and commitment towards major versus minor
subjects. The researchers also sort to ascertain the pre-service music teachers’ perceptions about
their expected role upon completion of the DSE programme with regard to their teaching in
Botswana Junior Secondary Schools. This was viewed in relation to their opinions about the
training they received with special emphasis to mastery and competency in content delivery,
instrumental performance, and readiness to teach. Lastly, this study is intended to accord preservice music teachers an opportunity to articulate their views with regard to the overall subject
combination, as well as status accorded to each component in the whole DSE programme.
FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION
In the discussion, researchers addressed the following subtopics: entry requirements, staffing and
student enrolment, facilities and access, challenges posed by major and minor subject combinations,
subject components and assessment.
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Entry Requirements
The requirements and admission procedures for music education are entirely based on the Academic
Regulations for Diploma in Secondary Education revised 2010, article 3.0. This article states that,
the normal minimum entrance requirements shall be the Botswana General Certificate in Secondary
Education (BGCSE) or its equivalent with credits in at least three subjects. Furthermore, article 3.4
submits that, candidates should also normally meet departmental requirements in their intended
major and minor subjects. In the music department, the same Academic Regulation (2010, 39)
stipulates that an entry requirement to music education is “interest in Music”. It is through this
process that students are admitted for Major subjects taking into consideration the above stipulated
regulations, which becomes the basis of choosing minor subjects of their interest. This study further
discovered that the entry requirements for DSE on the basis of major subjects are at the detriment of
the quality of music education as a subject. Kelly (2002) contends on the importance of the teacher
as a pivotal role player by stating that the principal proponent for curricular implementation is the
teacher. (Ibid., 43)
Faculty and student enrollment
The music education department’s establishment register calls for six staff members inclusive of the
head of department. Currently three lecturers employed on permanent and pensionable basis are on
study leave in pursuit of their masters’ degrees in music education. In the absence of these three, the
department recruited three music educators on a two year contract. The minimum qualifications
required for staff entry is first degree in music education. The number of students per enrolment
never exceeds 30, and it has over the years been declining to 11 students in 2010 and 6 students in
2012 respectively. This decline is attributed to a demand by music education staff that music as a
practical subject needs a manageable number of students per class for quality in educational
instruction and delivery. There is no basic criterion for enrolment into music education classes since
the determining admission factor is a qualification for the major subjects.
Facilities and Access
The music department has a separate (stand-alone) building made up of staff offices, lecture halls,
practice rooms, recording studio and a choir room. The practice blocks serve a positive role for
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individual students’ practices and rehearsals for musical instruments such as keyboard, recorder,
and sight singing. In addition to the above mentioned instruments, the practice blocks also house
various instruments such as guitars, djembe drums, lamella phones, fiddles, marimba, drum sets, PA
system and brass instruments. The choir room is for the college choir practices and rehearsals as
well as the venue for both theory and practical examinations. Students’ number to practice rooms is
restricted for the safety of instruments. In the afternoon, after 4.30 p. m. the keys are taken and
kept by the security officers on duty. Keys can only be given to students accompanied by their
music lecturers. The availability of various instruments and music practice rooms at the music
department is affirmed by the National Vision 2016 that Botswana has achieved a marked
improvement in the quantity of educational facilities, provided to its citizens, but the pace of
educational change has lagged behind the pace of national development. "The challenge is now to
improve the quality of education" (National vision 2016). In music education, the challenge is more
towards the quality of practical work for students.
Challenges posed by major and minor subject combinations
The major subjects with which music is paired are: Art, Design &Technology, Setswana, English,
Moral Education, and Religious Education. It is noteworthy to point out that both Art and Design &
Technology are practical subjects as much as music education. In addition, the colleges of
Education offer other core subjects such as Foundations of Education, Communication and Study
Skills, Educational Technology, and Special Needs Education. These core subjects are compulsory
to all students. While the weekly time allocation for practical major subjects is 12 hours per week,
per year group, time allocation for minor practical subjects is 6 hours per week, per year group. On
the extreme some teachers reported the encounter of confrontational issues from school
administrators where they were told that the training they received at college was not adequate to
handle the music education program. To validate this observation, Carey (2012) emphasizes that
"University departments are under increasing pressure to prepare graduates for the work
environment, to include activities that are vocationally oriented in order to achieve the expectations
of society" (Ibid., 313). Carey continues to state that, the music industry had been rapidly changing
in the previous decade, requiring musicians to be increasingly flexible, creative and technologically
literate with the ability to self-manage and direct their own careers and adapt readily to change
(Ibid., 315).
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This study has established some negative statements towards music education echoed by
participants. The negativity here emanates from the requirements of the course as clearly stated in
the (MCE) Academic Regulations for Diploma in Secondary Education (revised 2010) in the
definition of practical subject that, it is "a subject that places emphasis on an individual’s
performance or psychomotor skills, has a strong laboratory experimental or field-based aspect/ area,
and has some assessment based on direct observation or practical work." According to Carey, given
the profound shifts that have been occurring in the global knowledge economy and the careers of
those who seek to work within it, music institutions are no different from many of their counterparts
in other disciplines in needing to re-assess student needs. (Ibid., 313). Lack of clearly defining
criterion for music education defies recommendation 1 paragraph 2.3.17 of the RNPE that the
commission recommends that equity continues to be an explicit goal of educational policy and that
the Ministries responsible for education and training should introduce appropriate measures to
achieve greater equity. In response to this plea, Carey (Ibid., 313) has this to say, at a 2010
International Society of Music Education in Beijing; music scholars from around the world painted
a realistic picture of the skills required for employment opportunities for musicians in the real world
of music. They unanimously agreed that most professional opportunities for musicians will expect
to undertake a broad range of activities and will need to be able to adapt to changing circumstances.
Subject Components and Assessment
Music education at MCE focuses on three basic areas: (1) Music Theory (2) Professional Studies
(pedagogy) and (3) Practical Component. The content of the theory part prepares student teachers to
implement the Junior Secondary School (JSS) syllabus from a theoretical perspective, while the
professional studies component empowers them with methods of teaching. The practical component
which emphasises keyboard studies, recorder, and vocal sight/singing is also in line with the
practical component of the JSS syllabus. The researchers are of the view that the practical
component of the course must be along the provision of vision 2016 that "Botswana must search the
highest possible standards for vocational and technical training, as well as for academic
excellence." This point is further elaborated by Carey (Ibid., 313) in stating that, moreover, today’s
challenging economic situation means it is no longer sufficient for a new graduate to have
knowledge of an academic field only. Increasingly, it is necessary for students to gain skills which
will enhance their prospects of employment.
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A CASE OF MOLEPOLE COLLEDGE OF EDUCATION
The assessment procedures cover content (theory and practical) and professional studies in a
ratio of 2:1. The Continuous Assessment (CA) mark is a cumulative of marks from content and
professional studies component expressed in a percentage form. The End of Year Examinations’
mark (EYE) is computed by combining the (CA) mark and the (EYE) mark. The researchers feel
that this system of assessment should go under extensive reform in order to a better grade or
percentage to the practical musical aspect. Mateiro (2011, 45) has this to say with regard to this
fact, the reform of higher education has been constantly moving forward in most countries of the
world during the last decades. What can be noticed is that there are many similarities between the
changes in each country, regardless of the social, historical and economic conditions.
Conclusion
In conclusion, it was observed that students majoring in practical subjects such as Art and Design
and Technology were found to be performing better in their majors as compared to their music
minor practicals. Students majoring in Languages were performing better in their music minor as
well as their majors. The assumption is that students majoring in practical subjects spend more time
in the practical laboratories working on their projects which are also demanding. It is the authors’
observation that if music education is not paired with the aforementioned subjects, it would then be
in line with the concern of the national vision 2016 that "education has not been adequately geared
to the needs of the country and to the current job market."
Findings are based on the dissatisfaction pronounced by research participants on numerous
levels which the researchers will highlight subsequently. The issue of the subjects taught as a minor
at (MCE) dominated the researchers’ discussions with informants. This study influenced the
authors’ practice in that, music minor is descriptive of teachers who have been only introduced to
the subject basics and have limited theoretical and practical skills, despite this being a core skill for
one to satisfactorily handle the subject at the JSS. Taken together, the theoretical and practical
findings of this study help to provide the answer to teaching that there is no major and minor
teaching in Botswana JSS. Some of the informants (student teachers) who had already gone for
teaching practice indicated their limited theoretical and practical knowledge of music in relation to
the JSS syllabus. Lastly, researchers are in support of the aim in NDP 10 which is envisaged to
continue to improve access to high quality education. Researchers find this high quality education
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relevant to music education student teachers at MCE to produce competent, innovative and
internationally competitive national human resources.
Recommendations
Despite the Revised National Policy on Education (RNPE) recommendation that the subject
combination of a major and minor should be maintained, researchers recommend that music
education be offered as a Major subject at (MCE).
Since music is a practical subject, it should be allocated the same time with other major
subjects since there is no minor teaching.
Music students should conduct a research project with their counterparts in major subjects.
Music entry requirements should be upgraded to meet the desired standards.
Practical work in music should be broadened to accommodate students’ different
instrumental interests and background.
It should be a requirement for music students to pass their practical in order to graduate for
their diploma.
References
Botswana National Commission on Education. 2010. Academic Regulations for Diploma in
Secondary Education (revised 2010). Gaborone.
Botswana Ministry of Finance and Development Planning. 2009. National Development Plan 10.
Volume 1, 2009-2016.
Botswana National Commission on Education. 1977. Education for Kagisanyo. Gaborone.
Botswana National Commission on Education. 1997. National Vision 2016. Gaborone.
Botswana National Commission on Education.1994. The Revised National Policy On Education.
Gaborone: Government Printer.
Carey, G., and D. Lebler. 2012. "Reforming a Bachelor of Music programme: A Case study."
International Journal of Music Education 30 (4): 312 – 326.
Carrillo, C., M. Bagulay, and M. Vilar. 2015. "The Influence of Professional Identity on Teaching
Practice: Experience of Four Music Educators." International Journal of Music Education 33
(3): 451 – 462.
Kelly, S. N. 2002. "A Sociological basis for Music education." International Journal of Music
Education 39: 40 – 49.
PHIBION et al.
A CASE OF MOLEPOLE COLLEDGE OF EDUCATION
Mateiro, T. 2011. "Education of music teachers: A study of the Brazilian higher education
programmes." International Journal of Music Education, 29 (1): 45 – 66.
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UDC: 793.322-028.76"20"
COBISS.SR-ID 229882636
Pole Dancing Auto-ethnography
Practice, Pedagogy, Performance
Amy Patricia Cadwallader1
1
University of Michigan, Department of Dance, 1310 N. U. Ct., Ann Arbor, MI 48104, USA
Received: July, 2016.
Reviewed: July 13, 2016.
Accepted: August 29, 2016.
Citation: Cadwallader, Amy, P. 2017. “Pole Dancing Auto-ethnography – Practice, Pedagogy,
Performance.” Accelerando: Belgrade Journal of Music and Dance 2:3.
Acknowledgements: I cannot fully express the gratitude I have toward my husband, Chris Cadwallader, for his emotional support
and generosity of time and spirit. Thank you also to my friends and family for believing in me and encouraging me to pursue my
dream of dancing every day. This research project would not have been possible without the generous support I received from
University of Michigan funders, academic resources, and collaborations. Thank you to the Center for the Education of Women
(CEW) for the grant that gave me the means to buy the first two poles I used in this project in January 2015. Thank you to the
Institute for Research on Women and Gender (IRWG) for funding my trip to the International Pole Convention in New Orleans in
June 2015. Thank you to Rackham Graduate School for Conference Travel Grant in March 2015, when I traveled to and performed in
my first pole performance event in Hamilton, ON, and again in January 2016 when I traveled to an improvisation symposium in New
York City. Thank you also to the Department of Dance for partially funding my summer research travel in 2015, covering a portion of
my first trip to NYC to attend a weeklong pole and aerial intensive. And again thank you to the Department of Dance for providing
production funding in the winter of 2016, helping cover the costs of videography, photography, and graphic design. In addition to
financial backing, I have received a great deal of creative support from University of Michigan undergraduate students, my cohort,
Department of Dance faculty, and my thesis committee. Thank you to those dancers who were involved at any point in the process,
but especially to Efrén Cruz Cortés, Marisa Diamond, Michael Erickson, Erica Gavan, Mackenzie Larrance, Paula Modafferi. Thank
you Anthony Alterio, Charles Gushue, and Michael Parmelee for being amazing classmates, especially during our first year of
graduate school. Thank you to all of the Department of Dance faculty, but especially to Missy Beck, Clare Croft, Jessica Fogel, and
Christian MatijasMecca for encouraging me to learn more than I thought I could and for bettering me as a
student/learner/researcher/dancer/choreographer. Thank you to my thesis committee: Missy Beck, Clare Croft, and Petra Kuppers.
Their varied strengths and areas of research have been a wonderful support in the process of creating this thesis project.
Abstract
In this research paper, the author addresses the following four questions: 1) What are the
implications of bringing pole dancing into concert dance, not as a caricature or theatrical
version of what is performed in strip clubs, but as its own, free-standing art form? 2) In
what ways will years of ballet and modern dance training influence the type of dancing
that emerges from dancers when poles and other apparatuses are introduced? 3) How can
the author create an original pole dancing style and pedagogical methods for teaching it?
4) Who participates in pole fitness classes and how does the demographic change based
on location? What about when pole fitness classes are offered in an academic setting?
The author shares first-hand experiences of investigating pole dancing in fitness classes,
attending performances, engaging in a rehearsal process with highly trained dancers, and
teaching pole dancing to movers with a wide range of abilities. The author addresses
AMY PATRICIA CADWALLADER
POLE DANCING AUTO-ETHNOGRAPHY
how research plans changed as she encountered limitations of budget and time
constraints. The author also elaborates on the creative process that she engaged in with
her thesis cast, collaborators, and supporting designers in the making of Super-beneath, a
theatrical dance work that uses five, free-standing poles. She outline the vignettes,
overall structure, and narrative of the work. The author then discusses where this
research fits into the larger field of pole dancing, and the even larger field of dance. In
the final sections of this paper, the author describes her pedagogical practices relating to
pole classes, what “practice as research” means to her, and how she would like to
continue on this research trajectory in the future.
Keywords: pole dancing, pole art, pole fitness, pedagogy, theatrical pole-dance.
Introduction
As a teenager, I was fascinated with pole dancing, equating it to striptease, big cities, sexuality, and
the taboo of night life. The idea of learning how to pole dance and later perform it seemed
completely unattainable and foreign. In early adulthood, I had the opportunity to enter the world of
pole dancing through the pole fitness classes. While traveling to San Francisco in 2012, I found a
pole fitness studio and signed up for a class. I was impressed with the strength and grace that the
instructor exhibited, as well as how much hard work it was for me to imitate her smooth actions that
tied one powerful move to the next.
My desire to learn how to pole dance only increased after this small taste in San Francisco.
The closest pole studio to my hometown in Indiana was 50 miles away, and they only offered
classes in the evenings; I was unable to plan a time when I could drive there and take a class. That
is, until the fall of 2013. A friend of mine had a bachelorette party at that studio, 50 miles away, in
Indianapolis. The pole dancing that I learned at the bachelorette party was completely different than
what I learned in San Francisco. It still required strength and was challenging, but there was more
of an emphasis on being sexy. I enjoyed myself, but I wanted to spend more time on the difficult,
strength-based movements like those I experienced in the first class.
Not long after the bachelorette party, in January of 2014, a new yoga and aerial studio
opened in my hometown, West Lafayette. I began taking classes weekly (eventually three or more
times per week). The owner of this studio carefully considered the modest, conservative culture of
small towns in Indiana when she decided to make these classes fitness-based without a focus on
sexiness. We used the poles to engage in full-body strength training and to learn select acrobatic
skills on the pole. (We did not learn how to perform sexy routines, how to please an audience, or
other nightclub themes that I have encountered in pole studios since then.) I thrived in this
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environment and quickly began to collaborate with my friends from the Purdue University dance
program. We combined our dance compositional skills with the movements we were learning in
pole classes to create our own new style. In the summer of 2014, Amberly Simpson, Kayla Steckel,
and I produced a dance concert that featured three pole works. I performed in one called Little
Sister, in which I was an innocent child being taught by Amberly, my protector.
Riding the high of producing a successful show and being part of a dynamic performance, I
moved to Ann Arbor, Michigan to begin the Dance Master of Fine Arts program only two months
after our show. Pole dancing continued to fill my thoughts as I searched for a pole studio in my new
home. I found a studio and tried a class, but chose to go the route of self-teaching on a home pole
instead. Dancing on my pole at home was a reprieve from the challenges of being a new member of
a thriving dance program. I was able to pursue an interest that was unique to me, that I could
practice in solitude to appease my introverted personality. It did not take long for me to realize that
pole dancing could be an exciting, rewarding research topic for me to pursue for the duration of
graduate school.
Research Questions
As I began this project, I designed the following research questions, with the expectation
that they would evolve throughout the creative process (including rehearsals, choreography and
performance, literature review, and pedagogical practices):
What are the implications of bringing pole dancing into concert dance, not as a caricature or
theatrical version of what is performed in strip clubs, but as its own, free-standing art form?
How does a piece of choreography transform as it is performed for different audiences in different
locations? How will the work change for a theater, a nightclub, and an art gallery?
In what ways will years of ballet and modern dance training influence the type of dancing that
emerges from dancers when poles and other apparatuses are introduced?
Who participates in pole fitness classes? Does this demographic change based on location? What
about when pole fitness classes are offered in an academic setting?
Plan for Pursuing Research Questions
The first two questions address locations in which pole dancing can be performed. I
intended for my work to be performed at LIVE Nightclub in Ann Arbor, MI, as well as in the Betty
Pease Studio Theatre and at the Duderstadt Gallery at the University of Michigan. Pole dancing has
been strongly tied to gentlemen’s clubs in North America since the mid-20th century. In my
AMY PATRICIA CADWALLADER
POLE DANCING AUTO-ETHNOGRAPHY
relocation of this movement form to a theater, I do not wish to erase its history; rather, I want to
highlight the strength and expertise that has been developed over the years. Pole dancing, like
ballet, is a graceful, gravity-defying dance form, which is rewarding to participate in and
entertaining to watch. The artistry that goes into crafting pole choreography can be heightened by
using theatrical elements such as lighting, sound design, and staging.
I understand that the location a work is performed in has a strong influence on how the
audience perceives the work. The space dictates audience behavior, what they can see or what is
obscured, how closely they sit or stand or interact with the performance, whether they are eating
and drinking or sitting quietly, and so on. I would also wager that it affects the way dancers
perform. My prediction was that at LIVE, the audience (or crowd, in this setting) would be relaxed,
having a cocktail, and possibly physically and vocally active. I have attended drag performances in
the venue in the past, where I witnessed a great deal of cheering, singing along with the performer,
dancing, and enjoying the nightlife while a performance is ongoing. The performers in those events
were very tied to the audience, seeking and receiving approval, interacting, touching hands,
accepting dollar bills, and appearing to have a great time. Between performers, the crowd was able
to purchase more drinks, have fun on the dance floor, and socialize.
If my thesis work were performed at LIVE, the dancers in my work would have had the
opportunity to interact with the crowd as they performed. I made plans at this point for me to attend
more performance events at LIVE and other nightclub venues in Ann Arbor, with dancers in my
thesis cast coming with me. I wanted the dancers to build on their own experiences in order to
create ownership of the movement and their performance so they could interact with the crowd
during their own performance.
I was interested in the weight of placing artwork in a gallery -- a gallery space frames what
is in it as worthy, as “art.” At the art gallery in the Duderstadt Center, the floor, walls, and ceiling
are light and neutral in color. The lighting is provided by bright, focused gallery lights, which is
quite the opposite of strategic dark lighting that is present in nightclubs and pole fitness studios. In
addition to the way the space frames the work, placing performance work with live bodies in an art
gallery allows observers to see the dancers close-up. I planned to incorporate an installation of pole
artifacts as well as live performance, creating an opportunity for gallery-goers to see these objects in
a new light and to ask questions.
My third research question pertains to the choreography I created with University of
Michigan Dance students. A list of dancers involved in the work names the following:
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Mickey Erickson (Dance major, performing in work)
Erica Gavan (Inter Arts major, performing in work)
Mackenzie Larrance (Dance major, performing in work)
Paula Modafferi (Dance major, performing in work)
Marisa Diamond (Inter Arts major)
Cecilia Ngo (Engineering major)
Each dancer brings a unique style of movement and creativity to the work. I was tremendously
interested in the ways that they learned how to do existing pole dancing vocabulary on top of the
movement styles they have trained in for years. For example, Marisa Diamond is a circus performer
and has trained in aerial work for most of her life. Her movement on the pole included attack and
quick dismounts. Mickey Erickson, however, is a ballet dancer before any other form. His
movement on the pole reflected his training and highlighted his awareness of body lines. Cecilia
Ngo is actively involved in the Michigan Pole Dancing Society, a student organization on the
University of Michigan campus. She trains at a variety of pole studios in southeast Michigan as well
as on their home poles. Each dancer’s personality and movement training informed how they
approach my movement on the pole.
My fourth research question addresses pedagogy. I spent some time in the summer of 2015
teaching free pole dancing classes to University of Michigan students who were interested and
available. This included some of my cast members, but it also included a great deal of less
experienced dancers. In the Winter 2016 semester, I taught a section of Dance 100 entitled
“Introduction to Pole Fitness.” In this class, I applied much of what I learned during the summer
months and in the time since then. I am interested in the relationship between building strength,
physical fitness, dance techniques, and creativity. In “Introduction to Pole Fitness,” students
developed greater strength, set physical fitness goals, and learned a new dance technique. I intended
to guide them through creative exercises on a regular basis and lead them to take more control over
their own creativity. Their participation in the gallery installation and performance was to be a
culminating, final opportunity for them to demonstrate their creative expression and physical
aptitude with pole dancing.
AMY PATRICIA CADWALLADER
POLE DANCING AUTO-ETHNOGRAPHY
Review of Literature
Background
There is very little scholarly research on the topic of pole dance at this time. Much of the existing
literature focuses on the striptease culture, the women who perform in strip clubs with or without a
pole, the popularity of burlesque, and the economics surrounding the success of strip clubs. At the
outset of this research, I chose to more deeply investigate the art of pole dancing specifically, how
dancers train for it, and how they create their choreography.
Pole dancing has existed as an erotic form of entertainment in North America since the
1960’s, according to the International Pole Dance Fitness Association. A branch of fitness training
has emerged from the pole industry, which has evolved into a form of competition dance. Women
and men participate in these pole competitions, with choreographic themes that range from sensual
to fantastical, abstract to gravity-defying.
Goals
Through this review of literature, it is my intention to examine existing, academic research in the
field of pole dance and pole arts. Further, I intend to discover the choreographic influences present
in the field and later to develop my own methodologies of choreography and teaching pole arts. At
this time, I have identified the following research themes in pole fitness literature who participates
in pole fitness classes and why, feminist studies of pole fitness, investigations into oppressive and
empowerment theories, and the influence of erotic pole dance on pole fitness classes.
Who Participates in Pole Fitness and Why?
“Recreational pole dancing classes are predominantly a western cultural phenomenon,” according to
Whitehead and Kurz (2009,
226). Although these authors’ research takes place in Western
Australia, I think their use of the term “western cultural phenomenon” reaches beyond Australia, to
the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. Further evidence that supports my use of the
term “western” culture in this way includes Potopsingh’s work in Canada (2007), Holland’s
research in the UK, Sydney, and New York (2010), Hamilton’s research in Canada (2009), and
Owen’s review of pole studios in the US and the UK (2012). Participants in pole fitness classes are
generally women (Whitehead & Kurz, Potopsingh, Holland, Hamilton), with just a small number of
male participants (Whitehead & Kurz).
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In order to answer the question, “Who participates in pole fitness and why?” these studies
employ a variety of data collection methods. Kally Whitehead participated in a small number of
classes in Western Australia, Nicola Kim Potopsingh participated in classes in Ontario, and
Samantha Holland participated in classes in the UK, New York, and Sydney. Aside from attending
classes themselves, authors also conducted interviews (Hamilton 2009; Holland 2010) and analyzed
media (Whitehead & Kurz 2009; Potopsingh 2007; Owen 2012; Giuffre 2011). Additionally,
Holland created an international survey, for which she received input from 135 participants
representing 9 different pole schools worldwide (2010, 2).
Who Participates in Pole Fitness?
The above authors’ results indicate that it is predominantly women who participate in pole fitness
classes, with the only indication of male participants appearing in Whitehead and Kurz’s interviews,
for which they included 20 women and 5 men (2009, 2). It can also be stated that current research
indicates that pole fitness participants are those with disposable income who can afford to pay for
fitness classes (Hamilton 2009). According to Holland, participants’ ethnicities were primarily
white, with some South Asian and African American. On the other hand, Hamilton’s evidence
shows that non-white women were non-existent in her pole dancing sample. (On racial/ethnic
inquiries see also Im et al. 2013. ) In terms of age, Holland (2010, 2) indicates that women ages 18
to 62 participate in pole fitness, while Hamilton’s research showed women ages 15 to 55 years
participate (2009, 68). Lastly, there seems to be some pressure, at least according to Owen, for
women who participate in pole fitness to have lithe, lean bodies and an established level of physical
fitness (2012, 89).
Why Do People Participate in Pole Fitness?
Pole fitness studios advertise the benefits of their classes: “reduce fat, improve cardiovascular
endurance, build muscle and strength” (Whitehead & Kurz, 2009, 227), “providing top class group
fitness teaching in a fun and friendly environment (Vertical Dance 2012),” “boosting confidence
and improving all over body tone,... [and] increase flexibility and reduce the risk of osteoporosis
(Pole Secrets 2012)” (Owen 2012, 84). The “fun and fitness” theme was evident in Whitehead and
Kurz’s article, which states that the “choice to take up recreational pole dancing [is] empowering
through attainment of fun and fitness,” (2009, 239). This is also evident in Holland’s book, where
she states, “Some of the main themes which arose from both the interviews and the questionnaire
were of camaraderie, friendships and respect for instructors” (2010, 178). Potopsingh also indicates
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the importance of women looking for friendships through pole fitness in that studios strive “to be
inclusive in nature” (2007).
Beyond the goal of having fun while improving physical fitness, some pole studios also
encourage women to have fun in a completely different context. According to Owen, the “stag and
hen rituals” of the contemporary wedding industry draw women to pole studios for bachelorette
parties (2012, 90). Performing sexuality continues in pole studios outside of bachelorette parties,
which I discuss later in this section.
Feminist Analyses of Pole Fitness
Of the studies mentioned in this review of academic literature, many chose to investigate pole
fitness with a feminist perspective. In particular, researchers sought to supplement existing
discourse regarding feminist theories surrounding pole fitness (Whitehead & Kurz 2009; Holland
2010; Donaghue et al. 2011; Owen 2012) and to examine ‘sex positive’ feminist ideals with pole
(Holland 2010; Giuffre 2011).
Encouraging Feminist Discourse
As stated in the abstract of the article "‘Empowerment’ and the Pole: A Discursive Investigation of
the Reinvention of Pole Dancing as a Recreational Activity," Whitehead and Kurz use a “feminist
post-structuralist approach to the investigation of this topic through the discursive analysis of talk
produced in a range of focus groups and interviews” (2009). The authors go on to say, “As has been
noted by several authors (e.g. Edley and Wetherell 2001; Peace 2003; Renzetti 1987; Riley 2001),
the discursive redefinition of ideas such as ‘equality’, ‘subordination’ and ‘liberation’ in certain
mainstream discourses of ‘power femininity’ (Lazar 2006, 21) actually serve to invalidate ongoing
attempts to challenge pervasive, hegemonic patriarchal power structures… Thus, we currently
reside in a historical and cultural moment whereby the activity of pole dancing (as a way to ‘get fit’
and ‘feel liberated’) is potentially able to make available a range of discourses and subject positions
to women” (2009, 229). Whitehead and Kurz collected arguments from various feminist sources in
order to demonstrate the existing discourse prior to adding to it their own conclusions. “[P]ole
dancing may reinforce societal notions of both masculine and feminine sexuality as a result of
encouraging women to construct themselves as erotic objects.” (241)
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Samantha Holland (2010) also wishes to promote discourse. “Using pole dancing classes as
a starting point for a wider discussion about gendered physicality, body image and embodiment,
leisure, empowerment and pleasure, the voices of the participants are placed alongside current
discourses, drawing on leisure, gender studies, cultural studies and sociology to reveal a
phenomenon with many contradictions: for example, the recurring theme of participants disliking
physical exercise, but of feeling liberated, and even empowered, by pole classes. Such findings
challenge the image of pole classes as sexualized and objectifying” (back matter). Giuffre (2011)
states that Holland does manage to increase the discourse on the subject. “In the conclusion,
Holland reviews the debates about empowerment without taking a firm side. She states, ‘For me,
pole classes are a wonderful thing for those women who find the classes transformative, and a
beautiful awe-inspiring thing to watch’ (Holland, 186)” ( quoted in Giuffre, 312). It sounds as
though Giuffre does not believe that Holland contributes any kind of opinion to the discourse, but
that she brings it to the forefront so that others may discuss pole fitness more openly.
Sex Positive Feminism
Owen (2012, 91) constructs an interesting argument about the possibility of pole fitness
masquerading as a sex positive form of feminism, while underneath, it remains exploitative.
Meanwhile, we might see fitness pole dancing as a kind of post-feminist scheme in which
profit is pursued through the informal provision and exploitation of activities that overtly construct
hyper femininity as not only desirable, but normative. If these activities also covertly construct
female subjectivity as one of (pleasure-giving) service, it is through participation itself made
possible through waged labor. However ambivalently or ironically the practice is constructed and
received, I understand this as the scene of a double form of exploitation, and that "by these means
of containment in the landscape of spectacular femininity women are removed once again from
public life, the political sphere and from the possibility of feminism" (McRobbie 2007, 734). Given
the disproportionate effect upon women of post-crash governmental budget cuts, and the current
assault on women’s reproductive freedoms in both Britain and the United States, the depoliticizing
normalization of ‘spectacular femininity’ is symptomatic of a ‘feminist tragedy' (734) with
implications not just retrograde, but disturbing.
I am intrigued by Owen’s connection between pole fitness, exploitation of women, and
limitations on women’s reproductive freedoms in Britain and the United States. As I continue to
pursue pole research in the future, I hope to address these social connections which extend beyond
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dance and fitness. At this time, I do not buy into the idea that pole fitness remains an exploitative
form of entertainment. In my experience, it truly can be empowering to learn new forms of dance,
to develop and realize physical strength, and to develop an acceptance of self.
Contrary to Owens’ pessimistic views of pole fitness exhibiting sex positive feminism,
Holland (2010) “lean[s] towards what Catherine M. Roach (2007, 5) calls a ‘sex positive’ feminism,
by which she means a ‘type of feminist response … [which] often also defend[s] pornography and
prostitution as at least potentially empowering and legitimate, under the right circumstances, for the
women who choose these professions [my emphasis]’” (Holland, 178). In response to Holland’s
statement about sex positive feminism, Giuffre (2011) points out the differences between second
wave and third wave feminist viewpoints. “From a second wave lens, I might maintain that pole
dancing is heterosexualized and ultimately for heterosexual men’s pleasure, regardless of whether
women who attend pole classes say they are liberated and empowered by them. From a third wave
feminist point of view, I might argue that women in pole dancing classes are doing this for
themselves because they say they are, and emphasize their sense that this form of exercise or leisure
makes these women physically and emotionally stronger” (Giuffre, 312).
Oppression versus Empowerment
Although this may be yet another facet of the feminist analyses described above, it appears so
predominantly in the literature that I think it best to represent the Oppression/Empowerment debate
in its own section. Within the Oppression and Empowerment arguments, the authors reference what
is part of a much larger discourse in the field of feminist studies.
Defining Empowerment / Oppression Debate
As indicated in the second and third wave feminism comments made by Patti Giuffre (2011) in the
section "Sex Positive Feminism" of this paper, there are supporters of pole fitness who argue that
pole fitness empowers women. Likewise, there are arguments against pole fitness, which imply that
it “contribute[s] to gender oppression” (Hamilton 2009, 2). Potopsingh (2007) says in her abstract
that the “[d]ominant narratives include a debate as to whether pole-fitness empowers or oppresses
women.” Whitehead and Kurz (2009), Potopsingh (2007), Hamilton (2009), and Holland (2010) all
make reference to the empowerment or oppression of pole fitness.
Whitehead and Kurz’s (2009) “analysis focuses on the ways in which ideological dilemmas
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surrounding issues such as empowerment, control and the male gaze are managed within the
participants’ accounts” (abstract). Their work “characerize[s] three ways in which the issue of
(dis)empowerment was constructed within the talk, with these relating to discourses of (1) fun and
fitness; (2) control of money and choice; and (3) performance and the male gaze” (p. 232). It seems
that when women are in control of making a choice about whether to participate in pole dancing
activities, they feel empowered: “The theme that runs through all three discursive constructions of
pole dancing reported above revolves around issues of choice and control.” (Whitehead and Kurz,
239).
Empowerment
Although the authors I have chosen to review all speak to the empowerment of pole fitness classes,
they still manage to assign negative connotations to pole dancing or seem otherwise unconvinced of
its empowering appeal to women. For example, Holland’s (2010) use of the word ‘problematic’ in
the following statement implies negativity: “In particular, I want to explore how women initiate
agency and espouse liberation and, sometimes, physical empowerment through something as
seemingly problematic as pole classes” (op. cit., 2). Perhaps she is anticipating what her audience
might think, or responding to some of the feminist researchers she references in her book. Holland
“explore[s] the paradoxical nature of pole classes; and interrogate[s] the feelings of physical
empowerment and liberation experienced by pole students and the possibilities or limitations of
those feelings” (ibid., 4).
Whitehead and Kurz claim that the emphasis of advertising pole fitness “to be both
‘personally empowering’ and ‘sexually liberating’” is tied to a cultural phenomenon known as
‘raunch culture.’ “This ‘raunch culture’ encapsulates the cultural trend in popular fashion towards
the pornographic and also incorporates the assertion that it is no longer enough for a woman to be
beautiful or thin to be considered desirable, but must now also be considered sexy and comfortable
with an open, exhibitive sexuality” (2009, 228).
Louise Owen (2012, 86) makes references to a number of pole fitness studios, websites,
feminist bloggers, and other researchers. In one instance, she quotes Whitehead and Kurz (2009,
240) about the economic power a woman has when she engages in pole fitness classes.
The female subject is constructed as empowered through her access to control and choice as
to when she positions herself as the erotic object. (Latham 1995.) Unlike the professional pole
dancer who must dance for her patron because she has been ‘bought’ as a sexual item, the
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recreational pole dancer is constructed as having control and choice because of being the consumer
in the exchange (rather than the service provider) and the discursive redefinition of the male gaze of
‘loved ones’ as ‘appreciative,’ rather than ‘objectifying’.
I think this argument is fascinating. By removing any barriers about what kind of woman
participates in pole fitness and redefining the audience of the performance, a completely new
attitude has been created around pole fitness. Potopsingh (2007, 122-123) makes a note about
diversity of participants in Canadian pole fitness classes.
As was seen in a variety of themes and within the results of the survey (Eskes et al. 1998),
pole-dancing classes have more diversity among their participants than was originally suggested by
the Oppressive Perspective. It was hypothesized that older women would not feel comfortable
taking part in pole-dancing because of how older women’s sexuality has been viewed in western
culture (see Anderson and Cyranowski 1994; Gill 2008; Kilbourne 1998; Schaie and Willis 1991;
Shrage 2005; Strong and DeVault 1997). However, according to the survey results and findings
from other methods, it was not uncommon for women in their forties and fifties to be participating
in pole-dancing. In fact, during the interviews one instructor explained that she even had a 60-yearold woman in one of her classes. Therefore, the fact that women of a variety of ages participated in
pole-dancing contradicts the hypothesis made in the Oppressive Perspective, and therefore, could be
said to offer support for the Empowerment Perspective and its focus on diversity.
Oppression
In terms of the Oppressive Perspective, I will again draw attention to Patti Giuffre’s (2011, 312)
analysis regarding second wave or third wave feminism. From a second wave lens, it would seem
that pole fitness is oppressive toward women, regardless of the context, simply due to the erotic
entertainment history of pole dancing and the fact that women are “paying to become sexualized
and self-surveilling objects, as part of ‘self-improvement’ and ‘fitness’ regimes.” Hamilton (2009)
indicates a similar viewpoint in her abstract: “There still remain oppressive and exclusionary
aspects to pole-dancing fitness however, and the classes can add to the objectification of women in
popular culture.”
Finally, Poptopsingh (2007, abstract) concludes that “there is a preoccupation with women
and raunch in Canadian media and that pole-fitness serves the economic interest of Canadian
consumer capitalism where women are encouraged to buy their way to fitness and personal
empowerment.”
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Pole Choreography and Performance
Among the seven authors’ works which are reviewed in this document, only one mentions the
choreography of pole fitness classes or pole arts performances. Louise Owen (2012) devotes a
section of her paper to evaluating the types of movements performed in a pole fitness class, where
pole fitness draws its choreographic inspirations, and reviewing websites that advertise pole fitness
instruction.
Choreographic Origins
Firstly, Owen (2012) points out that pole choreography “draws sustenance from circus, aerial
performance, and burlesque, but is most conspicuously an adaptation of exotic dance performance,
largely practiced in the strip club, a scene of labor that (as I discuss later) is itself notoriously
precarious” (Owen, 80). She references Liepe-Levinson’s 2002 publication Strip Show:
Performance of Gender and Desire as she describes what movements specifically originated in
striptease. In describing her own experiences at a pole fitness class, Owen notes that “the categories
of movement featured in ‘early strippers’ whole-body choreography’ (Liepe-Levinson 2002, 111
quoted in Owen) and the basis of contemporary forms of striptease - ‘the gyrations of the ‘bump,’
the ‘grind’ and the ‘shimmy’ [...] and the signature sexy walk of each performer known as the ‘strut’
or ‘parade’ (ibid., 111) - acted as the foundation for pole-dance movement. One of the first moves I
learned was the strut around the pole, which provides momentum for spins, enhanced by the use of
high heels (which for me were otherwise cumbersome, my inexperience resulting in accidental calf
scratches and ungainly landings)” (Owen, 89). Owen goes on to describe the strength required for
spins, or trick moves. “The spins themselves required a great deal of strength, but, as Holland and
Attwood note, the practice, in the manner of ballet ‘draws on a tradition of women’s strength being
controlled or concealed rather than displayed’ (Holland and Attwood 2009, 177 quoted in Owen)”
(Owen op. cit., 89). This comment about hiding strength behind elegant movements, as in ballet,
seems very familiar to me. I have heard in many ballet classes messages like, ‘don’t let the audience
see how much you are working.’ It seems that pole and ballet have a similar desire to hide the effort
behind graceful movements in order to display elegance, effortlessness, etc. (See also Shaver 2012,
Baumgardner 2015).
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Ballerina Turned Pole Artist
One of the pole training websites (Pole Dancing School 2012) that Owen (2012) addresses features
Elena Gibson, founder of Pole Dancing School. According to Owen, Gibson was a professional
ballerina, touring and performing around the world before suffering an injury that led her to a career
change. Owen notes that Gibson’s ballet training influences her pole aesthetic in specific ways.
“The aesthetic is clean and monochrome, accentuating the lines of the dancer’s lean physique,
suggesting both a transmutation of the ballet form, but, as Samantha Holland argues of pole dancing
more generally, a fundamental relation to it (Holland 2010, 60 quoted in Owen)” (Owen, 2012, 89).
It is worth noting that the ballet presence is very obvious in the picture Owen includes from
Gibson’s website. Gibson is dressed modestly, in smooth black dance attire, and has her hair in a
classic low bun (ibid., 88). I believe that Owen’s references to clean lines and ballet aesthetics are
directed toward the advertisement photos and videos that Gibson is using for her pole school; there
is no reference to performed choreography.
Conclusion
Existing research on pole arts addresses pole fitness (Coan 1989, Eskes et. al 1998, Potopsingh
2007, Holt 2008, Lindmark 2008, Stern 2008, Hamilton 2009) and striptease (Liepe-Levinson 2002
quoted in Owen 2012) pole dancing. At the current moment, I have been unsuccessful in locating
research on pole choreography. Within the context of this literature review, I have focused my
efforts on pole fitness research, which addresses topics such as, Who participates in pole fitness and
why?, feminist studies of pole fitness and its repercussions, and the empowerment / oppressive
theories. There are small references within those works about the inspiration of the movements that
are performed in pole fitness classes, but only one author, Louise Owen (2012), makes specific
references to choreography.
There is room for me to contribute further research into the area of pole arts and pole
dancing choreography. Additionally, I have seen no mention of the choreography that is used in pole
competitions. Finally, there exists an effort behind separating pole fitness and pole arts from strip
club pole dance culture. However, I think it will not be possible to separate the two; further, I think
it detracts from the experience of the women who participate in pole dancing to accept one form
over the other or to discredit the erotic arts.
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Ethnographic Research
Due to the fact that I was unable to find scholarly research that addresses the choreography of pole
dancing in performance, at nightclubs, in theatrical settings, or anywhere else, I pursued my own
study of pole performance to develop some understanding of what other pole artists do. I analyzed a
great number of online videos and live performances, noting choreographic choices, costumes,
theatrical elements, and how the performers and audience interact. I noted the following four
categories of influence for these videos: acrobatics, burlesque, urban pole, and pole fitness. There
were also performances that did not fit into any of these categories, but I chose to hone in on these
four. In the next four subsections, I share samples of my performance analyses based on the above
criteria.
Acrobatic Pole Dancing
I define acrobatic expertise to broadly include extreme flexibility and contortion, aerial flips and
maneuvers, and the ability to balance for extended periods or in unusual positions. Performers who
demonstrate acrobatic expertise could be found in many genres of pole dancing, including historical
forms (Indian Roots to Gymnastics - Athletic News. NDTV Sports, 2007; Sangam Institute of Indian
Martial Arts. 2011; Patnaik 2011). Mallakhamb, or Indian pole, has existed for centuries as a mode
of agility training for male wrestlers (IPDFA, n. d.). Typically, when executing pole skills, an athlete
will move very quickly from one shape to another, highlighting their quick thinking and agility.
Mallakhamb has grown to include artistic elements, as demonstrated in Kalpesh S. Jadhav’s (2015)
video of the work, INDIA. This work is performed in a theatrical space; it uses lights, music, and
other theatrical elements to amplify the strength and grace of the performers. Additionally, unlike
traditional Mallakhamb, it involves several performers, each on their own tall, tapered, wooden
pole, moving quickly then slowly, and at times in unison.
Another historical form that has been re-imagined is Chinese pole (Berhet et al. 2007; Shen
2007; Doane 2015). Cirque du Soleil incorporates acrobatics, circus training, and Chinese pole in
Josh Saporta’s (2012) video, “Chinesse (sic) Poles- Saltimbanco Cirque du Soliel @Italy.” These
performers move in unison or in groups to create a larger image. They perform awe-inspiring feats
of strength and take great risks, such as suspending in a lateral shape while holding onto the pole
only with the hands or flipping from one pole to another several meters in the air.
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Burlesque and Pole Dancing
The second video category I have analyzed is pole dancing that incorporates elements of burlesque.
(Burlesquefest, and other videos.) My understanding of burlesque is that it involves humor, is often
satirical, and celebrates the tease of erotically removing clothing. Unlike stripping that happens in
stripclubs, burlesque ends when the performer gets down to their last layer of clothing. (McGlynn
2006; Essig 2007; Kataria 2010; Dundson 2014.)
While attending the International Pole Convention in June 2015, I had the opportunity to
watch more than a dozen showcases of performers on the main-stage. One showcase featured sexy
pole dancing and included a warning beforehand for people to leave the audience area if they were
concerned about being offended by partial nudity. Michelle Minx performed a Little Red Riding
Hood inspired burlesque/pole piece in this particular showcase. Rosie Price (2015) caught the entire
act on video, which gave me the opportunity to re-watch it later and to analyze Minx’s performance
more closely. At the beginning of her performance, Minx sets the tone with a long, red, satin dress,
a faux wolf fur on the floor, and wolf howling sounds in the sound score. As the piece goes on, she
removes the red dress to reveal red panties, a red bra, and red platform heels. With the added skin
exposure, she has added range of motion and access to friction to stick to the pole. She moves
fluidly, swivels her hips, and plays between moving fast and slow to express sexiness. In the last
moments of the dance, while spinning upside down on the pole, Minx removes her bra, her panties,
and thong underwear to reveal pasties and a matching g-string.
Urban Pole
Urban pole seems to be very popular in large cities, but I had never heard of it prior to this phase of
my research. I define urban pole as the act of pole dancing or using pole dance movement
vocabulary on public structures, such as the safety poles in a subway, on a children’s playground, or
on street signposts (See Auf der Lauger's blog; Dawn 2011; Méndez 2014.). Subway pole dancing
exhibited in Sarah Bouhnick’s (2013) video, “Subway Men hiphop PoleDance,” is indicative of a
lot of the New York City urban pole dance videos that I found online. In Bouhnick’s video, a group
of men swing around the poles on the train and they use the railing overhead to hang and do tricks.
