Thread: teaching transitions

hello all---a student asked me about this and i'm coming up w/ ideas---i'm sure you all have good ones.
What i have so far is --keeping torso/pelvis engaged as power center of movement, suspension of movement, using arms to fill counts/space, knowing the path you feet/ arms are making in space, keeping all your muscles engaged as you move.

I have found that another key to smooth transition is managing weight transfer.

What Laura said. Knowing where your weight is, and where it needs to be, are essential to managing any movement transitions.

Bump---any more info out there?

It's also important for dancers to know *when* to make the transition.

For beginning dancers I often drill 2 moves over 4 beats at a slow to moderate tempo (e.g. 2 right hip bumps, 2 left hip drop kicks, etc.) then take 4 beats for the transition, with attention to isolations, weight transfer and measured/relaxed flow of arm movement for starters. As dancers progress, the transition time can speed up, e.g. 3 right hip drop kicks over 6 beats with 2 beats for the transition.

Building control, accuracy, and confidence, not speed, is the key to successful transitions as many beginners who don't have a dance or athletic background find this a rather difficult aspect to master.

My students learn to improv in their very early dance days, beginning with transitions between any two moves of their choice, and it's interesting to see the various choices of moves as well as how they work out the transition between them.

One of my mantras, "Breathe and relax!" encourages them to take their time, get their head out of the way, and relax into the music.



Khalida

Originally Posted by khalida777

It's also important for dancers to know *when* to make the transition.

Khalida

This reminds me of a critique I got from my teacher when we were working on transitions. Although is has more to do with musicality than movement, so I may be getting off track. She said that sometimes I was moving from one type of movement to another (i.e., going into a traveling combination or switching from sharp moved to ooey gooey) without waiting until the end of the musical phrase. I was occasionally making big changes mid-phrase for whatever reasons, and in her opinion it took away from the organic quality and flow of the dance.

Laura and Khalida----what wonderful answers!!! i knew some of the smart dancers on here would have good ideas. I came up w/ the idea if i do some slow movement and they can tell me where my weight is. and also using your idea---- the 2 moves--having them come up w/ their own transition.

I've been watching Bahaia's combinography video--okay, I should be practicing to the video--but she gives some excellent suggestions.

Mainly knowing where you want to go next, thinking about the path you want to use to get there, and making the weight transfer. She also discusses planning out your pattern of repetitions, etc.

i just got that Dvd also---great minds think alike----now---to work w/ it. thanks for the synopsis.

i think i know have alot of my lesson plan for next year--transitions, intro to 9/8, adding shimmies to movements. that should keep us all busy.

I like using the "path" method. Say you have a hip drop on R, next is twist on L. I demonstrate in super slow motion & use imaginary wand in hand to trace the direction of what happens in the transition, including weight shift, what actually comes next after the hip is down, etc. I feel the "art of transition" is what really can take dance to next level for beg-int. students. I show, after student feels somewhat comfortable w transitioning, how in that part you can add flourishing movements or gestures to add your own touch; toss of head, wrist lift, small kick, etc.
I also ask them to stop & think about it on their own, after I have demonstrated, as in, "now that your hip is down, how would you like to get your left hip to twist forward, what would YOU do next". It can be a fun thing as we laugh at some of our odd first thoughts to do, or see what won't work, or use your own body/mind to figure something out.
Also it can help students see if they really haven't "gotten" a move, that when s/he tries to transition it is really awkard, then drill the 2 moves you are trying to string together in sequence a bit more. My 2 cents :-)

this thread is Bhuz at it's best. I now have teaching ideas for months---thanks to all of you. I guess now we pay attention to our house and family for 2 weeks till we start thinking about teaching again.

Originally Posted by LauraLevana

I've been watching Bahaia's combinography video--okay, I should be practicing to the video--but she gives some excellent suggestions.

Mainly knowing where you want to go next, thinking about the path you want to use to get there, and making the weight transfer. She also discusses planning out your pattern of repetitions, etc.

Laura, you can meet Bahaia personally on July 24 and 25 when I bring her to the area for a 2-day workshop. She'll be expanding on her combinography and working on some other surprises. You're the first to know!! (Signing the contract at the hotel tomorrow a.m. - announcements out early next week.)

it's back on???? Squeeeeeee!!!!!!

Originally Posted by laura 2

it's back on???? Squeeeeeee!!!!!!

Yup!

(Apologies for the thread hijack. )

Mmmmm... transitions! All the info above is great. There are different things to think about at different levels, too.

Beginners -- just need to get smoothly from one move to another. Thinking about the weight and the intersection of the movement patterns works well with them. For them, it's usually all about the feet (weight) and torso (usually hips).

Intermediates -- need to learn to flow from one movement to the next in the most natural way possible and have a 'pause' between movements *only* when it's intentional. Getting the awkwardness out of the transitions at this point is often about the arms. Thinking about the 'pathway between the positions' and not just lifting the arms into position for the next movement, but *breathing* them into position and making that movement a part of the dance, making it work with the music. The same can be true of any preparatory weight shift or hip positioning. Make those preparatory movements into dance movements, not 'getting ready to dance again' movements.

Advanced: Transitions are often where a dancer's unique style comes from. Let's say you've been traveling to the right with footwork R, L, R, L, R, L, R touch (the 8th beat 'touc'h is the left foot touching the ground unweighted in preparation for travel in the opposite direction). Now you're going to take the same step (whatever it is) to the left.

So getting that 'touch' down is the job of a beginner. Transitioning the arms into position for the new movement gracefully is the job of the intermediate.

But an advanced dancer may do any number of things on that 8th beat touch (counting 8&), depending on the music and her personality. She might:
- Add a lift or drop or twist to the L hip
- undulate or body roll up or down through the body
- sweep the hips around in a quick circle (forward, right, back, center)
- Do a big showy arm transition
- Add a quick spin on 7&8
- add a quick weighted step backward with the left foot on the "and" between 7&8, replacing the weight on the R foot on the 8.

you are all such great teachers!!! i stand in awe of all the knowledge.

I think I learned 80% of what I know from Bhuz! (but a shoutout to my teachers and workshop instructors, too! I got the phrase 'pathway between the positions' from Aziza.)

Happy to pay it forward!

havent read all the responses, but this is what i do with my classes in this direction

- take a simple move (for example traveling camels or hipdrops 4L-4R) and then we play around with the arm positions, and disconnect the arm change from the L-R change (slower, faster, breath in to it, staccato, verrrrry slow, uneven, chaotic etc, different arm paths). gets them confused at first, but is a good "transitioning" practice tool

- exercises on keeping the chest/core engaged

- improvising early on, from beginners really

- I'm very much against very beginners choreo's, because i think they often install the "wrong" wooden transitions between 4 to the left and 4 to the right. for the dancing/fun part of beginnersclasses i prefer they follow my own bouncing butt rather than concentrate on learning an order of steps. i do teach "combo's" early on,

- practicing and drilling moves sllllow, not just fast

- slow motion exercises