Modern Dance: The Evolution Of Modern And Jazz Dance

Dance has come a long way since it first began, and that road has been paved by different styles and choreographers. Modern dance is one of the biggest contributions to dance today. It all began with the rebellion against classical ballet. If it wasn’t for Modern, many aspects and styles of dance would not exist today. Also, without choreographers we would have no dance. One of the most influential Modern choreographers is Twyla Tharp.

     The music called Jazz was born sometime around 1895 in New Orleans. It combined elements of Ragtime, marching band music and Blues. What made Jazz such a different perspective of traditional music was its act of improvising. There was a widespread use of improvisation often by more than one player at a time. Songwriters would write the music down on a piece of paper, and then the Jazz musicians would try their best to play the music. Usually in a Jazz piece, musicians would use the song as a starting point to improvise around. Jazz musicians would play a familiar song to the audience, and by the time they were done with the piece they would stir up a totally different feeling away from the

At the end of the 19th century, ballet was the most prominent form of dance. However, to Isadora Duncan, "ballet was the old order that needed to be overthrown, an embodied symbol of all that was wrong with oversymbolized 19th century living" (Daly 26). Duncan believed that the over-technical, over-standardization of ballet was not what dance should be about. Her vision of dance was one of emotions, ideas, social betterment, and the complete involvement of the body, mind, and soul (26). With these ideas in mind, she began to create a new form of dance; what she referred to as the "new dance" (23), and what is now known as modern dance. In creating this new dance, she was inspired by composers such as

Jazz has always been a part of the American tradition. Some may say they like Jazz for its rhythmic twist and turns. Others may love the soothing melodies from an improved Trumpet solo. All in all, Jazz has been an American staple and has molded today’s popular music, into what it is today. It’s very different from classical music, which is written out and strict. Jazz is much more. It’s made up of spontaneity and improvisation, which makes up an idea on the spot. There are many wide varieties in Jazz. There is Bebop Jazz, Avante Garde Jazz, Acid Jazz, Free Funk Jazz, Soul Jazz, Swing Jazz, and many, many more! These forms of Jazz can be seen and heard in some of your favorite music of Today. It’s been widely used by the world. There is an important reason as to why this genre contributes to the growing of music. We first take a look into the root of all Jazz. In the late 1800’s and early 1900’s, the country of Africa was the first known country to use rhythm primarily for the element of musical expression, and ensembles composed entirely of percussion instruments created extended polyrhythmic works. These polyrhythms, which means the “layering of multiple rhythms.”, were record in Western music. African music did not use paper, or sheet music. Instead, they relied on Aural rituals, learned by ear and also used” spontaneity, which is later said to be known as improvisation”. In Africa, most of the music that was expressed was for religious

Martha Graham was one of the most influential figures in American modern dance, and her techniques and styles are still practiced today. She became widely known throughout all ages and decades. Her first debut was in the 1920's. As time went on, she became more experienced and wiser in the modern dance field. Martha Graham, whose style was considered controversial, became one of the finest choreographers and dancers in the dance world.

To begin with, jazz is an all American dance that has some African rhythmic influences. The first group that portrayed jazz to the American society were a group called the flappers in the 1920’s. This group was young western women who wore short skirts and bobbed hair and were considered wild based on the image

Jazz is among one of the most interesting genres. It has encompassed all cultures since it arose in the late 18th century. Cool jazz, hot jazz, gypsy jazz, and many other sub-genres of Jazz have emerged throughout the years; however, it is seen through history that many of those sub-genres emerged during the Harlem Renaissance. This was a time period in the late 1920s and early 1930s in Harlem, a neighborhood within the northern section of New York that celebrated black intellect, black voice, and black ways of life. Jazz music was widely popular among that movement. Traditionally, Jazz is an improvisation and syncopation that showcases brass instruments, piano, and woodwind instruments. This genre will also generally have a forceful rhythm.

I get to express myself more. In ballet you have to use shoes and everything but in modern it’s bare feet, you get to feel the floor, you get to mess with everybody and have a lot more fun” she said.

Whether you are dancing for passion, to get into shape or to just attain some mental peace, jazz is an excellent option to choose. This highly energetic dance form is unique and has revolutionised the way we look at dance.

Jazz is an American music genre, founded by African-American musicians. It emerged in the early 1900s as its creators merged aspects from West African musical traditions with aspects from religious music and from many other types of popular music based on European traditions. While some elements of jazz were borrowed from other musical genres, the music that came forth was one of a kind, an art form of its own. A significant element of jazz is improvisation, the adjustment of a melody or countermelody as a song is being performed. Therefore, a song may be different every time it is played.

Jazz emerged towards the beginning of the 20th Century, but didn 't just spring up out of nowhere. Instead, it was a creation that developed from popular music styles of the 1800s that blended and combined them to entertain the nation and social dancers. The two main music styles that jazz consisted of were ragtime and the blues. Both ragtime and the blues had their beginnings in African-American communities. While both of these music styles strongly contributed to the creation of jazz and have a lot of similarities, they do have their differences. These differences lie within their origins, their elements that make up their styles and how these elements influenced jazz, and their artists and composers.

     Jazz is a style of music that began and has been revolutionized within the United States. Jazz music first appeared in the city of New Orleans and eventually moved onto Chicago, St. Louis, Kansas City, and New York City. Jazz unites different elements of African, African- American, religious, brass brand, and blues style of music. The music of Jazz, and its changes through the years, is now a form of music that is known and respected throughout this nation and the world.

Dance is one of the most beautiful, expressive forms of art known to mankind. It expresses joy, love, sorrow, anger, and the list truly goes on for all the possible emotions that it can convey. Dance not only can express how one feels, but it can tell a story or even be used to praise a higher power. Dance has intricately played an important role to every culture over the course of time. Two forms of dance that have not only stood against the test of time but have influenced the development of other various styles of dance is none other than Classical Ballet and Modern Dance.

Romantic ballet in the 19th century differs from Classical ballet in the 20th century structurally, technically, and socially. The two dance forms also use different types of costumes and different narrative strategies. Romanticism greatly impacted the world of art in the 19th century. Romantic ballet emerged and allowed an escape for the dancers and audience from the distress due to the falling of the French Revolution. The following century brought a deeper understanding of Classical ballet via the Ballet Russes. The Ballet Russes allowed a freer expression and an overall appreciation of dance alongside other art forms. However, with all of those differences, they both use ballet technique for expression and

The varieties of jazz dance reflect the diversity of American culture. Jazz dance mirrors the social history of the American people, reflecting ethnic influences, historic events, and cultural changes. Jazz dance has been greatly influenced by social dance and popular music. But, like so much that is “from America”, the history of jazz dance begins somewhere else.