Their movement style is very quick and tight: their movements flow together, but their core strength
remains closely engaged.
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Pole Fitness Craze and Competitions
Pole fitness, as I mentioned in the introduction to this paper, was my entry point to pole dancing.
Having participated in pole classes for a few years now, my reactions while watching others
perform have grown from awe to something visceral. I can imagine doing some of the combinations
I see performed – and I am still mesmerized by many others.
I have watched and analyzed several videos of winning performances from a variety of pole
competitions, as well as videos from pole studios around the United States. One of these studios is
called Vertical Joe’s, and it is located in Atlanta, GA. They published a promotional video (2012) to
encourage plus-sized women to participate in pole dancing as a fitness class. The video includes a
performance by RoYale, who looks happy, confident, and sexy while performing her routine. The
video seems to have the message that any woman, no matter her size, can learn how to pole dance
and can develop the confidence and grace that RoYale performs.
Alex Schukin’s (2014) video “Woman VS Man Pole Dance Battle Alex Schukin Michelle
Shimmy,” is a competition between a man and a woman -- Schukin and Shimmy. Throughout their
so-called battle, they take turns performing intricate dance combinations on and around the pole.
YouTube users who commented on the video noted the different styles of the two performers, with
some commenting on the “sluttiness” of Michelle Shimmy’s choreography and the “strength” of
Alex Schukin’s movement. Perhaps what those users saw as “slutty,” in the female performer’s
movements was the way she flips her long hair, circles and swivels her hips, rolls on the floor, and
hides the strength behind her movements in other flourishes. I think these users read the male
performer’s movements as “strong” due to how smoothly, directly, and clearly he executes his pole
moves. The comparison also carries into their physical appearances: Shimmy dances in heels with
her hair flying loose, while Schukin dances in shorts without any adornment.
Conclusion
I share these analyses in order to further illustrate the existing pole publications that I have found.
While I have not found scholarly publications that analyze the choreography of pole dancing or see
its crossover into theatrical performance, there is a large amount of visual material and nonscholarly work available. Many of my observations that apply to one genre of pole dancing could be
applied to any other genre as well. These forms continually crossover and influence one another as
artists collaborate, share, and publish their performances. SUPERbeneath, the choreography that has
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resulted from my time with University of Michigan dancers and our collaborative research into pole
dancing, also includes a combination of elements that the dancers and I have been exposed to. There
are acrobatic elements, as well as use of burlesque and ballet shapes. These are molded into
something new and unique that reflect our shared creative voice, which I would consider modern
dance combined with theater and pole dancing.
The scope and execution of this project has changed significantly over the past two years, as
I have gathered existing literature and publications, collected equipment, and worked with an array
of dancers. I read books and articles that study pole dancing from a sociological perspective, such as
‘Empowerment’ and the Pole: A Discursive Investigation of the Reinvention of Pole Dancing as a
Recreational Activity by Kally Whitehead and Tim Kurz (2009). I also found several articles and
books written about pole fitness, such as Pole Dancing, Empowerment and Embodiment by
Samantha Holland (2010) and Reading Pole-Fitness in Canadian Media: Women and Exercise in
an Era of Raunch by Nicola Kim Potopsingh (2007) . The majority of what I read addressed
feminist critiques of pole dancing, in the club or as a form of fitness, and many were written
through a feminist lens. However, I did not find adequate literature about the choreography of pole
dancing or its appearance in a theatrical setting or in concert dance. In addition to the study of
written works, I also watched a large number of videos of pole performance and wrote my own
analyses of these performances, as discussed in section "Ethnographic Research". Based on this
first phase of research, I set out to create my own concert dance work or works that would
incorporate pole dancing.
Shifting Plans
Equipment
The equipment that I used throughout the development of this work greatly informed how I was
able to work and what I could create. In my first semester in the MFA program (Fall 2014), I created
a piece called Beautiful / B34U71FUL / 13-E-14-U-T-11-F-U-16 (Beautiful, for short) that
incorporated video of me using my home pole and live performance of me using a ballet barre. The
vertical metal bar of the pole contrasts the horizontal metal bar of the barre in the space. As this solo
evolved for performances outside of the University of Michigan, my video edits became clearer and
my equipment changed somewhat. I built a barre that was stable enough for swinging and throwing
my weight around, in a way that was more haphazard than I could manage with the first barre I
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used. Beautiful exposes my personal experiences with being objectified by men, and even dealing
with small forms of harassment. In the video, my feet never touch the floor as the clips cut from one
effortless, floating pole move to another, whereas my live body struggles to stay off the floor,
climbing, inverting, and spinning around the barre. With the sound of Portishead’s You Make Me
Feel Like a Woman playing, I remove my makeup and jewelry, and enter into a world where I can
move without the weight of those outward expressions of femininity. When the sound score shifts to
my recollections of comments and actions made by men toward me, I illustrate the seemingly
endless cycle of the objectification I experienced by flipping over the barre again and again. The
piece ends with me precariously balancing on the barre, with my shadow cut out into the projection
on the upstage wall.
In the Winter 2015 semester, I applied for and received funding from the Center for the
Education of Women (CEW) to purchase two freestanding dance poles. These began to make an
appearance alongside the ballet barre in my choreography projects, where I explored dividing the
performance space vertically and horizontally, dancing from ground-level to ten feet up, and use of
strength. Moving forward, I began to teach pole dancing to several dancers in the summer between
my second and third semesters. These dancers and I shared the two poles, and soon I added a third
pole to the mix. By the end of the Fall 2015 semester, it became important for me to be able to use
the poles to create a landscape in my thesis work. I had wanted a group of at least five dancers from
the beginning, and by December 2015, I had five dancers. I decided to use five poles for five
dancers to create a balance between people and objects on the stage. Therefore, I purchased two
more poles and began to use them in rehearsals.
Dancers
In April 2015, at the end of the winter semester, my cohort and I held an audition for our upcoming
MFA thesis works. Despite the audition being at the end of an exhausting semester, it was important
for me to find a cast before summer began. I wanted to know who I would be working with once
rehearsals began so that I could encourage them to begin strength training and taking pole classes
on their own ahead of time. Several Dance majors attended the audition, along with some students
who study other forms of performance outside of the Department of Dance. From that bunch, I cast:
(1) Michael (Mickey) Erickson, a Dance major, was one of the strongest in the audition. He learned
the material that I presented very quickly. In addition, he and I had a ballet class together in my first
semester and began to build a rapport at that time. We spoke about pole dancing, taught each other
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partnering moves that we had learned from our very different backgrounds, and made plans for how
he could contribute to my thesis work. (2) Mackenzie Larrance, a Dance major, was one of the
strongest movers in the audition. Like Mickey, she picked up the pole combination I taught very
quickly. She grasped how to balance differently when dancing with a pole than when dancing
without it. She had a quirky personality and seemed like she would be fun to work with. (3) Paula
Modafferi, a Dance major, was tentatively cast after the spring audition. I knew that she would be in
at least one other MFA thesis work and was concerned about over-casting her. She assured me that
she was very interested in pole dancing; we agreed that she could practice with me throughout the
summer and that we could make a final casting decision in September. (4) Erica Gavan, an Inter-arts
Performance major, was very focused and excited about pole dancing at the audition. Although I did
not know Erica very well at this point, I was impressed with the two performances I had seen her in:
a BFA capstone piece and one of her own solos. She was creative, ready to collaborate, and had a
strong history of dancing. (5) Chelsea Hamm, an Inter Arts Performance major, was also excited
about pole dancing at the audition. I was hesitant at first to cast her because she needed to develop a
lot of upper body strength. However, she assured me that she was very interested and would spend
the summer months preparing herself for rehearsals in the fall. I was excited and encouraged by her
enthusiasm. (6) Marisa Diamond, an InterArts Performance major, was a student who I met several
months prior at an Elizabeth Streb event. Marisa sought me out to tell me about her circus
background, which included training in aerial silks. Due to her experience and the reputation as an
InterArts student being a good collaborator, I scheduled a private audition time for her. I was
immediately impressed with her strength and confidence.
I practiced pole with Mickey and Paula from May through August, with Erica, Mackenzie,
and a variety of other dancers also working with us from time to time. Mickey and Paula were
strongly committed to learning this new form, and the three of us scheduled two- to three-hour
sessions, at least twice a week, for three months. At the end of the summer, I officially asked Paula
to be in the work and she excitedly agreed. In September, I began rehearsing with the cast four days
a week, where each dancer was scheduled for five hours across two of those days.
Partway into the Fall 2015 semester, Chelsea realized that she had taken on too much and
withdrew from the work. Not much later, Marisa had an exciting opportunity in Chicago become
available for the Winter 2016 semester and also withdrew. I contacted student organizers who were
involved in the Michigan Pole Dance Society, a student organization on campus, and found two
more dancers to bring into the work: Suzy Wang and Cecilia Ngo. Suzy was not able to commit to
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our rehearsal schedule and withdrew right away. Cecilia rehearsed with us for just over two months
before deciding that she had taken on too much and would not be able to be in the work.
By February 2016, I had four dancers: Mickey, Erica, Paula, and Mackenzie. I had been
back-and-forth for months about whether I would be in the work. I was conflicted about losing my
perspective as an outside eye, not fitting in with the movement styles of the other dancers, or not
being as powerful of a performer as the other dancers. I pushed back my worries and decided that
for my vision of a large group work to come through, I needed to be part of the cast. I jumped in
with intentions of doing my most advanced skills with Mickey and Paula (who had trained the most
intensively), to be part of a powerful trio with those two.
However, the month of March brought yet another, unexpected cast change. I found out on
March 9 that I was pregnant and that pole dancing would become very difficult for me very soon. I
decided to keep myself in the work, but made significant changes to how physically demanding my
portions of the choreography could be. For example, my medical provider recommended a lifting
restriction of 30 pounds to prevent pregnancy-related muscle injury, which meant that I could no
longer help pick up the poles (which weigh about 200 pounds apiece).
From April 2015 to March 2016, from a selection of nine dancers who were involved in the
work at some point, my final work was performed by the original five who had been there since the
beginning. I was surprised that some of the dancers who we picked up along the way, like Cecilia
and Suzy, were not able to stay involved for the remainder of the project. Erica, Mackenzie, Mickey,
Paula, and I developed close relationships and a special kind of rapport. Our pole training required a
huge amount of trust and communication skills; in short, we became a close-knit group due to this
project.
Venue
In the proposal for this project, I described three venues that I wanted to perform my work in: a
nightclub, an art gallery, and a theater. In response to the popular conception of pole dancing in
gentlemen’s clubs and part of a nighttime entertainment scene, I wanted to create concert dances
that use poles and transplant them into two very different venues. I wanted to see how the work and
its reception would change depending on audiences’ expectations. A nightclub’s dark, strategic
lighting would be distinctly different from theatrical lights that guide an audience’s eye through the
choreography. The presence of alcohol and a dance floor would create space for an interactive,
uninhibited audience or crowd of observers. I wondered if a nightclub crowd would notice the
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artistry of the work and if they would see sexiness in dancing that I do not perceive as sexy; I
wondered if I could dictate what is or is not sexy through my choreographic choices and the
performance of the dancers.
In contrast to the loud, dark space of a nightclub, my idea of an art gallery is a quiet, brightly
lit space with white walls where every detail is starkly illuminated. Gallery-goers expect to look at
the artwork as closely or as cursorily as they please. I wondered how placing a live performance in
this space of independent observers would change how people navigate the gallery. I wondered how
the stark, bright lighting would expose the hidden aspects of our performance that are hidden with
theatrical lights. Most of all, I wondered how this space, that carries some authority of framing what
is accepted as “art” would influence people’s opinions of pole dancing, especially the opinions of
the performers, Department of Dance faculty, gallery-goers, and me as choreographer.
Venue Fantasy into Reality
I contacted the manager at LIVE nightclub in Ann Arbor, and later contacted the manager of Necto.
I think that there is potential for performing in both of those spaces in the future, but that I did not
have the necessary budget, skills, personnel, and time for putting that together for my thesis
performance. I intend to reach out to them again at a later date.
I also reached out to several art galleries around Ann Arbor, and spent a lot of time perusing
photographs of the various spaces around town. I ran into difficulties with finding a formal enough
space that would allow for pole dancing. I was told that there was no way pole dancing could
happen near the artwork on display at the galleries at the University of Michigan Museum of Art
(UMMA). In the end, I applied to use the art gallery at the Duderstadt Center on north campus.
Fortunately, the organizer of this space, Kathi Reister, was excited about my project and very
helpful with bringing it together.
The third venue I described was a theater. I researched the theater spaces around Ann Arbor
and realized that I did not have the budget for any of these spaces, as beautiful as they were. I
decided to use the wealth of resources available to me and hold my performance at the Betty Pease
Studio Theater, in collaboration with Michael Parmelee. Michael and I coordinated with stage
manager and lighting designer Mary Cole, administrative assistant Megan McClure, and technology
coordinator and production assistant Sean Hoskins to get our production elements in order.
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Two Directions of Reality
At the same time that I was working out my shifting expectations regarding equipment, dancers,
and performance venues, my research ideas began to coalesce into two main areas: performance and
pedagogy. The performance aspect encompasses the collaborative efforts that went into the Betty
Pease performance of SUPERbeneath: dancers, artists, production personnel, and designers. The
pedagogical aspect includes all instances of me teaching pole dancing from December 2014 to
present: Studio Soar (West Lafayette, IN), my group that gathered during Spring Term 2015
(University of Michigan), teaching my thesis cast how to pole dance Fall 2015 and Winter 2016,
and “Introduction to Pole Fitness,” which I taught in the Winter 2016 semester.
Performance
As it turns out, I am more interested in the making of work than in its final execution; the process of
creating SUPERbeneath is far more interesting to me than its performance. I enjoyed the
collaborative processes that I engaged in with the dancers, production designers, and others. In my
entire experience as a modern dancer, from January 2008 to present, I have had the privilege to
experience firsthand how the creative process is a mode of research. I like to engage in situations in
which each collaborator has the autonomy to make artistic decisions within a shared idea for a
project. The choreographer(s) make the final call and figure out how to fit all of the pieces together,
but the dancers and designers contribute freely throughout the process.
As I entered into the process of creating SUPERbeneath, I felt that I should have a heavier
hand in the direction of the work since it would be my very important thesis research. Through the
evolution of the work and the development of rapport among the cast, I realized that rather than
requiring more direction than I had used in the past, these dancers actually required more freedom
within the work. Mackenzie, Paula, Erica, and Mickey are accomplished, intelligent artists who can
create and contribute. They were a great joy to work with and became a source of learning for me as
well as the other way around. The creative process for this work is synonymous, for me, with
learning and research. It was an active form of engagement, posing questions, and seeking possible
solutions.
I further discuss the rehearsal process as a mode of research later in this document, in the section
"SUPERbeneath" and in the section "Larger Field" and section " Composing with Pole".
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Pedagogy
In the same way that rehearsals become a space for experimentation and messy ideas, the classroom
space is also a place where ideas evolve. When I have an opportunity to teach something, I can
never be certain how it will be perceived and how well it will be learned. With that in mind, I
consider my lesson plans to be a starting place for a laboratory experience. My pole teaching
techniques have evolved with each group of students and with my own growing knowledge. This
evolution is not limited to pole technique classes; pedagogy is a form of research for me in a studio
dance class, fitness classes, mathematics classes, or in one-on-one tutoring scenarios.
"SUPERbeneath"
Structure of the Dance
SUPERbeneath was built of small sections, that could either stand alone as a vignette or could flow
from one to another to create a narrative. It was a long process of trial and error to figure out the
order of those sections for any sort of narrative to make sense. The piece begins with a duet entering
stage right at the same time that a trio enters stage left. The stage is laid out in a landscape that
includes three vertical poles, one on center stage, and two evenly spaced in the upstage corners.
There are also two poles that are joined together like a dumbbell downstage center, with the circular
platform bases creating large, black obstructions. The dancers are dressed in five distinct costumes,
each one a different color: pink, blue, green, red, and black. These colors reflect some aspect of
each character’s personality and super power.
Obtaining superpowers. For the better part of five months in rehearsals, the nature of each
character’s super powers slowly evolved. We began with movement investigations about strength
portrayal for male and female superheroes, comic book characters, animated movie characters, and
other entertainment personalities. As this investigation deepened, the areas we investigated
broadened. We began looking at the spectrums of good/evil, outgoing/shy, masculine/feminine,
collaborator/soloist, among others, and used this to shape what each dancer felt they could express
about their own personality and about the personality of the character they were constructing. Thus
each dancer’s individual contributions shaped how this first section of SUPERbeneath came
together.
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In this section, each character and their power is introduced. One at a time, they hear their
name spoken over the sound system, their name pops up on the projection, and they cross the
barrier of the center poles. The projection also shows a video clip of the element each character
controls, while sound effects that match that element play over the music. After their powers are
activated, the superheroes run around the stage and engage with the poles, drawing more power
from them and building the energy level as this section goes on.
The trio approaches the dumbbell structure and tries to activate the magic that they know
will come out of it. They press buttons, trace the circles of the platforms, and try any means of
finding a secret activation. The duet is more cautious, watching from the edges of darkness around
the space. The “Automated Virtual Assistant,” or AVA, speaks over the sounds of suspenseful music
and introduces each character by their new name as they discover their superpowers. Bubblicious
crosses the bar to the sounds of bubbles popping and blows her own bubbles. Tsunami splashes
under the bar while water sound effects play. Linea entwines herself around the bar, crossing the
barrier to the sounds of twigs snapping and plants growing. The three feel energized by their new
powers and run through the space to try them out.
The duet approaches the power-giving structure and have a dramatic, elemental reaction
when their names are spoken. Match discovers his ability to create and control fire; Cirquette finds
her strength in controlling electricity and magnetism. They each convulse as their powers activate in
their bodies. AVA conducts the five newly powered characters to work together in moving the
dumbbell structure around the space and separating the two poles. Cirquette is magnetically drawn
to the center pole, where she not only exhibits her powers, but is recharged by the happenings
around her.
Electricity. Electricity evolves out of the first section when Cirquette is drawn to the center pole.
Linea and Bubblicious each handle a pole, rolling it along its platform edge. The two together,
splitting the stage with Cirquette in the middle, create a living, moving turbine. The electricity
builds in this section until Cirquette is reigned in by Bubblicious to begin working together as a
team. At the end of this section, four poles are lined up against the upstage wall, with the center pole
being the fifth and final pole put into place.
While the turbine generates electricity and builds Cirquette’s powers, Cirquette’s
movements become daring, dangerous, and gravity-defying. She hooks one knee around the pole,
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grabs onto her foot, and falls backward, to sail around headfirst. She disengages from the pole and
loses her powers, only to be recaptured by its magnetic pull. Cirquette feels the electricity coursing
through her veins as she climbs the pole, inverts, and holds herself in a long shape supported just by
her hands and one ankle. As the two spinning poles come to a halt upstage, next to the two that
started in the corners, Cirquette finds herself losing control. AVA calls on Bubblicious to calm
Cirquette with her electric-cancelling bubbles. Bubblicious directs Cirquette stage left while Linea,
Match, and Tsunami adjust the landscape and interact with the poles to prepare for a moment of
teamwork.
Wall Section. The Wall Section is a moment of organized choreography that demonstrates how all
five dancers can move together. Their teamwork is evident in the way they move in unison and in
canons. Rather than competing, trying to control one another, or following AVA’s directives, this
section is a time when they are strictly dancing together. These five very different personalities can
move together and support one another while still maintaining their own characteristics.
With the five poles arranged just in front of the upstage wall, introductions of the characters’
powers continue. Each dancer enters from stage left in a canon, using the wall to control a
horizontal run and spin around the pole, one pole at a time. There is a moment where the
perspective of the observers is shifted: The dancers control their slow movements and leg gestures,
with one leg pressed against the wall and their backs pressed against the poles. Three dancers are
upright, partway up the pole, and two dancers are inverted, with hands on the floor. On a
descending tone in the music, all five dancers come to standing, facing upstage. The elemental
video clips from the first section are projected again, this time in vertical strips that show up on
their backs and overflow onto the white wall behind them. There is electricity zapping on Cirquette,
bubbles floating on Bubblicious, flames and sparks on Match, vines growing on Linea, and waves
crashing on Tsunami.
Transition. AVA directs the characters to arrange the “final landscape,” at which time video
projection of each superpower continues to play on the white wall. The center pole is moved away
from the wall and placed back on center stage. The two poles next to center are placed in a line with
the center pole, one on stage left and one on stage right. Tsunami splashes over each pole with the
blue towel from her utility belt, wiping sweat and oil off for better grip. Finally, the two poles from
the upstage corners are brought downstage to the quartermarks. The five poles create more depth in
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the space, traveling downstage from the most-upstage position they could be, to create two lines
(two in front, three in back) from center stage downward.
Electricity & Fire Duet. As the two most volatile powers, electricity and fire are well paired in this
section. Their backstory, which Paula and Mickey created, says that Cirquette and Match are
siblings. They had a rough childhood on the streets of Las Vegas and can handle extreme
conditions. In this section, a bit of sibling rivalry shows through as they try to outperform one
another and eventually take each other’s powers.
Cirquette and Match re-enter the space, moving through the downstage-most lane. They
illustrate their combined strengths, falling, gliding, and rolling through the space. They use
teamwork to move in unison until they are suspended on the floor with feet in the air -- at which
time they are each overcome with their elemental power flying through their legs and into the rest
of their body. At this point, they drop any sense of teamwork and their competitive nature shows
through. They stare each other down as they swing around one pole, then another pole, until Match
reaches out to Cirquette. Cirquette approaches him while Match is up high on a pole, accepts his
hand, and swings around a full revolutions, suspended by Match’s hand. Again drawn to the center
pole, Cirquette becomes a conduit for Match to reignite his powers and explode into athletic
pyrotechnics. Drained of power, Cirquette staggers off to the stage left quartermark pole to
recharge.
Fire. In this section, Match’s powers become the overwhelming theme. Growing from his power
exchange with Cirquette, the fire gets out of control. Bubblicious is in danger from the heat and
must be saved by Tsunami’s water powers that will wash out the fire.
Fully charged, Match gleefully engages with the fire he creates around himself. He
alternates running through the space, flying through the air, dancing on the center pole, and flashing
a red cape artfully through the air. He demonstrates his flexibility and strength on the center pole,
wrapping his back around it and reaching his arms and one leg away, as he spins in place. Just as
before, flames and sparks project onto the white upstage wall as flame sound effects come through
over the heavy metal song on the sound score.
Meanwhile, Match is blissfully unaware that Tsunami and Linea are floating gently on the
two stage right poles and that Bubblicious is stuck at the top of the upstage-left pole. Unable to cope
with the heat of the flames, Bubblicious is helpless until someone can quench the flames and come
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to her rescue. Fortunately, Linea notices! AVA directs Linea to seek help from Tsunami. Linea runs
over to Tsunami’s pole, gets her attention by climbing onto her pole and twining her way through
Tsunami’s space, and motivates her to cancel the flames with her water. Tsunami touches Match
with water, forcing him off of the center pole. She continues to cool him down by shooting more
water in his direction. Looking for a way to neutralize him completely, without actually harming
him, Tsunami spots the red fire cape lying on the floor. She picks up the cape and envelopes him
alongside her, and the pair spin off toward stage left together.
Linea makes her way to Bubblicious and calls on her plant-like climbing ability to ascend
the pole and help Bubblicious come down.
Plant Powers. The seventh section of the work is one in which the calmer powers, plant-growth,
water, and air, take over the space. While Linea, Tsunami, and Bubblicious engage as a trio, Match
and Cirquette recharge from their huge energy expenditures by leaning on an upstage pole.
As Bubblicious and Linea descend the pole at the end of the Fire section, they join Tsunami
in a meadow in the middle of a forest to celebrate Linea’s plant powers. The trio travels to the stage
right quartermark pole. Match and Cirquette reunite upstage-left to regain their powers on the pole
that is located there.
The trio create a range of radially symmetric shapes with their limbs and torsos, arranged
around a single pole. Laying on their backs, with their torsos draped over the edges of the pole
platform, they create a diamond shape with their feet on the pole and a similar diamond with their
arms on the floor. They circle one leg through the air, roll onto their stomachs, and transition so that
Tsunami and Bubblicious are kneeling back-to-back with the pole between them. They support
Linea as her tendrils climb over their knees and shoulders and up to the top of the pole. The three
together create an opening and closing flower-like shape, with Linea blooming in the center. She
descends slowly to the floor to be welcomed back by her comrades.
Superhero Competitors. In this final section, the trio and duet again become separate teams of
competitors. Their movements emulate superhero motifs, showing strength and power as they throw
their invisible capes around themselves. This evolves into a competition with AVA announcing who
is in each spotlight. For a moment, Cirquette becomes the focus of the other four characters, just
before they split to separate poles and end suspended off the ground.
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With a sudden musical shift, Bubblicious, Linea, and Tsunami realize that they are being
stared down and challenged by Match and Cirquette. The trio make their way to their feet and return
the stare. In unison, all five dancers charge laterally across the space, making strong shapes with
their arms, flexing, swinging around invisible capes – continuing to challenge one another. The trio
travels stage right to stage left facing upstage, while the duet travels stage left to stage right facing
downstage. Match and Cirquette continue with the dramatic, cape-tossing movements as the trio
runs around and jumps around the poles.
As AVA announces who is competing at each moment, highlights from earlier in the work
come back. The trio has a moment together on three poles, followed immediately by a moment with
Tsunami and Bubblicious together on the center pole. This continues with some crossover between
the two groups, highlighting soloists, and bringing back big moments. After running around the
whole stage, all five dancers remount the poles, with Cirquette in the center. As she sails around the
pole with her bicep holding her up and both hands reaching behind to hold both feet, the other
characters show their awe at her skills. They circle around her and gesticulate in amazement. Then
all five scatter to different poles, jump in unison, and find one final, signature shape. Sounds of
electricity, fire, waves, twigs snapping, and bubbles popping come out in quick succession as the
spotlights fade out.
Production Elements. To incorporate all of the supernatural ideas the dancers and I shared, I decided
to use as many theatrical production elements as I could manage. I considered costume changes,
special lighting effects like strobe lights, video projection, use of a bubble machine, sound effects,
interactions with the audience, speech and vocalization, and a musical score for this work. As we
researched these ideas, in rehearsal and otherwise, I eliminated a few of the more cumbersome
options.
Sound Design. On other projects in the past, I have had the good fortune to work closely with a
sound designer, but I have also compiled my own sound files many times. For this project, I was
concerned about spreading myself too thin and that I would not have time to work closely with too
many designers. I had a good idea of what I wanted the sound to be like, and I knew that if I
designed it myself that I could change it during rehearsal, make last-minute changes right before a
rehearsal, etc. I used free online resources to find sound effects that fit each superpower: fire
burning, electricity arcing, bubbles popping, twigs snapping, and waves crashing. I held onto these
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for a while as I figured out the arrangement of sections of the work and which music to play for
each section. I used a wide variety of music throughout the process, including laid back
instrumental music, hard rock, songs with and without lyrics, theme songs from action movies,
musical theater tunes, and so on.
During the last few months of rehearsals, I had a newly edited soundtrack at nearly every
rehearsal. I was experimenting with layering sound effects over the music and placing tracks in
different orders. At one point, I realized that because it changed every time, there was no sense of us
as dancers “knowing the piece.” So I added a layer of stage direction, recording my voice. The
aspect of having a monotone, soft voiceover took on a new dimension in the work. With input from
Erica, Mackenzie, Paula, and Mickey, I gave the voiceover a name and updated lines. We called the
voice AVA, or Automated Virtual Assistant. Instead of giving stage directions, we made it as though
AVA were somehow responsible for the characters gaining power from the poles and directing us in
how to use our powers.
I created a few different maps of how I thought the sections of the work would go together.
These maps included layers: duration, energy level, what part of the stage was being used, who was
onstage, and what elemental powers were being highlighted. As I assembled these pieces in various
orders, I realized that there were a couple of very high-energy sections and a couple that were much
lower energy levels. (It was important to have this dynamic range so that the dancers could recover
from the anaerobic work of pole dancing throughout the work). I chose to put the high-energy
sections far apart from each other in the map, with a middle-energy section in the middle. In making
these decisions, I rearranged the sound score to match it; but at the same time, the sound score had a
big effect on how I made those decisions. It was a reciprocal relationship between the two.
Light Design. I was pleasantly surprised by Mary Cole’s artistic vision for the lighting for my work.
We met after she attended a rehearsal, and she described the scenes that she saw and the use of
superpowers. She could see where we, as performers, were imagining different things happening
and knew how to use lights to amplify the choreography. She could sense the mood in each section
and described how the lighting could enhance that mood. This was a very smooth meeting for me,
with a lot of agreeing with the things that she saw – we were securely on the same page.
One of the special features that I wanted to explore was the use of a strobe light to simulate
the effects of lightning. Mary helped me get in contact with a theater supply rental company in Ann
Arbor and researched their gear to see if it would be compatible with the equipment in Betty Pease
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Studio Theater. Unfortunately, it was not, so we did away with the strobe light idea. Mary provided
an alternative idea for me: the light over center stage could pulse slowly, then more quickly, during
the electricity section as the music and dancing intensified. In this way, Mary helped me shape some
of my more extreme ideas into something manageable for the theater space we worked in. In her
role as stage manager, Mary also talked me out of the idea of using a bubble machine due to the risk
of messy, slippery residue on stage. Instead, Bubblicious had touchable, non-messy bubbles that she
blew to exhibit her powers.
Collaborations. This entire piece – the entire concert – was built through collaboration. I worked in
collaboration with the dancers at every rehearsal, from May 2015 through April 2016. As the
concert dates approached, I worked in collaboration with Michael Parmelee in order to share the
concert. We met frequently, with more frequency beginning in January, in order to discuss
advertising, budgeting, details of the program, how to plan a reception, and so on. Around the same
time, my production meetings and lighting design meetings with Mary Cole also became a priority.
Mary brought a history and competence with using the studio theater that I could not have found
elsewhere.
Visual Designs. Caleb Carithers, a senior in graphic design at Purdue University, designed the video
projection that played during the work. I had already made several drafts of the projection, using
free video footage and stock footage that I found online. However, after putting several hours into it
I realized that I did not have the skills needed for this project. Luckily, the promotional graphic
designer who I worked with recommended Caleb. Caleb used the video clips that I found, and he
formatted them so they were similar to a comic book background. A simple change of adding a
white background, geometric frames the video showed through, and dots to give a pop art effect
made this video projection the sparkling piece of craftsmanship I was looking for. Jess Emery was
also a senior at Purdue University this year, studying graphic design. I danced with Jess during my
time at Purdue as an alumna (2013-2014), and she even performed in one of my jazz pieces at
Purdue. I like working with designers that I have a history with or have somehow established a
positive rapport. I contacted Jess about poster design, working on the layout of the program, making
a postcard, and other visual design materials for this project. I had been working on playing cards
for the five characters in the dance work which I modeled off of Magic The Gathering cards that I
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found online. However, I was struggling to make the front of the card. So this was one more project
that Jess helped with.
Accessing Dancers’ Other Talents.I usually design and construct my own costumes for my dance
works. This is in part due to having a very limited budget in most circumstances, but I also enjoy
designing and creating clothing. I began working on costume ideas in October of 2015. I had a color
palette in mind and purchased cheerleading briefs for all of the dancers to wear. The briefs worked
fairly well but were plain. As the piece evolved, I decided that I wanted each character to have a
unique costume design that reflects their powers while still being functional for pole dancing. I had
this image of using unitards with briefs, and possibly removing the unitards at some point in the
piece. However, every variation of unitards that I tried, even with cutting into them, did not work.
So I chose to meet with Mackenzie Larrance, who also has an interest in costume design. We
sketched images of a variety of silhouettes for each dancer, playing with ways to coordinate them as
a collection. Putting these ideas into action required some help from Erica Gavan as well. She had
great ideas about construction, color palettes, and even photography sessions. In the end, costume
design was a three-person collaboration, with the majority of the construction work that I
completed.
As I mentioned above, the entire process of creating this work was a collaboration. A
beautiful example of how that came together in the dancing is the duet that Mickey and Paula
perform together in the fifth section of the work. I had several pieces of movement phrases that I
wanted to incorporate, but it was difficult for me to work in the modular way I usually do when
constructing a dance section. Mickey and Paula were happy to take on the challenge of
incorporating the movements I selected into the narrative that we co-designed during rehearsal.
They really owned this section and thrived during rehearsals and in the performances.
Set Assembly. The last group of collaborators who were involved in the performance of
SUPERbeneath were the crew and a handful of students from my Winter 2016 Intro to Pole class.
These students assisted with setting up the poles before dress rehearsals and each night of
performance and with putting away all of the poles during intermission. Looking for a way to
preserve my energy and that of my cast, I asked the Intro to Pole students to assist. They already
had the skillset. They were well practiced at setting up and tearing down the poles from doing it
each week before and after class.
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Along with the groups of my students who helped with the poles, the crew members also
had an important role in setting up and tearing down. KC, Beynji, and Amanda learned how to
properly handle all of the equipment, which pieces go together, and how to assemble everything. I
had not expected them to help with this part because it is so specific. But they told me that it should
be part of their job and that they were willing to learn it. I was very grateful for all of the extra
hands.
Larger Field
In the larger field of pole dancing, I see this work as a member of the “pole art” subset. Pole art
tends to refer to any pole dancing work that goes outside of the existing structures and expectations
in other pole dancing environments. For example, in a pole competition and in pole fitness
performances, there are two poles anchored to the floor and a truss system above: one static and one
spinning. There can be any number of dancers (I have seen between one and five), use of props,
costume changes, and so on. References to pop culture are pretty common, as are references to
sexiness. My work is very different from this format since the poles are freestanding and can be
relocated around the stage. The content of the work, superheroes, is not original, but our execution
of it was.
In relation to other dance forms that I have studied, I think there is a similarity between pole
dancing and contact improvisation or weight-sharing in modern dance. The movement vocabulary
in this work was generated in the same way that I would generate movement for any other modern
work: it was idiosyncratic, specific to characters, and came from improvisations based on research
from outside the studio. The dancers and I would often begin rehearsal with a discussion of some
idea that I wanted to explore, e.g. how strength is expressed by female Disney characters. Then we
would design some improvisational score based on that concept and begin to shape original
movements.
Critical Feedback
A great deal of the feedback I have received about this work is that people are surprised and excited
to see pole dancing incorporated into a concert dance. I have participated in conversations about
how versatile the poles became in SUPERbeneath: switching between prop and set piece, changing
perspective by using the wall, moving the poles around the space with the 60-inch platforms rolling
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along the floor. More specific areas of feedback that have come up are: the role of gender in my
pole dancing work, how my work relates to the sexual perception of pole, and what it means to
teach pole as a technique class.
Gender
In the beginning of the rehearsal process with Mickey, Paula, Erica, Mackenzie, Marisa, and
Chelsea, we explored gender in a number of contexts. I led rehearsals with the following questions
framing our movement explorations:
How is strength portrayed for men versus women in comic books? Movies based on comic books?
Disney movies? After completing a gender identity quiz online, how would you define your own
gender? For example, would you say that you are 75% feminine and 25% masculine?
Portrayal of Strength in Fictional Characters. I asked the dancers about how the strengths of male
and female comic book characters are portrayed in order to look at an extreme case. I thought it best
to remove us from everyday life to some degree. After compiling a very long list of characters, we
then acted out some of those characters’ signature moves, catchphrases, and poses. We discovered
that based on our perception, male characters have a lot of upper body strength and exhibited
postures of confidence and power whereas female characters key body language emphasized their
curves, luscious hair, or were somehow sexy. Some female characters also use powerful poses, but
are often illustrated from an angle that focuses on their legs or busts.
The following week, we focused on Disney movies. We again composed a list and separated
the characters by male human, male animal, female human, and female animal. Going through the
same exercise of embodying each character’s signature moves, poses, and catchphrases, we found
that male characters were often more memorable or more interesting. They had strengths that would
be fun, like flying a magic carpet or controlling a kingdom. But many female characters needed
help and fit the “damsel in distress” role.
Next, we examined the types of powers and strengths male characters had compared to
female characters. Many of the male characters’ strengths were exaggerations of so-called manly
features: the ability to destroy, flying, picking up very heavy objects, running very fast, and so on.
Similarly, female characters had powers that were exaggerations of so-called womanly features:
mind control, altering the weather, becoming invisible, being extremely flexible, etc. We created a
number of movement phrases based on these explorations. Trying to figure out how the genders of
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the cast fit into the genders of the characters we researched was a difficult task. This led to our next
exploration: how we each define our own genders and gender expression.
Defining our Own Genders.In preparation for rehearsal one week, I sent the dancers a gender
identity quiz. It asked questions about typical behaviors, whether you leave your clothes on the
floor, if you like someone to pick you up for a date, what kind of sports you like, among others. At
the end of the quiz, it identifies the quiz-taker along a spectrum of masculinity and femininity. This
turned out to be an excellent conversation starter. I asked the dancers to journal their responses and
to bring those journal entries to rehearsal. The most memorable reflection came from Marisa. She
disliked the quiz and did not agree with it. She wrote the following in her journal: "I got 76%
gender neutral on the quiz, which is bogus! I’m female, I identify as female; if gender is a spectrum
here’s me: Just because I’m tough,
strong, and like “raunchy” comedies does not mean I should or WANT to be labeled as male...".
Marisa was not the only one who disagreed with either the gender quiz or the commonly
used gender spectrum description. Mickey wrote that a spectrum is “a little bit too linear, implying
that people exist at some point between the constructed ideas of male and female.” He went on to
say that he thinks people self-identify as male or female based on societal pressures. Erica provided
an image, shown here, that opened up an exciting dialogue.
Paula pointed out that adding to her masculine attributes does not detract from her feminine
attributes: that she can be 75% feminine and 60% masculine. I found this to be completely
fascinating and launched other ideas off of this concept, which were later used in our character
development.
As a cast, we created a long list of spectrums (not just gender) that we thought could be used
to describe a person. Each dancer chose five from that list and marked what percentage they felt
described their character. For example, Paula identified Cirquette as being 80% good, 40% evil,
90% outgoing, 60% tainted, and 60% silly. Having these ideas, along with original backstories for
each character, helped us shape how they would behave and interact in the scenarios that we created
in the work. By having someone exist along a spectrum of, say, good and evil, we opened up the
depths of possibilities of what kind of behavior they might display.
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Sexual Perception of Pole
Another concept that we explored in early rehearsals was the dancers’ perception of sexiness in pole
dancing. I asked them to respond to the following two questions:
What is your perception of people who pole dance or work in gentlemen’s clubs for money?
What do you suppose your parents would say if you told them you are learning how to pole dance?
Or, if you have told them, what was their reaction?
The dancers had a range of negative perceptions, from thinking that strippers are slutty or
drug addicts to having experiences where an employer refused to hire burlesque performers. The
fascinating thing was how open they all were to the possibility of their perceptions changing. By
auditioning for and committing to my work, they had already begun to broaden their perspectives.
Overall, this group of dancers was happy to tell their parents about the new skill they were
beginning to learn. However, they each shared one story or another in which their parents asked
them to draw a line and not to cross over into working at a gentlemen’s club. Or where they were
asked to make sure their grandparents did not find out about their new skills. Fortunately for me, the
dancers who were involved in the journaling described above (Marisa, Mickey, Paula, Erica, and
Mackenzie) were all excited about learning new things and were not concerned with people’s
negative perceptions or worries about them falling into unsavory habits. They were first prepared to
say that not all pole dancers are strippers; later, their responses transformed to add that strippers are
not bad people and that what they were learning was just different than what striptease performers
do.
Pole as a Technique Class
The third critique that has come up in a number of conversations is in regard to pole dancing as a
technique class. It is no secret that I have enjoyed teaching and participating in a variety of fitness
classes over the years.
With this in mind, various Dance faculty members have asked what it means for me to teach
pole dancing as a technique class and how it is different from teaching pole fitness. I define pole
technique as a combination of movement techniques that incorporates strengthening certain muscle
groups to train for pole skills, moving with the whole body on or off of the pole, possibly choosing
to incorporate this movement with music, and making creative choices about how these concepts
combine. My style of pole dancing develops a specific type of body – everyone of differing body
types can participate and learn, but the strengths that they develop are in the same areas: hands,
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arms, shoulders, core, and back, for starters. I further discuss my pedagogical practices in pole
classes in the section "Pedagogy".
Pole as Partner
I like to compare climbing on a pole to my experience of being a flier in contact improvisation. In
the same way that a flier is always responsible for their own body weight, relation to gravity, and
personal safety, the same is true for a pole dancer. Rather than a living, moving partner, a pole
dancer navigates a fairly static structure and how their momentum and speed effect possible shapes
and movements. Pole dancing has a dual relationship between pushing and pulling, falling and
lifting, which I find very similar to contact improvisation. For example, in order to climb the pole, I
might push against the pole with my leg and pull with my hands. In order to climb an improvisation
partner, I also might push through that person’s center while pulling my center over theirs.
In order to spin around a pole, I fall in the direction I wish to go in order to create centripetal
force that carries me around, while also lifting my body into a desired shape. Likewise, in contact
improvisation, two people can find wonderful moments of centrifugal force, spinning in and out of
contact with one another, by falling toward the center and staying lifted in their cores.
Just as with contact improvisation, the possibilities of partnering are not limited to one-toone ratios. In videos of Chinese pole and Cirque du Soleil performances, I have seen as many as
five people on one pole at a time. The poles they used were probably close to thirty feet tall and
were anchored at the top as well as the bottom. In my experience with my thesis cast using the XStage Lite freestanding poles, we have had up to three people on a pole at one time. In the seventh
section of SUPERbeneath, Tsunami, Linea, and Bubblicious do a backward-traveling spin on one
pole in unison. In addition to each person managing their own weight and centrifugal force, the
weight and forces of the other people also affect what can happen in that spin. Understanding these
forces and how to control our own speed gave us the tools to execute this trio skill.
Composing with Pole
In much of my modern choreography, I work modularly in collaboration with the dancers. I design
improvisation scores so that a new, idiosyncratic movement vocabulary can be generated by the
dancers for that piece. Then, I structure these movements into small phrases and later shape them
into sections. This modular style gives me easy access to rearranging the pieces, layering them, and
making variations that the dancers and I can name and recall. However, with pole dancing, I found
that each dancer embodies my movements uniquely. So, rearranging who does what movement
AMY PATRICIA CADWALLADER
POLE DANCING AUTO-ETHNOGRAPHY
phrase and placing one dancer’s movement on another became more of a challenge than without
poles.
To deal with that challenge, I led my cast to create their own versions of dance movements
and phrases that fit into a specific theme that we were researching in a given rehearsal. As the work
came together, I gave the dancers much more liberty than I have with other works, asking them to
embody their characters through all of their movement generation and assembly. This process
required more directing in a one-on-one fashion than with my typical mode of choreography.
Pedagogy
My inquiry into pole dancing has included a great deal of embodied research: enhancing my pole
dancing skills, teaching other dancers how to pole dance, creating pole choreography, and designing
my own pedagogical methodologies. All of this embodied research overlaps with my developing
pole dance pedagogy. In the spring of 2015, when I began training intensively, other dancers trained
with me. I had the opportunity to re-learn the basics as I explained them to others, which helped me
anticipate their questions and better explain how to do each skill. As those dancers acquired more
skills, we became a collaborative group who could teach one another new skills. In choreographing
SUPERbeneath, I designed several pedagogical tools that would influence the success of my
choreography. A few of these tools are:
I teach the following side climbs in a progression that leads to being able to do a Cupid
(holding onto the pole with a hooked leg and pressing through the arch of the other foot with hands
free): Cherub with a strong grip, Cherub with a split grip, 5-point star, Cupid with a strong grip,
Cupid with an elbow grip, Cupid with no hands. This progression usually takes about four to six
weeks, maybe longer to master.
A lot of students are excited about going upside down on the pole. In order to ensure their
safety from muscle strain as well as from falling, I teach inversions with the following progression:
Knee tucks on the pole with arms in a strong grip, Chopper preparations on the floor with bent
knees, Chopper preparations on the floor with straight legs, Knee tucks on the pole with one leg
straight, Basic inversion preparations on the floor in order to find the correct placement of the legs
when upside down, Basic inversion on the pole with a crash pad underneath and a spotter, Basic
inversion without a spotter, Chopper. There are many more inversions, but this is the beginning list
before getting into the more complex variations.
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It is important to me that dancers develop endurance for staying on the pole for a long time.
I have created a particular spin combination that can be done on static or spinning pole, to help train
hand strength and endurance.
It is also important to me that dancers incorporate their own creativity into what they learn.
We play “Three Hooks” and “Add-On” to invent new pole dance combinations. In “Three Hooks,”
a dancer identifies three points on their body that they will use as hooks on the pole, then they
improvise while moving through those three points. In “Add-On,” dancers take turns adding one
movement onto a phrase that they develop together. It quickly becomes a long and challenging task.
