Saturday, July 31, 2010
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
14 Years Gone By
My dance training began when I was four years old. I was solely enrolled in the form of tap dancing. I learned many things in my first five years of dancing. I learned how to shuffle, hop, buffalo, brush, ball-change, flap, stomp, step, grapevine, and do single, double, and triple time steps — as well as many combinations of those steps. I continued on in tap until I graduated from my dance school at age 18. I learned many new things in those nine years such as: how to do quadruple time steps, wings, many different types of turns, pick ups, pull backs, kicks, maxie fords, cake walks, charlestons, and cramprolls. I also learned how to accent certain sounds in the choreography.
Through five to six years of my tap dancing career, I sang songs with my fellow peers during the intro part of the dance where the movement wasn't as demanding. The songs we sang were: "Ma, He's Making Eyes At Me" by , some song that went "One dance each day will keep you as a fit as a fiddle, one dance each day, that's all", "Big Spender" by Peggy Lee, "Hello Dolly" originally by Louis Armstrong, and a couple others but i can't remember them.
When I was nine, I picked up the art of Jazz dancing for three years. It was not my favorite type of dance. Jazz is flashy, I'm not. I learned something about myself through taking jazz.
When I was eleven I picked up the art of French Classical Ballet. When I was 13 I was seen as able to use pointe shoes (or toe shoes) in ballet. I did. I was one of the strongest non-cheaters in the class. When using pointe shoes it is called cheating when one bends there knees when they go up en Pointe. I didn't do that, I was above it until I got to my last year and I began to get a little lazy. Through my years as a French Classical Ballet student, I learned the five positions of the arms and legs, pie, piqué, and possé (sp), perfecting my turn out, what a sickling foot is, as well as the following movements: sisonnes, sautés, saut de basques, rond de jambes, relevés, port de bras, plies, pirouettes, pas marchés, pas de bourrée courus, pas de bourées, many types of jetés, glissades, échappés, développés, coupés, chassés, changements, battements, ballottés, ballonés, balancés, attitudes, assemblés, and arabesques. For what most of these look like you can view them here: http://www.abt.org/education/dictionary/index.html
In my last year of my dance career, I was given a trial for lyrical ballet. The movement in the trial was very fast and didn't allow me to feel it with my heart. I decided to not try out for it.
In my eleventh year of my dance career, I tried out for "Richardettes" and "Gay Parisian Can-Can", the top-most kicklines. I did not make it, so i tried out for Can-Can yet again in my twelfth year and made the same mistake I did the first time I tried out. I didn't turn the right way. If it wasn't for that mistake, I would've made it.
In my tenth year of my dance career, I tried out for an elite line called "Gold Irish". I didn't make it into the line that year but the next year I made it. I stayed in "Gold Irish", the line that uses hard-shoes (or clogging shoes), for two years. I was the strongest dancer in the line at the time so I was promoted to "Star Irish" which is my dance school's highest elite line for Irish dance.
Every year I studied dance was accompanied by "show weekend". "Show weekend" started on Thursday and ends on Sunday night. On Thursday and Friday were dance rehearsals and on Sunday were two shows. All of this was held at a facility where the audience capacity was 1,441. Most of the shows were sold out. I danced every single one of these. In total, I did 28 rehearsals and 28 shows.
As a graduation present to the seniors of my class, my dance teacher took us out to dinner at the Melting Pot and took us to see the musical 'Spamalot'. They were fun times.
At my final show of my dance career, during the graduation ceremony, I cried my eyes out on stage. So much work, so much time, so much sweat, growing up, scrapes and bruises from falling, blisters, perseverance, pain, soreness, happy times, sadness, and experiences. I missed it greatly then, I still miss dancing to this day. I don't think I'll ever get over the feelings I have for dance. Its such a great part of me that helped me to find out who I am, helping to form me. I love dance with a passion. I will never regret dancing.
Through five to six years of my tap dancing career, I sang songs with my fellow peers during the intro part of the dance where the movement wasn't as demanding. The songs we sang were: "Ma, He's Making Eyes At Me" by , some song that went "One dance each day will keep you as a fit as a fiddle, one dance each day, that's all", "Big Spender" by Peggy Lee, "Hello Dolly" originally by Louis Armstrong, and a couple others but i can't remember them.
When I was nine, I picked up the art of Jazz dancing for three years. It was not my favorite type of dance. Jazz is flashy, I'm not. I learned something about myself through taking jazz.