Introduction to Pole Fitness
The biggest arena for designing my own pedagogical methodologies was my designed course,
Introduction to Pole Fitness that I taught in the Winter 2016 semester. In this course, I had 23
students whose majors were not Dance. There was a range of strength and skill in the class: students
who could not do one push-up, students who had danced their entire adolescence, students who
practice gymnastics and tumbling regularly, and one student who had practiced aerial silks for years
before coming to the University of Michigan. With such a broad range of skill levels in the room, it
made the most sense for me to create opportunities for the students to show individual growth and
to work with others who were similarly-skilled. Therefore, I designed a tiered system for building
strength and coordination that would be necessary for each subsequent pole trick or skill.
Within that tiered system, there is scaffolding for many skills. In my experiences with
teaching over the past 6 years, scaffolding refers to teaching small skills and then presenting those
combined skills as a larger, more advanced skill. With pole dancing, scaffolding starts at the very
beginning. In order to understand the momentum needed for a spin around the pole, a dancer first
has to learn how to walk relying on momentum instead of their own balance. Once that starts to
make sense, I teach a particular spin that is similar to walking with larger, more stylized steps. That
spin grows into another spin that relies on momentum slightly differently. These can eventually be
combined into a short movement combination. The idea of scaffolding continues in preparations for
inversions, a variety of strength-based skills, and so on.
Teaching Dance Majors
The Dance majors who I worked with during spring and summer of 2015 as well as through the
school year brought a great deal of strengths to the studio. Their significant physical training helped
them to quickly learn the movement patterns in what I taught them. Although their hand strength
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POLE DANCING AUTO-ETHNOGRAPHY
was slower to develop, their strong cores and legs aided them in learning climbs and inversions
quickly. I noticed that ballet dancers’ strong torsos, especially from practicing an arabesque
position, helped with spiraling around the pole and achieving certain shapes in pole spins and
climbs.
There were also challenges with teaching Dance majors about pole dancing. Because they
were accustomed to having a high level of skill in their dance training, they also had high
expectations for themselves with pole dancing. Their strengths made it possible for them to achieve
tricks that were at higher levels than their pole skills actually prepared them for. This led to a few
injuries, clumsy execution of movements, and a lot of bruises. With time and practice, they learned
the fluidity and control of pole dancing and how to apply their strengths in this new form.
Art Gallery
In July of 2015, I applied for use of the art gallery at the Duderstadt Center. I had intentions of
performing my thesis work there and including some kind of live installation, but those plans
changed as the work developed. The purpose of the gallery evolved to be a place to exhibit pole
dancing with the live installation manned by my Introduction to Pole Fitness students. These
students signed up for one-hour time-slots that took place in April 18, 19, and 20 between 9:00 a.m.
and 5:00 p.m. Many were so excited about it that they signed up for additional hours or stopped by
while they were on campus.
We set up the poles in the gallery for three days, April 18-20. From 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on
each of those days, dancers occupied the space. Also in the gallery were posters of my thesis cast,
designed by Jess Emery, photographs taken by Patrick David, and artifacts of pole dancing.
Artifacts included grip aids, isopropyl alcohol in a spray bottle, rags for wiping the poles, and any
other gear we thought we would use that week.
Installation. During the three-day installation, my students were given an opportunity to practice all
that they had learned during the semester and to interact with passersby while they danced. Some
students even elected to create short performances, choreographed to music, to perform in the
gallery. Since the entire class was spread out across three days, they did not have to share poles as
much as during a normal class. Several students commented about being tired more quickly because
there were fewer rest periods.
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Several students invited their friends and family to come see their new skills. I met parents
and had conversations about what we did in the class. Students who stopped in to see the exhibit
asked me if the class would be taught again in the future and whether they might have an
opportunity to take it. It was encouraging for my students to be able to talk about how cool the class
was and to have such a positive reception from their peers.
Audience. I was pleased to see that my students invited their friends and parents. They were proud
of what they were performing and wanted to share it with people who are important to them.
Additionally, as the Duderstadt Center is a hub for engineering students, there were a great deal of
audience members passing by or stopping in to watch. The gallery has a large window wall along
the corridor that connects the Duderstadt Center to Pierpont Commons, which made it easy for
passersby to peek in. Several people were unsure what to make of a live installation. They asked me
when the performance was happening, who we were, why we were there, what we were doing, and
more. I was amused at the level of people’s curiosity and their seeming discomfort with their
curiosity.
For example, in answer to, “When is this happening?” I said, “Right now!” This prompted
people to ask what was happening. I lost count of how many times I described my thesis work that
involved teaching Dance majors how to pole dance, and later teaching Introduction to Pole Fitness.
I spoke about attending the International Pole Convention and pole studios everywhere that I could.
I talked with some people about how my style of pole dancing relates to gymnastics, circus arts, and
the pole fitness competitions that they have seen online.
My favorite part of the installation by far was how excited my students were to perform in
the space once they got over their nervousness. Following that, my next favorite part was when
people asked me to teach them some pole moves. I had a waiver for them to sign and taught a small
number of people how to do a basic spin combination. They were thrilled to try something new and
discovered how much strength is required to be able to develop fluidity and smoothness in pole
dancing.
Practice as Research
Throughout my two-year experience in the Dance Master of Fine Arts program, the concept of
“practice as research” has created a through-line in my coursework. I was not always able to find
AMY PATRICIA CADWALLADER
POLE DANCING AUTO-ETHNOGRAPHY
the connections between what I learned in my reading and writing assignments and what I created
in the studio, but I have the tools now to be able to do that in the future. In section 3.A. Performance
and section 3.B. Pedagogy, I discuss in more detail how the rehearsal process and my pedagogical
practices are modes of research.
Future Runnings of SUPERbeneath
My thesis project, SUPERbeneath and the development of my own methods for teaching pole
dancing, have just begun a trajectory for my career. I hope to restage SUPERbeneath, possibly on
dancers at Purdue University. My friend Amberly Simpson, who I mentioned in the introduction,
created a concert work with three poles for a Division of Dance performance in 2015. Perhaps some
of the dancers in the Purdue Contemporary Dance Company still have an interest in performing
pole. I hope to teach pole technique classes again in the future, whether that is in a university
setting, in my own studio, or as a guest teacher at a pole studio. I have developed what I believe are
great methods for harnessing creativity and building strength for pole dancing. I want to continue
using and practicing those skills.
Final Conclusion
I began this project with the hopes of addressing four key questions, outlined in the introduction of
this document. These questions evolved and became new questions, namely to do with how dancers
with years of modern and ballet training would learn pole dancing and how we could
collaboratively create work together. Our questions about gender morphed into questions about a
huge range of “spectrums” that we all exist on and how to discuss and illustrate those concepts. I
learned a lot about how people perceive pole dancing in daytime, brightly lit public spaces. I still
want to experience people’s perception of what I would consider theatrical pole dances in a
nightclub space. I am still curious about how I can apply what I have learned about feminist
examinations of pole dancing to my choreography. In short, although I answered some questions for
myself, there are still a great deal of unanswered questions.
Note: This research was executed for the purpose of writing the thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the
requirements for the degree of Master of Fine Arts (Dance) at The University of Michigan 2016.
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UDC: 371.3::78
371.3::792.82
COBISS.SR-ID 229885452
Modern strategy in the dance education
Sokovikova Natalia1
1
Petrovskaya Academy of Sciences and arts, Russia
nsok47@mail.ru
Received: March 2, 2016.
Reviewed: May 10, 2016.
Accepted: August 12, 2016.
Citation: Sokovikova, Natalia. 2017. “Modern strategy in dance education.” Accelerando:
Belgrade Journal of Music and Dance 2:4.
Abstract
The article refers to the need to create adequate scholarly approach according to
educational plans and programs for the dance and choreographic pedagogy concerning
perception of music. Perception of music is considered here as the crucial element which
sets up the basis for the scenic image, mood and character of the dance stage
performance. In the process of learning classical and ethnic dance, as well as
choreography the attention must be paid on the dance music which develops rhythmic
pulsations and emotionally sensitive mechanisms that form the memory, attention, sense
of rhythm and tempo, plasticity and musicality. For the dancer/choreographer music
plays a major role in the formation of musical and creative thinking. The author
emphasizes that it is necessary for a choreographer/ dancer to analyze the levels of music
and motion relationships in the context of musical structure, the effects of musical laws
on movements, and to clarify how musical tempo, rhythm, and intonation effect the
tempo, rhythm and sense of movement. Accordingly, the author’s conclusion is that for
the dance pedagogy it is crucial to include all mentioned since the primary level, and
points to the failures and shortcomings of dance teachers which should be overcome.
Dance teachers and choreographers must have the high-quality and deep understanding
of music as they have different problems to deal with concerning music material in
dance. They have to teach their students to adequately understand the music at the lowest
level of perception (tempo, rhythm, etc.) and prepare them for the highest level of
perception (image, idea, tone, content, meaning). In addition, the author argues about her
disagreement with some authors, who she deeply honours but has different views and
attitudes towards the same questions.
Keywords: choreography, ballet pedagogy, perception of music, dance, dancer
SOKOVIKOVA NATALIA
MODERN STRATEGY IN THE DANCE EDUCATION
Современные Стратегии В Хореографическом Образовани
В статье говорится о необходимости создания условий для обучающихся хореографической
педагогике адекватного восприятия музыки, как основы диктующей сценический образ, настроение и
характер танца в сценической практике. В процессе обучения классическому или национальному
танцу, музыка развивает ритмо двигательные и эмоционально чувственные механизмы,
формирующие память, внимание, чувство ритма и темпа, пластичность и музыкальность. Музыка
играет главную роль в процессе формирования музыкально-образного мышления танцовщика.
Анализируются уровни взаимосвязей музыки и движения в контексте уровней музыкального
мышления, музыкального воздействия и закономерностей музыкального слияния темпа, ритма,
интонаций с темпом, ритмом и смыслом движений.
Изучение условий совместных взаимоотношений музыки и танца – это основополагающие
знания для хореографа каждого из "профилей", так обозначены виды хореографических
специализаций в новом стандарте, без которых не может состояться профессионал в
хореографическом искусстве.
Музыкальная основа танцев формирует у ребёнка способность к развитию комплекса сенсорных
систем: чувство ритма, метра, стиля, образа, музыкальную память, логику мышления. Переживаемое
чувство удовольствия от танцевальной двигательной деятельности обуславливает потребность в
систематических занятиях физическими нагрузками, будь то экзерсис или репетиции исполняемого
репертуара, или работа над новыми постановками, способствует развитию сенсорных систем с
доминиррованием специфических качеств и свойтв необходимых для выволнения конкрктной
профессиональной деятельности. Концентрация внимания на отдельных, наиболее важных
компонентах составляющих основу осознанного профессионального владения музыкальными
двигательными действиями является одним из факторов развития наиболее тонкого моторного
действия, отвечающего интонационным особенностям музыкальной первоосновы и, способствует
появлению осознанного мотива деятельности.
Войдя первого сентября в первый класс балетной школы, ученик становится "повенчанным" с
музыкой. Всё дальнейшее обучение и восприятие учебного хореографического материала будет
проходить через музыку, у ребёнка будет формироваться музыкальное мышление в зависимости от
багажа музыкальной памяти.
Адаптация к новой форме восприятия у всех происходит по-разному и зависит от ряда
факторов, как внутренних так и внешних.
Одним из ведущих факторов является музыкальная грамотность педагога. Педагог слышит
музыку, владеет высокой личной культурой восприятия музыки на подсознательном, актёрском
Accelerando: Belgrade Journal of Music and Dance
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уровне. Но как это объяснить детям? Как это объяснить концертмейстеру? Только показать движение
на музыку?
К сожалению, если концертмейстер посмотрит наши пособия по классическому танцу, даже
самых авторитетных авторов, то вряд ли там найдет исчерпывающие рекомендации по музыкальному
сопровождению. Кроме музыкального размера, других рекомендаций нет.
А что поймет студент, учащийся вприглядку по балетным методичкам, но не работавший в
академическом театре 70-80 годов прошлого столетия, не имеющий опыта общения с гениями
танцевального искусства?
Студент, который не прошёл все ступени музыкального образования, которое даёт балетная
школа: фортепиано, теория музыки, музыкальная литература, история музыки. Плюс анализ
музыкальной формы, чтение и понимание клавира и партитуры, которые даются балетмейстерам в
Высшей школе, таким образом, формируя музыкальное мышление, будет иметь проблемы с музыкой
и обременять этими проблемами своих учеников или артистов.
Педагог, не умеющий объяснить концертмейстеру характер музыки, а тем более работающий
п о д электронный носитель музыки, будет "истязать" детей, чтобы они музыкально исполняли,
например, маршевые движения на тарантеллу, считая её на 2/4 и криком и ором, добиваться
результатов, так же как от неё добивались танцевать вальс на 2/4 в Новосибирском колледже
культуры.(пример из реальной практики)
Могут ли наши учебные пособия пролить свет на тесную взаимосвязь музыки и
танцевального движения?
Проблема современного балетного образования не в отсутствии хорошей программы, не в
отсутствии специалистов, а в нежелании "эффективных балетных менеджеров" иметь дело с
профессионалами чтобы не демонстрировать свою безграмотность?
В аспекте целостного восприятия музыки и танца рассмотрим на первый взгляд
парадоксальные для непрофессионала, да и для думающего профессионала тоже, противоречия,
которые обнаружены в методической литературе.
Например, откроем любое авторитетное методическое пособие по классическому танцу
(допустим "100 уроков классического танца" В. Костровицкой), профессионалы его могут даже не
открывать, знаем и так, что разделы урока классического танца называются:
1) Экзерсис у палки,
2) Экзерсис на середине зала,
3) Allegro,
4) Экзерсис на пальцах.
SOKOVIKOVA NATALIA
MODERN STRATEGY IN THE DANCE EDUCATION
Первый вопрос непрофессионала: "Из четырёх разделов только один связан с музыкой?" Но
мы-то знаем, что…. А почему? Но вряд ли кто-то из нас может ответить на вопрос, почему разделы
урока называются именно так, а не иначе.
На этот вопрос мы не находим ответа даже в труде под названием "Система мужского
классического танца" доктора пед. наук Е.П. Валукина. В разделе "Роль музыки в хореографической
композиции" о темпе, а как мы понимаем allegro - это темп. Он пишет:
"Темп – это скорость развёртывания музыкальной темы во времени, это одно из действенных
выразительных средств, которое определяет характер того или иного танца. Ритмическое развитие…"
дальше все про ритм, который для Е.П. является основополагающим даже "в работе над балетным
спектаклем всё начинается с выбора ритма музыкального произведения, так как ритм даёт начало
танцу, определяет его характер, его эмоциональный строй". Но, это откровение для балетмейстеров,
которые знают о ком и о чём идет речь.
Для педагогов о темпе тоже есть некоторые откровения: "…Однако равномерный ритм (это
про темп) наиболее универсален. Он может быть присущ музыкальным сочинениям самого
противоположного характера – медленным широким по мелодике пьесам кантиленного характера, а
так же стремительным и динамичным, таким как токката. Равномерный ритм удобен для экзерсиса,
для связи хореографических комбинаций, он создаёт впечатление цельности решения, впечатление
законченного небольшого спектакля"! (Е.П. Валукин. "Система мужского классического танца" с. 51),
После такой заявки доктора наук может ли профессиональный концертмейстер, не имеющий
такого количества регалий, объяснить выпускнику академии или университета культуры, не
знающему "элементарной теории музыки", что в балетном спектакле как минимум двадцать номеров
и все написаны в разных ритмах, музыкальных размерах, темпах, тональностях, что существуют
различные темпы и ритмы, кроме "токкаты" и т.д. Далее анализируя содержание разделов урока
классического танца, мы видим:
Экзерсис у палки. Перечисление названий движений, естественно на французском языке с
указанием музыкального размера. Темп - не указан.
Экзерсис на середине.Первое движение носит название темпа – маленькое adagio, а затем идут
уже знакомые нам по станку элементарные движения с указанием музыкального размера
Allegro. В этом разделе не все движения исполняются в темпе аllegro, большие прыжки
исполняются в ритме быстрого или медленного вальса, но мы знаем, что иногда прыжки даются на
мазурку или другие танцевальные ритмы и темпы, например, moderato, scherczo.
Экзерсис на пальцах дается по схеме первых двух разделов.
Accelerando: Belgrade Journal of Music and Dance
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ISSN: 2466-3913 (online)
Для "балетных" всё предельно ясно с вопросом о нераздельности музыки и движения. Но вопрос
непрофессионала? Так что же, только раздел Allegro исполняется под музыку и только в этом темпе, а
движения остальных разделов исполняются под счёт или можно под барабанный бой, если задан
только размер, а темп и ритм не задан?
Музыкальный размер, например, ¾ может быть в ритме вальса, мазурки, полонеза, 2/4 в ритме
польки, галопа, марша и т.д.
Поэтому когда мы анализируем музыку в единстве с танцевальным движением в аспекте
психологического воздействия на учащегося или на артиста, мы должны в первую очередь для себя
ранжировать выразительные средства музыки и движения, закономерности их взаимосвязей, уровни
формы взаимодействия и степени слияния в различных жанрах и видах хореографического искусства.
Ведь не случайно ещё в шестидесятые годы балетмейстеры не могли себе позволить использовать на
польку шаг с подскоком, исполняемый на ¾, (шаг, подскок, приземление), на вальс мазурку, на
полонез простые шаги и т.д.
Закономерности взаимосвязей музыки и движения продиктованы сущностной структурой,
возникшей в результате многовекового развития народного танцевального творчества. Процесс
усложнения и совершенствования музыкально-хореографических взаимоотношений в
профессиональном хореографическом искусстве гораздо разнообразнее.
Существует два уровня взаимосвязей – низшие и высшие; низшие взаимосвязи прослеживаются в
интонационной сфере, метроритме, темпе, динамике; высшие обнаруживаются в области
драматургии, жанра, стиля, формы или структуры.
1.
Формы взаимодействия выразительных средств музыки и движения. Их характерные
приметы: синхронное соответствие, контрапунктическое соединение, свободное
функционирование, параллелизм, взаимодополняющие сочетания и сопоставления,
контрастные соотношения и противопоставления, конфликтные несовпадения и противоречия
(диссонансы).
2.
Степени слияния музыкально-хореографических средств, их градации; высокая степень
слияния, средняя, малая диссонирующая (конфликтная).
Особенности бытования уровней музыкально-хореографических взаимосвязей, форм взаимодействия
и степеней слияния в различных жанрах хореографического искусства: в учебных и сценических
видах классического, характерного, народно-сценического, историко-бытового и бального танца.
SOKOVIKOVA NATALIA
MODERN STRATEGY IN THE DANCE EDUCATION
Закономерности интонационных средств музыки и движения:
Интонационные соответствия в композиционных построениях музыки и танца, определяющее
возможность тесного слияния музыкальных и движенческих средств выразительности и
художественных качеств движенческих структур;
Полное слияние интонационного строя музыки и движения как единственное условие,
гарантирующее успешное проведение учебных занятий и полноценное усвоение учащимися
хореографического материала.
Закономерности взаимосвязей метроритмических средств музыки и движения:
Соответствие соотношения звучания и движения в сфере метроритма;
Соответствие соотношения биомеханической и физиологической основы метра и ритма с динамикопространственными характеристикам движения;
Особенности метрической сетки и ритмической раскладки танцевальных движений;
Закономерности взаимосвязей темповых и динамических средств музыки и движения:
Значение взаимосвязей темповых и динамических средств музыки и движения;
Различие в содержании понятий музыкального и движенческого темпа и динамики;
Биомеханическая и физиологическая основа движенческого темпа и динамики;
Наличие в движенческом темпе, в отличие от музыкального, двух измерений, то есть собственно
движенческого темпа, связанного с определённой частотой чередования составных элементов того
или иного движения и абсолютного темпа, выраженного скоростью пульсации метрических
акцентных и неакцентных долей, в темпе которой и происходит определённая частота составных
движенческих элементов.
Нарушение во взаимосвязях темповых и динамических средств музыки и движения как действия,
ведущее к продуктивности учебного процесса.
Закономерности структурных взаимосвязей музыки и движения.
Разнообразие видов взаимодействия музыкальных и движенческих структур, обусловленное большей
подвижностью звуковых средств в сравнении с подвижностью движений человеческого тела,
ограниченной физическими и техническими возможностями учащихся или артистов.
Различие в содержании понятий музыкальной и движенческой формы и структуры. Наличие
несовпадений в объёме музыки и движения, в учебном процессе.
Определяющая роль физиологических основ в построении, учебных комбинаций;
Accelerando: Belgrade Journal of Music and Dance
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ISSN: 2466-3913 (online)
Вопросы анализа формы танцевальной музыки.
Музыкальный материал в одночастной простой и сложной двухчастной и отчасти простой
трёхчастной форме, как основная преимущественная структура музыкального сопровождения
учебных занятий в хореографии.
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Kostrovitskaya, Vera S. 2004. 100 Lessons in Classical ballet: The Eight-Year Program of Leningrad's
Vaganova Choreograpic School. Limelight Editions.
Kostrovitskaya, Vera, and Pisarev Alexei. 1976. Shkola klassicheskogo tanca. (School of classical dance.)
Leningrad: «Iskusstvo».
Sokovikova, N. V. 2001. "Psihologicheskaja priroda klassicheskogo tanca." V sb. Psihologicheskie
mehanizmy reguljacii aktivnosti lichnosti, 222. ("Ballet Psychology. Psychology of classical dance." In
Collection of trudov. Chast. Psychological mechanisms of regulation of the activity of the individual,
222.) Novosibirsk: NSPU Novosibirsk.
Sokovikova, N. V. 2012. Ballet Psychology. Psychology of dance activities. 3rd ed. Novosibirsk:
Novosibirsk Publishing House.
Tarasov, N. I. 1971. Klassicheskij tnec. (Classical dance.) Moscow: «Iskusstvo».
Teplov, B. M. 1947. Tipologija muzykal'nyh sposobnostej. (Typology of musical abilities.) MoscowLeningrad: APN RSFSR.
Vaganova, A. 1980. Osnovy klassicheskogo tanca. (The Basis of Classical Dance). Leningrad: «Iskusstvo».
Vallon, Anri. 1956. Ot dejstvija k mysli. (From practice to theory.) Moscow: Publisher of International
Literature.
---. 1967. Psihicheskoe razvitie rebjonka. Moscow.
Valukin, E. P. 1980. "K izucheniju roli sovetskoj horeograficheskoj shkoly v stanovlenii baletnyh trupp
mira." V Sb. Boprosy vospitanija baletmejsterov v teatral'nom VUZe. Moscow.
---. 1999. Sistema muzhskogo klassicheskogo tanca. (System of the man' s classical dance.) Moscow:
GITIS.
Vanslov, V. 1973. Balety Grigorovicha i problemy horeografii. (Ballets of Grigorovich and problems in
choreography.) Moscow: GITIS.
Vasilyeva, T. I. 1983. "Ispol'zovanie korrigirujushhih metodik v professional'nom obuchenii artistov baleta."
(Ballet Teaching Methodology.) PhD diss., Moscow University.
Vasilyeva, T. I. 1994. Tem, kto hochet uchit'sja baletu. (To Those Who Want to Study Ballet.) Moscow: n.p.
SOKOVIKOVA NATALIA
MODERN STRATEGY IN THE DANCE EDUCATION
Resume
Studying music and mutual influence of music and dance and their laws should be set up as the
basis of ballet pedagogy of all "profiles", types of dance specializations. The acquisition of such
knowledge should be considered as the new standard for any professional dancer and
choreographer, and accordingly should be considered mandatory included in ballet, dance, and
choreographic educational plans and programs.
EFFECTS ON MUSIC AND DANCE ON
SOCIETY
Accelerando: Belgrade Journal of Music and Dance
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ISSN: 2466-3913 (online)
UDC: 786.2.082.1
78.071.1/.2 Рзевски Ф.
COBISS.SR-ID 229885964
Reviews on Rzewski’s Leftist Political Piano Variations:
The People United Will Never Be Defeated
Deng Liang1
1
Art Faculty, Southwest University for Nationalities, Chengdu, Sichuan, China
dengliang@msn.com
Received: July 11, 2016.
Reviewed: August 26, 2016.
Accepted: October 1, 2016.
Citation: Liang, Deng. 2017. “Reviews on Rzewski’s Leftist Political Piano Variations: ‘The People United
Will Never Be Defeated’.” Accelerando: Belgrade Journal of Music and Dance 2:5.
Acknowledgements: Professor Robert Constable for his advice and proof reading, 2015 SWUN Academic Leader
Training Fund
Abstract
The People United Will Never Be Defeated (1975) is an one-hour epic modern
piano variations, is one with an exquisite structure as well as a humanistic
content. As a political context, this could be a legendary piece as well, in its
creation in Chile just before Pinochet's military regime and the music's
subsequent meaning for so many leftist political enthusiasts . In his approach the
author highlighted the role of music, i.e. the role of cultural power in crating
consciousness and attracting masses of people to political causes inspiring them
to fight for better future. In addition, the author opened a number of questions on
performance of contemporary music on the basis of Rzewski’s own DVD
recording, the analyzing of which revealed an interesting phenomenon because
when Rzewski played his own music, his playing differentiated from his own
score.
Keywords: Leftist, Political Music, Rzewski, Piano, Pianist
DENG LIANG
THE PEOPLE UNITED WILL NEVER BE DEFEATED
Introduction
Frederic Rzewski is an American composer who, over a substantial period of time throughout the
1970s, 80s and 90s, established himself as a leading composer and performer of virtuoso piano
music. A formidable pianist himself, Rzewski studied piano from early childhood and later attended
Harvard and Princeton universities as well spending three years in Rome as a pupil of Luigi
Dallapiccola. Among his teachers in the USA were Walter Piston, Milton Babbitt and Roger
Sessions. He was well schooled in the music and styles of all periods and all genres. The music
experienced by Rzewski and often performed by him during his formative years included the latest
works from the avant-garde, including Cage, Stockhausen, Boulez, Kagel and Feldman, as well as
the music of the second Viennese School representatives Webern and Schoenberg. As one of the
leading pianists of his generation, Rzewski was unusual in that he specialized in performances of
the latest music. Because of his pianistic abilities he gave many world premiere performances of
new music by the leading composers of that time.
As a young, developing composer, Rzewski produced a series of works in the 1960s and 70s
in which certain ideas (some musical, some extra-musical) are developed. These include Les
Moutons de Panurge (The Sheep of Panurge) (1968), Coming Together (1972), the variations No
Place To Go But Around (1973), and Second Structure (1972). In particular, Rzewski developed
skills in improvisation, polyphonic writing, variations techniques, jazz styles and in various popular
music and folk music idioms. This wide interest in various music genres is important both to an
understanding of the musical impulses that Rzewski followed and also to his political views, which
impacted upon his music to a significant extent. In connection with politics Rzewski became
identified with various class struggles. For example, his No Place To Go But Around was stimulated
by the events depicted in a political play called The Tower Of Money, of which Rzewski said that it
was “a grand theatrical presentation of the Anarchist view of society and its transformation by
spontaneous and non-violent means.” (Rzewski 1976, CD jack notes).
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At that time, Rzewski held the view that music should be clearly understood by people of all
classes and from all of life's opportunities and that the composer/performer should reach out to
communicate with the audience and have as wide an impact as possible. For this reason he
expressed reservations about the so-called strictly serial approach in terms of its appeal to only a
very restricted audience. “If one is seriously interested in communication, then I suppose,
statistically speaking, that a rigorous, say formalistic style such as the style of serial composers and
so on would be at a serious disadvantage.” (Zimmerman 1976, 306).
As a consequence of this belief, the music of The People United Will Never Be Defeated
contains a wide mix of styles ranging from classical variations to polyphony, jazz styles, and
popular music, including folk music. Pianist and scholar David Burge has written: “During the
1970s Rzewski, living in Rome, became more and more involved with music based on political
subjects, such as the music of the Italian left” (Burge 1980, 63). Rzewski composed The People
United in 1975 using as his theme a well-known Chilean song El pueblo unido jamás será vencido
(The People United Will Never Be Defeated) by composer Sergio Ortega on the text written by the
folk group of The New Chilean Song Movement, Quilapayún. The use of this basic material
connects with Rzewski’s interest in using music to promote and reflect the plight of repressed
people.
The Chilean New Song Movement
The political background can be traced back to 1970s and 1980s in Latin America. At that time, the
“new song” of Latin American is deemed to have showed an important role in the progressive social
change. New song origins from the Spanish words “Nueva canción”, which first appears during
1960s in Chile as “Chilean New Song”. New song inherited traditional Latin American folk music,
however, and was immediately fixed with few revolutionary elements, especially for its lyrics,
which shows the political views of new left and liberation theology in Chile. Based on these
characteristics, new song achieved great popularity throughout Latin America in those times. In
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THE PEOPLE UNITED WILL NEVER BE DEFEATED
Chile, the new song movement represented the people’s longing of a glorious future, and this dream
kept inspiring them to fight for progressive social transformation. It is worth to be mentioned that
there is an incredible coincidence shows that in 1958, Chairman Zedong Mao in China also
launched a “Chinese New Song Movement”. Mao pointed out that the future of Chinese poems is
based on folk song and classic, all the creation if its formation is folk song, the contents will be
realism and romanticism opposite. Through some literature surveys, the author could not find any
evidences to prove that the new song movement in Chile is whether inspired by Chinese new song
movement or not. However, this phenomena could be regarded as “sympathetic vibration” of the
global proletariat.
Music based on political subjects: The People United Will Never Be Defeated
The People United Will Never Be Defeated is a set of variations and one of the most formidable of
all twentieth-century works for the piano (see Figure 1). The tremendous musical structure, contains
of the theme and thirty-six variations, then the restated theme, and its duration of approximately 60
minutes, makes it one of a few especially lengthy works for piano composed in the twentieth
century. Besides its gigantic length, the music is of terrific technical difficulty, which, in itself,
looks like to represent the struggle of the repressed populace of Chile under the Pinochet
government. Both the insistent rhythm and the assertive melodic pattern of the popular song on
which it is based seem to imply strength and confidence, for example, in the optimistic opening in
which we hear the rising fourth and triadic melodic design which is a characteristic of many
national songs, such as those from China and France.
This piece is made up of six groups of variations, and each group in turn including six
variations. In the whole structure of the piece, variations 6, 12, 18, 24, 30 and 36 play the part as
summaries of the previous group of five variations (Figure 2). Following this pattern, variations 31
to 36 play the part as a summary of all the variations from 1 to 30. The compositional process used
in each of these summaries is one in which the final variation of the group (or the final six
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variations of the entire piece) gathers up and recalls many of the elements from previously heard
material. Ralph Van Raat, in his sleeve note for the NAXOS recording, alludes to a revolutionary
image of the five fingers of a fist but it is not clear if such an interpretation is authorized by the
composer:
From a structural point of view, the variations are captured in a strict compositional
framework in which there are six groups of six variations, in which every sixth variation
summarizes the first five, representing the five fingers of a fist. The six groups
themselves follow a similar structure on a macro scale, so that the last group of
variations summarizes the previous five, i.e. the whole piece. (Raat 2008, Internet
access)
Figure 1. Rzewski, The People United Will Never Be Defeated, theme
DENG LIANG
THE PEOPLE UNITED WILL NEVER BE DEFEATED
The following graphic clarifies the structure:
Figure 2. Graphic illustration of the structure of Rzewski’s The People United Will Never Be Defeated
Rzewski had earlier experimented with a similar six-stage concept in his piece entitled Second
Structure (1972). (Rzewski 1972, The whole music score) A further structural feature of The People
United is that which seems to be divided neatly into three parts in a way that is reminiscent of
sonata structure, with variations 1-18 being a unified whole (exposition), while variations 19-30
function as a development, including the introduction of new elements, and 31-36 act as a
recapitulation. A clue to composer’s thinking about the whole structure is that at the end of variation
18, which is a typical fermata and a double bar, just as there might be at the end of the exposition in
a sonata form. This is the only time that this occurs in the entire piece and when combined with the
significant differences in approach in variations 19-30 it becomes clear that Rzewski is thinking in
terms of developing his material in new ways in these later variations. The association with sonata
structure is also alluded to by Laura Melton when she describes variations 31-36 as “recapitulative”
(Melton 1998, 14).
The People United Will Never Be Defeated is a variation that also combines in various ways
many different musical styles, such as jazz, pop, blues, and folk music as well as classical tonality
and hard-edged atonality. By doing this, Rzewski “unites” many musical styles which could be said
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to represent the musical tastes of a united people. Some “external” effects are also featured
including whistling, shouting and slamming the piano lid to represent a gunshot (Raat 2008,
Internet access), such as variations 11 and 35.
Each variation of The People United has a different and primary technical challenge, such as
catching the resonance in the pedal, playing clusters and glissandi with the palm of the hand and
slamming keyboard lid, vocalization and whistle, and, as previously stated, the last variation of each
group reviews all of the techniques and musical styles of the previous five variations. This
amalgamation of ideas applies equally to musical matters as well as technical ones. It is also the
case that usually the last variation of each group of six is the most difficult within that group.
Further, variations 31 to 36, which review all of the pianistic skills translated from variations 1 to
30 are among the most technically demanding of the entire piece. In summary, the compositional
procedures contained in The People United are many and varied and the sources of inspiration for
Rzewski are wide-ranging in their scope and derivation.
An immediate question arises concerning how each variation can be related to the theme
upon which it is based. Because of the rapid succession of different styles and tonalities it is not
always immediately apparent that what we are listening to is, in fact, a variation of the original
song. There is also the fact that each variation is different in length. The answer lies in part in the
fact that in most of the variations there is a hint of some basic elements of the theme itself and this
is usually in terms of pitch relationships. Even when the key has changed or when the tonality has
become sufficiently ambiguous as to obscure any sense of key center, there is usually some clue as
to its derivation, no matter how fragmentary. Rzewski draws attention to the theme by writing notes
of longer duration and because of this they stand out even though there is also transposition of these
pitches to various keyboard registers. Part of the answer also lies in the ‘feel’ of the music. Even
when a relationship to the theme is not visually obvious, it becomes apparent when one plays the
music that each variation ‘feels’ as though it is derived from the same source material. But this also
raises a further question about to what extent a listener is aware of these relationships? Given the
DENG LIANG
THE PEOPLE UNITED WILL NEVER BE DEFEATED
complexity and extreme length of The People United, that question is not easy to answer. It is
likely, however, that the overall structural design of the work, which is organized in multiples of six
variations, helps to orient the listener by giving the work a sense of unity. Repeated hearings of this
music also help the listener to identify elements of the theme. The pianist David Burge has
summarized The People United Will Never Be Defeated in the following words:
Technically, the work is of paramount difficulty. The widespread arpeggios of variations 16 and
18, the Chopinesque sextuplets of variation 21 (marked, correctly, “uncompromising” by the
composer), the fast, exposed triplets in variation 22 and 24, and the long double-note passage at
the end of variation 27 demand complete pianistic skills. (Burge 1980, 63)
Questions on performance of contemporary music
Rzewski’s own DVD recording (Rzewski 2008, DVD) reveals an interesting phenomenon: when
Rzewski plays Rzewski, he often does not follow his own score markings, particularly in regard to
dynamics. This raises a series of questions concerning new music in general, and complex new
music in particular. For example, even though it is tempting to assume that the composer would be
the ultimate authority, how authoritative is the composer’s own performance, particularly in relation
to detail? Should composers compose and leave the performing to professional performers who
have the time and energy to devote themselves to more accurately realizing their scores? Or is it
simply a fact that first performances/early performances are much harder because the material is
new? Is it that new ideas and difficulties take a while to settle into the collective consciousness, and
that the best performances will be given by later generations of players, after they, and others
around them have had time to digest and make sense of the immense difficulties of the music and
develop the new athletic skills necessary to play such music? Does the fact that Rzewski struggled
with some of the details in his performances of his own music lessen the importance and quality of
his achievements as a composer and a pianist?
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A second line of questions is connected with the role of the audience in dealing with
complex new music. Is the listener going to be aware if a performance is slightly less than accurate
in regard to the fine detail of a work? Is the aural complexity of the music beyond the capability of
audience to detect, or is there a level of authority in a totally accurate performance which is
detectable at some level by the audience?
To answer these questions comprehensively is beyond the scope of this review. The
questions are included here simply to indicate that any modern performer needs to be aware that
these questions exist, and that he/she will need to take a position in relation to them. From the
author’s perspective, the important thing is that the performance must have an authority, and to
achieve a high level of authority, it must be accurate in all details. The decision to present this work
in public must also be accompanied by a commitment to develop the necessary level of athleticism
as well as control of musical and technical parameters. As with all performances, the performer
must convey a sense of ownership of the music and this requires mastery of every aspect.
Conclusion
I n The People United Will Never Be Defeated Rzewski created consciousness by
questioning
existing relations of power and critiquing social inequalities and expressed the dream of a better,
socially just future.
As a pianist/composer Rzewski has established through his music a unique and challenging
approach to the piano in the twentieth century. Through works such as The People United Will
Never Be Defeated, Rzewski has offered pianists, and their audiences, the means to further develop
an appreciation of the piano and piano performance. His contribution has been to expand our vision
of the capacities of a venerable instrument and to infuse into our thinking the ongoing relevance of
the piano.
DENG LIANG
THE PEOPLE UNITED WILL NEVER BE DEFEATED
References
Burge, David. 1980. " Contemporary Piano – Rzewski’s 'The People United'." Contemporary Keyboard
(December): 63.
Melton, Laura. 1998. Frederic Rzewski’s 'The People United Will Never Be Defeated'. An Analysis and
Historical Perspective. Rice University: UMI.
Raat, Ralph Van. 2008. Naxos. Frederic Rzewski: The People United Will Never Be Defeated. USA.
http://www.naxos.com/mainsite/blurbs_reviews.asp?
item_code=8.559360&catNum=559360&filetype=About%20this%20Recording&language=English
(accessed May16, 2010)
Rzewski, Frederic. 1972. Second structure. Belgium, Brussels: E. Freifeld.
Rzewski, Frederic. 1976. CD. Jacket notes for Rzewski’s Variations on ‘No Place To Go But Around’.
Performed by Frederic Rzewski. USA. Finnadar SR 9011.
Rzewski, Frederic. 2008. Rzewski Plays Rzewski: 'The People United Will Never Be Defeated.' USA. Video
Artists Int'l. B0012OX78A.
Zimmerman, Walter. 1976. Desert Plants: Conversations with 23 American Musicians. Canada. Vancouver:
ARC Publications.
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UDC: 37.036:78(669)
159.923.5-053.6(669)
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Music Preference and the Issues of
Social Challenges Among Nigerian Youth
Implications for Moral Development
Femi Abiodun1
1
Department of Music, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife Nigeria.
femoo.femoo@gmail.com
Received: January 15, 2017.
Reviewed: January 25, 2017.
Accepted: January 28, 2017.
Citation: Abiodun, Femi. 2017. “Music Preference and the Issues of Social Challenges Among Nigerian
Youth: Implications For Moral Development.” Accelerando: Belgrade Journal of Music and Dance 2:5.
Abstract
Music is central to youth culture. Central to this study is the question: what type of
music do youth listen to and why do they listen to such music? Identifying the music
preference of the Nigerian youth is the focus of this paper. The aim is to assess some
moral challenges that are inherent in the types of music listened to by students in
Nigerian tertiary institutions which by implication represent Nigerian youth.
Questionnaire was used to find out the type of music most preferred by the students.
Findings reveal that the most preferred music by students especially between ages 18
and 25 is the popular music genre and in particular hip pop and fuji music. Textual
analyses of some of the music show that they are agents of socialization and cultural
identity but most unsuitable for moral development. Implications of this on moral
values include developing wrong emotions which may lead to violent life and wrong
associations.
Keywords: moral development, music preference, socialization, psychological
effects, socio- cultural challenges, song-text.
FEMI ABIODUN
MUSIC PREFERENCE AND THE ISSUES OF SOCIAL CHALLENGES AMONG NIGERIAN YOUTH
Introduction
Music makes or mars the youth. This hypothesis is re-assessed in this study through a survey and
analysis of preferred music items among the Nigerian youth and this is discussed reflecting on
the interactionist uses and effect theory. This theory gives an insight into the process of
socialization, which helps to explain what influences adolescent moral development in terms of
attitudes and values transmitted to youth. In part, the media effect theory will be used since the
youth uses media channels to access the music and media contents have psychological effects on
youth. (Giles, 2003). Music in all its ramifications at all levels apart from the entertainment it
offers, performs a function and is concerned with the development of a complete being.
Practitioners and consumers of music are culturally bond to exhibit certain reasonable sociocultural behaviour accepted within the social constraint of Nigerian society. The song-text
content and not the vehicle (the musical genres) determines this social behaviour. This means
that the melody and the instrumental accompaniment may drive the music, little studies have
proved that they affect moral. This study therefore is a survey of the type of music listened to by
Nigerian youth and what moral and cultural message the music passes on to the youth.
We listen to music consciously and unconsciously because music is prevalent all
the time around us and our listening opportunities are numerous. The first exposure is the music
made at home by especially the nursing mother, who in Africa provides the first rhythmic pattern
and many times teaches the basic dance steps (Abiodun, 2005). Social activities (funeral,
marriage, naming ceremony, festivals and court music (music played to entertain the king in his
palace) also provide opportunities to listen to music. However, the fast growing glut of highquality music devices and outlets that play a seemingly endless catalogue of musical functions
have widen the musical choices all over the world. What to choose from therefore has become
numerous that confusion may arise.
An individual who enjoys the music he hears is at least passing through the process of
soaking it up or imbibing it in time. He/she may translate the experience and react in some overt
way. This becomes a social challenge. While in some, strong rhythmic content may arouse
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emphatic gesture and in others, the reaction may be passive or active. Definite measurement in
terms other than those of factual information is a difficult task and there is no accurate means of
measuring the inner response of individual listeners other than the information elicited from
respondents. Information relating to culture, identity, moral and emotional (psychological) issues
can also be derived from the song texts. The paper relies on the latter for its analysis. This paper
is therefore meant to find out the types of music one prefers listening to irrespective of different
responses it arouses from different individual. Since measuring the inner response of a listener is
almost impossible, a textual analysis of the music is however paramount in determining the
content validity, possible reaction and responses it may arouse and what it offers in terms of
morals.
Conceptual Framework
The term listening is used here to describe an activity in which an individual is listening to music
performed on transistor radio, television, internet, mp3/4, iPod and so on. One expects an
individual to exhibit a somewhat “passive demeanour” while listening to music, at times there
are physical reactions borne out of emotion and often involuntary. Listening and reacting to
music are a physical activity that arouses in individual a muscular response like dance or body
movement. Roe (2013) notes that music has intruded more and more into public space… today,
most seven olds have probably come in contact with more music than those living before the age
of electronic media. Mueller (2007) reiterates that “the age of youth is a time of uncertainty
that’s filled with questions. Music meets them right where they are to provide guidance and
direction.” Studies in the past and now confirm that underlying a passive or active listening
attitude, there are definite reactions to music heard. This is may be an immediate passive action,
over reaction such as a rhythmic response in terms of movement (music and dance in Nigeria
cannot be treated in isolation), a comment or a question about the music heard. The reactions are
not necessarily an indication of a good listening experience but may be an overt response to the
music. The outcome of listening activity depends on the listener’s total previous experience such
as access to music on media devices. Since individual’s interpretation of pitch, rhythm and
FEMI ABIODUN
MUSIC PREFERENCE AND THE ISSUES OF SOCIAL CHALLENGES AMONG NIGERIAN YOUTH
timbre varies significantly, reactions and responses will also vary. (Andrew 1951, Dunn 1997 &
2002, Asabe 2006 and Beynon 2016).
Scholars of note have explored different areas of music preference. The American
Academic of Pediatrics notes that some argued that children and adolescents use music only for
entertainment, that little or no attention is paid to the words. The study also reveals that
preference for certain types of music could be correlated or associated with certain behaviour.
Human beings are not predictable. The results may be different in Nigeria because of cultural
issues, economic peculiarities (the current recession in Nigeria for instance) and political
climates. Rentfrow, Goldberg and Levitin’s five factor model (Rentfrow et al. 2011) may not be
appropriate for any study in music preference in Nigeria because the terrain and premise for
measurement are noble and novel. Many of the musical styles are not African. The emotional
response to a musical performance in a festival is characteristically different from the same
music on radio. This is because performance practice will be different from the recorded version.
Music in the shrine of Sango (god of thunder) may move the performers to transits but a
recorded version of the same music will not. What is emotional in Nigerian context may not be
such in Europe and America.
Nigerian musical scene is full of all sorts of musical genres inherent within and without
our cultural context. Three musical genres are identified in this study: traditional, popular and
classical music. These three genres co-exist in Nigerian society and each has its own listening
audience and fans. Each of the musical genres has general roles and performs some functions
within our socio-cultural life. These functions vary from ritualistic to social, psychological,
educational, communicative, ceremonial, entertainment, therapeutic and recreational functions.
This study finds out which of these functional roles do youth desire while listening to music.
Which of them provide moral lessons?
Listening to Music on radio, mp3, phones has more impact on youth than television,
movies and computer. Roberts and Christenson provide comfort for parents in their book” It’s
not only Rock and Roll’’ (1997) when they provide information on how to monitor issues about
the contents of pop music like graphic sex, morbid violence, overt racism and challenges to
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authority in popular music lyrics and video. Lyric contents of popular music in Nigerian music
may not be significantly different from what Roberts and Christenson listed. However their
position that music alters and intensifies youth’s mood, furnishes much of their slang, dominates
their conversation and provide ambiance at their social gathering is universal and paramount in
the usage of music by youth. But how this is differently related to Nigerian youth is verified in
this study.
Music of all times apart from the emotional gratification it gives has some concern for the
development of our moral life. It is an agent of social change with ability to see through the
social circumstance of a time in question. Idowu (1986) describes behaviour problem of
adolescent student as norm violation and deviation from age appropriate behaviour which
interferes with the students’ growth and development. He equally identifies its causal agents as
heightened anxiety, nervous disorder, psychosis and socio-economic status which in this case
may be as a result of music listened to. Attitudes shown after listening to some form of music
may be a result of emotional response which may be physical, intellectual or imaginative.
Attitudes are relatively synonymous with emotions. Moul (1968) describes it as emotionally
toned ideas. Every human being has emotions; the degree of emotional responsiveness however
differs in individuals. Rohmer (1980) defines emotional responsiveness as an ability to express
emotion like feelings of warmth, affection and other positive emotions freely and openly.
Nonetheless, ability to be creative is innate and listening to music may set off a chain reaction of
creativity in the mind and emotions of the listener. Seashore (1988) observes that: ‘’The bearing
of music is a response to stimulus. The idea and feelings which constitute the response are the
creation of the listener in his own image (ibid., 188). Andrews (1953) listed four main
classifications of the listeners’ response. In this study, these four types are adopted and used for
measuring responses from music listened to: (a) emotional response often brought about through
the establishment of a mood (state of mind and feelings); (b) physical response through the
listeners reaction in term of bodily movement (dance); (c) intellectual response through the
ability to analyze the component parts of the music and develop technical knowledge (structural
FEMI ABIODUN
MUSIC PREFERENCE AND THE ISSUES OF SOCIAL CHALLENGES AMONG NIGERIAN YOUTH
appraisal); (d) imaginative response through the ability to project into music in terms of creative
ability (music making).
Music is a communicative culture and its power of communication cannot be overemphasized. Dorothy et al note that music as a communicative arts provides a mans by which
people can share emotions, intentions and meanings.(Dorothy et al. 2012) Since instrumental
structures are closely related to the musico-phonological structures of the song, both instrumental
and local music perform communicative functions. Music in this sense is conceived as an
integral part of oral mode of communication. Some distinctive factors affect the choice or the
type of music listened to. This includes too much parental control or lack of it and this often has
been identified as one of the causes of unacceptable behaviour patterns. Obayan (1991, 133)
reiterates that ‘’perceived maternal acceptance/ rejection is significantly related to positive or
negative emotional stability’’. How parent’s intervention determines choice of music is verified
in this study.
Many other factors influence musical taste. Roberts and Christenson (1997) note that
”differences in music taste are not idiosyncratic but shaped by social background and other
environmental influences.’’ Such environmental factor in Nigeria will include urban-rural factor,
economic factor and access to music. Those youth in the rural areas do not have access to urban
music and vice-versa. This factor is significant in determining music taste in under-developed
and developing African countries. The position of this statement is verified in this study.
Methodology
The subjects were a total of 450 students randomly selected from the students of Kwara State
College of Education, The Polytechnic and University of Ilorin representing the three main
tertiary education systems we have in Nigeria. The subjects were made up of 204 female and 245
male students. The instrument used for this study was a three- part questionnaires developed,
validated and administered for the study. Part A was designed to elicit personal information such
as sex and year of study. Parts B elicited information on music most preferred while part C
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sought information on reasons why respondents listen to such music. The subjects were from the
South West Nigeria (Yoruba). The texts of the songs are in Yoruba and English language. Three
categories of music were analyzed: the traditional music which in this study represents such
indigenous music that has no Western influence like Dakakuada of Ilorin, Kiriboto music of
Oyo, Ogbele music of Ekiti, Iregun music of Yagba people, ege music of Abeokuta and other
oral musical genres like Ijala, Iwi Egungun, Ekun Iyawo, to mention a few (vocal). Others
include instrumental ensemble like Bata ensemble, Dundun ensemble (Membranophonic),
sekere ensembles (Idiophonic), Kakaki ensembles (Aerophonic). Instrumental music was
analyzed because Yoruba drums talk. The popular music often referred to as pop music is the
music generally accepted by the people. It has a broad, immediate and implicit universal and
transient appeal to all especially the youth. Okafor. (1986, 64) describes it as such music that do
not require guided listening because people are familiar with their idioms. Initial study (Abiodun
2002) identifies fuji and hippop as the most accepted pop music in Nigeria. This justifies the
choice of the two pop music for this study. The religious musical genres are the Islamic and
Gospel music where the doctrines of the religions are sung. The last category is the Western
classical music which is the music understood and practiced by the academia. These are the
people trained in music theory and applied music. It is a music to which serious application and
thought has been given and music written with the background of proper musical training.
The questionnaire was administered through research assistants who distributed and
collected accordingly. The collation involved counting the number of subjects that responded to
the various questions and finding the percentages.
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MUSIC PREFERENCE AND THE ISSUES OF SOCIAL CHALLENGES AMONG NIGERIAN YOUTH
Results
Table 1. Music Genres
Tradional
Popular Music
Hip-pop
Fuji
Religious
Classical
Male
18
141
79
6
2
Female
11
112
41
39
1
Total
29
253
120
45
3
Percentage
6.4
56.2
26.7
10
0.7
Traditional music in this context and as spelt out in the questionnaire includes Nigerian music:
Bata, dundun, were, dadakuada, ogebele, ege, gelede music of the Yoruba. From the Table 1. 29
(6.4%) prefer traditional music. This number shows the trend in which traditional music – its
practice and its performance has seriously declined.
The second column feature two popular music (hip-pop and fuji). Hip Hop music has the
higher percentage of 56.2% to its credit. The third column on the table shows that 120 (26.7%)
prefer fuji music. The fourth column on the table indicates that 45 (10%) have flair for religious
music. Religions music covers all music used by Christians, Muslims and traditional worshipers
(ogun, sango, oya) The last column on the table shows that only 3 (0. 7%) prefer Western
classical music. This is a type of music put together and arranged with serious artistic intentions.
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Table 2. Information Sought while Listening
Historical
Educa$onal
Informa$onal
Entertainment
Moral
Male
5
27
8
202
5
Female
8
39
6
141
9
Total
13
66
14
343
14
Percentage
2.9
14.7
3.1
76.2
3.1
Table 2 above shows different information sought while listening to music. For historical facts
only 13 (2. 9%) listen to music to gather historical facts. 66 (14. 7%) listen to music for
educational purpose while 14 (3.1%) listen to music for informational purposes.
Majority listens to music for entertainment purpose. As many as 343 (76.2%) listen to
music to entertain themselves or their guests. Only 14 (3.1%) listen to music for moral
instruction.
Song-Text Analysis
Moral issues as they are related to song texts in the four musical genres studied in this paper are
analyzed within a central theme model. It is equally analyzed within the ambiance of the
philosophy guiding the social, religious and cultural principles of the South Western Nigeria
(Yoruba). The people believe in the Almighty God who is the supreme being of the Yoruba
people. The songs analyzed are in Yoruba language.
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Theme 1: Moral/ Religious
Issues (Fuji music)
Theme 2: Religious Crisis (Waka music)
Abori ma modi,
Disguising under Ijab
Olorun ri e
Ibori tOlorun ni,
Eyi to ku, idajo ni.
KOlorun ko waye
Ko wa iya taye nje
Bo se joko lorun
Ko le mo ohun toju nri
Let God himself come down
To assess the trouble we are going through
Staying in the heavenly place
He cannot appreciate what we pass through here
(covering head with cloth) to commit adultery
God knows and sees you
Use of Ijab is God’s
Any crime made of it attracts God’s judgement.
The type of songs in themes 1 and 2 often shows that people do not have respect for God.
Despite the fact that Nigerians are religious, there are several crimes in the country. These highly
immoral situations have caused religious crisis. Muslims use Ijab as part of religious obligation.
The use of ijab has caused troubles in some states in Nigeria. Singing about it may fuel crisis.
Theme 3: Sexual Activities (Fuji)
Omode gbe mi lese
Gbe mi lebadi e
Je ka sere oge
Ibadi laye wa
Oh lady put me on your laps
Put me on your buttock
Let us have fun (sexual relationship)
Life is in sexual relationship
Singing songs that have to do with sexual activities corrupts the mind of the youth who are
expected to be educated about sexual activities. Many of the popular musicians play around these
issues.
Theme 4: Entertainment (Skelewu)
All the girls them dey dance galala
But this new dance don cause casala
For this dance you no need shakara
Oya whine your hips like a this
Oya dance to the sound
Like a this, like a that
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All the girls are dancing galala (a dance type)
But the new dance has caused a trouble
For this dance you need not boast
Let’s go, twist your hips this way
Oya dance to the sound
Like a this, like a that
Theme 5: Entertainment (Shekini)
Otu de oya sare wa gba kekere kere wa wo
Atuti de oya burukutu make e sarabaraowey
(Oya shekin inininini 3x)
Oya shekin anananana
It has come, take a little, take and see
We have come, lets go for burukutu (local dry gin)
Lest go on shaking our body
Lets go on shaking to the beat na na (rhythmic melody)
It is good to entertain. It is good to dance. Music for many ages has been doing this. New dances
from recent albums erode the traditional dances. The dances are entertaining but ridiculously not
polite for public consumption.
Theme 6: Song of abuse
Apala
Eni ti nperi wa saida
A moyin o, a mo yin
Juju
Ori mi ye, ja ja mi
Eda mi ye, ja ja fun
Ori agbe a ja fun agbe
Ori aluko a ja fun o
Those who are wishing us evil
We can identify you, we know you
Juju
My head, fight for me, fight for me
My spirit fight for me
The parrot’s head will fight for him
The cam wood bird will fight for itself
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MUSIC PREFERENCE AND THE ISSUES OF SOCIAL CHALLENGES AMONG NIGERIAN YOUTH
Songs as we have in theme 6 emanate from envy among the different fans of similar
genres. Fans are grouped in empathy or sympathy for a musician. For example between juju
musicians (Sunny Ade versus Ebenezer Obey), or between two Fuji Musicians (Kollinton and
Barrister). When this happens, the two musicians will “sing” each other that will result to public
abuse. Youth follow these trends and got indulged in it.
Theme 7: Historical (Apala)
Ati n loba ojo ti pe
Oba toje tilu roju oba ni
Oba toje tilu daru oba ni
Ohun to se laye ari wi
We have had kings
Those whose reigns were peaceful
Those whose reigns were problematic
What you do today becomes history tomorrow
Music in Nigeria as we have it all over the world, teaches history. How many of the history are
sung by the musicians? Are the youth interested in historical facts? The result that follows shows
this.
Theme 8: Drug Abuse (Apiiri)
Ogun oloro gbe de o
Tomode tagba hin sora o
Oni mo gun oloro
Ori eni ni daru o
Hard drugs are all over the place
Youth and adults, watch out
Whoever takes hard drug
May develop mental illness
Drug abuse is a global phenomenon. Singing it around the youth does three things: propagate the
use, misuse or disuse of it. The song above seems positive and may bring about positive rethink
about use of drugs.
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Theme 9: Education
Bata re a dun kokoka
Ti o ba kawe re
Bata re a dun kokoka
Ti o o ba kawe re
Bata re a wo serere nile
You will dress corporately
If you have good education
You will dress corporately
If you refuse good education
You will dress shabily
This song is positive. It narrates the experience of someone that has good education and the other
without good education. It teaches the youth to be serious about going to school.
Theme 10: Information
Eto ibo tobo lona yio
Eje a sora, ka ma da rukudu sile
Ka won odo o se jeje
Ko ma si jagidi jakan
Election is near
Let us be careful
The youths should be warned
Avoid violence and fighting
Information is good when they are meant to accomplish the message sent. The song above gives
information about forthcoming election in Nigeria. It advises the youth to run away from
thuggery and violent activities. It also warns the parents to caution their adolescents about
violence.
FEMI ABIODUN
MUSIC PREFERENCE AND THE ISSUES OF SOCIAL CHALLENGES AMONG NIGERIAN YOUTH
Discussion and Cultural Implications
Of all arts, music tends to show more representation of our daily living than other arts. It features
prominently in all aspects of life. An average individual starts to build his musical experiences
from rhythm of dances and songs rendered by his mother to lull her child to sleep. This musical
experience continues through life until various environmental variables bring about different
reactions to even the same form of music. The reactionary behaviour of individual to different
form of music is the musical preference predetermined by family background, exposure and
maturity of individuals.
That only 29 (6.4%) prefer traditional music is an indication of negative attitude towards
our tradition – a turn from our culture. Contact with other cultures – western and Islamic culture
– has brought a total assimilation and acculturation of those cultures. Atimes enculturation may
take place. Enculturation is defined in this paper within the definitive terms of Melville Jean
Herskovits (1938) who first defined the term – enculturation as the process of socialization, a
process of learning one's own culture, a construct and a process in a behavioral sense, that
delineates transmission (acquiring the existing culture, moral, values, language, etc.) and
transmutation of culture throughout human growth (cultural transmutation is a process of
psychosocial mutation, which involves innovation and pluralism). All this has changed our
musical taste, physical outlook, mental reasoning, social priorities and moral values. Our
traditional music is a victim of this circumstance.
Nigeria is a very religious country but her religious practices have not influenced the type
of music listened to in Nigeria. One would expect that majority would prefer religious music but
only 45 (10%) have preference for religious music. This form of music rather than the Hip Hop
music which is the most preferred is capable of building moral character and instilling discipline
in younger generation. Abdulkareem (1989) identifies religions as one of the agents of moral
instruction.
Many listen to music generally for the entertainment it offers. 342 (76%) indicated that
the purpose of listening to music is for entertainment. The study shows that other vital factors
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like deriving historical facts (2.9%); information (3.1%); education (14.7%) and moral purpose
(3.1%) are less significant.
Among the list provided under popular music, it is shown from the study that hip pop and
fuji are the most preferred. Semantic analysis of some of the song texts of fuji and hip-pop
music shows that the song texts have more of entertaining texts than morals.
Implications of this on moral value is the prevalence of behaviour problem in Nigeria
society. Quay (1966) identifies four behaviour dimensions:
a. Conduct disorder
b. Personal disorder
c. Inadequate maturity
d. Socialized delinquent
The type of music listened to may bring about conduct disorder; that is physical and verbal
aggression, fights and disobedience. This is evident in the song text of a popular fuji musician “
Emi o ni gba yeye” (I will not take nonsense). This result is in line with the findings of the
Council on Communications and Media, the official Web site of the American Academy of
pediatrics, the primary recourse for pediatricians who work in the media. The result of the study
shows that lyrics have become more explicit in their references to drugs, sex and violence,
"which may produce significant changes in behaviours and attitudes in young listeners."
Another behavioural dimension is immaturity which is evident in the song of abuse
rendered by the popular musicians. Every pop musician wants to prove that his music is the best
and would want to destroy others to gain fame. This we found to affect the thinking of the youth
which as a result of emotional response to the feelings of the pop singers often facilitates the
establishment of a mood (state of mind and feelings). This finding is not found in most of the
studies we reviewed.
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MUSIC PREFERENCE AND THE ISSUES OF SOCIAL CHALLENGES AMONG NIGERIAN YOUTH
Personal disorder is another behavioural dimension which is evident generally in pop
music like fuji. While female youth are more likely than male youth to use music to reflect
emotional feelings, male will turn such emotion to physical and personal display. Male youth are
unnecessarily hypersensitive to other music and may have the feelings of inferiority or
superiority challenged in a way that may bring violence. This may also degenerate to stealing
one- else’s show (copyright lawlessness).
The socialized delinquent dimension has to do with the behaviour that is not in
accordance with accepted social standards. This is evident in the case of pop musicians who are
in one secret cult or the other for probably protective disguise or to perpetuate one evil or the
other and be involved in one social vice like drug trafficking, aiding and abetting. This is evident
in their song texts which reflect secret cult songs. This we equally found out is critically
determined by environment. Within the environmental indices, parent’s intervention in choice of
music is found to be highly significant too.
Further analysis shows that some of the song texts are capable of re- ordering the social
standard of the youths in some positive ways. They are informative, educative, palliative and
entertaining. Instrumentation reflects African drumming and exhibits distinctive identity of a
Nigerian community. The youth experience much knowledge about Nigerian music. They can
tell in a moment what the music contains in terms of musical structure: melody, rhythmic pattern
and form. This establishes intellectual response through the ability to analyze the component
parts of the music and develop technical knowledge (structural appraisal). They dance to these
musicals. This also is evident in physical response through the listeners’ reaction in terms of
bodily movement (dance). What is significantly lacking that this study has found out is that they
are not suitable for moral development.
Conclusion
Listening to a piece of music establishes a mood, creates emotions, brings about negative or
positive responses and establishes a behavioral pattern in individual which becomes part and
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parcel of such an individual. Every human being has feelings or emotions which hearing or
listening to a piece of music can make either negative or positive. To this end, it is necessary to
train the emotional responsiveness of our youth through guided listening. Unrefined music which
has been the agent of behavioural problem in our society and has brought about conduct disorder,
needs a total overhauling and re-ordering in order to foster emotional stability’ which Rohner
(1980) defines as “ability to express emotion especially positive emotions freely and openly”.
A guided listening is a vital tool in the process of rightful thinking skills, stable emotion
and more importantly in building a nation and solving Nigeria’s multifarious social, political and
economic problems.
REFERENCES
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Andrews, M. F. 1953. Guiding junior high school pupils in Music Experience. New York: Prentice- hall
Inc.
Bisi, Adeleye-Fayemi. 1994. “Gender, sexuality and popular culture in Nigeria.” Accessed on June 3,
2014, http://quod.lib.umich.edu
Council on Communications and Media. 2009. "Policy Statement --Impact of Music. Music Lyrics, and
Music Videos on Children and Youth." The American Academy of Paediatrics. Also available at:
P e d i a t r i c s2009, 124: 1448-1494. doi:10.1542/peds.2009-2145
https://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/124/5/1488.full.html
Davies, Stephen. 2004. “Musical Works and Performances: A philosophical Exploration.” Clarendon
Press.
Donald, Robert and Peter Christenson. 1997. "It’s not only Rock and Roll." New York: Hampton Press
of Cresskill. http//:news.stanford.edu.
Harper, Patricia Thandi Hicks. 2013. “Understanding youth popular culture (ypc) and the Hip-Hop
influence”. http//:ypci.org.
Herskovits, M.J. (1938). Acculturation, the Study of Culture Contact. New York: J.J. Augustin Publisher.
Idowu, A. 1986. " Managing students’ behaviour problems."Oro Journal of Educational Studies I (I):
54-67. Ilorin: Day-Star Publisher
Juul, Mulder. 2008. "Use it or lose it: Music preference and uses related to psycho-social functioning
among adolescents and young adults." dspace.library.uu.nl/handle/1874/31137
Kathlean, Gasperini. 2011. "Youth culture study reveals significant changes in market trends."
http://www.prweb.com.
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Keith, Roe. 1999. "Music and identity among European youth. Sound scapes - Journal on Media
Culture." url:http://www.icce.rug.nl
Miell Dorothy, Raymond MacDonald, and David J. Hargreaves.
Oxford University Press
2012. Musical Communication.
Muellar, Walt. 2007. “Teens and Popular music: Should we Talk about it or just Turn it off?”
http://www.cpyu.org
Obayan, A. O. I. 1991. “Emotional responsiveness, stability and maternal acceptance: A study of the
perceptions of Nigerian Children”. Journal of Foundations 1(2): 132-140. Ilorin: University of Ilorin
Press.
Rentfrow, P J., L. R. Goldberg, and D. J. Levitin. 2011. "The Structure of Musical Preferences: A FiveFactor Model.” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology Jun, 100 (6): 1139-1157. doi:
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Rentfrow, P. J., &S. D. Gosling. 2003. "The Do re mi’s of Everyday life: The Structure and Personality
Correlates of Music Preferences."Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 84 (6): 1236-1256.
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Rentfrow, P. J., L. R. Goldberg, &R. Zilca. 2011. "Listening, Watching, and Reading: The Structure and
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Seachore, Cart. 1988. Psychology of Music. New York: McGraw – Hill Book Company, Inc.
ARTISTIC, HISTORICAL
AND PHILOSOPHICAL INQUIRIES
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UDC: 7.033.3(479.24)"14/15"
COBISS.SR-ID 229887756
Poetry and Music of Medieval Azerbaijani Ashygs in
the Context of Mystic Practices
Sanubar Baghirova1
1
Azerbaijan National Academy of sciences Institute of Architecture and Arts.
Department for History and Theory of Traditional Music, Azerbaijan
sanubar.baghirova@gmail.com
Received: January 9, 2017
Reviewed: February 13, 2017
Accepted: February 15, 2017
Citation: Baghirova, Sanubar. 2017. “Poetry and Music of Medieval Azerbaijani Ashygs in
the Context of Mystic Practices.” Accelerando: Belgrade Journal of Music and Dance 2:7.
Acknowledgements
The author is pleased to thank Professor Maharram Gasimli for sharing his knowledge of some ancient Azerbaijani words and
terms with me, Professor Chingiz Qajar, corresponding member of the Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences, for giving me the
photos of the old Dervish khanegah in Nakhchivan, ashyg Ramin Garayev for giving me the ashyg song Urfani in his rendition, and
ashyg Mehemmedeli Meshediyev for e-mailing me the recording of the ashyg song Ibrahimi.
Abstract
This article focuses on poetry and music of the medieval Azerbaijani ashyg in the
context of mystic practices. The ashygs are the bearers of the syncretic art form that
came into being at the end of the 15th – early of the 16th centuries and has reached to
date. Both medieval and modern ashygs – ustads (masters) were and are poets,
composers and performers in one person. Poetry of early medieval ashygs, such as, Dirili
Gurbani, Miskin Abdal (15th -16th century), Abbas Tufarganly, Khaste Gasym, Sary
Ashyg (17th century) was thought to convey the God`s message; these ashygs called
themselves ‘haqq ashiqi’, that is ‘those who fell in love with Truth’ meaning by Truth
the Higher Principle, the Absolute. Some of the early ashygs, for instance, Dirili Gurbani
and Miskin Abdal, were Sufi mystics and members of Sufi brotherhoods. Poetry and
music of the medieval Azerbaijani ashygs was often a part of the Zikr, the mystic
musical rites of sama` practiced by various Sufi dervish orders. A number of songs from
the repertoire of modern ashyg sometimes are called ‘samavi havalar’ (sama` tunes) and
do sound particularly archaic; it is believed to date back to the music performed at
sama`. In the 19th century the art of ashyg lost its ideological function but religious and
mystical motifs remained an inspiration for the ashyg even in the 20th century. These
motifs were mainly associated with the name and cult of Imam Ali, the son-in-law of the
Prophet Muhammad, and the Twelve Imams. Core notions of the article are: Ashyg,
’haqq ashiqi’, sama`, zikr, madh, meddah of Imam Ali, mürid, mürshid, khanegah,
tekye.
Keywords: Sufi poets, spiritual tunes, Azerbaijani ashyg songs, diviani poems, dervish
mystic musical rites
SANUBAR BAGHIROVA
POETRY AND MUSIC OF MEDIEVAL AZERBAIJANI ASHYGS
Introduction
This article is aimed to draw attention to ashyg music in medieval spiritual dervish practices. The
art of ashyg is one of the most ancient art forms in Azerbaijan, as well as the mugham music. The
investigation of Poetry and Music of medieval Azerbaijani ashyg in the context of medieval mystic
practices is a part of the bigger work that is supposed to cover the role of Azerbaijani traditional
music, in particular, poetry and music of ashygs and mughams in Sufi and Shia spiritual rites in
XVI-XX centuries.
Medieval Sufi Poets
The Sufi mystic teachings and spiritual practices started expanding in Azerbaijan around the 10 th
century. Sufism is a mystical dimension of Islam. Encyclopaedia Britannica defines Sufism as
“mystical Islamic belief and practice in which Muslims seek to find the truth of divine love and
knowledge through direct personal experience of God. It consists of a variety of mystical paths<…
>. Islamic mysticism is called taṣawwuf (literally, “to dress in wool”) in Arabic, but it has been
called Sufism in Western languages since the early 19th century. An abstract word, Sufism derives
from the Arabic term for a mystic ,ṣūfī, which is in turn derived from ṣūf, “wool,” plausibly a
reference to the woollen garment of early Islamic ascetics”.(Sufism, Encyclopedia Britannica)
Among numerous Azerbaijani mystics of the Early Medieval period we should mark the
names of those Sufi as the most outstanding: Abu Said (d. 1050), more known under the name of
Baba Kuhi, his brother Husein Shirvani (d. 1072), as well as Shihabaddin Sukhravardi (1144-1234),
the founder of the zahidiyya order, Sheikh Safiaddin Ardabili (1252-1334), the founder of the
safaviyya order, Shihabaddin Fazlullah Naimi (1339-1393), the founder of the hurufiyya order, and
many others. Sufi orders or brotherhoods were “fraternal groups centering around the teachings of a
leader-founder”. (Ibidem)
According to Azerbaijani scholars, some of the famous Sufi brotherhoods, in particular ahi,
qadiriyya, suhravardiyya, halvatiyya, hurufiyya, zahidiyya, safaviyya, roushaniyya and gulshaniyya,
were formed exactly on the territory of Azerbaijan (Məhəmmədcəlil and Xəlilli 2003, 10). Since
the Sufi teaching often found expression in poetical and literary images, many medieval mystics
were known mainly as poets and writers. Among the Azerbaijani mystics the most renowned Sufi
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poets were Fazlullah Naimi, Qasim Anvar (1356-1433), Seyid Ali Imadeddin Nasimi (1369-1414),
and Shah Ismayil (1487-1524) from the Safavi dynasty, active under the pen name Khatayi. Sufi
ideas can be traced in the writings of the outstanding Azerbaijani poet Muhammad Fuzuli (14941556), and a great many other medieval Azerbaijani poets and writers.
Poetry and Music of the Azerbaijani Ashyg
The Turkic Sufi poet and mystic Ahmet Yasavi (1105-1166) founded the order yasaviyya, dervishes
which called themselves the ashiqs of the Truth (Ashiq, derived from the Arabic word ashq, i.e.
“love”, or eshq in Azerbaijani pronouncement, is translated as “being in love, having loved”. Thus,
the ashiq of the Truth was supposed to mean the “lover of the Truth”), and the servants of the Truth,
meaning by the Truth the higher principle, the Absolute. The fragment from the poem by Ahmet
Yasavi cited below is the one where the word ashiq is used for the first time as the form addressing
to the dervish:
Haqq qulları dərvişlər,
Həqiqəti bilmişlər,
Haqqa aşiq olanlar
Haqq yoluna girmişlər
Dervishes, servants of the Truth,
Learned the Truth,
Having loved the Truth,
Stepped on the righteous path.
("Divani Hikmet" /Divine Wisdom by Ahmad Yasavi,
quoted in Qasımlı 2007, 92. Translation by the author.)
This poetical expression, «haqqa aşiq olanlar», literally meaning “those who have loved the
Truth”, has given a name to a unique phenomenon in Azerbaijani oral literature, which originated at
the end of the 15 th century and reached its peak in the 16th and 17th centuries. We are talking about
the poetry and music of the Azerbaijani ashygs – mystics who called themselves haqq aşiqi, i.e. the
ashiqs of the Truth, the ones who ”have loved the Truth”.
Mən haqq aşiqiyəm, haq yola mayil,
Kitabım Qurandır, olmuşam qayil.
I am an ashiq of the Truth, who has loved the
righteous path,
My Book is Koran, and I have put my faith (in it).
(Əlizadə 1995, 271. Translation by the author.)
SANUBAR BAGHIROVA
POETRY AND MUSIC OF MEDIEVAL AZERBAIJANI ASHYGS
These lines are from a poem of an outstanding ashyg Dirili Gurbani (b. 1477), one of the
constellation of haqq aşiqi, whose spiritual, as well as poetical, status has been admired hitherto.
Different spellings of the words ashiq and ashyg reflect their different pronunciations and
meanings: ashiq means “lover, fallen in love,” while the word ashyg refers to the bearer of the
syncretic art form that originated at the end of the 15 th and the beginning of the 16 th centuries and
has preserved its attractiveness for Azerbaijanis to date. The ashygs, both medieval and modern,
mainly those called ustads (masters), are poets, composers and performers in one. (More about the
art of Azerbaijani ashygs see Baghirova 2015, 116 – 140). The constellation is represented in the
names of Dirili Gurbani, Miskin Abdal (15th -16th centuries), Abbas Tufarganly, Khaste Gasym,
Sary Ashyg (17th century). The stories of life and love of haqq aşiqi formed the plot of the medieval
ashyg dastan, big music and literature composition of oral epic literature. On some haqq aşiqi,
main characters of some popular medieval dastans, such as “Ashyg Garib”,”Seidi and Peri”,
Novruz and Gandab”, “Yetim Aidyn”, there is no other evidence of their historical presence except
of the dastans themselves. The ashiq of the Truth have often personified their divine love in the
image of the fair lady. As the author wrote previously in one of her works, «The story of a haqq
aşiqi meeting his fair lady, searching for her, and worshiping her can be interpreted as an allegory of
the search for the Truth and divine Love» (Baghirova 2015, 123). Wherein in the lyric poetry of the
haqq aşiqi, as well as in classical Sufi poetry, some metaphors, epithets and comparisons can be
interpreted doubly – whether one is talking about divine or earthly love. A great example of this
poetic language is given in the poem of Shah Ismayil Khatayi:
Məhəbbətdir yerin-göyün dirəyi,
Məhəbbət edənin yanar çırağı,
Aşiqin beytullah-məşuq durağı,
Haq nəzər etdiyi yerdir məhəbbət.
Love is the pillar of the earth and sky,
The lamp of the loving one is (always) lit,
The house of the beloved is the place of worship for
the loving one.
Truth remains where love is.
(Qasımlı 2002, 55. Translation by the author.)
Ashiqs of the Truth appeared in medieval love dastans as poets and musicians whose talents were
given them by a mystical higher force, the kind of talent called in Azerbaijani ilahi vergisi, “the Gift
of God”. It was believed that they were holy people under the God's protection. Though in the 19 th
century the art of the ashygs lost its Sufi ideological ground, the idea of the sacral origin of the
ashyg art has remained popular with Azerbaijani people to date.
Accelerando: Belgrade Journal of Music and Dance
Issue 2, February 2017
ISSN: 2466-3913 (online)
Sufi Dervish Rites
Besides of mystical ideas and motifs emerging in early ashyg poetry, a number of haqq aşiqi were
known in history of literature as mystics and members ( mürid) of various Sufi dervish
brotherhoods. One of such brotherhoods, the safaviyya order, headed by Shah Ismayil Safavi, had
the ashygs and poets among its members, the most known of which was ashyg Gurbani. Shah
Ismayil Khatayi, sheikh of this order and the Sufi poet, patronised a poetic mejlis (literary society,
circle) at his court, and some members of this circle recognized him as their spiritual leader as well,
the mürshid. So was ashyg Gurbani, who in his famous poem written on the death of Shah Ismayil
noted him as his mürshid:
Fələk, sənlə uruşmağa bir qabil meydan ola,
Tut əlimi, fürsət sənin, kaş belə ehsan ola.
Getmiş idim mürşüdimə dərdimə dəva qıla,
Mən nə bilim, mən gəlincə xaki ilə yeksan ola.
Fate, there is no field where one can fight with you,
Take my hand, this chance is yours, I wish I had this gift.
I came, troubled, to my mürshid to ask for help,
How did I know that before I arrived he had turned to dust.
In his another poem Gurbani applied to Shah Ismayil with the following words:
Mürşidi-kamilim, sheikh oğlu şahım,
Bir ərzim var qulluğuna, şah, mənim
My perfect murshid, the son of sheikh, shah,
I have something to ask you, shah.
(The poems quoted from the author’s memory)
The mystic in the status of abdal, i.e. saint, (Abdal was a mystic who reached the high level of
holiness, a rank of saint, who was thought to be appointed by Allah as a”Friend of God”) was Seyid
Husein, another major poet-ashyg of the epoch of Shah Ismayil, his elder contemporary and friend,
known in history of Azerbaijani literature with the pen name of Miskin Abdal (1430-1535). So was
Shah Ismayil Khatayi, who sometimes signed his poems with the takhallus (pen name) Abdal
Khatayi:
SANUBAR BAGHIROVA
POETRY AND MUSIC OF MEDIEVAL AZERBAIJANI ASHYGS
Xətayiyəm, bir haləm,
Əlif üstündə daləm,
Sufiyəm təriqətdə,
Həqiqətdə abdaləm
I am Khatayi, the one,
Who is the letter dal for the letter alif,
I am a Sufi in Tariqat and
The Abdal of Truth.
(Xətayi, 1988, 327. Translation by the author.)
The letter alif or alef (A), the first letter of the Arabic alphabet, is usually attributed to Allah
while the letter dal (D) because of its arched shape is often used as a metaphor for a man with a
body bowed down. These lines may be interpreted as an allegory of the relationships between God
and human being. Tariqat (literally ‘way’) is a mystic way of self-improvement, a kind of
individual spiritual journey for the seeker of God to attain His presence, to join Him. Various Sufi
orders were distinguished with their own teachings and forms of tariqat.
It is known that many of Sufi dervish brotherhoods practiced collective devotional meetings,
collective meditations called zikr. They usually had special places for these meetings named tekke
(also tekye and tekyegah) or dervish khanegah where dervishes lived and held their rites. The word
zikr (often spelled as dhikr) means “to mention”; it reflects the goal of this rite as “to remember”
God's name. Zikr were often accompanied with music and singing of spiritual poems, and
sometimes with ecstatic dancing. This poetic and musical part of zikr was a rite known as sama`
(literally, "listening" that was usually understood as "listening to music"). Sama` was practiced in
many Sufi dervish orders. Its purpose was to intensify dervishes' meditation, to make their senses
particularly acute, and thus to help them reach the state of spiritual ecstasy at which they felt like
having attained God`s presence. Turkish scholar Abdulbaki Gölpinarly noted that “almost all of Sufi
dervish tariqats but naqshbandiyya welcomed singing poems and songs (ilahiler), playing def (a
kind of tambourine), and dancing during their zikr rites” (Gölpinarly 1985, 134). Zikr of Mevlevi
dervish order went (and still goes) with accompaniment of such musical instruments as woodwind
instrument nei (a kind of flute), or various string instruments like lute. According to the renowned
Azerbaijani scholar professor Maharram Qasimli, and a few other authors, in the fourteenth and
fifteenth centuries among the string instruments used in the rites of Sufi dervishes-ashiqs one of the
major was chagyr (also chovur, or chagur). Referring to the work of Ali Reza Yalchin, Qasimli
writes that ”chagyr accompanied singing of samayi, nefes and other spiritual melodies” (Qasımlı
2007, 120). One has to note that both samayi and nəfəs (also haqq nəfəsi, ilahi nəfəsi or pir nəfəsi)
Accelerando: Belgrade Journal of Music and Dance
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are also poems of spiritual content; they usually carried Sufi ideas and were thought to convey
God's word. The melodies composed to these poems were known as samayi havaları, i.e. melodies
performed at sama`.
Listening to music was also a part of zikr rites of the safaviyya Sufi order. Chinqiz
Sadiqoqlu in his work on safaviyya dervish brotherhood notes that Sheikh Safiaddin Ardabili (XII
century), the founder of this order and the Shah Ismayil Khatayi`s ancestor, often invited singers
and musicians to perform at zikr, and the traditions of listening to music and ecstatic dancing, the
sama`, were continued by his successors (Sadiqoqlu 1988, 62). We may admit that the rite of sama`
survived to the time of Shah Ismayil, and those of ashyg-mystics and poets who considered
themselves to be his mürids probably took part in such meetings. Maharram Qasimli thinks that
”Tekke rites brought about a number of new melodies. Some of these spiritual tunes, which were
composed to be performed at Sufi dervish rites with accompaniment of chagyr, have reached to
date. Taking a significant place in the repertoire of modern ashygs, they are now performed with
accompaniment of saz” (Qasımlı 2007, 120-121). Saz (a long necked lute) is the principal musical
instrument of the Azerbaijani ashyg. Many of the contemporary Azerbaijani ashygs, ustads,
(masters) share the point of view that some melodies from the classical ashyg repertoire, including
such songs as Shah Khatayi, Bash divani, Heydəri, Ibrahimi, Sultani, and a few others, were
probably composed by ashyg Dirili Gurbani. The late composer and a well-known expert in the
ashyg art Azad Kerimli argues that two of these melodies, that are Bash divani and Shah Khatayi
gerailysy, (which are also known these days respectively under the names of Shah Khatayi divanisi
and Shagayi geraily) were composed by Miskin Abdal, who was the creator of the poetic form of
divani (Kerimli 2000, 69). Divani is a strophic poem, each line of which consists of 15 syllables.
Most frequently divani poems deal with spiritual and philosophical subject matters. Some ashygs
believe that Miskin Abdal was also the author of the ashyg song Shahsevəni. We may assume that
one of the above listed melodies, the song Heydəri, was composed in honor of Shah Ismayil, (or
probably to his death), as Heydər was one of various pen names of this great shah, Sufi poet, and
sheikh of safaviyya dervish brotherhood. Nevertheless, whoever was the author of these melodies, it
is obvious that the music style of such melodies as Shah Khatayi, Bash divani, Heydəri, Sultani,
Urfani, Mansuru, and a few others, is more archaic than the style of many other classical ashyg
songs. These melodies are distinguished with a short range, repetition of the melodic phrases,
variable, or often free, musical meter, and frequently ended shifting the final tone from the tonic to
SANUBAR BAGHIROVA
POETRY AND MUSIC OF MEDIEVAL AZERBAIJANI ASHYGS
another pitch. Modern ashygs are probably right referring them to the group of melodies they call
təkkə havaları or also səmayi havaları, i.e. melodies that are meant to be performed in tekke during
the sama` rites (For audio examples see HTML version of this text).
Dervish Mystic Practices of the 18th Century
The ties of the ashyg music with dervish rites can be traced
also in the dervish mystic practices of the 18th century. Azad
Kerimli, quoted above, (2000) made available the interesting
facts on one of the outstanding Azerbaijani ashygs of the 18 th
century, ashyg Allahverdi, who was more known as Ag
Ashyg. Ag Ashyg literally means “white ashyg”, and his
name was connected to the physical distinction of himself,
namely he was an albino. It is believed that Ag Ashyg lived
between 1775 and 1880. The grandfather of Ag Ashyg, sheikh
Osman, was murshid of a Sufi dervish community in
Nakhchivan.
Sheikh Osman and his brother Gara Osmanoglu sang
Picture 1. Dervish khanegah in
and played saz perfectly well, although they did not display
Nakhchivan, the region on the South of
their aptitude for the ashyg art anywhere but at the dervish
Azerbaijan on the border with Iran.
rites held in tekke in Nakhchivan (Kerimli 2000, 69). To a
certain degree, the work of the Russian ethnographer Konstantin Smirnov (1878-1938) on history
and ethnography of the Nakhchivan district (see Picture 1) may support these facts.
In his work written in 1934, Smirnov mentioned the tombs of many Sufi dervishes, two
villages with the name Khanegah, a village Dervishler, the Mosque Pir Khamus of the sect
nuktaviyya, the Mosque Zaviye, (Zaviye was a small Sufi dervish tekke), the waterway called
‘Bektashi arkhy”, and many other traces of dervish's culture that remained in the area at the time of
his research. In addition, this work also contains some useful information of dervishes in
Nakhchivan from the first half of 1930s. (Smirnov 1999, 88).
Accelerando: Belgrade Journal of Music and Dance
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ISSN: 2466-3913 (online)
Azerbaijani Ashyg Culture in the 19th and 20th Centuries
and the Cult of Imam Ali
By the 19th century mystical spiritual practices, along with the title haqq aşiqi, have been gone from
Azerbaijani ashyg culture, although the religious and mystical motifs remained an inspiration for
ashygs even in the 20 th century. These motifs were mainly associated with the name and cult of
Imam Ali, the son-in-law of the Prophet Muhammad, and the twelve imams. In Azerbaijani spiritual
culture, particularly, with the Shia ummah of Azerbaijan, (where partly the population is Shia, partly
Sunni), the person of Imam Ali is highly admired, sometimes as high as the Prophet himself. Some
Shia sects, such as, for instance, ”ali-ilahi” go so far as deitify him. Shia has become the official
religion in Azerbaijan since the reign of Shah Ismayil Savafi in Iran and Azerbaijan, exactly since
the early 16th century. However the cult of Imam Ali had found its adherents in Azerbaijan before
the 16th century. Below is a fragment from a 14th-century poem, a panegyric in honor of Imam Ali:
Ta təhildən mənim könlümdə soltandır Əli,
Həm əlif, həm nüqtəyi, həm hərfi-Qurandır Əli.
Bu Nəsimi madihi-Heydər, qulami-Heydəri.
From the very beginning the sultan of my heart was Ali,
Ali is the first letter, and the final point, and the word of Koran,
I am Nasimi – meddah of Heydar, the slave of Heydar.
(Əlizadə, 1995:17. Translation by the author.)
Note: Heydər, one of the epithet names of Imam Ali, is an Arabic word for “lion”; it is used in a figurative
sense in the meaning of “brave”.
The ancient genre of panegyric called mədh, or mədhiyyə has had a long history in Oriental
poetry; it has been traditionally dedicated to the rulers – shah, khan, sultan, or khaqan. The poem
quoted above is a sample of so-called Əli mədhi, the genre of panegyrics in honor of Imam Ali; its
author, an outstanding Azerbaijani classical poet Imadaddin Nasimi (1369-1417), claims himself to
be meddah of Imam Ali, i.e. his panegyrist. The genre of Əli mədhi, (which has remained in use in
Shia religious practice and dervish rites up to now), was popular with the poets of the Shah Ismayil
Khatayi` mejlis (poetic circle). Khayati himself was the author of such poems.
SANUBAR BAGHIROVA
POETRY AND MUSIC OF MEDIEVAL AZERBAIJANI ASHYGS
Below are two lines from one of his panegyrics to Imam Ali:
Ey iki aləm pənahı, şahi-sərvər, ya Əli,
Sahibi-fəzli vilayət, şir-e Heydər, ya Əli.
Oh, protector of two worlds, head of shahs, oh Ali,
King of generosity, lion Heydar, oh Ali
(Əlizadə, 1977:112. Translation by the author.)
The genre of Əli mədhi was the one we find also in the poetry of ashyg Gurbani:
Indiyədək ustadımı bilmirdim,
İndi bildim, Şahi-Mərdan Əlidi.
Ümidim bağladım Şahi-Mərdana,
Əli dedim, ələyindən ələndim
I have not known till present who is my Master
Now I have realized that this was Shah-i Mardan Ali
I have placed my hopes in Shah-i Mardan,
appealed to Ali (and) have gone through his sieve [literally]
(Əlizadə, 1977:341. Translation by the author.)
The cult of Imam Ali, as well as of his sons Hussein and Hassan, Shia martyrs, has found its
reflection in the poetry of a number of the great Azerbaijani ashygs of the 19 th and early 20th century,
such as outstanding ustads (masters) ashyg Aly (1801-1911), ashyg Alasgar (1821-1926) and Ashyg
Musa (1830-1912). The greatest master ashyg Alasgar was an author of many spiritual poems,
including ones glorifying Imam Ali and his sons Hussein and Hassan. Below are lines from the
spiritual poems of ashyg Alasgar, ashyg Musa, and ashyg Aly.
Ashyg Alasgar (Dahilerin divani, 2013):
Həqiqətdən iki gözəl sevmişəm,
Birisi Məhəmməd, birisi Əli.
Məhşər günü darda qoymaz ümməti,
Əsğər qucağında şah Hüsеyn gəlir».
I have loved two glorious people of Truth,
One is Muhammad, the other – Ali.
On the Judgement Day shah Hussein will not leave
his ummah in troubles,
There he's coming with Əsgər in his arms.
(Translation by the author.)
Note: Əsğər is the name of Imam Hussein`s youngest, six-month-old son murdered in Karbala. Professor
Vasim Mamedaliyev kindly explained the author the meaning of this phrase for Shia people as “God will
forgive everything to Imam Hussein for the sake of his six-month old baby, an innocent victim.”
Accelerando: Belgrade Journal of Music and Dance
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ISSN: 2466-3913 (online)
Ashyg Aly:
Ashyg Musa:
İmam Həsən gözəllərin gözüdü,
İmam Hüseyin şəfaətçi özüdü.
İsmimdən Aşıq Musa,
Şahi-Mərdan quluyam.
Imam Hassan is the heart of the Excellence
Imam Husein is the life-giving one.
My name is Ashyg Musa,
I am a Shah-Mardan`s slave.
(Əlizadə 1995, 18. Translation by the author.)
Note: Shahi-Mardan is a traditional addressing to Imam Ali.
In the Soviet times religious and mystical motifs practically disappeared from the ashyg
poetry, but the tradition to begin the ashyg mejlis (literary and music party) with an opening
exclamatory phrase “Ya İlahi, ya Mövlam, уa şahi-Mərdan, səndən mədəd!”(«Оh, God, oh, my
Master, oh, shahi-Mardan, help me!), i.e. with the addressing to God and to Imam Ali, has reached
the present time. Nevertheless, the art of modern Azerbaijani ashyg is thoroughly secular; it is not
used in dervish rites any longer. Mystical and dervish practices in Azerbaijan have been twined
around the Mugham since the 19th century, and the art of Mugham became another major genre of
Azerbaijani traditional music. But this is the topic of the second part of this work.
References
Axund, Hacı Kərbəlayı Soltan Hüseynqulu oğlu. 1997. Şah İsmayıl Xətayi. (Shah Ismayil Khatayi). Baku:
Ozan.
Baghirova, Sanubar. 2015. “The One Who Knows the Value of Words: The Ashiq of Azerbaijan.” Yearbook
for Traditional Music, vol.47: 116 – 140.
“Dahilərin Divanı” Collection. 2013. http://arxiv.az/az/gun.az/649634/Dahilerin+divani:
+Kerbela+musibeti+Koshe
Əlizadə, Axund Hacı Kərbəlayı Soltan. 1995. Azərbaycan dərvişləri və rövzəxanları (Azerbaijani dervishes
and rovzekhans). Baku: Boz Oguz and Nicat.
Gölpinarlı, Abdülbaki. 1985. 100 Soruda Tasavvuf. 2nd ed. Istanbul: Gul.
http://www.academia.edu/19753476/Abdulbaki_Golpinarli_100_Soruda_Tasavvuf
Kərimli, Azad Ozan. 2000. “Göyçə aşıq məktəbi.” (Göycha Ashyg School). Musiqi dünyası, № 1(2): 6672, part 1, Baku.
Məhəmmədcəlil, Məhəmməd, and Fariz Xəlilli. 2003. Mövlana İsmayıl Siracəddin Şirvani. (Movlana
Ismayil Sirajaddin Shirvani). Baku: Adiloqlu.
SANUBAR BAGHIROVA
POETRY AND MUSIC OF MEDIEVAL AZERBAIJANI ASHYGS
Qasımlı, Məhərrəm. 2002. Şah İsmayıl Xətayinin poeziyası. (Poetry of Shah Ismayil Khatayi). Baku: Elm
- - - . 2007. Ozan-Aşıq sənəti. (Art of Ozan and Ashiq). Baku: Ugur.
Smirnov, Konstantin. 1999. [1934.] Materialı po istorii i etnoqrafii Naxiçevanskoqo kraia. (Materials on
history and ethnography of Nakhchivan district.) [Tiflis], Baku: Ozan.
Sadıq oğlu Çingiz. 1988. "Azərbaycan təsəvvüfü tarixində 'Səfəviyyə' və onun Xətai yaradıcılığında yeri."
(Safaviyya order in the history of Tasavvuf in Azerbaijan and its role in the works of Khatayi.) In Şah
İsmayıl Xətai. Məqalələr toplusu. (Shah Ismayil Khatayi. Collected articles), 58-70. Baku: Elm.
Xətayi, Şah İsmayıl. 1988. “Keçmə namərd körpüsündən”. Şerlər və poemalar. (“Don`t cross the bridge of
the treacherous one. Verses and poems.) Baku: Yazichi.
DISCOGRAPHY
Azerbaijan State Radio company archive. Recording of the 1960s. Heydari (also Mammadhuseini, or
Kürdü). Performed by ashyg Akber Jafarov (1933-1990) and Abbasali Ismayilov on the balaban, lyrics
by ashyg-poet Mammadhusein.
Baghirova, Sanubar. 2010. CD 9, track 5. Bash divani, (also Shah Khatayi divanisi). Performed by ashyg
Kamandar Efendiyev (1932-2000), lyrics by haqq ashiqi Dirili Gurbani. In Audio collection “Classical
heritage of Azerbaijani ashygs.” Baku: Ministry of Culture and Tourism of Azerbaijan Republic.
Baghirova, Sanubar. 2010. CD 1, track 18. Mansuru. Performed by ashyg Avdy Avdyiev (1910-1987),
lyrics by ashyg Avdy Avdyiev. In Audio collection “Classical heritage of Azerbaijani ashygs.” Baku:
Ministry of culture and tourism of Azerbaijan Republic.
Baghirova, Sanubar. 2010. CD 12, track 14. Ibrahim peshrosu (Shirvan regional version of the song
Ibrahimi). Performed by ashyg Mahmud Niftaliyev (1946-2002), lyrics by haqq ashiqi Abbas
Tufarqanly. In Audio collection “Classical heritage of Azerbaijani ashygs.” Baku: Ministry of culture
and tourism of Azerbaijan Republic.
Efendiyev, Kamandar, perf. ashyg. 1982. Ibrahimi. Lyrics from the medieval ashyg love dastan “Ashiq
Garib.” Azerbaijan State TV archive.
Garayev, Ramin, perf. ashyg. 2015. Urfani (also Ruhani). Lyrics by haqq ashiqi Dirili Gurbani. Recorded
by the Azerbaijan State Radio company. Used by courtesy of the performer.
Accelerando: Belgrade Journal of Music and Dance
Issue 2, February 2017
ISSN: 2466-3913 (online)
UDC: 792.8.071.2(=161.1)(497.11)"19/20"
COBISS.SR-ID 229889036
Russian Ballet Dancers and Choreographers
at the Belgrade Stage in the XX and
Early XXI Centuries
Виктор Иванович Косик1
1
Institute for Slavic Studies of RAS, Russia
Received: April 8, 2016.
Reviewed: May 20, 2016.
Accepted: May 31, 2016.
Citation: Kosik, Viktor I. 2017. “Russian Ballet Dancers and Choreographers at the Belgrade Stage
in the XX and Early XXI Centuries.” Accelerando: Belgrade Journal of Music and Dance 2:8.
Abstract
The main goal of the article is to outline significant contribution to the history of
Belgrade ballet of those Russian dancers who came to the Kingdom of Serbia after
leaving Russia in 1917, and to monitor the contribution of the next generations of
Russian masters who came to Belgrade, the capital of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, later
the Socialistic Federative Republic of Yugoslavia. They have invested a lot of their
effort, talent, and time, laid the foundations and provided very fast development of
Belgrade ballet so that it caught up step with European ballet scene. The article, based on
numerous sources and literature, including unpublished memoirs, confirmed that dancers
who came after Bolshevik revolution contributed to the establishment of the national
ballet center at the Belgrade National Theater and the ballet school where the first
dancers of the Serbian origin were formed under the tutelage of Elena Poljakova, Nina
Kirsanova, Xenia Grundt-Dumet. Celebrated ballerinas Anna Pavlova and Tamara
Karsavina performed at the Belgrade stage in the twenties of the last century. In addition,
unlike previously common approaches to this subject limited to the role and activity of
the Russian emigration in the interwar period, the article is extended from the period
during and after the Second World War to the present days. Accordingly, the paper
includes the renowned Soviet masters such as Leonid Lavrovsky, Maya Plisetskaya,
Natalia Dudinskaya, and those who have played important role in the contemporary
ballet life in Serbia, to name Hmela, Pilipenko, Kasatkin, Logunov, and Kostjukov.
Keywords: Russian ballet, art, dance, dancer, choreographer.
VIKTOR I. KOSIK
РУССКИЕ МАСТЕРА БАЛЕТА НА БЕЛГРАДСКОЙ СЦЕНЕ В XX – НАЧАЛЕ XXI ВВ.
Аннотация
Tекст посвящен русским мастерам балета, покинувшим «красную Россию» после
1917 г., и выступавшим в Белграде на сцене Народного театра. Обрисован их
весомый вклад в историю и современность сербского балета, в развитие которого
русские мастера вложили немало сил, таланта, времени. В статье, основанной на
многочисленных источниках и литературе, в том числе неопубликованных
воспоминаний, воссоздаются картины творческих биографий русских мастеров
балета, начинавших творить для нового зрителя – жителя Белграда, прежде всего
серба. Одновременно, показан их вклад в деле создания национальных кадров в
балетном искусстве. В тексте представлены портреты таких мастеров балета, как
Елена Полякова, Нина Кирсанова, Ксения Грундт-Дюме, блиставшие на столичной
сцене. Внимание уделено и знаменитостям мирового уровня, прежде всего Анне
Павловой и Тамаре Карсавиной, выступавшим короткое время в сербской столице.
В отличие от традиционного ограничения при обрисовке жизни и деятельности
русской эмиграции межвоенным периодом, автор продолжил освещение
художественного творчества в области балета вплоть до начала нового
тысячелетия. Соответственно в тексте высвечено не только творчество русских
изгнанников в сфере балета в годы второй мировой войны, но и продолжено
дальше во времени. Представлены выдающиеся советские мастера, такие, как
Леонид Лавровский, Майя Плисецкая, Наталья Дудинская, приезжавшие в СФРЮ
в послевоенное время и выступавшие на столичной сцене. В тексте освещено и
искусство, талант тех артистов и артисток, у которых есть русские корни,
например, Лильана Хмела, Лидия Пилипенко, Соня Лапатанов, Владимир Логунов,
чей вклад в современный сербский балет не может быть подвержен сомнению.
Обрисованы и фигуры тех русских мастеров балета, которые прибыли из недавней
России и стали «своими» на сербской земле. Это и Денис Касаткин, и Константин
Костюков.
Ключевые слова: балет, искусство, танец, балерина, хореограф.
Accelerando: Belgrade Journal of Music and Dance
Issue 2, February 2017
ISSN: 2466-3913 (online)
Русские Мастера Балета на Белградской Сцене В XX – Начале XXI Вв.
Введение во время
Летит, как пух от уст Эола
А. С. Пушкин
Начало XX века в мировой истории связано с первой мировой войной, непосредственным
поводом для которой стал выстрел Гаврилы Принципа. Потом было выступление России в
защиту Сербии и долгая война, спровоцировавшая во многом и свержение в марте 1917 г.
самодержавия в Российской империи. На русских просторах начался «смутный период»,
характеризовавшийся мощной политизацией общественной жизни страны, борьбой партий и
политических программ на фоне продолжавшейся войны. В итоге в «октябре 1917 года»
вспыхнула инициированная РСДРП (б) – Российская социал-демократическая рабочая партия
(большевиков) – другая революция, провозгласившая кардинальные перемены во всех
областях жизни страны, о переходе власти к Советам, «в руки рабочих и крестьян» с
лозунгом «Мир хижинам, война дворцам». Сословно-иерархическая Россия с ее
дворянством, помещиками, буржуазией ликвидировалась. «Кто не с нами, тот против нас» –
таков был лозунг новой власти того времени. Тех, кто был «против» насчитывалось немало,
причем вооруженных. Началась Гражданская война с ее кровавым террором, как «белым»,
так и «красным». Последние побеждали, что в итоге послужило причиной великого русского
исхода в иные страны.
Россия изнемогала в огне гражданской войны. Во все четыре стороны света
потянулись обозы, двинулись эшелоны, пошли пароходы с людьми, спасавшими свою честь
и жизнь.
Уходили из «своей России» не только офицеры и солдаты, не желавшие оставаться в
стране, где жизнь стала принадлежать «красным», уничтожившим императорскую Россию,
уходили вместе с ними и представители всех слоев «бывшей России» – от чиновничества до
лиц свободных профессий.
VIKTOR I. KOSIK
РУССКИЕ МАСТЕРА БАЛЕТА НА БЕЛГРАДСКОЙ СЦЕНЕ В XX – НАЧАЛЕ XXI ВВ.
Одной из стран, где они нашли сначала временное пристанище, а потом и постоянное
место проживания, свой дом, стала Сербия. Для одних она стала матерью, другие считали
себя пасынками. «Ананасы в шампанском» для избранных и тяжелый, зачастую физический,
труд для незваных. Цвет интеллигенции, сравнительно легко находящей поле деятельности, и
масса боевых офицеров в мирной стране. Молодые мечты и погасшие идеалы. Все это были
полярные точки той жизни, в которой некоторые обретали второе дыхание, иные –
утрачивали смысл бытия.
Уместно напомнить, что Королевство Югославия приняло в начале прошлого века
десятки тысяч людей, вынужденно покинувших Россию, и оказало им широкое
гостеприимство. Сербы старших поколений, помнящие роль России в освобождении их
страны от 500-летнего османского ига, всячески старались облегчить православным братьям
существование на чужбине. Помимо солдат и офицеров армии барона Петра Врангеля в
Белград прибыли сотни архитекторов, художников, скульпторов, инженеров-строителей,
артистов.
Следует отметить, что некоторые приехали в Югославию уже известными мастерами в
различных областях науки и искусства. Судя по архивным документам, в начале 1920-х гг. в
Королевстве сербов, хорватов и словенцев насчитывалось примерно 300 колоний русских
беженцев. Больше всего русских было размещено в Сербии – около 200 колоний., из них
свыше половины в Банате и Бачке. Общая численность беженцев к середине 20-х гг. XX в. не
превышала 35 тыс. человек. Управление русскими колониями было сосредоточено в
государственной комиссии по русским беженцам (далее – ГК), созданной в 1920 г. по
предложению председателя Народной скупщины Л. Йовановича, ставшего ее первым
руководителем. Однако вскоре по инициативе короля Александра новым главой ГК был
назначен выдающийся ученый, профессор Александр Белич. Страстный русофил, – «русский
батька», как звали его беженцы, – он и на этом новом для себя поприще старался превратить
для изгнанников Белград, в котором на исходе второго десятилетия революционного века
проживало свыше восьми тысяч русских – в основном из Петрограда, Москвы, Киева – как и
Томаш Масарик Прагу – в своеобразные «русские Афины».
Первоочередная задача ГК состояла в приеме беженцев, обеспечении их кровом и
врачебной помощью, а также в трудоустройстве через специально созданные «бюро труда».
Accelerando: Belgrade Journal of Music and Dance
Issue 2, February 2017
ISSN: 2466-3913 (online)
На содержание беженцев королевское правительство ежемесячно выделяло ГК достаточно
большие суммы. Беженцам был гарантирован ряд прав. В частности, лица свободных
профессий вначале совершенно не были стеснены в своих занятиях. Большинство из них
сразу приняли на государственную службу. При назначении пенсии учитывалась и служба в
России.
Будучи своеобразным сколком с русского общества, эмиграция по своему
социальному, имущественному, культурному, политическому составу была чрезвычайно
пестрой. Хотя тут же необходимо сказать, что для Югославии она была, прежде всего,
«профессорской». Еще живут те, кого учили русские специалисты, память о которых пока не
умерла. Те же сербы помнили, что на Балканах рядом с ними сражались десятки тысяч
русских солдат и офицеров.
«Ах, какие яркие, чудные то были дни, дни внезапно и волшебно вернувшейся
юности! Чистое, робко-голубое небо, запах оттаявшей земли, первые почки, весеннее
молодое солнце!.. А позади тифозные теплушки, штабели замерзших трупов, горный грохот
повстанческой стрельбы, красные полчища и смутная тоска по далекому, счастливому
западу...
Вот мы и тут. Но какой же это запад, когда город называется Београд – Белый Город, и
главное здание на главной его площади, высокий и кораблеобразный дом с башенками и
шпилями называется "Москва", и король – в прошлом русский школьник? И по вывескам
русские буквы, но слагают они слова непривычные глазу, как из Киева во времена
гетманщины, только без той кокетливо- самодовольной наглости. Освоились скоро. В самом
деле, что за трудности, когда нож по-сербски называется – нож, вилка – вилюшка, человек –
човек, женщина – жено? Стоит только настроить язык на школьный церковнославянский лад,
и все пойдет, как по маслу. А сколько кругом русского! Хотя бы вот те же самые вывески над
темноватыми входами ”кафан“, где дремлет в высоких бочках густое, крепкое вино. Каждое
торговое предприятие имеет свой покровительственно-именной девиз. Вот ”код генерала
Скобелева“, вот ”код белог Цара“, вот ”код веселог руса“, и сам я видел вывеску в маленьком
городке ”код Петра Степановича, киевского помещика“.
А там и пошло. Эшелон за эшелоном – десять, двадцать, тридцать тысяч русских,
прожженных огнем Гражданской войны. И вот уже свои газеты, комитеты, канцелярии и,
VIKTOR I. KOSIK
РУССКИЕ МАСТЕРА БАЛЕТА НА БЕЛГРАДСКОЙ СЦЕНЕ В XX – НАЧАЛЕ XXI ВВ.
конечно, бесконечное множество ”Рюриков“, ”Варягов“ и ”Асторий“ с русскими
балалаечниками с самоваром на стойке, с ленивыми варениками и сибирскими пельменями.
И за бумажки, еще вчера ничего не стоившие, летевшие по ветру, устилавшие пароходную
палубу, сегодня дают полновесные, полные динары, и после миллионов за взятую с боя
котлету из собачьего мяса, за ржавую селедку, коробку спичек – витрины, ломившиеся от
всяческого давно забытого добра, и мирный добрый басок: ”Пожалуйте, братушкам скидка, а
нет – и в долг поверим!..“» (Рощин 1932, 12)
Хотя и самой Югославии приходилось несладко. Первая мировая унесла жизни
большинства мужского населения страны. Неграмотность в некоторых местах была почти
повсеместной. И здесь прибытие русских изгнанников, их деятельность во многих сферах
хозяйственной и культурной жизни, сыграли большую роль в истории страны, ее культуре, в
том числе и в мало известном тогда искусстве, как балет.
Русские мастера балета в 1920-1940-е годы
«Волею судеб, – писал в прессе большой любитель балетного искусства Алексей Иванович
Ксюнин, – традиции русского классического балета перенеслись в столицу того славянского
государства, котор.[ое] с таким благородством пропагандирует русскую культуру» (Grund,
188).
В балете не было языковой проблемы, но само искусство Терпсихоры было определенным
«вторжением» для сербской культуры. В газете «Политика» так было обрисовано концертное
выступление в 1921 г. русской балерины Маргариты Фроман (Картина 1), ее коллег и
учеников: «Долгожданный русский балет... представил на суд многочисленных зрителей
множество мелких пьесок. Мы имели возможность насладиться художественной продукцией
ног, весьма выразительных и красноречивых... Госпожа Фроман живо и грациозно исполнила
свои элегантные номера, а госпожа Бекефи, дама темпераментная, танцевала с необычайным
огнем и такой стремительностью, что публика все время с замиранием ждала, что у нее вотвот отлетит либо рука, либо нога. Лишь она была на сцене в длинной юбке, что, впрочем, не
помешало ей до пояса оголить свое искусство» (Pavlovic 1996, 306-307).
Accelerando: Belgrade Journal of Music and Dance
Issue 2, February 2017
ISSN: 2466-3913 (online)
И тем не менее... Во многом благодаря совместным усилиям директората Народного театра в
Белграде и собственно русских артистов сербская публика «приучалась» видеть балетное
искусство вначале в виде номеров в оперных спектаклях. Потом, опять-таки вследствие
обоюдного интереса в 1920 г. создается под руководством известной балерины Клавдии
Лукьяновны Исаченко «Малая балетная школа», внесшей свой скромный труд в развитие
этого искусства в Сербии. Кстати, она поставила несколько балетных вставок в операх, самой
интересной из которых была в «Сказках Гофмана», 1921 г. (Dragutinovic, 145).
Здесь можно вспомнить и Актерско-балетную школу Народного театра, где
хореографию стала вести выпускница Санкт-Петербургского балетного училища (1902 г.) по
классу Клавдии Михайловны Куличевской замечательная балерина Елена Дмитриевна
Полякова (07. 05. 1884, Рыбинск – 25. 07. 1972, Сант-Яго, Чили), прибывшей 14 февраля 1922
г. в Белград (Картина 2).
Картина 1. Маргариты Фроман
Для "Русские в Сербии", Белград, 2009.
VIKTOR I. KOSIK
РУССКИЕ МАСТЕРА БАЛЕТА НА БЕЛГРАДСКОЙ СЦЕНЕ В XX – НАЧАЛЕ XXI ВВ.
О балетной школе Е. Д. Поляковой писали в прессе следующее: «Артистка нашего
Мариинского балета Е. Д. Полякова может по праву гордиться тем, что ею сделано за
несколько лет в Белграде. Это показали все балетные постановки театра, это подтвердил и
вечер балетной школы, кот.[орый] дает материал для театра. Гибкая и стильная Живанович в
”Змее“ на музыку Дебиси (Дебюсси – В. К.), пластичная Ланкау в вариациях Чайковского,
уверенная и характерная Грундт в восточных танцах из ”Шехерезады“, темпераментная
Шматкова (бывшая позже в труппе Анны Павловой, а ныне в турне в качестве
балетмейстера) и природными дарованиями подготовленная к балету, маленькая Мими
Полякова (дочь) были лучшими № №» (Grund, 80). Причем, отмечу, что школа Е. Д.
Поляковой была «государственной, получавшей субсидии» (Ibid.,88).
Выступления прославленной русской балерины настолько покорили столицу
Королевства сербов, хорватов и словенцев, что ей был предложен ангажемент на длительный
срок в Народном театре.
Прежде чем обрисовать творческую биографию балерины, представлю сам портрет
Елены Дмитриевны Поляковой в описании Ксении Федоровны Грундт-Дюме, писавшей: «Не
знаю, какой она была в молодости, но когда я с ней познакомилась, она была невероятно
холодна. Мне кажется, что Театр перестал ее “интересовать”.
Конечно, у нее остались замечательные, как бы выточенные колени. Узенькие и как бы
безколенные чашечки, крепкий носок. Хорошая спина. Она очень хорошо показывала
”adagio“ когда хотела, но… большей частью она предпочитала сидеть в кресле, положив свои
великолепные, выворотные нож [ки] на табурет и показывая “па” руками, или говоря
названия… Лицо ее вообще не было выразительно, а т. к. у нее были не особенные зубы то
улыбка на нем появлялась редко» (Ibid.,91).
Причем, в ее студии на рояле стоял портрет Анны Павловой, которому, бывало,
картинно кланялась балерина Анка Рой, подчеркивавшая свое сходство с «божественной»
(Ibid.,210). И теперь в сжатом виде «работа» Елены Дмитриевны. Первый белградский сезон
Полякова начала 1 сентября 1922 г. постановкой балета в опере «Проданная невеста»
Сметаны. В том же сезоне представила зрителям и «Шехерезаду», «Щелкунчик»,
«Сильфиды».
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ISSN: 2466-3913 (online)
В последующие сезоны Елена поставила балеты в
операх «Кармен» Бизе и «Еврейка» Фроменталя (4
апреля и 15 мая 1923 г.), в которых танцевала
заглавные партии. 11 июня 1924 г. Полякова в
«Коппелии» играла Сванильду. В оперно-балетном
репертуаре Полякова станцевала еще одну партию в
«Пиковой даме» Чайковского и как хореограф
поставила два балетных номера в операх: «Лакме»
Делиба 23 ноября 1923, «Манон» Массне 1 февраля
1924 г. В сезоне 1924/25 г. она исполняла сольную
Картина 2. Елена Дмитриевна
партию в опере «Аида» 1 мая 1925 г., в «Лебедином
Полякова. Для "Русские в Сербии",
озере» 29 июня 1925 г. Как хореограф Елена
Белград, 2009
Полякова 29 октября 1924 г. поставила танцы в
драме «Свадебный марш» А. Батая. В мае 1925 г.
она выступала в Сараево. В сезоне 1925/26 г. балерина сыграла Королеву фей в «Жизели» и
др. В балетно-актерской школе она поставила балет-пантомиму «Кот в сапогах» В. Нелидова
в трех картинах. В следующем сезоне Полякова играла Аврору в «Очарованной красавице».
Ангажемент Елены кончился в сезоне 1926/27 г. и не был возобновлен руководством
театра, стремившимся дать дорогу национальным кадрам. Она продолжала выступать, но уже
как приглашенная балерина в отдельных балетных спектаклях. 21 мая 1929 г., отметив 25летие выступления на сцене выступлением в роли Царевны в балете Ц. Пуни «Волшебный
конек», она простилась с белградской публикой. Круг судьбы завершился: Елена исполняла
эту партию после окончания училища в Царском селе перед русским монархом и завершила в
том же балете перед югославским королем. После ухода с балетной сцены, на которой она
выступала с Вагановой, Преображенской, Кшесинской, Павловой, Карсавиной,
Спесивцевым, Легатом, Фокиным, Нижинским, много времени Елена Полякова отдавала
педагогике, которой она занималась с 1922 г. в актерско-балетной школе. После того как в
1927 г. она, вследствие недостатка денег, закрылась, Елена Дмитриевна открыла свою
студию. Именно там готовились артисты и артистки балета, мастерство которых будет
VIKTOR I. KOSIK
РУССКИЕ МАСТЕРА БАЛЕТА НА БЕЛГРАДСКОЙ СЦЕНЕ В XX – НАЧАЛЕ XXI ВВ.
восхищать поклонников этого завораживающего своей красотой искусства. В частности,
Полякова воспитала и выпустила Бошкович, Живкович, Оленину, Бологовскую, Ланкау,
Полонскую, Корбе, Грундт, Васильеву, Жуковского, Панаева, Ристича, Гребенщикова,
Российского, Доброхотова, Юшкевича. Некоторые из ее воспитанниц открыли свои школы. В
Париже, этой мировой столице искусства, можно было услышать, что белградская балетная
школа лучше парижской. В русской прессе подчеркивали: «В школе Поляковой, кроме
русских, много и сербских учениц, – сама школа так прочно срослась с Белградом, стала
неотъемлемой частью его культурной жизни, – что восторженные отчеты сербских газет с
одинаковой радостью называют, независимо от национальности, имена новых балерин,
созданных школой Поляковой». Уроки мастерства у нее брали и солисты из Народного
театра. С 1937/38 г. по 1940/41 г. Елена Дмитриевна вела балетный класс в Средней
музыкальной школы при Музыкальной академии в Белграде. В 1943 г. Полякова с мужем,
дочерью и зятем покинули Белград. По некоторым данным, причина отъезда была в том, что
зять, также русский, бывший на немецкой военной службе, должен был отправиться на
Восточный фронт. Свой класс в Музыкальной академии и учеников своей школы Полякова
передала танцовщику и педагогу Милораду Йовановичу Милету. 15 марта 1943 г. она
простилась с учениками и на следующий день уехала поездом в Вену. Начался очередной
«бег», закончившийся в Чили, где она была принята педагогом в Национальный балет Чили и
в оперный Муниципальный театр в Сантьяго. Проработав 20 лет, Елена Дмитриевна ушла на
пенсию. Балетный архив в Сантьяго носит ее имя Archivo Internasional de Ballet «Elena
Poliakova». Мэр Сантьяго наградил ее Золотой медалью Сантьяго (Pavlovic, 307; Россия и
славянство 01.07. № 222, 1933, 4; Р. Русское искусство в Югославии//Часовой. 1969. Май. С.
32. [R. Russian art in Yugoslavia. 1969. The entry. Page 32.]; Dragutinovic, 144; ShukulievicMarkovic, 1994c, 46, 48, 49–55; "Beloemigracija u Jugoslaviji," Arhiv Republike Slovenije, AS
1931. Republiški sekretariat za notranje zadele. A.Š. 1053. Published in Milenkovic et al. 2006,
213-214).
Свой вклад в становление балета внесла и москвичка Марьяна Петровна Оленина
(02.04.1907, Москва – 02.06.1963, Белград)(Картина 3). Она родилась в театральной семье: ее
отец был врачом и талантливым певцом, Станиславский приходился ей дядей. Балету она
начала учиться с девяти лет в Московском хореографическом училище. В сезоне 1923/24 г.
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ценители искусства Терпсихоры получили возможность увидеть первый раз ученицу
Поляковой на сцене Народного театра в Белграде.
Немного из формулярного списка. Прима-балерина и хореограф с 1 марта 1923 г. до 31
июля 1931 г., потом с 1 сентября 1933 г. до 31 мая 1935 г., затем с 1 сентября 1936 г. до 31
июля 1939 г., и с 1 августа 1940 г. до 30 апреля 1941 г., когда оставила сцену (М. П.
Олениной, Archive of the Theatre Museum of Serbia).
В ее репертуаре были и выступления в «Лакме» (1924 г.), «Половецком лагере»
(другое название – «Половецкие пляски») (1925 г.), «Жизеле» (1926 г.), «Пряничном сердце»
(1927 г.), «Раймонде», «Жар-птице», «Петрушке» (1928 г.). В белградской «Правде» о ней
писали, что в своем танце солистка белградского балета стремится выразить «спиритуальную
субстанцию» сюжета. В ее партиях «нет ничего поверхностного и импровизированного»
(Ibid.).
В начале 1930-х гг. Оленина уехала на два года в Париж, где стажировалась у
Матильды Кшесинской, Ольги Преображенской, Леонида Мясина. В 1933 г. она
возвращается в Белград. В 1934 г. уже как прима-балерина она выступает в таких спектаклях,
как «Самсон и Далила», «Эндимион» (1934 г.) (Ibid.). Однако уже через год Марьяна Оленина
пошла на разрыв контракта с руководством театра. Как объясняла балерина в прессе, на
такой решительный поступок ее вынудила закулисная атмосфера сплетен и подстав: «при
таком режиме управления в нашей Опере нет места искусству». В такой ситуации,
утверждала Оленина, ее достоинство не позволяет ей сотрудничать с директором оперной
труппы театра. 20 мая 1935 г. белградская «Правда» сообщала о расторжении контракта с
Марьяной Олениной вследствие «дисциплинарного проступка по отношению к директору
оперы» (Ibid.).
Потом было возвращение и заключение нового контракта на радость театральной
публики, высоко ценившей талант «своевольной» русской балерины, и позднее смело
отстаивавшей свои интересы перед театральными чиновниками (Ibid.).
Ее решительный характер в полной мере раскрылся в годы Второй мировой войне,
когда она – единственная, пожалуй, из всех русских балерин – участвовала в народноосвободительной борьбе.
VIKTOR I. KOSIK
РУССКИЕ МАСТЕРА БАЛЕТА НА БЕЛГРАДСКОЙ СЦЕНЕ В XX – НАЧАЛЕ XXI ВВ.
Картина 3. Марьяна Петровна Оленина.
"Русские в Сербии", Белград, 2009.
С апреля 1941 г. она предоставила свою комфортную квартиру группе нелегалов. Потом из-за
опасности ареста балерина уехала в Черногорию, где собирала немецкие штабные данные
для последующей передачи в Штаб народно-освободительной борьбы в Черногории,
выполняла другие работы. С середины 1941 г. по сентябрь того же года была в тюрьме. Летом
1944 г. Марьяна Петровна ушла к партизанам, трудилась санитаркой во II корпусе
Черногории (Ibid.).
После возвращения из армии работала главным хореографом Народного театра в
Белграде, была художественным руководителем, хореографом и педагогом балета
Художественного ансамбля Югославской Народной армии. Марьяна Оленина (Картина 4)
стала основательницей балетной труппы в Народном театре в Новом Саде. На сценах
югославских городов она ставила хореографию и была режиссером многих балетов
классического репертуара, а также балетов югославских композиторов. В частности,
поставила «Шехерезаду» на столичной сцене. Марьяна Оленина награждена Орденом за
заслуги перед народом. В 1963 г. опубликовала в 16 номерах газеты югославских
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коммунистов «Борба» (с 19. 06. по 06. 07.) ряд очерков о Марии Лилиной, жене и
сподвижнице Станиславского (Dragutinovic, 151).
Все вроде бы складывалось, но это только на первый взгляд. В 1959 г. ее знакомая или
родственница писала актрисе театра Моссовета Алле Севостьяновой: «Марина сильно
тоскует… по всем: по березам, по Подмосковью, одним словом, по Родине» (М. П. Олениной
Archive). И еще одна выдержка из письма самой Марьяны к родственникам (без даты):
«Новостей никаких, прозябаем понемногу. Я больше дышать не могу в Белграде» (Ibid.).
Сейчас архив Марьяны Олениной хранится в Музее театрального искусства Сербии и
ждет своего кропотливого исследователя. Из солистов назову, например, Яну Васильеву,
Ксению Грундт-Дюме, Соню Ланкау, Тамару Полонскую, З. Маркович, М. Коржинскую,
Тамару Максимову, Александра Доброхотова, Михаила Панаева, Олега Гребенщикова,
Машерова, Наташу Бошкович, Александра Фортунато.
И конечно, нельзя не назвать имя всеизвестного Анатолия Михайловича Жуковского
(1906, Седлец (Польша) – 05.10.1998, Менло Парк, штат Калифорния), солиста, хореографа,
режиссера, шефа балета Народного театра в Белграде в 1925–1943 гг. В 1922 г. он был принят
в Белградскую оперу статистом оперы и драмы. Потом Анатолий, обладавший, кстати,
коренастой фигурой, поступил в балетную школу Елены Поляковой. Его талант заметила и
поддержала не только Полякова, но и Анна Павлова, школьная подруга Поляковой,
приехавшая в гости в Белград. Постепенно, заменяя уезжавших на гастроли артистов, он стал
исполнять весь балетный репертуар. «Так как уже я зациклился на балете и потерял всякий
интерес ко всему иному… мне, – писал А. Жуковский в своей «Исповеди», – всучили
главные роли. Я не был готов к этому, но им было нужно, и они меня уговорили.
Вероятно, был смешон как Дон Жуан у Кристофа Глюка, но это мне много помогло,
так как я обращал внимание на себя, на то, как я работаю. И день, и ночь учился,
репетировал, читал. Вошел в постоянный состав Народного театра, т. е. стал чиновником
Королевства Югославии. Плата была мизерной, но я не был голоден». Первый раз его имя
упоминается в официальном списке танцовщиков балета Народного театра в сезоне 1925/26
г. С сезона 1927/28 г. он солист балета. Потом Жуковский начал ставить самостоятельно
некоторые хореографии, в частности, к балету «Путешествие вокруг мира» знаменитого Б.
Нушича, обратившего на него внимание и поселившего его к себе, пока Жуковский не
VIKTOR I. KOSIK
РУССКИЕ МАСТЕРА БАЛЕТА НА БЕЛГРАДСКОЙ СЦЕНЕ В XX – НАЧАЛЕ XXI ВВ.
приищет себе квартиры. «Я у него жил три месяца. Он меня называл “Скакавац” (кузнечик –
серб.). У него была пожилая родственницы, которая заботилась и обо мне. Чувствовал себя
как сыр в масле.
Картина 4. Марьяна Оленина и Князев студирают танец (author's archive).
Так началась моя хореографическая карьера». Одновременно Анатолий продолжал
солировать в балете. С 1932/33 г. Жуковский первый танцовщик. Танцевал он больше всего с
Наташей Бошкович, Яной Васильевой, Ниной Кирсановой, Мариной Олениной и Аницей
Прелич. В середине 1930-х гг. Жуковский был назначен исполняющим обязанности
балетмейстера.
С 1938 г. приставка «и. о.» была снята. С 1935 по 1941 г.
Анатолий Михайлович
поставил 11 балетов в операх и 10 хореографий в балетном репертуаре. В частности, назову
его три хореографии: «Франческа да Римини» П. И. Чайковского,
«Золотой петушок»
(поставленный как балет) Н. А. Римского-Корсакова, «Огонь в горах» А. Пордеса. Много
времени Жуковский отдавал изучению народного танца. Поэтому неудивительно, что он был
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в числе организаторов неофициальной группы фолкбалета. В 1938 г. на фестивале в Праге
эта группа получила первую награду. В 1941 г. Жуковский пошел добровольцем в армию,
воевал до «непобедного конца», попал в плен к немцам, бежал на третий день и вернулся в
Белград, где русские-антикоммунисты стали ненавидеть Жуковского и его жену, Яну
Васильеву, за то, что они не с ними, а сербы за то, что не идут в партизаны. Сам же он, по его
словам, не был героем, не был в состоянии бросить Яну, которая не могла идти «в лес».
Положение «с тремя не» осложнялось тем, что их успехи в балете многим кололи глаза. Сюда
добавлю, что во время войны Анатолий Михайлович поставил патриотический балет «В
долине Моравы», выдержавший только четыре представления, после которых он был закрыт
немцами, увидевшими в нем «националистическую пропаганду». В 1943 г. они покинули
Белград и уехали в Германию, где было много знакомых. Их дальнейшая судьба была связана
с работой в театрах Берлина, Вены. В конце войны Жуковский даже успел повоевать на
другой стороне, в составе французской армии. После войны работал в различных театрах, в
частности, в Королевском оперном театре в Бельгии. В 1951 г. чета Жуковских приехала в
США, где ставили спектакли, связанные с югославянским фольклором, балканским
фольклором. В своей «Исповеди» он говорил: «Ни о чем не жалеем, видели много и многому
научились. Всюду, где мы были, получили признание, везде нас оценили. К концу пути мы
видели, что родились не в том времени и не в том месте. Попали в тяжкие времена»
(Zhukovskiy My Way; Dragutinovic, 145, 148; Aleksandrov 2005, 202; Zhukovskiy 1994, 287,
290, 292–300; Shukuljevic-Markovic 1994a, 137–140; Solntsev, 2015).
Среди русских звезд югославского балета надо назвать имя рыжеволосой красавицы
Нины Васильевны Кирсановой (21. 07. 1898, Москва – 03. 02. 1989, Белград), родившейся в
семье Василия и Зинаиды Венер. Фамилия Кирсанова была ее псевдонимом. Отец не хотел,
чтобы дочь была балериной. Только в двенадцатилетнем возрасте после одного инцидента,
когда девочка чуть не наложила на себя руки, он позволил ей заниматься балетом и
поступить в балетную школу Лидии Ричардовны Нелидовой. (В книге А. Васильева и К.
Триполитовой упоминается, что девочка училась танцу у Анны Иосифовны Собещанской,
известной балерины Большого театра.). Были и другие учителя, в частности, Вера Ильинична
Масолова.
VIKTOR I. KOSIK
РУССКИЕ МАСТЕРА БАЛЕТА НА БЕЛГРАДСКОЙ СЦЕНЕ В XX – НАЧАЛЕ XXI ВВ.
Завершила Нина учение в 1919 г., танцевала молодая балерина в Малом
государственном театре,
театре музыкальной драмы, оперном
театре Зимина, в других
театрах. Затем было бегство в Европу, в польский Львов, куда Кирсанова вместе с мужем
попали после долгих мытарств и приключений. В итоге, их по очереди перетащил на своей
спине местный контрабандист через пограничную речку Збруч, в то время как подкупленный
за 50 золотых рублей пограничник-красноармеец задумчиво созерцал небо. Танцевала Нина
Васильевна в Варшаве, Кракове, разумеется, во Львове. Во время выступлений в Бухаресте
последовало приглашение в Белград, который по ее признанию стал для нее родным домом.
Первое выступление состоялось 7 ноября 1923 г. вместе с Фортунато в «Вечере балета» на
сцене «Манежа», потом последовали выступления на сцене Народного театра: 9 ноября – в
«Шехерезаде», 15 ноября – в «Вальпургиевой ночи» и «Фаусте». Успех обусловил
предложение ангажемента, который был подписан 24 февраля 1924 г. после истечения срока
соглашения с Бухарестом. Нина стала прима-балериной, а Фортунато (Картина 5)
директором-режиссером и первым танцовщиком Народного театра в Белграде.
Тогда балет начал свой четвертый год
существования, но еще не было ни одного
целостного балетного спектакля. 1 июня 1924 г.
Фортунато поставил «Коппелию» с Кирсановой в
роли Сванильды. С 1923 по 1926 г. она танцевала
заглавные партии в
«Шехерезаде», «Коппелии»,
«Лебедином озере», «Жизели» и др. Танцевала в
операх «Фауст», «Манон», «Пиковая дама»,
«Проданная невеста», «Миньон», «Еврейка»,
«Аида». Стала любимицей белградских
поклонников балета. В конце июля 1926 г.
Кирсанова не возобновила контракт и уехала
вместе с Фортунато в Париж. Танцевала в разных
русских труппах, в частности, у «божественной»
Картина 5. Александр Фортунато.
(author's archive)
Анны Павловой. С 1931 по 1934 г. – опять Белград.
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Нина Васильевна была и прима-балериной, и шефом балета, и режиссером, и
хореографом Народного театра: поставила 28 хореографий в балетном и оперно-балетном
репертуаре: «Жизель», «Тайна пирамиды», «Охридская легенда», «Петрушка», «Осенняя
поэма» и др., станцевала 18 главных партий в балетах и 11 балетных соло в операх.
В 1933 г. балетная труппа Народного театра под руководством Нины Кирсановой
первый раз выехала за рубеж в греческие Афины, где с большим успехом представила
тамошним зрителям четыре спектакля: «Тайна пирамиды», «Лебединое озеро», «Половецкий
лагерь» из оперы «Князь Игорь» и «Цветы маленькой Иды».
В 1 9 3 4–1939 гг. Кирсанова танцевала на европейских сценах, работала
балетмейстером и хореографом. Потом вновь последовало возвращение в Белград. В
Югославии Кирсанова опять ставила хореографию, танцевала, имела свою частную
балетную студию. Свой третий контракт с Народным театром Нина подписала 12 мая 1942 г.,
руководила балетом в тяжелейших условиях.
После апрельских бомбардировок Белграда 1944 г. союзниками, когда град лежал в
руинах, а население уменьшилось наполовину, Кирсанова стала медицинской сестрой. Во
время освобождения города перевязывала раненых, работала хирургической сестрой,
забросив на время балет.
В 1946 г. она основала балетную студию, которая
быстро переросла в
государственную балетную школу. Последний контракт длился с 1 марта 1946 г. до 1 декабря
1950 г. Поставила балет в четырех операх:
«Женитьба Фигаро», «Проданная невеста»,
«Князь Игорь», «Травиата», и четыре коротких балета – «Сильфиды», «Вторая рапсодия»,
«Вальпургиева ночь», «Болеро». После окончания ангажемента поставила свой последний
спектакль «Лебединое озеро».
В 1947 г. стала одним из учредителей и основателей Средней балетной школы в
Белграде. Ее ученики Милорад Мишкович и Душанка Сифниос, стали национальными
знаменитостями. Работала Кирсанова в театрах Сараево, Скопье, Риеки. По завершении
балетной карьеры (1961 г.) Нина Васильевна посвятила себя археологии. В 1964 г. она
завершила отделение археологии на философском факультете Белградского университета. В
1969 г. стала магистром, готовила докторскую диссертацию, но не успела ее завершить. 3
февраля 1989 г. умерла. Похоронена великая русская балерина в Аллее великанов на Новом
VIKTOR I. KOSIK
РУССКИЕ МАСТЕРА БАЛЕТА НА БЕЛГРАДСКОЙ СЦЕНЕ В XX – НАЧАЛЕ XXI ВВ.
кладбище (Shukulievic-Markovic 1994b, 117–136; Petrichevic 1998; Vasilev
and Tripolitova
2010, 158).
Известный хореограф Владимир Логунов говорил мне, что Нина Кирсанова «учила
настоящему балету, а не движениям». Ее отличала естественность поведения и неприятие
неких условностей. Нина Васильевна всегда была гостеприимна. Дружила с молодежью. И
археология у нее тоже сочеталась чудесным образом с балетом. В музее в Таормини, что на
Сицилии, выставлены ею найденные статуэтки, изображающие, по ее мнению, балерин.
Заканчивая строки о Нине Кирсановой, замечу, что она, по свидетельству Ксении
Грундт-Дюме, обладала тем темпераментом, который был востребован «во всем где нужен
был бешеный темперамент» (Grund, 144-5). Было известно ценителям балета и имя
«пластичной и выразительной» балерины, обладавшей длинными каштановыми волосами,
Ксении Федоровны Грундт-Дюме (Харьков, 1906 – Канны, 1979), (ее немецкая фамилия
объяснялась тем, что ее дед был пруссак). До своего приезда в Белград, будущая солистка
Белградского Народного театра выступала в Сараево, побывала в Черногории, где ее после
купания заприметил один черногорец и предложил импресарио Ксении продать ему нашу
героиню за солидное количество золотых монет (Ibid, 51). После чего последовал «побег» в
Хорватию, где ее «приютила» известная Маргарита Фроман. Теперь после «прозы» жизни
позволю себе немного комического с лирикой.
Супруг электроинженер
Она в тени балетных сфер,
Ее манит в широкий свет
Преображенской пируэт
Супруг печально ей поет:
“Балет дохода не дает
Конечно в танцах красота
Но с дефицитом все счета!”
Какая смесь на этот раз:
Балет, вода и свет и газ…
Но усмирим страстей мы бунт
Балетный слишком скользок Грундт
Вилли Пенкин
Это стихотворение появилось в ежемесячном русском сатирическом журнале: «Бух!» Его
автором, по-видимому, был Сергей Страхов, сменивший в должности импресарио Ксении
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журналиста Алексея Ивановича Ксюнина. В определенной степени оно отражало грусть
Страхова, что гастрольные поездки не давали дохода (Ibid., 201-202).
Ее многогранное творчество, как видно из концертной программы образца 1931 г.,
было весьма разнообразно, я бы сказал, впечатляюще. Здесь было и сентиментальное «На
балу» Й. Штрауса, мазурка Шопена, малороссийский гопак, русская плясовая, «экзотические
и мистические» индусские танцы, юморески, фантазии, дуэты и пр.
Как писал один из ее русских рецензентов, «К. Ф. Грундт проявила свой широкий,
многогранный талант, большое понимание балетного искусства, изысканный вкус в
стилизациях и костюмах и громадную изобретательность. Скучная и однообразная балетная
техника (?! – В. К.) , которой обычно любят блистать балерины, была к счастью отодвинута
на 2-ой и даже на 3-ий план, заняв подобающее ей только служебное место в деле передачи
духа танца. Редко благодарная для балерины внешность (?! – В. К.), прекрасная мимика,
безукоризненная пластика, бурная гибкость… Все эти данные делают К. Ф. Грундт
достойной преемницей лучших русских балерин» (Ibid., 220-221).
Не отставал в своих похвалах и сербский критик Милое Милоевич, восторженно
писавший о «живописности креаций» балерины, о «художественной фантазии», которую
вносила Ксения Грундт в видение танца (Ibid., 227, 228).
Из постановок, в которых она принимала самое живейшее участие выделю,
поставленную в конце 1920-х гг.на сцене Белградского Народного театра пантомиму,
соединившую в себе балет и драму. Речь идет о «Покрывале Пьеретты» драматурга А.
Шницлера, обращавшей на себя в свое время внимание и Вс. Мейерхольда и А. Таирова. В
ней есть и поэт Пьеро, который в отчаянии от измены своей любимой Пьеретты,
«легкомысленной м женственной, кот.[орая] ему изменяет, будучи ранена в сердце грозными
укорами совести, здесь и порочный Арлекин, величественного вида, привыкший к тому, что
все и все ему повинуется» (Ibid., 103-104).
На сцене столичного театра Ксения, будучи представительницей балета, исполняла
роль Пьеретты, драму же маститая Перса Павлович, исполнявшая роль матери героини, и
Мата Милошевич, игравший роль Арлекина (Ibid., 95-96).
Игра красивой русской балерины была благосклонно встречена критикой. В одной
рецензии, принадлежавшей ее соотечественнику, писали: «Исполнительница Пьеретты
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молодая балерина г-жа Грундт дает нежный, трепетный рисунок. Она вне жизни, как и
должна быть: она в намеках…» (Ibid., 102).
Более сдержанно писал о Ксении в роли Пьеретты сербский критик П. Крстич,
отметив, что, несмотря на «технические трудности», требующие «большого физического
напряжения», «вполне справилась со своей партией» (Ibid., 119).
Сама артистка писала: «Я долго мечтала о роли Пьеретты. Была ли я в ней хороша?
Ни рецензии, ни многочисленные клише, к сожалению, не дают на это ответа: каждый видит
во мне что-то свое (иногда совершенно противоположное), сообразно со своими вкусами и
позицией. В каждом театре есть партии, столкновения интересов… и ”влияния“. Все это
было и в Белградском театре. И, прежде всего, были сербы и были русские». И дальше,
весьма пристрастно, что не всегда ведет к верности: «Среди последних была Полякова с ее
окружением, желавшей интимно занять главенствующее положение в балете театра. К
сожалению, занять его она не могла: по внутренним причинам. Она могла повторять
виденное, но не могла творить. У нее не было ни фантазии, ни темперамента – ее постановки
были скучны. Это были “мертворожденные” дети… Была, конечно, и партия Фортунатто,
но… имея большую фантазию и будучи коммерсантом в творчестве, то есть, достигая
посещаемости театра , он многих восстановил против себя своим скверным характером»
(Ibid, 132-134).
Острый язык Ксении не преминул коснуться в искусстве и русского «ига», которое
«начало уже сербам немного надоедать… им захотелось своих и свое» (Ibid., 136).
Можно продолжать и продолжать называть имена… В. Титова, Л. Вальчевская, Н.
Рахманова, М. Арсеньева, А. Каренина, И. Слупская, Н. Поль, А. Максимова, М.
Каржинская, А. Проскурникова, М. Шуминская, В. Воробьева, Л. Иващенко, М. Зыбина, В.
Лебедев, А. Мирный, Н. Тарановский (Milenkovic et al. 2006, 215).
Русские не только учили, но и руководили на протяжении ряда лет белградским
балетом. Работа хореографами нередко сочеталась с выступлениями на сцене. Нина
Кирсанова, Елена Корбе, Михаил Панаев, Елена Полякова, Анатолий Жуковский, Маргарита
Фроман, Лидия Пилипенко – вот далеко не полных перечень имен тех, кто танцевал на
белградской сцене. Благодаря русским хореографам уже только в первые десять лет было
поставлено около 40 спектаклей. Практически, труд и мастерство русских позволили
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белградскому балету «встать на ноги», войти в русло европейского музыкально-сценического
искусства.
Гастрольные выступления русских мастеров балета
на сцене Народного театра в Белграде
Из гостивших в Белграде русских балерин назову и Анну Павлову (Картина 6). Она приехала
поездом из Венгрии 23 марта 1927 г. в специальном вагоне, на котором красными буквами
было написано «Анна Павлова». Ее встречала вся тогдашняя Югославия – приехали из
Скопле, Загреба, Нового Сада, Крагуевца и других городов. Театральный критик М.
Милоевич писал тогда в главной газете страны – «Политика»: «На голове маленькая
французская шляпа. Только глаза, большие глаза. Лицо бледное, на губах темная губная
помада…» (Latifich, 2015).
Автор блестящего очерка Амра Латифич дополняет картину: «Белградский балетный
ансамбль первый приветствовал с букетами цветов Анну Павлову, пока нетерпеливый
балетмейстер Васильев прыгнул в вагон через окно. Все целуют ее руки. Павлова идет через
массу народа, взявши под руку Елену Полякову» (Ibid.).
В тот же день состоялось ее первое из двух выступлений (второе состоялось 24 марта)
на сцене Народного театра. Она станцевала в «Сильфидах» Шопена, в «Смерти лебедя» СенСанса, в «Докторе Гавоте» Линке, в «Рондине» Левандовского, в «Пасторали» Штрауса, в
«Вакханалии» Глазунова. Ее партнером был Л. Новиков (Ibid.). Пресса откликнулась
восторженными отзывами. Процитирую только один, написанный знаменитой сербской
писательницей Исидорой Секулич: «Анна Павлова танцевала мистические переходы бытия
из одного состояния в другое, или же из одного бытия в другое. Переход из жизни в смерть.
„Смерть лебедя“. Переход из цвета в вялую материю: „Орхидея вянет“. Переход из живых
биологических функций в состояние замедления функций: „Барвинок замерзает“. Переход из
пластической формы в бесформенность: „Сухие листья“. Конечно, Анна танцевала также с
труппой – своей или труппой Дягилева, и, тем не менее, именно она внесла в репертуар то
особое, узнаваемое настроение. Ее небольшое, узкое лицо, голова как у лебедя, как будто в
ней всю жизнь пребывала одна мысль, ее тело было нервным, даже когда она шла одетой по
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улице… классическое обмирание Анны-лебедя представляло собой алхимию театра в целом»
(Ibid.).
В
марте 1928 г. Белграде ценители балета могли увидеть прославленную Тамару
Карсавину и ее партнера Лестера, приехавших из Парижа и давших два представления
(Milenkovic et al. 2016, 215). О том впечатлении, которое она оставляла навечно в памяти,
служат строки Вадима Андреева, сына автора одного из лучших пасхальных рассказов –
«Бергамот и Гараська». Итак: «Я смотрел, как танцевала Карсавина “Умирающего лебедя”. Я
не видел декораций, половицы поскрипывали на сцене, все движения Карсавиной
представлялись мне в необычном ракурсе, но в моей памяти навсегда осталось то, как
медленно склонялась ее маленькая голова в легкой короне из лебединых перьев, как в
последнем движении, вперед, прямо к моим ногам, складывались трепещущие руки-крылья,
как медленно, в последней легкой судороге, умирало бесплотное лебединое тело и
закрывались уже потухшие глаза» (Andreev 1974, 240).
В 1928 г. шефом балета, режиссером и прима-балериной стала приглашенная
Маргарита Фроман, снискавшая громадный авторитет в Хорватии. Рыжеволосая красавица
блестяще поставила такие спектакли, как «Раймонда» Глазунова, «Петрушка» Стравинского,
«Пряничное сердце» Барановича, «Дон Жуан» Глюка, «привела в надлежащий вид»
«Половецкие пляски» Бородина, по Фокину (Grund, 154). В столице Югославии в 1930, 1932
и 1937 гг. выступала с большим успехом и знаменитая пара – Александр и Клотильда
Сахаровы (Ibid.). Многие постановки ставились и приглашенными мастерами. Здесь и Антон
Романовский, до революции работавший балетмейстером в Киеве. В конце 1920-х гг. он
представил ценителям балета три романтических спектакля: «Шопениану», «Приглашение к
танцу» Карла Вебера и «Привал кавалерии» (Ibid., 214).
Правда, у сербского исследователя Бранко Драгутиновича о Романовском сказано
несколько иначе и точнее. Он гостил в Белграде в сезоне 1930/31 года, представив на суд
зрителей еще и балет «Javote» Сен Санса и «Шехерезаду. Но все они прошли без особого
успеха. Он попытался поставить «Дафниса и Хлою» – эту «хореографическую симфонию»
Равеля, но потерпел неудачу, прежде всего вследствие сложности партитуры для оркестра, не
совладавшего с нею (Dragutinovic op.cit., 146).
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После Романовского в Белграде гостил М. Пиановский, балетмейстер труппы Анны
Павловой. Он показал в своей хореографии – синтез строгих форм классического балета и
характерных форм испанского танца – «Дон Кихота» «царского композитора» Цезаря Пуни
(Ibid., 147). Тут же отмечу и Бориса Князева, который в 1934/35 г., заменив Нину Кирсанову,
руководил белградским балетом и танцевал заглавные партии (Milenkovic et al. 2006, 214).
Поставил несколько коротких балетов, однако не имевших успеха (Dragutinovic, 148). О нем
написала ряд строк знавшая его балерина Ксения Триполитова: «У Егоровой я встретила и
Бориса Князева, весьма посредственного характерного танцовщика, которого я находила
просто ужасным. Егорова его тоже не любила. Борис Князев был высоким, лысым, но еще
очень прыгучим… Князев прославился своим “barre par terre” – то есть балетным экзерсисом
лежа на полу, который никто до него не делал» (Vasilev and Tripolitova, 125-126).
В 1937 г. в Белграде гостила Елена Никольская, прима-балерина, руководительница
балета в Народном театре в Праге. Зрители могли увидеть постановку ею «Арлекинады» Р.
Дриго и «Гайдуков» К. Шимановского (Dragutinovic op. Cit., 148). В 1939 г. известный в мире
балета Борис Романов прибыл из Нью-Йорка в Белград, где благодаря его таланту столичные
поклонники балета могли увидеть великолепное представление из трех балетов, три стиля –
«синтез классической техники и современного танца, окрашенного восточным колоритом» в
«Тамаре» Балакирева, «чистую, технически точную классику» в «Балерине и разбойниках»
Моцарта, «выразительный и технически виртуозный» танец в испанском духе в «Болеро»
Равеля (Ibid., 149).
Русское имя на афишах Народного театра в Белграде
в 1950-х гг. вплоть до начала XX века
Свой вклад внесли в искусство балета и работавшие на белградской сцене советские
хореографы. Здесь назову имена Леонида Лавровского, поставившего «Жизель» (1957 г.),
Ростислава Захарова с его «Бахчисарайским фонтаном» (1959 г.), Нины Анисимовой и ее
«Золушки» (1963 г.). На белградской сцене танцевали такие балетные пары, как Наталья
Дудинская и Константин Сергеев, Раиса Стручкова и Юрий Жданов (потом был Марис
Лиепа), Майя Плисецкая и Николай Фадеечев, Татьяна Зимина и Герман Янсон (Ibid., 156).
VIKTOR I. KOSIK
РУССКИЕ МАСТЕРА БАЛЕТА НА БЕЛГРАДСКОЙ СЦЕНЕ В XX – НАЧАЛЕ XXI ВВ.
А что же сейчас, в конце XX – начале XXI в., с русскими именами в балете? К моей радости
искусства Терпсихоры «связующая нить» не прервалась.
Лиљана Хмела
В балетном мире известно имя Лильаны Хмелы (29.11.1944, Белград). С ней мне
посчастливилось встретиться в Белграде в 2009 г. Она рассказывала, что вначале ее увлекала
история искусства, но в 1963 г. «ушла в театр, в балет», закончив к этому времени балетную
школу. Из своих преподавателей помнит голубоглазую Ольгу Йордан с изумительными
серьгами, которые ей подарил «чича» (дядя), потом Лильана поняла, что речь шла о ее
поклоннике Сталине. Врезался в память и дававший уроки Абдурахман Кумысников. Учил
он отлично, но у своенравной Лильаны был в «черном списке».
Стала выступать в столичном Народном театре. В «Лебедином озере» – главные
партии. В «Жизели» – Марту. В «Дон Кихоте» – Мерседес. В «Коппелии» – Сванильду. В
общем, танцевала все, что было в репертуаре. В 1970–1980 гг. выступала по всему миру. В
1979 г. танцевала партию няньки в «Ромео и Джульетте», которую с удовольствием
вспоминает и сейчас. Любила партию «Черного лебедя». После оставления сцены
занималась балетом с детьми в Белграде и в Вальево. Именно благодаря Лильане я получил
возможность познакомиться тогда же, в начале июня 2009 г., еще с двумя звездами – Лидией
Пилипенко (Картина 7) и Владимиром Логуновым.
Лидия Пилипенко
В своем коротеньком письме ко мне Лидия писала: «Я родилась в Югославии, на Балканах.
Карьеру начала здесь. Весь мир объехала и везде имела успех. Балет был и остается моей
самой большой любовью. Профессия танца – язык мира. Мой отец после революции должен
был скрыться. Сама я украинка-русская. Этим и горжусь. В Москве на фестивале балета
была в качестве почетного гостя. Многие из великих имен в русском балете были моими
учителями… Сейчас работаю над книгой об истории балета, точнее, пишу воспоминания о
том времени, когда была прима-балерина, потом хореограф и режиссер» (Pilipenko Lidija's
letter to author dated 4 June 2009. (Archive of the author.) [Письмо Пилипенко Л. автору от 4
июня 2009 г. (Архив автора.) ])
Accelerando: Belgrade Journal of Music and Dance
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Картина 7. Лидиа Пилипенко.
Буклет "Нечиста крв", Национальный театр в Белграде.
2007/2008.
К сожалению, Лидия тогда улетала срочно в Италию и закрепить наше знакомство
личной встречей не удалось. Мне от нее досталось короткое письмо и роскошный буклет с
великолепными фотографиями о балете «Нечиста крв» («Нечистая кровь») – либретто
которого, хореография и режиссура, музыкальная компоновка принадлежали Лидии
Пилипенко. Уже отсюда можно заключить, сколь щедро она награждена талантами. На
страничке, отведенной Лидии, родившейся в конце 1930-х гг., были следующие строки:
«Творчество прима-балерины и хореографа Лидии Пилипенко больше всего связано с
балетом Народного театра в Белграде. После специализации в Лондоне у Нинетт де Валуа и
блестящей карьеры в белградском балете, она стремительно и вполне заслуженно входит в
ряд ведущих хореографов страны. На музыку отечественных композиторов поставила
балеты: ”Банович Страхинья“ и ”Елизавета“ Зорана Ерича в Белграде, а ”Вечный жених и
разборчивая невеста“ Зорана Мулича в Новом Саде. За хореографию спектакля ”Банович
Страхинья“ награждена в 1981 г. в Любляне. Также удостоена награды за хореографию
балетов “Елизавета” и “Вечный жених”. Потом ставила для белградского балета на музыку
Сен-Санса ”Самсона и Далилу“, открывавшего балетный сезон Народного театра после
реконструкции в 1989 г. театрального здания. За этот балет она была отмечена наградой
Народного театра. Поставила балеты: “Воскресение” на музыку III симфонии Густава
VIKTOR I. KOSIK
РУССКИЕ МАСТЕРА БАЛЕТА НА БЕЛГРАДСКОЙ СЦЕНЕ В XX – НАЧАЛЕ XXI ВВ.
Малера, ”Даму с камелиями“ на музыку Джузеппе Верди… Также, в 1994 г. в Народном
театре поставила балет “Любовь-волшебница” Мануэла де Фальи и ”Шехерезаду“ Николая
Римского-Корсакова, а в 1998 г. “Женщину” на музыку Сергея Рахманинова. С одинаковым
успехом выступала на ТВ и в фильмах, в мюзиклах ( ”Табор уходит в небо“, “Люблю свою
жену”). Успешной была ее хореография в операх ”Кармен“, “Аида”... В рамках программы
”Конец XX века..?“ в столичном Народном театре в 1999 году поставлены два одноактных
балета: “Картины” по оригинальной партитуре А. Шенберга ”Преображенная ночь“ и балет
“Клетка” на музыку Малера, обновленная премьера которого состоялась в 2007 году. В 2000
году она ставит ”Охридскую легенду“ Стевана Христича. Поставленный ею в 2004 г. балет
“Поэт Чайковский” на музыку П. И. Чайковского был провозглашен лучшим спектаклем
сезона 2003/04 г. в Народном театре. Лауреат премии за дело жизни (2001 г.), премии
”Димитрий Парлич“ (2004 г.) и Национальной награды за вклад в культуру (2007 г.).
Директор балета Народного театра в 1992–1993 гг. и в 1997–2000 гг.» (Impure Blood, 21).
Балерина Лильана Хмела в разговоре со мной о Лидии, ее таланте, ее яркой
индивидуальности, нашла точное слово: она «глотала» всех на сцене.
Владимир Евгеньевич Логунов
С хореографом Владимиром Логуновым (Картина 9) у меня тогда же была встреча за чашкой
кофе в гостинице «Москва», что в самом центре Белграда. В основном разговор шел вокруг
его спектакля «Доктор Джекил&мистер Хайд», поставленного 27 декабря 2001 г. на сцене
Народного театра по роману Роберта Луиса Стивенсона. Владимир Логунов был автором
либретто и ставил хореографию, отмеченную высокой наградой. Сам он говорил так о своей
работе: «Я написал либретто, прослушал многих композиторов, но, услышав музыку Эдварда
Элгара, понял, что это та, которая мне нужна для выражения всех чувств ученого-химика
доктора Джекила. Он хотел найти напиток, который сделает человечество счастливым.
Однако, испробовав его на себе, доктор Джекил превращается в агрессивного мистера Хайда.
В балете идет столкновение между добром и злом. И здесь, когда Джекил превращается в
Хайда, я использовал барабан (играл Драголюб Джуричич). Идея барабана мне пришла во
время демонстрации против Милошевича. Когда я был с этим балетом в Любляне,
австрийская журналистка спросила меня, имеет ли спектакль связь с Милошевичем, я
ответил, что это ошибочный вопрос, что ей не понравилось».
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Немного сведений справочного характера. Владимир Евгеньевич Логунов родился 28
июля 1942 г. в Белграде. Его родители надеялись, что он станет строителем, но Владимир,
закончив параллельно техническое училище, предпочел балет, что совершенно не одобрили в
семье. После завершения в 1964 г. балетной школы «Луи Давичо» в классе Нины Кирсановой
он становится солистом балета Народного театра. Танцевал главные партии. За роль
Копелиуса (1979 г.) отмечен театральной наградой.
Что еще? Стажировался в 1974 г. в Государственном институте театрального искусства
(ГИТИС). Хореографией стал заниматься с 1979 г. На балетных конкурсах в Новом Саде, в
категории хореография, завоевал две бронзовые и одну серебряную медали.
С 1980 г. по 1985 г. был главным балетмейстером в Народном театре. Работал
хореографом, кроме Белграда, в Новом Саде, Сплите, Загребе, а также для «Встреч» в
Любляне и «Рагузы балета» из Италии, трудился на Кипре.
Его хореографическая деятельность к м моменту нашей встречи охватывала такие
балеты, как «Дон Кихот» (Л. Минкус), «Спящая красавица» (П. И. Чайковский), «Кармен»
(Щедрин-Бизе), «Forma Viva» (А. Вивальди), «Кармина Бурана» (К. Орфф), «Серенада» (П.
И. Чайковский), «Поэма любви» (С. Дивякович), Симфония «Из Нового света» (А. Дворжак),
«Щелкунчик» (П. И. Чайковский), Cartoon» (З. Ерич). Владимир Логунов входит в
Международный совет по танцу при ЮНЕСКО в Париже.
К этому списку можно добавить, что в 2004 г. ставил в Македонии балет «Тамула»
(композитор Стоян Стойков). В 2007 г. в Сараево прошла его постановка «Картинок с
выставки» Модеста Петровича Мусоргского. И теперь немного для финала: Владимир в
разговоре со мной обронил такую фразу: «Вся жизнь в восторге от любимой работы. Мне
никогда не было скучно». Владимир Логунов назвал мне еще двух балерин, связанных
кровным родством с Россией. Это – Елена Шантич, с которой он выступал на сцене, и Соня
Лапатанов.
Елена Шантич
Писать о ней легко, так как в 2005 г. в Белграде вышла о ней книга «Jеlеnа Šаntić», и трудно
уже вследствие того, что своих воспоминаний она не оставила. Тем не менее, все же
попытаюсь представить эскизно черты ее жизни и творчества. История ее семьи, связанная с
VIKTOR I. KOSIK
РУССКИЕ МАСТЕРА БАЛЕТА НА БЕЛГРАДСКОЙ СЦЕНЕ В XX – НАЧАЛЕ XXI ВВ.
княжеским родом Хованских, сложна и цветиста: там есть участница штурма Берлина, герой
Советского Союза Елена Силина, тетка Елены, и глава полиции в Белграде, отец Елены, и
поэтесса Клавдия Лукашевич, прабабка Елены, и французская бабушка Елизавета
Николаевна, вышедшая вторично замуж за князя Владимира Николаевича Гагарина; там есть
и аресты и коммунистическая тюрьма, в которой сидел без предъявления обвинения отец
Елены,
и кино, югославское и итальянское,
и Монте-Карло и Санкт-Петербург, Сибирь
(Jelena Shantic 2005, 19, 21, 23, 24, 25, 33, 36, 39, 49, 107, 217) и многое другое, которого
хватило бы на добрый десяток романов.
Елена или Лела, как ее звали в семье, родилась 18 июля 1944 г. в с. Белый Поток, что
под горой Авалой, близ Белграда, в семье Татьяны (урожд. Лукашевич) и Миливое
Йованович (Ibid., 19). Мама Татьяны Елизавета Николаевна была женой полковника русской
армии варшавянина Вячеслава Николаевича Лукашевича, погибшего в первую мировую
войну (Ibid., 23). Семья будущей балерины по материнской линии самым теснейшим образом
была связана с театром. В ее доме царили литература, музыка, живопись и балет (Ibid., 107).
Достаточно сказать, что ее тетка Ирина Лукашевич-Форменти была известной
балериной, в частности, танцевала в труппе полковника де Базили, и звездой раннего
итальянского кино и балета, снималась у знаменитого Витторио де Сика (Ibid., 21, 36).
Сама Елена о себе говорила так: «Сколько я себя помню, я ничего другого не хотела, кроме
как стать балериной» (Ibid., 107). Во время ее учебы в балетной школе (1954–1962),
получившей имя «Луи Давичо», одной из ее учительниц стала Соня Ланкау, входившая в
плеяду первых русских балерин в довоенной Югославии(Ibid., 217). В 1960 г. была на
специализации в Монте-Карло, где брала уроки у Марики Безобразовой. В том же году
первый раз выступила на театральной сцене в концерте школы Р. Хайтауэр в Каннах,
исполняя Pas de quatre Ц. Пуни (Ibid.). В 1962 г. снимается в фильме Саввы Мрмака «Свист в
восемь» и начинает выступать в Народном театре, куда Елена была принята в штат через год
по окончании балетной школы (Ibid., 41).
В 1972/73–1973/74 гг. стажировалась у Марины Семеновой. По возвращении танцует в
таких балетах, как «Золушка», «Жизель», «Макар Чудра» («Цыганская поэма»), «Лебединое
озеро», «Сильфиды», «Анна Каренина», «Пер Гюнт», Сказки Гофмана», «Баядера», «Ромео и
Джульетта», «Спящая красавица», «Щелкунчик», «Коппелия». В 1986 г. завершает свою
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карьеру балерины в имевшем ошеломляющий успех спектакле «Настасья Филипповна», где
Елена танцует заглавную роль ( Ibid. 49, 217, 218, 219, 220).
Критик в «Политике» Ласло Вегел так писал о роли Елены Шантич: «Воскресшей жертве
преступления отнята способность речи, но ее экспрессивный танец предвещает
Апокалипсис» (Ibid., 50).
Потом в творчестве Елены наступил новый этап, связанный с хореографией. Ее
первой работой в 1987 г. стала хореография в постановке «Кровавый фонтан» А. Арто (Ibid.,
54), создателя театра жестокости. В том же году и в последующем ее имя как хореографа
стоит в программах таких постановок «Герцогиня Мальфи» Джона Вебстера, «Из жизни
дождевых червей» П. Энквиста, «Ваал» Б. Брехта (Ibid., 63). В 1989 г. она ставит
хореографию в «Орестее» Эсхила (Ibid., 230). Чтобы смягчить сухие строчки ее биографии,
дам три картинки. Первая, на ежегодных театральных фестивалях в Белграде (БИТЕФ) Елена
к их открытию устраивала «русские обеды». На одном из них подавали неизвестные гостям
борщ и кисель (Ibid., 46). Вторая, никто так не умел носить платье, как это умела Елена с
присущей ей грациозностью, отшлифованной балетом. Но эта была грация не лани, а
тигрицы. Она элегантно царила в принадлежащем ей «пространстве» и неустрашимо
осваивала новые «просторы» (Ibid., 34). Третья, дорога Елены к русскому языку была
трудной: в 1948 г. после разрыва СССР с Югославией в ее семье, опасаясь репрессий,
перестали говорить на русском языке, восстановив его только в 1960 г. в Монте-Карло, когда
она там некоторое время жила у своей тетки Сони (Ibid., 39).
После выхода в 1990 г. на пенсию Елена активно включается в миротворческую
деятельность. В 1991 г. стала одной из основательниц «Марша мира» в Югославии. Являлась
автором «Воззвания к миру» с призывом к участникам конфликта остановить войну в
Югославии (Ibid., 221).
Балет не хотел отпускать ее сразу. В 1992 г. написала либретто и поставила
хореографию балета «Изадора» об Айседоре Дункан. В нем, кстати, выступал Константин
Костюков. Он был показан на Битефе, но в театральный репертуар не вошел (Ibid., 231).
В 1995 г. создала группу единомышленников по оказанию помощи и размещения 484
сербских беженцев из Крайны (Хорватия). Позднее эта группа переросла в
VIKTOR I. KOSIK
РУССКИЕ МАСТЕРА БАЛЕТА НА БЕЛГРАДСКОЙ СЦЕНЕ В XX – НАЧАЛЕ XXI ВВ.
неправительственную организацию под названием «Группа 484» (Ibid., 9). И последнее,
Берлинский парк мира с 22 марта 2003 г. носит имя Елены Шантич.
Соня Лапатанов
Теперь о Соне Лапатанов, балерине, хореографе, авторе программ о балете, завзятой
путешественнице. Как вспоминает сама Соня на страницах журнала «Илустрована политика»
(2004 г.) («Иллюстрированная политика»), члены ее семьи были русскими, жившими на
Украине. Дедушка Петр работал дерматовенерологом и принадлежал к известной фамилии
врачей в Бердянске. Бабушка Маруся происходила из богатой татарской семьи, занимавшейся
переработкой дерева. У них было двое сыновей, с которыми они в 1921 г. и отправились из
России последним пароходом в неизвестность. Через Царьград, Грецию они прибыли в
живописный Котор. И в Королевстве сербов, хорватов и словенцев началась новая жизнь.
Дедушка стал работать по прежней специальности в королевской армии: служил в Словении,
Македонии, Боснии, Хорватии, Сербии… Их сын Николай, отец Сони, продолжил семейную
традицию, став врачом. Ее мать Йоханна Мария была немкой из Берлина. Знакомство ее
родителей произошло в Афинах, куда она приехала в качестве медицинской сестры, а
Николай там был интернирован после своего пленения в 1941 г. Появившаяся на свет уже
после войны Соня вначале стала говорить на немецком, а уж потом начала болтать на
русском, а затем овладела и сербским языком. В Белграде вся семья Лапатановых жила в
доме деда, на русский манер: праздновали традиционно Рождество, Пасху, Новый год,
именины. При этом церковные праздники старались отметить незаметно от новых властей,
занавешивая окна. К этому добавлю, что их дом, стоявший там, где сейчас находится
посольство РФ, был напротив тюрьмы.
В восемь лет ее приняли в балетную школу «Луи Давичо». Родители не протестовали:
думали, что дочка научится красиво двигаться, держать прямо спину, а профессию все же
выберет отца и деда – врача. Однако они ошиблись, и семейная традиция была прервана.
После окончания гимназии и балетной школы Соня получила ангажемент в Народном театре,
куда приезжала на роликовых коньках или на мотоцикле. Быстро освоила балетный и
оперный репертуар. Через полгода начала выступать и на телевидении в известной балетной
труппе Бориса Радака.
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В театре также все шло успешно, выезжала вместе с другими на гастроли по Европе и
странам Ближнего Востока. Однако больших партий у нее не было. Она так бы и осталась на
сцене «вечным балетным кустом», как выразился ее поклонник, намекая на второе действие
«Жизели», где в сценографии есть некие кусты, из-за которых появляются виллисы.
Размышляя над сказанным, Соня призналась себе, что она не тот солдат, который должен
выполнять приказания других, а сама хочет ставить балеты, стать хореографом. Ее послали в
Москву в Государственный институт театрального искусства, последовало знакомство с
Майей Плисецкой, Мариной Тимофеевой, Галиной Улановой, Юрием Григоровичем,
Александром Годуновым.
После окончания стажировки вернулась в Белград. Через некоторое время уехала в
Нью-Йорк, где проникала в тайны мюзикла, джаз-балета. Соня становится мастером
сценического движения. В многочисленных спектаклях она вплетает в игру актера, помимо
выполнения традиционных движений, и акробатику и пантомиму… Особенно успешно она
работает в постановках для детей. Среди ее многочисленных наград ей особенно дорога
премия Стерии (Miloshevic 2004).
Из спектаклей, над которыми она трудилась, можно назвать «Ромео и Джульетта из
двух цивилизаций» (Котор, 2007 г.), «Новелла любви» (Новый Сад, 1996 г.), «Кот в сапогах»
(Белград, 1995 г.), «Волшебник из страны Оз» (Котор, 1994), «Снежная королева» (Белград,
1998 г.), «Оливер Твист» (Белград, 1998 г.). Ее имя вошло в список руководителей Союза
артистов балета Сербии.
Милица Зайцев
У балерин есть и свой историограф – театровед Милица Зайцев, знающая балет «изнутри».
И, я глубоко благодарен Соне Лапатанов, подсказавшей мне обратиться к Милице, что я и
сделал. Достаточно сказать, что в числе учителей Милицы была Нина Кирсанова в
знаменитой школе «Луи Давичо». Более того, Милица сама преподавала классический балет
в балетной школе в Скопье. Начала было выступать на сцене с небольшими сольными
партиями в балетной труппе Народного театра Македонии, но ее карьера была внезапно
прервана вследствие травмы. Сцену пришлось балерине оставить, но только не искусство
балета. Милица «перешла» в ряды театральных критиков. С 1955 г. она пишет статьи, эссе,
VIKTOR I. KOSIK
РУССКИЕ МАСТЕРА БАЛЕТА НА БЕЛГРАДСКОЙ СЦЕНЕ В XX – НАЧАЛЕ XXI ВВ.
критические обзоры о балетном искусстве.
С 1960 по 1995 г. Милица работала в газете
«Борба». С 1995 по 1998 г. – в газете «Наша Борба». Потом, вплоть до сегодняшнего времени
Милица пишет для газеты «Данас» («Сегодня»). Ее статьи появляются в журналах
«Позориште» («Театр»), «Театрон», «Сцена» и в других периодических изданиях, связанных
с театром. Она авторитетный член сербского специализированного журнала «Orchestra».
Милица Зайцев автор таких книг, как «Откривамо таjне балета» («Открываем тайны балета»)
Нови Сад, 1992; «Игра што живот значи Записи о београдским балетским уметницима»
(«Танец как жизнь Записки о белградских мастерах балета»), Белград, 1994 (в 1995 г. автор
книги отмечен премией Стерии за театрологию); «Игра – одраз времена садашњег. Хроника
играчких догађања на београдским алтернативним сценама од 1960 до 2007. године. («Танец
– отражение сегодняшнего времени. Хроника событий на белградских альтернативных
сценах с 1960 до 2007 года») 2009.
В сущности, Милица – везде, где разговор идет о балетном искусстве: газеты,
журналы, энциклопедии, радио и телевидение. Отдельно отмечу, что она автор свыше
восьмидесяти телевизионных передач и серий о балете и его мастерах. Милица публикуется
в таких признанных международных журналов, как «Ballet today», «Dance magazine», «Ballet
review». Перечислять все ее звания и должности можно долго, скажу, что Милица одно время
возглавляла Совет Белградского международного театрального фестиваля, известного всем
любителям театра как знаменитый БИТЕФ. Ее деятельность в сфере балета отмечена и
наградами, врученными ей своими коллегами, что особенно ценно. (Биография Милицы
Зайцев. Библиографии работ. Присланы Милицей Зайцев автору от 24 ноября и 2 декабря
2009 г. )
Денис Касаткин
И, конечно, на сцене того же Белграда были исполнители, уже не связанные с эмиграцией.
Например, Денис Касаткин, рожденный в Новосибирске. В 1991 г. он входил в труппу балета
Народного театра в Сараево, а в следующем году уже выступал в Белграде, танцевал главные
партии в таких балетах, как «Дама с камелиями», «Любовь-волшебница», «Самсон и
Далила», «Охридская легенда», «Лебединое озеро», «Ромео и Джульетта», «Спящая
красавица», «Дон Кихот», «Половецкие пляски», «Жизель». В списке его спектаклей были и
«Летучая мышь», «Кармен», «Аида». И новые постановки, например «Доктор
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Джекил&Мистер Хайд». Отмечен наградами за роли Базиля в «Дон Кихоте» и принца Дезире
в «Спящей красавице».
Константин Костюков
Сюда можно добавить и имя воспитанника Киевской государственной балетной школы
Константина Костюкова. С 1991 г. он член балетной труппы Народного театра в Белграде,
позднее стал ее руководителем. Его талант отмечен многими наградами, в том числе
международными. Его выступления видели на многих сценах мира. Танцевал заглавные
партии во многих спектаклях балетной классики, поставленных Лидией Пилипенко и
Владимиром Логуновым. В частности, в 2001 г. блестяще исполнил партию доктора
Джекила&мистера Хайда в одноименном балете.
Kартина 7. Константина Костюков
Жизель второе действие, Национальный театр в Белграде.
VIKTOR I. KOSIK
РУССКИЕ МАСТЕРА БАЛЕТА НА БЕЛГРАДСКОЙ СЦЕНЕ В XX – НАЧАЛЕ XXI ВВ.
Заключение
Завершая свой очерк, могу сказать, что мастера русского балета имели решающее значение в
сфере развития балетного искусства в Королевстве Югославия, в данном случае, балетной
труппы в Народном театре в Белграде. Русские балерины и танцовщики сыграли большое
количество сольных партий в спектаклях, поставили много балетов, велик их вклад и в
организацию балетных школ, в деле подготовки национальных кадров. Их бесподобное
искусство танца на протяжении многих лет радовало ценителей поклонников Терпсихоры. И
сейчас русское имя живет на афишах балетных спектаклей. Многие из тех, кто танцевал на
сцене Народного театра в Белграде, особенно представители первого поколения русских
изгнанников, разлетелись по многим странам. Однако их имена навечно вошли в историю
сербского балета, и шире, югославского балета. Некоторые здесь обрели и вечный покой, но
память о них, их искусстве, хранят другие поколения.
References
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Biograficheskij slovar' Konnetikut (SAD) – San Francisko (SAD) – Sankt-Peterburg (Rossia):
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Andreev, V. 1974. Istorija odnogo puteshestvija. (The Story of a journey.) Moscow: Sovetskij
pisatel'.
Conradi, D. 1982. "Russkie jemigranty v muzykal'noj zhizni Belgrada." ("Russian immigrants in
the musical life of Belgrade.") Novoe russkoe slovo N'ju-Jork. 22.04.
Dragutinovic, B. 1968. "Prolegomena za istoriju Opere i Baleta Narodnog pozorishta."
("Prolegomena for the History of Opera and Ballet of the Belgrade National Theatre.") Jedan
vek Narodnog pozorishta u Beogradu. Beograd: Nolit.
Grund, Ksenia. Papers. Columbia University Libraries: Rare book and Manuscript Library,
Bakhmeteff Arhive.
Jelena Shantic. Monography. 2005. Beograd: Group 484 and National Theater in Belgrade.
Nechista krv. (Impure blood.) 2008. Buklet spektaklja. (Booklet of the play). Beograd: NP.
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Belgrade.) htpp://www.srpska.ru/article.php? nid=5641 (accessed May 2, 2015).
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Milenkovic, Toma and Momchilo Pavlovic, eds. 2006. Beloemigracija u Jugoslaviji 19181941.Tom I i II. (White emigrants in Yugoslavia, 1918-1941.Volume I and II.) Beograd: Institut
za savremenu istoriju.
Miloshevic, S. 2004. "Sonja Lapatanov balerina i svetski putnik. Doživotna verenica." ("Sonia
Lapatanov ballerina and world traveller. Eternal bride.") Ilustrovana politika, # 2385. Beograd.
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VIKTOR I. KOSIK
РУССКИЕ МАСТЕРА БАЛЕТА НА БЕЛГРАДСКОЙ СЦЕНЕ В XX – НАЧАЛЕ XXI ВВ.
Resume
The author tried to contribute to the history of Serbian ballet of those Russian dancers who came to
the Kingdom of Serbia after leaving Russia in 1917, and to give an overview on their influence and
importance up to present days. The article is based on numerous sources and literature, including
unpublished memoiries.
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UDC: 781.22:793.327
781.01
COBISS.SR-ID 229890316
The Sound in Movement Interpretation
of the Selected Music Pieces by Debussy, Cage,
Penderecki, Szalonek, Dobrowolski, Olczak, and Kaiser
Anna Galikowska-Gajewska1
1
Stanisław Moniuszko Academy of Music in Gdańsk, Poland
Received: March 2, 2016.
Reviewed: May 10, 2016.
Accepted: August 12, 2016.
Citation: Galikowska-Gajewska, Anna. 2017. “The Sound in Movement Interpretation of the Selected
Music Pieces by Debussy, Cage, Penderecki, Szalonek, Dobrowolski, Olczak, and Kaiser.” Accelerando:
Belgrade Journal of Music and Dance 2:9.
Abstract
This article contains a description of an author's artistic research/project consisting in the
development of movement interpretations of compositions by C. Debussy, J. Cage, K.
Penderecki, W. Szalonek, A. Dobrowolski, K. Olczak, and T. Kaiser, in which the
musical tone and colour are depicted with the means of movement arranged in space.
The recording of the project performance was made at the Concert Hall of the Stanisław
Moniuszko Academy of Music in Gdańsk. The performers were the students in the
special area of Eurhythmics at the faculty of Choral Conducting, Musical Education and
Eurhythmics, the Stanisław Moniuszko Academy of Music in Gdańsk. This research was
undertook for the purpose of doctoral theses and had as its background the author's many
years of professional experience in creating musical choreography and her exploration of
tone. Selected musical works were interpreted and expressed by movement of the human
body. In addition, movement interpretations become here an instrument to comment on
sound events, amplifying the recipient’s impressions of sound, which constitute a part of
the Dalcroze method of musical education. Accordingly, the implication of the research
is that it does not only introduce the issue of Eurhythmics but also prepares the recipient
for new, seemingly broader perception of the musical work. Tone still remains for the
author an extremely inspirational issue open for further exploration.
Keywords: movement interpretation, Eurhythmics, Dalcroze method, musical
education, musical choreography
ANNA GALIKOWSKA-GAJEWSKA
THE SOUND IN MOVEMENT INTERPRETATION OF THE SELECTED MUSIC PIECES
Introduction
The tone of the sound is the most recognisable feature of 20 th century music. Its major
transformations over the last century has led to the birth of different tone concepts in the artistic
dealings of many composers. The abundance of tone so typical of contemporary musical pieces
stemming from composers’ quests and experiments with developing an original sound has inspired
the author of this article in her selection of the tone as the topic.
The purpose of this paper was to describe the tone qualities of selected musical pieces
written in the 19., 20. and 21. centuries so as to indicate the possibilities of transposing the musical
tone of those pieces through choreography into an image of music expressed in space and
movement. This article as its foreground has the author's doctoral dissertation. In her dissertation in
the first Chapter entitled "The Phenomenon of Tone in Musical Work" the author defines the key
notions related to the musical tone, such as the sound, its qualities, timbre, tone values, or tone
colours. It describes the tone as it developed through the ages and discusses its impact on the
development of music in the 20. century.
In the second Chapter entitled "The Role of Movement Interpretation of Music" the author
referred to the movement interpretations of the music in their function of an artistic embodiment of
the Emile Jaques-Delacroze’s Eurhythmics. The role of movement interpretations in his
Eurhythmics is described in a historical perspective. The chapter also presents the stages of
developing movement interpretations of music. The author presents in this chapter also her own
definition of the movement interpretation of music, which is the result of her many years of
professional experience in creating musical choreography:
Movement interpretations of a musical piece are the most beautiful and the most perfect way
of reflecting music by means of spatial-movement measures. They constitute the synthesis of
music and movement, thanks to which they allow a deeper experience of music that is
embodied in the movement of the human body.
Theoretical considerations presented in the first two chapters formed the basis for the
creation of movement interpretations of seven selected pieces and their descriptions: musical pieces
by C. Debussy, J. Cage, K. Penderecki, W. Szalonek, A. Dobrowolski, K. Olczak, and T. Kaiser.
The chronological presentation of the works of music proposed by the author depicts the process of
changes taking place in the composers’ awareness, related to the process of musical creation, and
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the growing impact of the form building element – the tone. The selected pieces by Claude
Debussy, John Cage, Krzysztof Penderecki, Witold Szalonek, Andrzej Dobrowolski, Krzysztof
Olczak, and Tim Kaiser provide illustration of these transformations. They reflect the artists’ search
for new sound effects, which dominated the sound of music in the 20 th century. Moreover, the
selected compositions constitute examples of the particular interest of the aforementioned
composers in the subject of music exploration of sound in their rich artistic output. Their artistic
achievements set the time-frame in the history of music when these changes were taking place.
The pieces discussed in the article were given their visualisation in movement
interpretations of music. The author further analyses the means of movement reached for individual
choreographies so to correspond with the specificity of the tone.
The descriptions of the developed movement interpretations provide general information on
the composer and his musical output, and include an analysis of the musical form of the selected
compositions. The descriptions are complemented with photographic and video documentation
which supplements and completes the verbal description of the performers moving in space. The
information on particular musical pieces is intended to help the recipients perceive the work of art –
movement interpretations.
Claude Debussy’s Clair de lune
The first composition in the group is Claude Debussy’s Clair de lune. Jacques Chailley wrote about
Claude Debussy: "The last musician of the 19 th century is the first musician of the 20 th century"
("Debussy." Encyklopedia Muzyczna PWM. Kraków 1984, 384), who "[…] ultimately demolished
the traditional tonal system together with its complex structures, chromatic consequences and
intricacy of chord relations, and showed a substantially different, however, an obvious, in terms of
auditory perception, sound order" (Zieliński 1980, 19-20). Originality of the tone language of
Claude Debussy as S. Jarociński put it down "[…] let new perspectives in composer’s thinking to
emerge, particularly with regard to sonorism" ("Debussy." Encyklopedia Muzyczna PWM, 1984,
384).
Clair de lune is one of the most popular piano pieces by Claude Debussy — a part of the
piano suite Suite Bergamasque (1890, rev. 1905). Most likely the title of the suite comes from the
poem Clair de lune by Paul Verlaine, in which the bergamask dance is mentioned. Bergamasque is
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an old peasant's dance in fast 2/4 time, from the Bergamo district in northern Italy, popular mainly
in the 16th and 17th centuries throughout Europe. The word suggests the clownish manners
eputedly characteristic of the peasants of Bergamo. Melody was in harmonic progression I–IV–V–I
("Bergamasca." Oxford Music Online 2011). The suite was composed in 1890, but published only in
1905. It consists of four movements. Clair de lune is the third movement and the best known one. It
was first orchestrated by André Caplet. (Ibid.)
Clair de lune is a musical piece, whose macroform consists of three sections: A+BA1
(reprise form). Each of the individual sections of the musical piece has its own specific tone,
realised mainly within the scope of tone colour, and, being the result of interaction among, first of
all, dynamics, articulation, and agogics. It exemplifies innovative solutions in the harmonic layer of
the composition which go beyond the classical patterns of the major-minor harmony and foretell the
oncoming changes.
The author’s original movement interpretation of music by Claude Debussy is realised in
movement by one person. (see Picture 1 and Video 1). Her costume — a silk white dress —
emphasizes the delicate, transient, and ephemeral character of the composition. The author focused
on the musical tone of the piece. Soft light used in the movement interpretation emphasizes the
mood of music, and simultaneously becomes an integral part of the movement interpretation.
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Picture 1. Photos from the author’s choreography on Claude Debussy’s Clair de lune. Photo by
Piotr Rodak. Source: Experts from the album “Anna Galikowska-Gajewska, Brzmienie w
interpretacjach ruchowych utworu muzycznego, zapis fotograficzny”. Copyright by Wydawnictwo
Akademii Muzycznej im. Stanisława Moniuszki w Gdańsku, 2012. Reproduced with the permission
of Academy of Music Stanisława Moniuszki, Gdansk, Poland.
Our spring will come by John Cage
John Cage, as Tadeusz A. Zieliński writes, "being one of those who most ostentatiously demolished
the existing order in music […] " (Zieliński op. cit., 221), was the first to use prepared piano.
Among the huge number of musical pieces composed by John Cage for prepared piano, one
can find Our Spring Will Come, which combines the elements typical of the composer’s work:
playing with sound and stretches of silence. The composition was written in 1943 in New York and
was intended as a dance piece. Pearl Primus created choreography — she was a dancer,
choreographer and cultural anthropologist, populariser of African dance in the United States in the
20th century. The premiere performance of Our Spring Will Come with Sarah Malament (playing the
piano) likely took place on April 23r d Information available at the John Cage: Official Website
(www.johncage.org).
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This piece of music is a classical example of piano sound transformation towards sound
preparation. This change of expression opens new possibilities of sound creation which are here
adopted as the basis for the development of interesting tone solutions.
The interesting sound language of the composition Our Spring Will Come results from
adequate preparation of the instrument, for which purpose the composer used two types of material:
metal — bolts with and without nuts, a hook, a slider, and bamboo straps. The details of preparation
are specified in the Example 1.
John Cage combined the richness of the piano sound in Our Spring Will Come with a highly
interesting rhythmics. Frequent changes in the metre (polymetry), changes in the tempo,
systematically led in polyrhythmics in both voices, surprising accents throughout the whole piece,
and silence – so typical for the composer – that fivefold breaks the march of sounds, gives the piece
a more dynamic character, and leads to achieve musical contrasts. The originality of the tonal
language of Our Spring Will Come also forms the basis for shaping of the musical architecture. The
structure of the musical piece is build upon fourteen contrasting sections, varying in terms of metrorhythmics, texture, sound effects resulting the instrument preparation, and dynamics. The sound
material of the composition is subject to these changes and different variations are created. As a
result, a hybrid form is developed which is a mixture of variation technique and the order of the
rondo form. The effect is that the coefficients, which are typical for the structure of rondo, are
created as a result of joining of the sections transformed as variants of the motif. The sound material
of the sections A and B forms the basis for creating successive parts of the piece. The microform
scheme is as follows:
ABCDEB’FD’B’A’DEB’ Coda
The formal structure of the musical piece constitutes the basis for creating a spatial and
movement composition in the form of a musical and movement rondo, in which all coefficients
typical for a classical rondo — chorus and couplets, form in movement a sequence of pictures
following one another.
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Example 1. J. Cage, Our Spring Will Come, scale of prepared sounds. (author's archive)
Picture 2. Photos from the author’s choreography on Our Spring Will Come by John Cage. Photo by
Piotr Rodak. Source: Experts from the album “Anna Galikowska-Gajewska, Brzmienie w
interpretacjach ruchowych utworu muzycznego, zapis fotograficzny”. Copyright by Wydawnictwo
Akademii Muzycznej im. Stanisława Moniuszki w Gdańsku, 2012. Reproduced with the permission
of Academy of Music Stanisława Moniuszki, Gdansk, Poland.
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The repetitiveness and juxtaposing of energetic and quiet sections, combined with silence in
music, implies diversified solutions with regard to shaping expressive movement in the space of the
stage (see Picture 2 and Video 2). The prop used in the composition – a springboard, serves to
emphasize the specific tonality of the piece. Five female dancers wearing black costumes take part
in the movement interpretation of Our Spring Will Come. The uniform colour of their costumes
symbolises the uniform tone of the piano.
Anaklasis by Krzysztof Penderecki
Anaklasis by Krzysztof Penderecki is the subsequent composition. This composition was written in
1960. The musical work was written to the order of Südwestfunk, Baden-Baden for Donauschinger
Musiktage für zeitgenössische Tonkunst in 1960, and dedicated to a German theorist Heinrich
Strobel, a friend to whom Krzysztof Penderecki owes his international success (Lisicki 1973, 57).
The world premiere was held on 22 nd October 1960 during "The Days of New Music" in
Donauschingen. The Südwestfunk orchestra, Baden-Baden, was conducted by Hans Rosbaud, and
in Decemeber of that same year Charles Bruck in Strasbourgu recorded the musical piece for the
first time (Erhardt 1975, 25).
"The title of the piece (anaklasis = refraction of light, transformation) was derived from the
Greek metrics, where it denoted the alternating use of short and long phonemes." (Ibidem, 28)
Anaklasis constitutes a sonoristic manifesto written for a traditional set of musicians, i.e. a string
orchestra, supplemented with an extremely large percussion ensemble. The diversified tone of the
performing instruments is developed through flirting with musical colours. The composer takes
individual instruments or specific combinations of instruments as the starting point in his
projections of innovative solutions applied to the sound.
Therefore, the main objective of the composition was to search for innovative sound effects
and new sound material. To this end, apart from the twelve-tone chromatic scale, the sound material
is enriched with clusters, microintervals (tones larger or smaller by a ¼ of a tone), quarter tones
(tones larger or smaller by a 3/4 of a tone), extreme registers, noise and murmur effects.
Innovation with regard to musical language in Anaklasis has been combined with a quite
traditional understanding of musical form. Interesting musical material has been given a simple and
clear form. One-section musical piece is shaped by way of assembly, producing a spectrum of
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instrumental colours. The composer used the sequential technique of forming the piece, where its
particular phrases merge seamlessly one into another. The cast of the performers is the basis of the
classification.
Anaklasis has become an inspiration for creating a movement interpretation of music, in
which thirteen dancers in identical black costumes take part. The props play an important role in the
movement interpretation — eight pieces of white cloths, which in the movement of the performers
emphasize the broad tone range of the musical passage. (Picture 3 and Video 3) While other props
(properties) – form a kind of ladder up which the performers go, thus expressing the sounds of the
highest register.
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THE SOUND IN MOVEMENT INTERPRETATION OF THE SELECTED MUSIC PIECES
Picture 3. Photos from the author’s choreography on Anaklasis by Penderecky. Photo by Piotr Rodak.
Source: Experts from the album “Anna Galikowska-Gajewska, Brzmienie w interpretacjach
ruchowych utworu muzycznego, zapis fotograficzny”. Copyright by Wydawnictwo Akademii
Muzycznej im. Stanisława Moniuszki w Gdańsku, 2012. Reproduced with the permission of Academy
of Music Stanisława Moniuszki, Gdansk, Poland.
Witold Szalonek’s Quattro monologhi per oboe solo no. 4
Witold Szalonek’s composition entitled Quattro monologhi per oboe solo no. 4 is another piece.
Witold Szalonek, a Polish composer, who at the turn of the 1960ies carried out a research into new
possibilities of producing sounds in wind instruments, which led him to discover properties that had
not been used in classical music before that time, and to develop the so-called "multiphonics"
(Pasiecznik, 2012) in the form of a system, or "combined sounds" i.e. characteristic in terms of tone
colour multisounds produced in wooden wind instruments.
A cycle of four pieces for solo oboe — Quattro monologhi is among the best and most
characteristic examples of sonorism in Polish music of the 1960ies, where the composer in a model-
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like manner explores the tone colour potential of a single instrument — the oboe. The composer’s
particular fascination with the sound of the instrument and its broad exploitation led him to discover
new ways of producing sound in woodwind instruments.
The macroform of a part of the fourth piece of this cycle is based on a sequential succession
of varied in terms of the material, small fragments-ideas and phrases that build aleatoric sections.
The sections are constructed basing on playing ad libitum. Despite so diversified fragments,
the macroform constitutes an expressive whole. Suggested aleatorism was used, and the composer
proposed with the use of descriptive graphics a choice of the sound material to follow. The piece no.
4 is, therefore, an example of a form shaped in an aleatoric manner, which is based on involving
randomness in the process of its creation, with the assumption that it will be the oboe player himself
who will determine the final form of the piece.
The score of this piece is an example of a graphic score, where traditional notation is
combined with graphic elements. Such construction of the score serves as a visual inspiration for
the performer (Paja-Stach 2009, 198). As a philosopher and critic Christop Cox (d. 1965) remarks:
"Graphic scores in which traditional musical symbols are abandoned to make place for innovative
graphic elements, are intended to stimulate open musical performances and improvisation" (Cox
and Warner 2010).
In the piece no. 4 short dynamic and emotional caesuras and their diverse character in terms
of the material, mark the division into eight separate construction ideas. Each idea emanates
different expression emphasized by the rhythmic factor, which becomes an impulse to create
movement in this case. The specific oboe tone is the basis for shaping music choreography, (see
Picture 4 and Video 4) realised in the area of the tone colour, and being the result mainly of the
interaction among dynamics, articulation, and agogics.
In the movement interpretation of Quattro monologhi per oboe solo no. 4 two persons
wearing identical black costumes take part. Soft stage lighting that emphasizes the expression of
music, accompanies the dancers during their realisation of the movement interpretation.
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THE SOUND IN MOVEMENT INTERPRETATION OF THE SELECTED MUSIC PIECES
Picture 4. Photos from the author’s choreography on Witold Szalonek’s composition Quattro monologhi .
Photo by Piotr Rodak. Source: Experts from the album “Anna Galikowska-Gajewska, Brzmienie w
interpretacjach ruchowych utworu muzycznego, zapis fotograficzny”. Copyright by Wydawnictwo Akademii
Muzycznej im. Stanisława Moniuszki w Gdańsku, 2012. Reproduced with the permission of Academy of
Music Stanisława Moniuszki, Gdansk, Poland.
Krabogapa by Andrzej Dobrowolski
Another piece of music is Krabogapa by Andrzej Dobrowolski. The works of
A. Dobrowolskiego are also in line with the developments in Polish music of the second half of the
20th century.
Krabogapa is a piece written in 1969 to the order of the ensemble "Warsztat Muzyczny"
(Musical Workshop). The title comes from an acronym built of the first syllables of the surnames of
the ensemble members: Zygmunt Krauze, Edward Borowiak, Edward Gałązka, Czesław Pałkowski.
The world premiere of the composition was held on 13 th October 1969 in Rotterdam.
This piece of music is an exquisite example of exploring the sonoristic potential of a
chamber ensemble composed of the clarinet, cello, trombone, and piano. The different instrument
configurations tried by the composer translate no new unconventional sound tone qualities.
The piece has a one part form, within which eleven different phases can be identified. The
structure is created by joining of these phases, which are diversified in terms of colour, articulation,
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and texture. (In her choreographic work the author used Score and Instructions by Andrzeja
Dobrowolskiego Krabogapa, PWM Edition, Kraków 1970).
Picture 5. Photos from the author’s choreography on Dobrowolsky’s Krabogapa. Photo by Piotr Rodak.
Source: Experts from the album “Anna Galikowska-Gajewska, Brzmienie w interpretacjach ruchowych
utworu muzycznego, zapis fotograficzny”. Copyright by Wydawnictwo Akademii Muzycznej im. Stanisława
Moniuszki w Gdańsku, 2012. Reproduced with the permission of Academy of Music Stanisława Moniuszki,
Gdansk, Poland.
Five persons take part in the movement interpretation of Krabogapa (see Picture 5 and
Video 5). They are assigned with the task of movement realisation of parts of individual
instruments. The piano part is reflected in movement by two persons. Such a clear strengthening of
the cast of performers is related to the composer’s comprehensive use of the tonal capability of the
instrument, both in a traditional and a non-conventional way. Each of the remaining instruments:
the pipe, the clarinet, and the cello is realised in movement by one performer. A prop (a ladder)
plays an important role in the musical choreography. The rule of graduation was adopted with
regard to the pitch of tones and consequently applied throughout the whole musical piece.
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THE SOUND IN MOVEMENT INTERPRETATION OF THE SELECTED MUSIC PIECES
Trio hommage á Karol Szymanowski by Krzysztof Olczak
Trio hommage á Karol Szymanowski by Krzysztof Olczak – a Gdańsk composer and accordionist –
is another piece that inspired the author to create movement interpretation. The piece was written in
1987 for the festival in Zakopan "Dni Muzyki Karola Szymanowskiego" (Karol Szymanowski's
Music Days).
We witness experiments with the sound of three other instruments: the accordion, violin, and
guitar. The piece evidences that the interest in sonorism has never faded among the Polish
composers from generation to generation.
The author’s original proposal of the movement interpretation (see Picture 6 and Video 6) of
the discussed musical piece is aimed to show by expressive movement planned in space, interesting
tonal solutions, which are played by an instrumental trio featuring accordion, guitar, and violin. Six
persons take part in the spatial and movement composition. The black and golden colours of the
performers' costumes emphasize the specific – metallic tone of the guitar and the violin, as well as
the tonal richness of the accordion.
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Picture 6. Photos from the author’s choreography on Trio hommage á Karol
Szymanowski by Krzysztof Olczak. Photo by Piotr Rodak. Source: Experts from the
album “Anna Galikowska-Gajewska, Brzmienie w interpretacjach ruchowych
utworu muzycznego, zapis fotograficzny”. Copyright by Wydawnictwo Akademii
Muzycznej im. Stanisława Moniuszki w Gdańsku, 2012. Reproduced with the
permission of Academy of Music Stanisława Moniuszki, Gdansk, Poland.
Dinosaur Bones by Tim Kaiser
The last composition, written in 2007, is Dinosaur Bones by Tim Kaiser, an american composer of
experimental music, whose videos, installations and performances are presented throughout the
world. Here, the original tone solutions consist in electrical transformations of the traditional sound
material. The piece perfectly fits into the trend of the electro-acoustic music, first started in the
mid-1920s by the composers writing the concrete and electronic music.
Tim Kaiser constructs in his pieces sound images which are the result of adding diversified
sound layers. He designs himself experimental instruments for this purpose. He searches for
everyday items – various materials that produce interesting sounds, creates original instruments of
unique tone, and transforms the new quality sounds electronically. Listening analysis of Dinosaur
Bones and the issue of perceptive reception being integrally linked with it, led the author to select
particular sound qualities, generating specific sounds, and to systematize them in a form of a sound
catalogue. Original sound motives inspired movement projections. In the movement interpretation
of the discussed musical piece, sound structures are given their movement visualisation, which
recurs with each subsequent repetition of the specific sound quality throughout the whole
ANNA GALIKOWSKA-GAJEWSKA
THE SOUND IN MOVEMENT INTERPRETATION OF THE SELECTED MUSIC PIECES
composition (see Picture 7 and Video 7). Eight persons take part in the musical choreography. The
performers’ stage costumes of diversified cut emphasize the avant-garde character of Dinosaur
Bones piece.
Picture 7. Photos from the author’s choreography on Dinosaur Bones by Tim Kaiser.
Source: Experts from the album “Anna Galikowska-Gajewska, Brzmienie w interpretacjach
ruchowych utworu muzycznego, zapis fotograficzny”. Copyright by Wydawnictwo Akademii
Muzycznej im. Stanisława Moniuszki w Gdańsku, 2012. Reproduced with the permission of
Academy of Music Stanisława Moniuszki, Gdansk, Poland.
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Conclusion
The subject of the musical tone discussed in the article represents an individual approach to the
issue. The unique tonal abundance of the contemporary music has triggered the author’s fascination
and stimulated her to take up research and pursue her artistic project – the author’s original
movement interpretation have been recorded in the form of DVD and a photo album has been
published.
The analysis of musical forms of the selected compositions, conducted in the article, and the
characteristics of the sound colours of those pieces developed under the verbal scaling method of
the semantic differential served as the starting point for the expression of the musical tone with the
means of movement arranged in space. Exploration of sound on a theoretical level showed that
"'tone' […] — a musical phenomenon that is the most difficult phenomenon to define"(Szoka and
Crumb 2011, 280), is a multidimensional concept. In the process of creating the choreographies the
author sought for appropriate movement and spatial solutions that would depict the vital elements
constituting the musical tone such as sound timbres, colours, dynamics, articulation, agogics, and
texture. The musical expression mirrored in the emotional and expressive movements of the
performing artists, which blends all elements listed above, completes the picture of the musical
tone. The correlation between the tone of the sound and the set of instruments for which the
compositions were written is reflected in the described movement interpretations by purposefully
selected different groups of performers. The artefacts used in the movement interpretations proved
extremely helpful in building the spatial and movement image of the musical tone.
References
Cage, John: Official Website. www.johncage.org
Cox, Christop and Daniel Warner, eds. 2010. "Wizualne dźwięki: o partyturach graficznych." (Visual
sounds: on graphic scores.) In Kultura dźwięku, teksty o muzyce nowoczesnej. (Audio Culture:
Readings in Modern Music.) Polish translation by Sławomir Wieczorek. Gdańsk: Słowo/Obraz
terytoria Publishing House.
Dobrowolski, A. 1970. Partytura utworu 'Krabogapa'. (The score of Krabogapa.) Kraków: PWM Edition.
Erhardt, L. 1975. Spotkania z Krzysztofem Pendereckim. (Meetings with Krzysztof Penderecki.) Kraków:
PWM
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Galikowska, G. Anna. 2012. Brzmienie w interpretacjach ruchowych utworu muzycznego Debussy, Cage,
Penderecki, Szalonek, Dobrowolski, Olczak, Kaiser. (Choreographyc interpretations on the music by
Debussy, Cage, Penderecki, Szalonek, Dobrowolski, Olczak, and Kaiser.) Gdansk: Akademia Muzyczna
im. Stanisława Moniuszki.
Lisicki, K. 1973. Szkice o Krzysztofie Pendereckim. (Sketches about Krzysztof Penderecki.) Warszawa:
"Pax"
Nordwall, T. 1968. Krzysztof Penderecki — studium notacji i instrumentacji. (Krzysztof Penderecki: study
of notation and instrumentation.) Res Facta 2. Krakow: PWM.
Paja-Stach, J. 2009. Muzyka polska od Paderewskiego do Pendereckiego. (Polish Music from Paderewski
to Penderecki.) Kraków: Musica Iagellonica.
Pasiecznik, M. Szalonek z czyśćca historii.(Szalonek from the Purgatory of History.) 2012. Wrocław:
„Odra”, Biblioteka Narodowa i Ośrodek Kultury i Sztuki we Wrocławiu. Accessed on March 2016, at
www.odra.net.pl.
Szoka, M. 2011. George Crumb. Muzyka onirycznych wizji i magicznych formuł. (Music of Oniric
Visions and Magic Spells.) Łódź: Akademia Muzyczna im. Grażyny i Kiejstuta Bacewiczóww Łodzi.
(The Grażyna and Kiejstut Bacewicz Academy of Music in Łódź)
Zieliński, T. A. 1980. Style, kierunki i twórcy muzyki XX wieku. (Styles, Trends, and Music Composers of
the 20th Century.) 2nd ed. Warszawa: Centralny Ośrodek Metody Upowszechniania Kultury.
www.tim-kaiser.org
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UDC: 793.31(680)
394.3(680)
613.25(680)
COBISS.SR-ID 229890828
No Simple Answers: A Holistic Approach to Issues Concerning
Obesity and African Dance
Maxwell Xolani Rani1
1
University of Cape Town, South Africa
Received: April 18, 2016.
Reviewed: June 1, 2016.
Accepted: June 30, 2016.
Citation: Rani, Maxwell, X. 2017. “No Simple Answers: A Holistic Approach to Issues Concerning
Obesity and African Dance.” Accelerando: Belgrade Journal of Music and Dance 2:10.
Abstract
Obesity is a growing health issue in South Africa that carries health risk detrimental to
those living in Black townships. The author will argue that the use of South African
traditional urban dances may be permissible option for replacing aerobics to help prevent
and combat obesity. Christian missionaries, colonizers, Western education, urbanization,
and apartheid have had negative impacts on South African traditional rural dances;
however, South Africans who migrated to urban environments in the nineteenth and
twentieth centuries transformed traditions under spatial and ideological constraints and
created new South African traditional urban social dances. South African traditional
urban social dances were created in urban environments, in slum yards and townships,
and do not reach the same level of sacred ritual that South African traditional rural social
dances do; thus, their use in Black townships to help fight obesity is a possibility that
must be further researched. The use of South African traditional urban social dances may
not only help prevent and reduce obesity, but also help build community, teach history,
facilitate self-exploration in a holistic manner, and open doors for the youth of today to
continue to transform traditional urban social dances to reflect the current realities they
are experiencing in Black townships.
Keywords: South African social dance, obesity, urbanization, transformation
MAXWELL XOLANI RANI
NO SIMPLE ANSWERS: A HOLISTIC APPROACH
Introduction
In the past few decades, South Africa has witnessed an increase in obesity (Goedecke et al. 2006). It
occurred from young to old, female to male, black to white and urban to rural—no group of people
has been exempt from this phenomenon. Trends cannot be pinpointed to any single cause, although
the effects of this health condition are serious and diverse. Research indicates that obesity is
preventable, with several ways to combat and reduce its development. One of the most effective
ways to reduce the onset of obesity is through regular exercises. One suggested activity for black
South Africans is to participate in dance, particularly traditional, black South African social dances,
which could be offered to the public in a studio setting or community halls as an aerobic activity
geared to fighting and diminishing obesity.
This paper begins with an exploration of what ‘traditional, black South African social dance’
actually is, and whether its very nature precludes it from use as aerobics exercises. The author then
proceed to de-problematise South African traditional dance in a South African context by
differentiating between ‘rural’ and ‘urban’ black South African dance forms, the position of dance in
each context and questioning the use of either in an exercise regime. Lastly, he examines obesityrelated health disorders in urban areas and offer solutions and interventions in this regard.
The question of whether South African social traditional dances should be used as aerobics
by black South Africans is a complicated one that elicits many emotional responses. Welsh-Asante
explains social traditional dance in a manner we can all understand. She states: "Social traditional
dances generally explicitly imply a consistency that has its own boundaries and parameters. Implied
in the definition of social tradition are the requisite confines of the rules and norms of that society
that the art form manifests" (Welsh-Asante 1996, 178). Many ‘purist’ or should one say
conservative people—believe strongly that the use of traditional, black, South African social dance
as aerobics would be disrespectful and demeaning and would negate the significance of these
dances which represent different cultures. Purist society feels threatened because the trivialization
of dance is happening "again": first it was for the purpose of "entertainment on a Western stage" and
now for the reason of "fitness".
The author uses the word culture in a sense of "inhabit, cultivate, protect, and honor with
worship" (Williams 1983, 87). The word is one of the most complicated in the English language.
"This is so partly because of its intricate historical development in several European languages, but
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mainly because it has now come to be used for important concepts in several distinct intellectual
disciplines and in several distinct and incompatible systems of thoughts" (Ibid.).
Another viewpoint is that limiting the use of traditional, black, South African social dance
would separate it from the people and restrict its growth. Thus, within the dance community at least
the issues of authenticity, preservation and trivialization are still relevant and it remains imperative
to consider all sides of the debate before exploring the possibility of using traditional social dances
in the domain of aerobics. Purists argue that there is more to traditional dance than exercise.
Discussions on traditional South African social dance occur within a framework where the concept
of African-ness is still being evaluated. In the present, post- and neo-colonial era, negotiations of
African cultural identities are often informed by the summoning of the pre-colonial past. Bhavnani
and Phoenix explain identity: "any individual can identify themselves on a myriad of levels: in a
personal sense, a social sense, on an ethnic, cultural, spiritual or religious basis and by way of their
moral values. As a consequence, identities can be seen as flexible or even conflicting" (1994).
Many South African government agencies have made great efforts in forging a national
cultural revival. This "revival" of traditional dance forms is taken quite seriously as conducive to
the process of psychological decolonization, for example the institution of "Heritage Day" annually
celebrated on 24 September. It is a moot point that the historical contextualization of traditional,
black, South African social dance usually serves the intentional or unintentional politicization of the
art form today. This is to be explained in the following sections of the paper.
Obesity has already been identified as a problem that can be solved by promoting a healthier
lifestyle, including proper diet and exercise such as dance. The latter poses another major concern
regarding the possible trivialization of a culture that has suffered the indignity of subjugation and
disrespect under colonial rule. However, the fact that traditional South African social dance forms
have a history of functionality arguably bears upon the implications of limiting its use in a present
urban context. This research will examine the possible causes and health risks of obesity within a
South African context with an emphasis on Black townships. This research will analyze why the use
of South African traditional urban social dances to help combat obesity may be permissible, why
the use of dance may matter, and how they may provide a benefit to people living in Black
townships.
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Setting the stage or the ‘gym’: African dance (history)
Scholars have grappled with the notion of a "primitive" aspect to South African life as perceived in
our social traditional dance discipline for the greater part of the 20 th century. It has become
increasingly important to understand what ‘traditional, black, South African social dance’ means in
an age of global modernity where cultures, traditions, art forms, values and information are
constantly exchanged through the media and other lines of communication across the world. First
theories in the discourse were created with the scholarship of European and Euro-American
historians in contact with what they termed the "primitive dance[s]" of pre-colonial 'Africans'
(Castaldi 2006, 35). According to Hanna, in Africa’s New Traditional Dance "primitive" was based
on fear of the unknown by Westerners under the dictatorship of a Eurocentric mind-set that saw
African dance as uninhibited, sexual and therefore vulgar.
The author places 'Africans' in inverted commas because the term 'African' denoting an
individual living on the continent known today, as Africa is a construct Europeans applied that to
black people on the continent. There are different scholarly discourses around the use of the term
'African'. Although there is the notion of Sub-Saharan Africa, the author is in favour of utilizing
'African', because of the popularity of the word and its ancient usage. According to Fanon, "The
Sub-Saharan is rooted in racism, which in part assumes that a little sand is an obstacle for African
people. This barrier of sand hence confines the notion of some invisible border which divides the
North of Africa from the South. This barrier of sand hence confines/confined Africans to the bottom
of this make-believe location, which exists neither politically or physically" (Fanon 2005, 29).
Owen Alik Shahadah agrees with Fanon by saying that Sub-Saharan Africa is the term used to
describe those countries of the African continent that are not considered part of North Africa. In 19 th
century Europe and the Western World, the area was sometimes referred to as "Black Africa".
"Africa as a whole was commonly known as 'the dark continent' a term that was usually intended to
refer to the Sub-Saharan region’"(Brijnath 2007, 371). This was partly due to the skin colour of its
inhabitants and partly because much of it had not been fully explored or mapped by Westerners.
According to these scholars these terms are now obsolete and often considered to be pejorative.
In the eyes of many predominantly white anthropologists and ethnologists theorizing on
South African traditional social dance during the colonial era, "the ability to dance [became] a kind
of litmus test about a people‘s revolutionary development" (Castaldi 2006, 35). According to the
writings of these ‘analysts’ and the testimonies of missionaries and colonial officers, "dance
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establishes the animality of the primitive because dance itself is interpreted as an instinctual
reaction, springing from the body and by-passing the mind" (Ibid.). In Curt Sachs’ World History of
the Dance (1937), the "mastery" of "pygmoid San men" in the field of dance not only justified their
conquering by the white man; their entrancement is the cause of their inability to defend themselves
and a testament to their low evolutionary status" (Castaldi 2006, 39). Clearly early South African
traditional dance theories were entrenched in a white, colonial paradigm that claimed the superiority
of Western culture and intelligence over the savage, primordial 'African' and reducing dance to mere
"motor reflex… uncontrollable hopping and hand gestures" (Ibid.).
Interestingly, if most people perceive South African traditional dance as a collection of
random muscular movements requiring no prior thought or astuteness, it is quite obvious that its use
as aerobics exercise is acceptable. According to the Oxford Dictionary aerobics is defined as a
method of "physical exercise for producing beneficial changes in the respiratory and circulatory
system by activities which require only a modest increase in oxygen intake and so can be
maintained" (Oxford English Dictionary Online. Accessed February 8. 2011). However, this biased
perspective changed with the increased awareness that South African social traditional dance is
more than ‘primitive dance’ as defined by the colonials and the realization that the multitude of
dance styles from ethnic groups and countries across the continent comprise particular disciplines.
Ethnicity refers to a collection or nation of people who are more than a mere collective group but an
aggregate consciously related by common origins and shared experiences. Incorporated into a
group’s ethnicity is a distinct language, religious beliefs and political institutions which are passed
down to following generations (Cashmore 1984).
In addition, according to Jackson and Cothran (2003), Pearl Primus in Africa traditional
dance: An Artistic, Historical and Philosophical Inquiry (1963) explains on the same breath that
Dance in Africa is not a separate art, but a part of the whole complex of living, and dance is only a
part of the whole ceremony and is filled with supernatural powers. That means that South African
traditional social dance is not merely a collection of physical movements, but life expressed in
dramatic terms. Opuku (1967, 11-34) and Owusu-Frempong (2005) explain such claims on a deeper
context. The dance is not simply a fictional performance removed from the audience as one would
find in Western theatrical convention, but it is a living, breathing expression of social
communication and ritualistic ceremony.
In many African cultures, dance is seen as a gift from ancestors. Dance scholar Robert
Thompson writes that South African traditional dance—and art—can be defined as "social acts of
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filiations, extending human consciousness into the past and the time of the founding fathers. It is
essentially a timeless tradition, shaping ultimate values" (Thompson 1974, 28). Jackson and
Cothran (2003) comment on the same context that traditional dance is about shaping the ultimate
values and thus dance—or history—should be treated with the utmost respect. There is an element
of formalized religion in South African traditional social dance that commands reverence and the
understanding that, as one participates in or engages with different forms of dance, one is involved
with a greater "dynamic", "harmonious" and even supernatural form of ritualistic social interaction
(Primus 1963, 5). The latest interpretation of Jackson and Cothran (2003) is that there is a form of
spirituality that takes place and dynamics that go with required co-ordination. In the poetry of
Primus’ writing she describes the spirituality of Africa traditional dance as follows: "The dance is
strong magic. The dance is spirit. It turns the body to liquid steel. It makes it vibrate like a guitar.
The body can fly without wings. It can sing without voice and dance is strong magic and life"
(Primus 1963, 5). Apter (2002, 242) explains similarly (but within a Haitian aspect) that African
dance is harmonious, graceful and it embraces the spiritual being.
South African traditional social dance is also deeply representative, with many dances
choreographed with the specific intent of communicating a particular idea or depicting an element
of social or religious life. In his essay African traditional dance: Bridges to humanity (2004), Tracy
D. Snipe states that although "South African traditional dance may be entertaining, it functions
primarily as a cultural and artistic expression of the community; in Africa the notion of art for the
sake of art is a foreign concept" (2004, 63). Each movement of the dance is not simply say a
rotation of the limbs, but becomes a symbolic representation or mimicry of customary activity.
Doris Green gives a descriptive example of how dances are inspired by daily existence as in the
fishermen’s dance, the "Rawar Masunta" from the Birnin Kebbi of the Sokoto State of Nigeria.
Fishing and farming are the primary means of making a living in this area and thus many of their
dances concern fishing and farming. Green notes:
In the fishermen’s dance ‘Rawar Masuta’, women who claim descendency from fishing families
perform this dance. The women hold cloth in their hands; this cloth represents the fishing net, which
is cast into the water. In order to cast the net successfully, a certain stance is developed which is the
stance used in the dance. The body is carried in a forward high position and the hands imitate the
collecting of fish. The hands are thrust into the water, forward low position of the arms, and slow
drawn to the waist, trapping the fish between the hands and body as they are gathered. (Green 2004,
17).
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The author has thus far established that South African traditional dance carries important
ritualistic and communicative significance, which completely negates its purpose when lost or
ignored. It is also important to understand that the way in which South African traditional dances
are practiced is integral to the communication of their meaning. This includes the setting, costumes,
music and language. Primus asserts that one "cannot really speak of African traditional dance
without at least a few words about costume, because it show cases the aesthetic part of dance, it
show cases the timbre and add to the feel of the movement" (Primus 1963, 8-9). Additionally, Apter
(2002, 234) and Owusu-Frempong (2005, 87) explain that music and language are also integral to
the performance of South African traditional dance. Green posits that "African traditional dance is
not like any other form of dance. Its relationship to music, thereby language, is what chiefly
distinguishes it from any other art form" (Green 2004: 18).
It would be difficult, and far beyond the requirements of an exercise regimen, to translate
this all-encompassing notion of dance performance into an aerobics context. Obviously the very
nature of South African traditional dances require they occur within specific contexts, with specific
purposes conveying specific meanings, with specific accoutrements utilized to ensure that the
practice is as precise as possible. Some dances are so sacred that only certain members of ethnic
groups who created the dances have witnessed them, particularly the ritualistic ones. Thus, one can
hardly expect these to translate into a gym context. To remove essential meaning from the
movement one would reduce millennium-long traditions of art, development and social behavior to
a mere flexing of muscles. Without the music, the correct language, the proper costume and setting
and, most importantly, the ritualistic and symbolic significance at the forefront of the performance
of South African traditional dance it ceases to be the very thing it purports to be.
Transformation of urbanized dance and township
The author has not yet examined the complexities of urban and rural South Africa social traditional
dance. The next part of this paper will explore specifically the significance of dance in urban ‘black’
South Africa. Much of the previous discussion still stands when one speaks of the significance of
traditional social dance in most of the rural areas in South Africa. Emphasis of the significance and
deeply-rooted social, religious and cultural implications of dance performance is a feature of
traditional dance in the rural areas of South Africa as well as most other cultures across the
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continent. Rural areas, also referred to as ‘the country’ or ‘the country side,’ are sparsely settled
places away from the influence of large cities. According to Blakely (1984), major features
previously used to define rural include simple life, agriculture, smallness, homogeneity, and
dullness. Such areas may be distinguished from more intensively settled urban and suburban areas,
and unsettled lands such as the outback or wilderness. People in rural areas live in towns, villages,
on farms and in other isolated areas. The rural can also be determined by population density; rural
areas have an agricultural character, remote communities, and limited or absent public transport,
usually requiring people to use their own cars, but if this is impractical they may walk, cycle, or ride
a horse or a donkey.
It is important not to fall into the trap of believing that traditional social dances have been in
a state of inertia since some romanticized, primitive age of antiquity. Instead, as Sarah Rubidge
states, "The forms of expression through which cultural mores and perspectives are articulated are
fluid and not static; social traditional dances are always developing" (Rubidge 1998, 3). The
significance of South African social traditional dance in urban areas is of course no less important
than in the rural areas. However, dance does inhabit a different space in the progression of quotidian
existence due (largely) to the interactions of different cultures and the residual political, socioeconomic and psychological effects of colonialism. South Africa is "the most urbanized and
industrialized state of the continent and…has had the most consistent governmental control of its
development" (Bloom 1964, 347). Pick and Cooper (1997, 27) explain by mentioning the fact that
since the discovery of gold in South Africa in 1872 and 1886, its townships.
The allure of a better lifestyle is often romanticized, as living conditions are very poor:
migrant workers have been forced into exemplified horrible living conditions and so-called
'housing' frequently consists of structures improvised from old pieces of iron, sacking, wooden
poles, mud, and anything else that comes to hand. They have been host to scores of migrant workers
not only from the hinterland of the country, but from as far as the Congo, in search of work in the
city. During the last decades of the 20 th century, ‘black’ South Africans have been drawn to urban
areas, commonly referred to as townships, by the promise of higher general standards of education,
better housing and employment opportunities, the possibility of piped water and decent sanitation
services, and food subsidies (Louw 2004, 110). Urbanisation in a South African context is seen as
the movement of people from rural to so-called ‘developed’ cities. The rapid expansion of this
process in the 19 th century was due to the development of the mining industry, railways and national
economy.
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The apartheid government followed the trend of many colonial governments in attempting to
"contain and retard urbanization for ideological and political reasons" (Bloom 1964, 347).
Apartheid was a social and political policy of racial segregation and discrimination enforced by a
white minority government in South Africa from 1948 until 1994. The term derives from the
Afrikaans word denoting 'apartness'. Bear in mind that not all white South Africans supported the
apartheid government. The stability of the apartheid regime relied on the ability of the government
to restrict the formation of a substantial ‘urban proletarian’, but despite "intensive pressure,
urbanization has spread consistently in extent and influence" (Bloom 1964, 348).
The result of this urbanization has been the increasing presence of extremely diverse
populations from across the country and in the townships this multicultural explosion has led to the
creation of ‘urban dance culture’ unique to the landscape of urban South Africa. The dynamic
interactions of these different cultures have given rise to many dances synonymous with
contemporary South African culture, such as the Gumboot dance, the Pantsula and neo-traditional
dances that include many movements that come from the domestication of other ethnic groups.
Another offshoot of multicultural exchange in a South African urban context is the melding
of foreign musical conventions and instruments with South African traditional dances, such as the
use of the djembe, a multi-tonal drum from Mali/Senegal, in dances that are supposed to use
traditional drums of particular ethnic groups. Likewise, the original meaning and precision of (rural)
dances are altered when re-performed with specific purposes in mind, such as say political protest.
This is largely due to changes in lifestyle and the complex interaction and subjugation of cultures
that makes up modernity. The changing of seasons or the rotation of crops no longer marks the
rhythms of life; instead they are marked by the arrival of a monthly paycheck or the hooting horns
of the commuter omnibus each morning.
The subject matter of dance has transformed with the context and thus the nature and
significance of dance in daily life must adapt accordingly. One must also consider that with an
increasing black, urban middle class embracing the social constructs of colonialism, the reception of
social traditional dance is altered. "If the cause of urbanization was need for expansion, growth, and
production, the end result was the destruction, reconstruction, and adaptation of social traditions"
(Crenshaw 1991, 45). In comparison to the Ugandan matter Rubidge’s article verifies that many
upper middle class, urban, black Africans have had "little exposure to their indigenous cultural
practices which [have been] gradually abandoned in favour of the culture and arts of the colonizers"
(Rubidge 1998, 2). In addition, dance can be seen as the medium to re-appropriate one’s culture.
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Contoured along the lines of class, personal sensitivities and cultural associations the
concept of urban black South African traditional social dance is a complex one. Arguably, it would
be more realistic to utilize urban dance styles to create exercise programmes for those living in the
inner city and surrounding townships and who suffer from obesity. Pantsula, gumboot and kwaito
dances can easily expand studio weight losing programmes: they suit urban society and derive from
township urban settlement. Furthermore, despite their formation within a historical context of rich
cultural exchange, many urban dances do not have the same level of sacredness and exclusivity that
inform traditional rural dances. They are in many ways more accessible, because they often present
mixtures or hybrid forms of traditional rural dance transformed through interaction with other
cultures via personal exchange or the media.
Why dance matters
The World Health Organization defines obesity as a body mass index (BMI) of more than 30 kg/m2,
and has recently identified it as chronic disease (Goedecke et al. 2006; Van der Merwe and Pepper
2006). Increased body fat mass—a characteristic of obesity—leads to changes in metabolic
functions that lead to diseases such as hypertension and type 2 diabetes (Van der Merwe and Pepper
2006). Affecting over 1.3 billion worldwide, obesity has for a long time been associated with
wealthy, developed countries such as the United States of America, Great Britain and European
countries. However, "obesity is becoming more and more of an issue in developing nations,
including South Africa" (Goedecke et al. 2006). Obesity leads to ankle, knee and hip replacements
due to increased weight pressure. More than 29% of men and 56 % of women in South Africa are
classified as suffering from the condition. Out of these, the group at most risk is black women:
58.5% of black South African women above the age of fifteen are considered obese.
There is a growing concern that young people, especially girls and young women, are also at
risk: "10% of young South African women aged 15-24 are considered to be obese, and some studies
suggest that in the near future, the rate for 18 year olds will be as high as 37%" (Goedecke et al.
2006). In addition to hypertension and type 2 diabetes, "Obesity can lead to osteoarthritis, sleep
apnea, coronary heart disease, psychological problems and even some form of cancer" (ibid.).
Attendant psychological issues may seem obvious, such as body image issues in individuals —
"specifically women, who had been overweight in their youth, have lower incomes and a higher
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household poverty rate as adults than their peers who were a ‘normal’ weight as adolescents" (ibid.).
However, body image issues may not prove overly burdensome for overweight black South African
women, since the connotation of a larger body type is much more positive among black South
Africans than among whites of the same nationality. According to Goedecke et al. (2006), an
overweight body type "symbolis[es] happiness, beauty, affluence, health and a negative HIV/AIDS
status" as the disease’s victims often suffer significant progressive weight loss. An obese
individual’s attempt to diet with a view to attaining healthy body weight could perhaps, they fear, be
interpreted as the onset of AIDS.
Furthermore, ‘South Africa’s black population was misinformed for decades with the notion
of ‘benign’ or ‘healthy’ obesity ‘(Van der Merwe and Pepper 2006, 316). There are many diseases to
which obesity can lead, such as " dislipidaemia and ischaemic heart disease (IHD) that affect the
black population at a drastically lower rate than other ethnic groups" (ibid.). By extension, it was
assumed that obesity had few to no adverse circumstances for blacks, and therefore need no
concern. However, "studies within the past ten years make it clear that obesity among black people
still leads to hypertension, diabetes and glucose intolerance, and that further, IHD is on the rise
among black urban dwellers" (317).
Yet, when considering obesity, the distinction between rural and urban black South Africans
is an important one. Urban-dwelling individuals, in particular women, have significantly high
BMI’s and therefore higher rates of obesity than those who live in rural areas. With the shift from a
rural to an urban setting come changes in diet, physical activity levels and types of leisure activities.
"The higher fat content and lower carbohydrates and fiber level of a Westernized urban diet are
much more conducive to the development of obesity than a more traditional rural diet" (Goedecke
et al. 2006, 56). In addition, "the stress of urbanization could also be a factor in the development of
chronic disease such as obesity" (De Ridder Underhay et al. 2005). It is therefore reasonable to state
that rural and urban social set ups, have different contexts that create different needs.
The above-mentioned diseases are treatable, but medication is not easy to come by, and
certainly not inexpensive. It is important to acknowledge that ‘healthy’ food is more expensive than
greasy food that is detrimental to one’s physical wellbeing, and that small-scale agriculture is
limited due to space in the city. "There is a shortage of healthy, low-fat food and fresh fruit and
vegetables in the townships. The majority of the local shops sell cheap fatty foods; street vendors’
stalls sell fatty meat and sausages." This is the response from one of the interviewees from
Khayelitsha in Cape town to an inquiry conducted by Kruger as Obesity in South Africa: challenges
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for government and health professionals (Kruger et al. 2005). Thus it may be helpful to find ways
of making nutritious and filling food available to the majority of the population who may not be
able to afford it. This verifies the fact that healthy food is scarce (local shops do not stock it) and the
majority of the people are not accustomed to ‘popular township cuisine’, mostly uninformed of the
dangers around fatty and junk food. Notwithstanding the facts that available healthy food might be
viewed as foreign and the shops not profit as expected, it seems imperative that education drives
about township dwellers’ food life style be initiated.
The benefits of dance
Unless our natural responses are deadened by a restricted upbringing or some other circumstance,
we would all like to dance in some way. We all move differently when happy or elated, and we all
celebrate social events with music and dance. Even the smallest children, before they can walk
properly, bounce and sway to music. Dance exercises the whole being and it helps one to feel
comfortable in and with one’s body: to be aware of it, even to ‘be friends’ with it as one was during
childhood. More than this, dance develops inner discipline, sensitivity to others, and awareness of
one’s own feelings — all valuable strengths in negotiating daily life. Best of all, "as a way of
executing exercises it is fun — it involves a release of energy which allows you to dance just for the
joy of living" (Schrader 2005, 10).
To start with, one will gain physical strength from doing dance exercises regularly, but it
will be strength in keeping with your own body proportion. Robert Cohan explains: "You should not
develop large thigh or big arm muscles from dance work, but rather strengthen your whole body the
way it is" (Cohan 1986, 12). This doesn’t mean one won’t change the physical shape: one certainly
can change his/her shape radically through dance exercises, but one will have to do the workout
every day. Even if you only "work three times a week, however, you should soon begin to notice an
improvement in your physical stamina" (Ibid.). Most of the people lead lives that are too sedentary
for their own good health. The human body is designed to move, and if forced to stay in one
position over a long period the need to move or to stretch becomes overwhelming. It matches the
need we have for water, food and breath. A great part of the circulatory system of the body is
achieved by muscular movement: "The contraction of the muscles helps pump the blood back to the
heart, as well as moving the lymph around our bodies" (Ibid.). At the end of a dance workout, while
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you may be tired physically, you will at the same time feel much brighter, lighter and clearer, think
more lucidly, be calmer and feel more focused than before. Cohan adds up by saying that "The type
of workout that dances give you is arguably better for most people than aerobics or jogging" (Ibid.).
It is nowadays clear that, for some people, jogging puts too much sudden stress on the heart,
while aerobics, for all its good points, results in excessive wear and tear on some of the leg tendons
and joints. Cohan agrees that:
Dance exercises will build slowly through the class, so that you will not wear one part of yourself
first and the kinds of movement that are involved in dance are those that build muscular stamina,
while strengthening the heart and lungs slowly and carefully. (Cohan 1986, 12)
A dance workout will give one an opportunity to work on themselves in very specific ways.
Concentrating on particular movements and muscular coordination, you finally accomplish them
and the sense of achievement will give one enormous satisfaction. As one stay with the training, the
effects will show ones daily life. One will be more aware of himself/herself, walk with more grace
and stand with more poise. When a person start using and interpreting the dance movements as a
means of self-expression, more dramatic changes will occur, for one will become more aware of
other people's feelings and how to communicate them. Cohan explains it by saying that "regular
dancing will put you in touch with yourself — with your body, your emotions, and your powers of
concentration, memory and logic" (Ibid., 14). Basically, you will rediscover your body and analyze
its working, figure out why it’s not working well enough, and how one can change bad physical
habits or habitual ways of moving.
A person may want to strengthen and stretch him or herself, change the way the body feels
to them, and make it more responsive and sensitive to their demands. As one tries to improve
his/her bodies movements, one will collide head-on with their fitness which at this stage will be
determined by the tonality of the body which, in turn, will reveal how much one have lost in terms
of fat. A person will at all times have to remember all that they do, and why. Dance movement
cannot be done with only a part of your attention, because everything eventually depends on how
individually do it. Dance offers an enormous variety of cardio elements such as loss of water
through perspiration and balancing the immune system through repeated exercise regimens. A
person will find him or herself with a light body mass, loss of unnecessary fat, sufficient breath,
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self-confidence and physical and mental centeredness. In addition, one will improve their
understanding of their own emotions and psychological abilities.
Conclusion
The question of whether African traditional social dance should serve as aerobics in community
centers for urban South Africans who suffer from obesity, the conclusion is clear: certain dances
should not be used. Dances that are sacred and designated to specific ethnic groups and purposes
should not be tampered with. The author's initial gut-feel is the same as that of many people he
interviewed: a resounding ‘No!’ When the author asked some of the women in Zolani Community
Centre in Nyanga about this idea, they approved it happily, and offered the following explanation:
"We don’t fit in when we go to ‘white’ gyms: they are expensive and we have to drive or take a taxi.
We don’t feel comfortable there because most of the women who attend these ‘white’ gyms are
skinny already". (The name Nyanga originated from the Xhosa word nyanga, which means the
‘moon’. Not only does Nyanga have a specific meaning in the Xhosa language, but it is also the
name for the second largest township, or black urbanised area, in the Western Cape province of
South Africa. It was established in the 1960s after Langa – langa is the isi-Xhosa word for ‘sun’-the oldest black urbanised area. Nyanga was established, in part, due to the migrant labour system.)
These opinions were confirmed by female members who are active in cultural societies of
the township such as Zolani Community Centre. However, since a major characteristic of African
art is its utility within society, it would seem pretentious and repressive to divorce South African
traditional social dance from the needs of the people. Still, one must take into account the history of
oppression and subjugation that African culture as a whole has been subjected to. Within this
framework, one must maintain a sensitivity towards the ease with which survives in the modified
version of Western discourse. The adaptation of traditional social dances in urban areas requires
much thought and analysis. A delicate balance must be achieved in allowing the dance to develop
and change in accordance with the people’s (changing) needs while securing an acceptable union of
utility and form.
It is the author's view that the suggested conversion of South African traditional social
dances into aerobics exercises should present a totally new reflection of contemporary life, while
borrowing from the modern vocabulary of urban tradition as for instance found in resistance forms.
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Reflecting a South African national identity formed and reformed within one’s own culture — and
there is only one way to do that and that is through dance — could foster an altogether healthier
lifestyle among South Africa’s urban population, while promoting a sense of national pride. One
cannot deny the inevitable loss of certain cultural values through the increasingly global exchange
of art and ideas. As Rubidge states, one must find a way to mediate between"the desire to retain the
integrity of indigenous cultural traditions and the desire to address, through dance, the intricacies of
the contradictions embedded in a post-colonial (modern) identity" (Rubidge 1998, 3).
In South Africa the fusion of different cultures and ideas is exciting in the midst of diversity
and the embracement of multiculturalism where different ethnic identities share common
geographical space as in urban settlements. The author believes that to equate South African urban
dances in a form of exercises that promote weight loss is a brilliant idea, because it will aid the
current national obesity dilemma. Considering the sensitivity of rural African traditional dance
functions, it seems evidently safer and more convenient to use South African urban dances to this
effect: they depict attractive African qualities within a modern urban context and their functional
codification will provide a living testimony to national health with a touch of Afrocentrism. To
apply such aid to the obese community we will be saving lives and helping to create a healthier
environment.
References
Apter, A. 2002. "An African Origins: Creolization and Connaissance in Haitian Vodou." American
Ethnologist 29, No.2 (May): 233-260.
Bloom, L. 1964. "Some problems of Urbanization in South Africa." Phylon 25 (4): 37-361.
Bhavnani, K. and Phoenix, A. 1994. Shifting identities, shifting racism – a feminism and psychology reader.
London: Sage.
Brijnath, B. 2007. "It’s about ‘TIME’: Engendering AIDS in Africa." Culture, Health & Sexuality 9, No.4
(July-August): 371-386.
Castaldi, F. 2006. Choreographies of African Identities: Negritude, Dance and the National Ballet of
Senegal. Chicago: University of Illinois Press.
Cashmore, E. E. 1984. Dictionary of Race and Ethnic Relations. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul.
Cohan, R. 1986. The dance workshop. London: Unwin Paperbacks.
Crenshaw, Edward. 1991. "Third world Urbanization: Dimensions, Theories, and Determinants." Annual
Review of Sociology 17: 467-501.
De Ridder Underhay, J. H., J. M. van Rooyen and H. S. Kruger. 2005. "Ethnicity and prevalence of obesity
and high blood pressure among 10-15 year old South African children." African journal for physical,
Health Education, Recreation and Dance 11 (2): 121-131.
MAXWELL XOLANI RANI
NO SIMPLE ANSWERS: A HOLISTIC APPROACH
Fanon, F. 2005. Wretched of the Earth. New York: Penguin Books.
Glynn, M. 2000. "When Cymbols become Symbols: Conflict over Organizational Identity within a
symphony Orchestra." Organization Science 11 (3): 285-298.
Goedecke, J. H., C. L. Jennings and E.V. Lambert. 2006. "Obesity in South Africa." Chronic diseases of
lifestyle in South Africa: 1995-2005 JEMDSA ed. 11, No.2 (November): 44-45.
Green, D. 2004. "Traditional Dance in Africa." In African Dance: An Artistic, Historical and Philosophical
Inquiry, edited by K.W. Asante, 13-27. New Jersey: Africa World Press, Inc.
Hall, S. 1990. "Cultural identity & diaspora." In Colonial Discourse and Post Colonial Theory: a Reader,
edited by J. Rutherford, 222-237. London: Lawrence and Wishart.
Hanna, J. L. 1965. "Africa’s New Traditional Dance." Ethnomusicology 9 (1): 13-21.
Jackson, J. and Cothran, M. 2003. "Black versus Black: The relationships among African, African
American, and African Caribbean Persons." Journal of Black studies 33, No.5 (May): 576-604.
Louw, J. M. 2004. "Rural-Urban Migration in South Africa." In Globalisation and urbanisation in Africa,
edited by T. Falola and S.J. Salm, 107-110. Trenton: Africa World Press.
Opoku, M. A. 1967. African Dances: A Ghanaian Profile. Legon: Institute of African Studies, University of
Ghana.
Owusu-Frempong, Y. 2005. "Afrocentricity, the Adae Festival of the Akan, African American Festivals, and
Intergrational Communication." Journal of Black Studies 35, No.6 (July): 730-750.
Primus, Pearl. 1963. "African Dance." In African Dance: An Artistic, Historical and Philosophical Inquiry,
edited by K. Welsh-Asante, 13-27. New Jersey: Africa World Press, Inc.
Pick, W. and Cooper, D. 1997. "Urbanisation and Women’s Health in South Africa." African Journal of
Reproductive Health/La Revue Africaine de la Santé Reproductive 1, No.1 (March): 45-55.
Rubidge, S. 1998. "Re-Addressing Traditional Dance in Contemporary Uganda." Proceedings of the
Society of Dance History Scholars: Twenty-First Annual Conference University of Oregon Eugene,
Oregon, June 18-21, 1998.
Schrader, A. 2005. "Exploring your movement potential." In A Sense of Dance, edited by J.P. Wright, 134146. 2nd ed. Illinois: Versa Press.
Shahadah, O. A. http://www.africansuntimes.com (accessed February 8, 2011).
Snipe, T. D. 2004. "African Dance: Bridges to Humanity." In Africa Dance: An Artistic, Historical and
Philosophical Inquiry, edited by K. W. Asante, 13 27. New Jersey: Africa World Press, Inc.
Thompson, R. F. 1974. African Art in Motion: Icon and Act. Los Angeles: University of California Press.
Van der Merwe, M. T. and M. S. Pepper. 2006. "National Prevalence of Obesity, Obesity in South Africa."
Obesity Reviews 7: 315-322.
Welsh-Asante, K., ed. 1996. African dance: An Aesthetic, History and Philosophical Inquiry. Trenton, New
Jersey: Africa World Press.
Williams, D. 1991. Ten Lectures on the theories of the dance. Maryland: Scarecrow Press.
REVIEWS:
CONFERENCE REPORTS
Accelerando: Belgrade Journal of Music and Dance
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UDC: 316.7:005.745(498)"2015"(049.32)
COBISS.SR-ID 229891596
A Review:
History and Perspectives of European Culture Development
Оlena Kononova1
1
Kharkov National I.P. Kotlyarevsky University of Arts, Ukraine
babayevskaya@mail.ru
Received: August 30, 2016.
Accepted: September 15, 2016.
Citation: Kononova, Olena. 2017. "A Revirew: History and Perspectives of European Culture
Development." Accelerando: Belgrade Journal of Music and Dance 1:11.
International Conference
European Culture Forum
T h e algorithm of the traditional biennial international conference "European Culture Forum"
organized by the European Commission is very logical and reasonable, because it provides not only
an opportunity to get well prepared for the next forum, but also gives a chance to understand the
previous one. The Conference "European Culture - 2015", held in late October (29 - 31) 2015 in
Cluj-Napoca (Transylvania), can be rightfully called a landmark event in the intellectual life of the
continent. Located in Central and Eastern Europe Cluj-Napoca, the second major city in Romania
behind the national capital Bucharest, became last autumn the European Youth Capital. It is a
multicultural, youthful city, with many events and festivals, including a Sports tournament, the
Dream Hack – 2015. Many young people took an active part in the Forum "European Culture 2015" which served as a place of dialogue between reputable professors and young researchers. The
intellectual elite of Cluj-Napoca is not going to rest on its laurels. When greeting participants and
guests at the conference, Prof. Dr. Nicolae Păun, Dean of the Faculty of European Studies, BabeşBolyai University, said: "Our ambition is to acquire the title of European Capital of Culture in
2021." This forum is probably an important milestone on the way to the cherished goal.
Babeş-Bolyai University named after famous Transylvanian scientists – Romanian
biologist Victor Babeş and Hungarian mathematician János Bolyai – hosted the Conference
OLENA KONONOVA
HISTORY AND PERSPECTIVES OF EUROPEAN CULTURE DEVELOPMENT
"European Culture" for the first time. The history of this first in Romania higher educational
establishment takes its roots in 1581. Today's dynamically developing University, along with the
departments providing science teaching, offers a substantial number of social and humanitarian
specializations – the result of scientific findings in this area, presented in the reports of professors
and young researchers, have become an important contribution to the work of the forum. An
eloquent proof of its representativeness is a wide geography of universities which sent their
scientists to participate at the international conference: University of Sidney (Australia) , United
International Business Schools, Brussels (Belgium), Obuda University, Budapest (Hungary) , The
Hague University (The Netherlands), University of Southern Denmark (Denmark) , University of
Haifa (Israel), Pontifical Gregorian University, Rome; University of Triest (Italy), Ion Creangă State
University of Chişinău, (Moldova) , Open University; Universidade Nova of Lisbon (Portugal),
National University of Political Studies and Public Administration, Bucharest; University of Oradea
и др. (Romania) , Prince Mohammed bin Fahd University Dhahran (Saudi Arabia) , Cheikh Anta
Diop University, Dakar (Senegal) , University of Ljubljana (Slovenia) , Lyon Catholic University;
Universite Paris-Est (France) , Dokuz Eylul University, Izmir (Turkey) , Kharkiv National
I.P. Kotlyarevsky University of Arts (Ukraine), etc.
Thematic Areas and Discussions
The program of 17 panels of the forum included a vast range of topical issues related to the
European university education in the context of inter-cultural communication; the history of
European culture, its regionalization and globalization; the state of culture in the transitional and
crisis periods; religious identity on the continent. There were active discussions of matters
concerning European and global communication, audiovisual communication; cultural policy and
cultural management, both in Europe and beyond. Current issues of economic and political culture,
migration; regional and local democracy; human rights activities, etc. were widely reported. So, the
Conference that started in the last century as an adventure and challenge is now, according to Prof.
Dr. Enrique Banús, a meeting point for so many researchers interested in attracting more attention
to the culture as a cornerstone of Europe. Many reports (there were about a hundered of them)
reflected the desire of scientists to find optimal solutions to a number of serious social challenges
for the genuine European integration.
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The impressions of the conference include information about a number of studies in the field
of religion, literature, painting, photojournalism, cinema and music. The relevance of the issues and
content richness of the reports discussed at the "Religious identifies in Europe" panel was largely
predetermined by the research work of the four colleges of Babeş-Bolyai University – College of
Orthodox Theology, College of Greek Catholic Theology, College of Reformed Theology, and
College of Roman Catholic Theology. There were raised perennial issues of secularism and
secularization, the relationship between reason and faith, which theologians believe helps to have a
fruitful inter-cultural dialogue, and to build a true European identity (Drd. Dan Petrica, BabeşBolyai University). Dramatic lessons of the recent past, the heroes of which are prominent figures
of the Greek Catholic Church in Transylvania in the communist era, entered the annals of history.
The retrospective analysis of these events and their understanding will help the younger generation
better understand the history in accordance with the established criteria of the eternal and the
transient (Lect. Dr. Adrian-Gabriel Corpădean, Babeş-Bolyai University). The heterogeneity of the
Islamic and European traditions and different interpretations of Muslim identity were presented in
the report of Dr. Anja Zalta (University of Ljubljana), who fairly believes that ignorance of the
variety of trends in this area contributes to the tension and will not eliminate the conflicts in the
near future.
Significant issues have been covered in the "A focus on European arts" panel. In particular,
Prof. Dr. Elena Abrudan (Babeş-Bolyai University) focused her attention on street art characterizing
the postmodern aesthetic paradigm as a conglomerate of high art and pop culture, as the insatiable
desire of artists for the novelty, their inextinguishable wish to replay current events at unusual
angles defending their own point of view, that does not often coincide with the generally accepted.
This area of work, the implementation of which requires public space and adaptation of visual
works in the format, allows engaging the audience who are unaware of traditional exhibitions.
Mobility of express-artists and immediate response to their art contribute to the identification of
diverse opinions on acute issues prevailing in the society.
New approaches in the analysis of postmodern culture and society, suggested by Jean
Baudrillard, were considered in the study of Dr. Diana Adela Dinu (Prince Mohammad University,
Dhahran). Explaining flaws in a secularized postmodern world, the author of world famous books
"America", "Simulacra and Simulation", "System of things" and others marked the fusion of reality
and unreality. Introducing the concept of reality simulation, the outstanding scientist, philosopher
and writer indicated the substitution of reality and meaning in postmodern society for symbols and
OLENA KONONOVA
HISTORY AND PERSPECTIVES OF EUROPEAN CULTURE DEVELOPMENT
signs. In his opinion, critical and therapeutic functions of art facilitate the return of reality. In the
context of fundamental principles of Jean Baudrillard’s analysis of contemporary culture more
emphasis is put on his postulate about the superiority of the object over the subject, the control of
people’s life by external forces beyond their power.
A common thread running through the research "Picasso as the Kafka of Painting" is the
fundamental feature that combines the creative work of two outstanding maestros – life, composed
of fragments, a picture of destruction. As Prof. Dr. Amihud Gilead (University of Haifa) states,
Kafka's world, wonderfully presented in Picasso’s "Guernica", symbolizes disharmony,
hopelessness and loss of any hope for long-suffering Europe.
Brilliant creators, each in their own way, seek to change and elevate the world. A famous
French film director, actor and screenwriter Jean Renoir once wrote: "The only thing I could bring
to this cruel and illogical world is love ..." [http://tsitaty.com/автор/жан-ренуар] Dr. Sumit Ghose
devoted his research paper "European social integration: Jean Renoir, ahead of his times" to the
author of "Grand illusion" and "Rules of the game" films, which are among the best films of all
time. A close study of Jean Renoir’s cinema masterpieces from a present-day perspective helps us
understand and appreciate his brilliant foresight of social problems relevant to present-day Europe.
A number of issues, including the impact of migration and multiculturalism on European countries,
had been raised by the great maestro yet long before they were formulated by politicians.
The subject of the report of Lect. Dr. Raluca Moldovan (Babes-Bolyai University) "The
Aesthetics of Beauty and Decay in Luchino Visconti's 'German trilogy'", as we see, also reflects the
problems of the most popular art in the world. The analysis of imperishable films by L. Visconti –
"Twilight of the Gods", "Death in Venice" and "Ludwig" – allowed the speaker to argue the
aesthetics of maestro’s art that was most clearly expressed in his later works. The art critic sees a
very important feature of L. Visconti’s aesthetics in the conflict between the luxurious visual
formatting and grim nihilistic content of the films, so the collapse theme revealed by the director in
three aspects acquires special prominence and credibility.
The relevance of the issues raised in the film "L’auberge espagnole" made by Cédric Klapish
more than ten years ago became the subject of Dr. Delia Pop-Flanja’s (Babeş-Bolyai University)
research work. Cédric Klapish’s film stimulated discussions of the potential of students’ mobile
Erasmus Mundus Programme. Believability of created by actors artistic images of students
participating in international relations served as a kind of apology for intercultural dialogue in the
field of education. The researcher focuses on such topical issues raised in the work of Cédric
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Klapish as cultural stereotypes and typology, multilingualism and national identity, cultural shock
and intercultural adaptation, which allows evaluating and modifying social and cultural
achievements of the EU educational programme.
Is it possible to develop intercultural dialogue in multicultural Europe through photo images?
What ethical and ethnic issues are raised by photojournalists? These and other questions were
touched by Dr. Rareş Beuran (Babeş-Bolyai University) in his paper "Reporting Ethnic Diversity
through Photojournalism within a Multicultural Europe". The speaker showed the audience
photographs, the expressiveness and objectivity of which needed no particular comment. Visual art,
professional photojournalism in this case, captures and represents a wide range of ethnic diversity
of Europe's population. The relevance of the subject, informational content of artistic photographs,
which have a high degree of influence on the recipient, excite the mind, make us think of ethnic,
cultural, historical, religious and other characteristics of those continental countries, which form the
supranational, European identity.
The processes of globalization, intensively debated in modern world and relating to the
extension of international cultural contacts, promote understanding and rapprochement between
peoples. One of the clearest examples of interpenetration of different national cultures is music.
Interculturality in the sphere of academic music art is simplified with general availability of its
language, similarity of style evolution, typical for the majority of national European music schools.
Contacts in this range identify both European identity and national features in professional musical
art of different countries serving the subject of cultural exchange.
Prof. Dr. Olena Kononova (Kharkov National I.P. Kotlyarevsky University of Arts, Ukraine)
in her report refers to the facts confirming the efficiency of this process. The research subject
"Interculturality as a factor of music culture formation in Kharkiv" allowed for presenting a
considerable chronological portion of musical culture of one of the largest centers of Ukraine –
since the opening of the University (1805) and to the present day. The formation of concert life and
music education in the Ukrainian city was greatly influenced by J. Haydn’s pupil Ivan Vitkovsky, an
outstanding violinist and conductor, F. Schultz, who had once been a concertmaster of Leipzig
Gewandhaus orchestra under Mendelssohn Bartholdy’s direction, S. Nemetts, a violinist and a
graduate of the Prague Conservatory, Ilya Slatin, a pianist and conductor, a pupil of Alexander
Dreyschock, Theodor Kulak and Richard Wüerst, and many others. Through the active
interculturality Kharkiv became in the early 20 th century one of the major musical centers of the
Russian Empire. The Soviet period, which resulted in the decline of concert life, turned out to be
OLENA KONONOVA
HISTORY AND PERSPECTIVES OF EUROPEAN CULTURE DEVELOPMENT
ambiguous for the musical culture of the city. Ukraine’s independence gave an impulse to the
intensive development of cross-cultural communication instruments in the area. One of the leading
roles in this process belongs to the National I.P. Kotlyarevsky University of Arts – the initiator of
international festivals, competitions, meetings and conferences that contributed to Ukraine’s entry
into the European cultural community.
Conclusion
The integration function of music was especially clearly apparent at the opening ceremony of the
"European Culture - 2015" forum. In a wonderful ancient hall the audience sat in unbreathing
astonishment listening to the immortal works of W.A. Mozart, J. Brahms and other European
composers remarkably performed by a string quartet. This music has been awakening the lofty
feelings in people of different nationalities and religions for several centuries already. But music
unites in sorrow, too: the conference coincided with the tragic event in Bucharest - the death of
more than fifty young people at a nightclub. "Requiem" by Verdi was included in the conference
program, and it sounded on Romanian television comforting, sympathizing and blaming. The
tragedy was the impetus of social and political changes that followed after it. No sooner had
Europeans started to recover, the fate soon prepared a new ordeal for them, this time in Paris.
Many social, political, ethnic issues related to all aspects of European culture and multifaceted life of the continent were raised at the International Conference. The Conference
proceedings containing the analysis of current problems and reasoned options for their solutions
have scientific and practical value aimed at preempting and peaceful settlement of conflicts. The
dialogue between venerable professors and young researchers, which took place on the forum,
should be transformed into a polylogue between everyone who is interested in preserving and
strengthening the European House.
Accelerando: Belgrade Journal of Music and Dance
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UDC:
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COBISS.SR-ID 229892108
A Review:
Traditional and Contemporary in Art and Education
Summary of the Scientific Meeting
Saša Božidarević1
1
University of Arts in Kosovska Mitrovica
sasabozidarevic@gmail.com
Citation: Božidarčević, Saša. 2017. "A Review: Traditional and Contemporary Art and Education. Summary of the
Scientific Meeting." Accelerando: Belgrade Journal of Music and Dance 2:12.
Scientific Meeting in Kosovska Mitrovica
The first international scientific conference titled Traditional and Contemporary in Art and
Education was held from 4th to 6th November 2016, at the University of Arts in Kosovska
Mitrovica. Starting points which were guiding points for the organizers of this conference were
affirmation of traditional values and modern methods in arts and education and finding innovative
solutions to their practical application in the teaching process. The initial impulses and ideas in
setting up the basic ideological orientation and formulating goals which came from professors of
the University of Arts in Kosovska Mitrovica, were supported not only by eminent experts from
related institutions of higher education in the country, but also abroad.
The initiators and creators of this event are professors from the Department of General
Music Pedagogy at Music department: Jasmina Novokmet (dean for Academic Affairs at the time),
Dragana Cicović Sarajlic and Sasa Božidarević. With respect to all colleagues who helped shape
the program concept, we will mention only some of the members of the Program Committee: PhD
Alkis Raftis, President of the International Dance Council at UNESCO, PhD Natalia Sokovikova, a
member of the Academy of Sciences and Arts Petrovskaja, Russia, PhD Menelaos Meletzis,
professor of Technology and Educational Institute of Athens, PhD Anna Galikowski Gajewska,
SAŠA BOŽIDARĆEVIĆ
SCIENTIFIC MEETING IN KOSOVSKA MITROVICA
associate professor of the Music Academy Stanislav Monjuško in Gdansk, Poland, PhD Eleni
Mouri, associate professor at Technology and Educational Institute of Athens, Greece, PhD Igor
Štiks, researchers at the College of Arts of the University of Edinburgh, Scotland, United Kingdom,
PhD Sonja Marinkovic, PhD Miloje Nikolic, PhD Vesna Mikic, full professors of the College of
Music, University of Arts in Belgrade, PhD Srdjan Markovic, professor of the College of Arts,
University of Nis, PhD Bogdan Djakovic, full professor of the Academy of Arts in Novi Sad and
others. Building the program concept of this scientific meeting in equal measure was supported by
other members of the Program Committee: MSc Zoran Furunović, full professor, dean of the
College of Arts in Kosovoska Mitrovica - Zvecan, President of the Program Committee, PhD
Nebojša Todorović, full professor at the College of Arts, University of Nis, PhD Saša Božidarević,
full professor of the College of Arts of the University in Pristina with temporary seat in Kosovska
Mitrovica, PhD Dragana Cicović Sarajlic, associate professor of the College of Arts of the
University in Pristina with temporary seat in Kosovska Mitrovica, PhD Biljana Pavlovic, an
associate professor at the Teacher Training College in Prizren - Leposavic, University of Prishtina
with temporary headquarters in Kosovska Mitrovica, PhD Sanda Dodik, associate professor of the
Academy of Arts of the University of Banja Luka, Serbian Republic, Bosnia and Herzegovina, PhD
Sonja Cvetković, associate professor of the College of Arts, University of Nis, PhD Dragan
Vojvodić, associate professor of Philosophy, University of Belgrade, PhD Dragan Bulatovic,
associate professor of Philosophy, University of Belgrade, PhD Mirjana Zakić, associate professor
of the College of Music, University of Arts in Belgrade, PhD Biljana Mandic, assistant professor of
the Music Academy of the University of East Sarajevo, Serbian Republic, Bosnia and Herzegovina,
MSc Milorad Marinkovic, assistant Professor of Philology and Arts, University of Kragujevac,
MSc Aleksandra Dončeva, Institute for Graphic Design in Milan, Italy.
A great effort to create the conditions for a successful and solid performance of the scientific
meeting and its accompanying programmes have invested members of the Organizing Committee,
teachers, professional associates and assistants of the College of Arts of the University of Pristina
with temporary seat in Kosovska Mitrovica: MSc Zoran Furunović, full professor, dean of this
institution, Aleksandra Trajkovic, associate professor, vice-dean of the Music section, President of
the Organizing Committee, MSc Andrijana Videnović, full professor, vice-dean of the Drama
section, MSc Ester Milentijević, vice dean for education of Visual Art department, MSc Petar Đuza,
full professor, PhD Vera Obradovic, full professor, PhD Saša Božidarević, full professor, PhD
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Dragana Cicović Sarajlić, associate professor, PhD Aleksandra Arvanitidis, assistant professor, PhD
Branka Gugolj, assistant professor, PhD Velimir Karavelić, assistant professor, Veselinka Bralović,
assistant professor, PhD Jelena Arnautović, associate professor, PhD Petar Ilic, senior associate,
PhD Jelena Pavlicic, assistant. Besides these members of the Organizing Committee many
important activities for the preparation of this meeting were also conducted by members of our staff
from all departments, non-teaching staff and supporting staff.
We owe them all our gratitude for the successful organization. Thus, the ambitious project of
the creators and organizers of this event to bring together a large number of renowned researchers in
the field of science of the arts, had its practical realization. The event was attended by 93
participants (including members of the Programme Committee) from 12 European countries:
Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina (Serbian Republic), Russia, Great Britain, Germany,
France, Italy, Poland, Belgium, Greece and Hungary, whereas 88 participants presented their
papers. By the number of participants and the countries they come from this is the largest scientific
meeting organized at the University of Pristina since the time of its dislocation to Kosovska
Mitrovica. Its realization was supported by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technological
Development of Republic of Serbia, the Office for Kosovo and Metohija, the University of Pristina
with temporary seat in Kosovska Mitrovica, College of Economics in Pristina with temporary seat
in Kosovska Mitrovica. Ceremonial and working part of this meeting were accompanied by the
media sponsors of Radio Belgrade, and Television Most from Zvecan. Logistical support of the
scientific meeting was provided by the travel agency Joe Travel and Hotel Sasha from Kosovska
Mitrovica.
Opening ceremony of the scientific meeting
Welcome part for the participants and guests of the scientific meeting, in a short introductory
speech, was performed by MSc Andrijana Videnović, vice-dean of the College of Dramatic Arts
section in Kosovska Mitrovica – Zvecan, followed by speeches of the officials. The Scientific
Conference was opened by PhD Srecko Milačić, rector of the University in Pristina with temporary
seat in Kosovska Mitrovica. After the welcoming speech addressed to the guests and participants of
the meeting, professor Milačič in his opening words stressed the importance of this conference in
the context of a comprehensive scientific and artistic mission of the University in Kosovska
Mitrovica and the College of Arts as an integral part. Welcoming words and short words of the
SAŠA BOŽIDARĆEVIĆ
SCIENTIFIC MEETING IN KOSOVSKA MITROVICA
President of the Program Committee, dean of the College of Arts,
MSc Zoran Furunovic and
President of the Organizing Committee, vice-dean for education MSc Aleksandra Trajkovic, further
emphasized the importance of this event for the promotion and development of scientific, artistic
and educational activities within the home institution and its affirmation in the community of
related higher education institutions in the country and abroad. Expressed satisfaction with the
program principles and objectives projected by the host and faith in its effectiveness and achieving
high scientific range was preceded by the working part of this meeting.
Photo by Igor Miljković
Opening Ceremony of the Scientific Meeting
Thematic areas and sub-areas
Papers of the participants (total of 88) have been incorporated into the given thematic areas and subareas: 1) The cultural and artistic heritage of Kosovo and Metohija: Preserving the tradition and
national identity in Kosovo and Metohija; Arts and Education in Kosovo and Metohija from the
Middle Ages to the present day; Medieval Monuments in Kosovo – Problems and Challenges;
Traditional and spiritual songs from Kosovo and Metohija – models of conservation. 2) Traditional
and contemporary approaches to art education and upbringing: Conception of modern teaching
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methodology of art education; Contemporary art and teaching methodology of art education; The
importance of art education in preschools, primary and secondary schools; The role of tradition in
designing the teaching process. 3) Art as a space of memory: the re-creation / interpretation /
recycling tradition in contemporary art; Position of the artist in contemporary society; Traditional
techniques in the new artistic practice; A new approach to the preservation of heritage; Museums as
places of remembrance; Heritage and new media; The role of film in the creation of memory space;
Heritage and popular culture. 4) Traditional and modern in artistic dance: Education for
contemporary dance; Modern dance and theory of gender; Gender, body, dance; Dance as a space of
expression of women; The ritual in contemporary theatre of movements; Choreographic
imagination, Composition and dance techniques; Linking national dances in the ballet heritage in
the former Yugoslav territory.
Plenary
The working part of the scientific meeting began with plenary presentations. The session was
opened by PhD Sonja Marinkovic, musicologist, full professor at the College of Music, University
of Arts in Belgrade. After expressing great satisfaction for participation at the scientific conference
and the honour to open the working part, Professor Marinkovic pointed to the necessity of
systematic and coherent study of compositional opuses of authors who created on territory of
Kosovo and Metohia. In the context of quoted aspirations and commitment to the more significant
musicological and theoretical and analytical work in this field she presented the thesis titled
Folklore as inspiration of Redža Mulić in the Second Symphony "Kosovo" . Pointing to the folklore
inspiration in his key work, the Second Symphony, Sonja Marinkovic emphasises exceptional gift of
the composer in the processing of folklore, rich timbres that arise as a result of compositional skills
and the application of the late romantic style of harmonic language and orchestration.
Special attention on plenary session attracted the presentation of musicologist PhD Nebojsa
Todorovic, full professor of the College of Arts, University of Nis, titled Pedagogical contribution
of professor Marko Savic to the development of pianism in Kosovo and Metohija . The reason for
this is the longtime activity of this distinguished, not so long ago deceased, professor of the College
of Arts in Pristina, with whom many of the current teachers of this College had the honour and
opportunity to cooperate. In the context of the rich piano and special pedagogical activities of
Marko Savic, which is important for the whole Yugoslav territory, Nebojša Todorović pointed out
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the pioneering activity of this artist in creating the fundamentals for the development of pianism and
piano pedagogy in Kosovo and Metohija.
In conclusion of the plenary session PhD Angelina Milosavljević Ault, the College of Media
and Communications, University Singidunum in Belgrade, presented her thesis titled ' Starinarenje'
as heritology discipline. Between the pulse and the concept. Dealing with the old methods of
keeping items that have not been worth being stored in museums, the author specifically referred to
their role as illustrations and the evidence of aspects of life of wider or narrower community, with
simultaneous highlighting of their function in the process of conservation and protection of
heritage.
Thematic Sessions
The largest number of participants of the scientific meeting presented their work at sessions, which
were grouped into three thematic areas: Cultural and Artistic Heritage of Kosovo and Metohija, Art
as a Memory Space and Traditional a n d Contemporary Approaches to Artistic Education and
Upbringing.
Cultural and Artistic Heritage of Kosovo and Metohija
Within the first thematic area many questions focused on the heritage of Kosovo and Metohija were
problematized. Theses created by scientists of different professional competence and professional
commitments have invaded a number of different problems concerning the relationship between
cultural and artistic heritage of the area. The work of ethnomusicologist Mirjana Zakić Models of
preserving traditional songs from Kosovo and Metohija, defines the existing musical practice in this
field and points out the models of preserving traditional songs, while ethnomusicologist Sanja
Rankovic in her study Traditional music as part of the cultural identity of Serbs in Sredačka parish
within Lazarica ceremony and celebration of Easter, discusses music practice of Serbian population
in Sredačka parish before and during Easter as a specific cultural characteristic of this part of
Kosovo and Metohija.
A special interest of researchers in the context of this thematic area is focused on the issues
of preserving monumental and architectural heritage (Branka Gugolj, Danijela Tesic Radanović:
Work of the architect Đurđe Bošković on the preservation of the monumental heritage of Kosovo
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and Metohija, Zoran Katanic: Sacred and profane Serbian medieval architectural heritage in
Kosovo and Metohija as a respectable tourist offer content), then the possibility of incorporating
segments of the cultural heritage of Kosovo and Metohija in the teaching process (Andrija Kadic:
Problems of interpretation of the cultural heritage of Kosovo and Metohija in the teaching process ),
as well as modern, often destructive and anti-cultural attitude towards urban space on the example
of a Kosovo-Metohija town (Marija Randjelovic: Aspects of identity of polarized urban space: the
case of Kosovska Mitrovica).
Within the first thematic areas the topics of the Serbian language and literature were treated
as well, from those that explore the poetics and poetic expression (Aleksandra Kostić Tmušić:
Poetic elements in the hagiography of St. Peter Koriski) through those with semantic connotation
(Valentina Pitulić: Semantics of plants in folk literature of the Serbs from Kosovo ), followed by a
critical attitude toward the preservation of the Serbian language in multicultural environments
(Reljić Mitra, Branislav Dilparić: The discrepancy between declarative and real concern for the
Serbian language in the case of ergonomics of northern Kosovska Mitrovica), to those in which is
interfered with the realm of aesthetics and the relationship between tradition and modernism (Nenad
Kebara: Spiritual aesthetics of Sinisa Kodrič – between tradition and modernism).
Art as a memory space
Widely conceived and exceptionally versatile thematic area, opened up the possibility for
participation of a large number of exhibitors of different profiles and professional orientations:
philosophers, art historians, sociologists, ethnologists, philologists, art critics, dramaturges,
choreographers, multimedia and interdisciplinary researchers, musicologists, music theorists etc.
The first group of researchers was concerned with the problems of institutionalized
(museum) heritage. Within this area many issues were raised such as contemporary inheritance of
cultural and artistic resources in the processes of everyday life, privacy and ordinariness (PhD
Dragan Bulatović, Museology as a hermeneutical circle), origin and heritage of ideas and properties
museality (Milan Popadic, Museality - origin and heritage of one idea), relationship between the
community and museums from the recent Serbian and Yugoslav history during and after the
abolition of the socialist government (Angelina Banković, From the place of remembrance to the
place of oblivion - Museum of 4th July 1941 and the Museum of illegal partisan printing house in
Belgrade), importance of museum exhibits as a stylistic and historical testimonies and the
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mechanism of memory and preservation of memory (Ana Radovac Živanov, A guardian of
memories - the house of Jevrem Grujic – Museum of Serbian history, diplomacy, art and avantgarde), penetration of new media and art practices in museums today (Aleksandra Arvanitidis,
Museum at the time of digital art practices, Dragana Martinovic, The role of new media in museums
today, Stefana Manić, Protection of immovable cultural heritage - the application of digital
technologies, Ana Knežević, Cyber Museum - view from the other side of the screen) and others.
Thematic area "Art as memory space" has generated and initiated researching in the field of
music, film and visual arts. The musicological and theoretical and analytical works in the field of
music emphasise the prominent role of tradition (heritage) in the creation of creative concepts of
Serbian (Yugoslav) composers (Saša Božidarević, Mokranjac’s heritage in the works of composers
of handful provenance in the second half of the twentieth century - from reaffirmation to negation of
the traditional model of stanzas; Vesna Damljanović, Analysis of piano style in the second Kosovo
Symphony by Redža Mulić), pointed to the ways of realization of segments of Serbian medieval
heritage in the works of composers of contemporary music (Aleksandar Damjanovic, Recreating /
interpretation / recycling / Serbian medieval heritage in contemporary music ) examined the
relationship between traditional and popular culture (Jelena Arnautović, Traditional and popular
culture at the music festival Guča) assessed the impact of modern knowledge in popular music
(Vesna Mikić, Production of modern knowledge in popular music – Eurovision song Contest) and
similar.
Photo by Igor Miljković
Accelerando: Belgrade Journal of Music and Dance
Issue 2, February 2017
ISSN: 2466-3913 (online)
The equivalent set of questions was processed in other areas of artistic expression (visual
arts and filmmaking, contemporary dance etc.) with a strong foothold in the tradition being a source
of artistic inspiration (Zdravko Ranisavljević, Choreographic interpretation of the dance heritage
of Kosovo and Metohija – The case of the Ensemble of folk dances and songs of Kosovo i Metohija
"Crown", Andrijana Danilovic, Re-contextualization of tradition – Mosaic and street art), but also
other issues were discussed (ideological, ethical, aesthetic, etc.) arising from the complex study of
forms of modern dance, stage movement, choreology and choreography (Natalija Sokovikova,
Dancing great Slavic gods – the phenomenon of the ethnic identities of Slavic Rus. The Phoenix
effect; Vera Obradović, Choreodramatic and choreographic creativity of Mat Eko, Vera Obradović
and Svenka Savić, Choreodrama: Gender, dance, ideology, Anna Galikowski Gajewska, Polish
music and movement interpretations created according to the Dalcroze method).
Traditional and Contemporary Approaches to Artistic Education and Upbringing
Within the sessions in which the issues in this
thematic area were discussed, numerous and
significant aspects of educational and upbringing process in the field of art were problematized, too.
Works of this type include in all levels of institutional upbringing and education from preschool
(Jasmina Stolić, and Sanja Vojnov, Application of art music in the preschool age – from tradition to
innovation), primary school (Marija Aleksandrović,
Influence of tradition of creativity in the
artistic expression of children in the first grade of primary school), high school (Joseph Alviž,
Position of secondary school subject Visual arts within the artistic area of the educational system of
the Republic of Croatia, Petar Ilic, Possibilities for realization of the goals of modern teaching
programme for students of piano music school using the textbook written by Danica Krstić, 'School
for piano') to higher education (Dragana Cicović Sarajlić, and Biljana Pavlovic, Higher educationpedagogical education in Kosovo and Metohija - tradition lasting four decades
1975/1976 -
2015/2016).
Music educators are studying the possibilities of applying folk and traditional songs in
teaching solfeggio (Veselinka Bralović, The possibility of applying the Kosovo folk songs in
teaching solfeggio; Slobodan Kodela, Traditional song in textbook literature for solfeggio classes in
secondary music schools), as well as using folk songs and dances at Music lessons in primary
schools (Trakilović Jelena Milicevic, and Desanka Trakilović, The effects of applying folk songs
and dances in teaching). In some of the works, a special emphasis was put on fostering and
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preservation of Serbian cultural and national identity (Biljana Pavlovic, Dragan Cicović Sarajlić,
and Anđelka Kovač, Nurturing and preservation of Serbian cultural and national identities in
primary school teaching Music culture in Kosovo and Metohija) or the development of school
music pedagogy (Sonja Cvetković, Development of music pedagogy and education in Nis until the
beginning of World War II).
A significant number of theses in this scientific conference was dedicated to the problems of
education in the arts (especially visual art and history of art) where modern methodological
concepts are applied (Sanja Filipovic, Art education corresponding contemporary methodological
conceptions), the study of innovative models for the design of teaching process (Marija Stankovic,
The teaching process of art history as a process of knowledge formation - artistic principles of
Christo and Jean-Claude as a model for the design of the teaching process ; Iva Subotić Krasojević,
Quest for the teaching method in art education; Jelena Pavlicic, Art in teaching art history –an
example of the exercise 'New images of old masters') difficulties in achieving educational goals
(Dragan Bulatović, Formation in educational amporia), the importance of art education for the
formation of personality and demystification forms of non-verbal, formal communication (Jadranka
Bozic, Art as a synergy of mind, body and spirit - the importance of music education in formation
of personality) and others. In the absence of the detailed elaboration we emphasize their significant
contribution to the development of scientific thought and making new paths in the Science of arts.
Accompanying programmes of the scientific meeting
Accompanying conference programmes are designed as a summary of the artistic activities at the
College of Arts in Kosovska Mitrovica – Zvecan and activities that teachers, staff and students of
the College carry out through promotion of culture and arts of Kosovo and Metohija as well as
tradition of this area.The programmes were presented during two days at the end of working
sessions. On the first day ethnomusicologists PhD Mirjana Zakić and PhD Sanja Rankovic
presented scientifically and analytically processed results of extensive field research of music and
dance heritage on the territory of Kosovo and Metohija. After a very successful verbal and
audiovisual presentation (in Serbian and English), we watched vocal and instrumental performers
(amateurs) from Kosovo and Metohija, collaborators in the research of previously mentioned
ethnomusicologists and also the members of the Ensemble of folk dances and songs of Kosovo and
Metohija called "Venac" (Wreath). On the second day, the participants and guests of the scientific
Accelerando: Belgrade Journal of Music and Dance
Issue 2, February 2017
ISSN: 2466-3913 (online)
meeting attended the opening of the exhibition titled " Ornament", authored by students and
professors of the Visual Art Department at the College in Kosovska Mitrovica. About the work on
the preparation of this exhibition, the initial motives of its creation, artistic achievements and links
with tradition spoke MSc Milentijević Ester, vice dean for education at Visual Art department and
Suzana Vuckovic, associate professor, and the exhibition was officially opened by MSc. Petar Đuza,
full professor at the College of Arts, Kosovska Mitrovica. That same evening, after the opening of
the exhibition, Borjanka Ljumović spoke about the song “Dečanska bells“ or “The feast of the
heart“, written by the most famous poet of Kosovo and Metohija Darinka Jevric. The artistic
program of the scientific meeting ended with a concert performed by the professors of Music
department who played the music of Serbian composers. Longlasting applause which followed after
each performance was the best indicator of the performers artistic skills and quality.
Photo by Igor Miljković
Summary
Rich and varied presentations by the participants of this international meeting were summarized by
the moderators at the closing session. The session was chaired by PhD Saša Božidarević, full
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professor at the College of Arts of the University in Kosovska Mitrovica. Moderators primarily
noted high achievements which this event reached at the area primarily aimed and especially
praised its impeccable preparation and organization. They also presented some suggestions for
future activities, with a sincere desire for this meeting to become traditional. Thanking to the
moderators and participants for their great contribution to the successful realization of this
conference, professor Saša Božidarević in his closing speech expressed hope that the achieved
results and gained new experiences would affect the opening of a new chapter in the development
of scientific thought at the University of Kosovoska Mitrovica and contribute to its significant
international recognition.
ISSN: 2466-3913 (ONLINE)
Copyright 2017 by BCMD