When I was eleven I picked up the art of French Classical Ballet. When I was 13 I was seen as able to use pointe shoes (or toe shoes) in ballet. I did. I was one of the strongest non-cheaters in the class. When using pointe shoes it is called cheating when one bends there knees when they go up en Pointe. I didn't do that, I was above it until I got to my last year and I began to get a little lazy. Through my years as a French Classical Ballet student, I learned the five positions of the arms and legs, pie, piqué, and possé (sp), perfecting my turn out, what a sickling foot is, as well as the following movements: sisonnes, sautés, saut de basques, rond de jambes, relevés, port de bras, plies, pirouettes, pas marchés, pas de bourrée courus, pas de bourées, many types of jetés, glissades, échappés, développés, coupés, chassés, changements, battements, ballottés, ballonés, balancés, attitudes, assemblés, and arabesques. For what most of these look like you can view them here: http://www.abt.org/education/dictionary/index.html
In my last year of my dance career, I was given a trial for lyrical ballet. The movement in the trial was very fast and didn't allow me to feel it with my heart. I decided to not try out for it.
In my eleventh year of my dance career, I tried out for "Richardettes" and "Gay Parisian Can-Can", the top-most kicklines. I did not make it, so i tried out for Can-Can yet again in my twelfth year and made the same mistake I did the first time I tried out. I didn't turn the right way. If it wasn't for that mistake, I would've made it.
In my tenth year of my dance career, I tried out for an elite line called "Gold Irish". I didn't make it into the line that year but the next year I made it. I stayed in "Gold Irish", the line that uses hard-shoes (or clogging shoes), for two years. I was the strongest dancer in the line at the time so I was promoted to "Star Irish" which is my dance school's highest elite line for Irish dance.
Every year I studied dance was accompanied by "show weekend". "Show weekend" started on Thursday and ends on Sunday night. On Thursday and Friday were dance rehearsals and on Sunday were two shows. All of this was held at a facility where the audience capacity was 1,441. Most of the shows were sold out. I danced every single one of these. In total, I did 28 rehearsals and 28 shows.
As a graduation present to the seniors of my class, my dance teacher took us out to dinner at the Melting Pot and took us to see the musical 'Spamalot'. They were fun times.
At my final show of my dance career, during the graduation ceremony, I cried my eyes out on stage. So much work, so much time, so much sweat, growing up, scrapes and bruises from falling, blisters, perseverance, pain, soreness, happy times, sadness, and experiences. I missed it greatly then, I still miss dancing to this day. I don't think I'll ever get over the feelings I have for dance. Its such a great part of me that helped me to find out who I am, helping to form me. I love dance with a passion. I will never regret dancing.
Sunday, June 13, 2010
The Adventures in Composing
The very first song I composed is a song I named "Flirty Embrace". The scale of it is F major. I made it in a waltz tempo because, after learning to place such songs as Artist's Life Waltz and the Blue Danube Waltz, I became very fond of waltzes. "Flirty Embrace" was composed sometime in 2007; I do believe it was summer of 2007. It was a very gorgeous song. However, it was not for a while yet until I composed my first movement.
The first movement I composed is called "A Core of Self". If I remember correctly, it was composed in E and D major. It was simple, beautiful, and very pleasing to the ears. I composed that entire three-piece movement in January of 2009. The first part of the movement called Serenity is in a 3/4 time signature, switches to a 6/4 time signature, only to revert back to the original time signature. The second piece to the movement is called Desolation and the third piece is called Joviality.
The second movement I composed is "Prelude No. 2 in G natural minor, 'VWII'." The reason I composed this was to compliment a part of my novel which never was never written because writing about a fictional war is difficult business. I composed this three-song movement in April of 2009.
The third movement I composed is called "Prelude No. 3 in A and G minor, "Lunar Eclipse"". It's another three-piece movement which I composed in April-May of 2009.
The fourth movement I composed is called "Prelude No. 4 in B natural minor, "Horæ"". The first piece is called "Dike", the second piece is called "Eunomia", and the third piece is called "Eirene". Eirene, Eunomia, and Dike make up the Horæ, or the goddesses of the seasons in Greek Mythology — one of the things that has inspired many of my poems. I composed this movement in May of 2009.
One thing to keep in mind about the last three movements —— Prelude No. 2, Prelude No. 3, and Prelude No. 4 —— is that I composed them without sound, without a piano there to guide me. The reason why I did this, was that I was in a Music Theory class for the general college student. One did not need to be a Music Major or Minor, or even do an entrance audition to get into that class. The class was very boring so I composed music during class. Those movements aren't particularly the best-sounding songs written.
About a month ago, I composed a song that was inspired by Egyptian music. I had good reviews on it from the likes of @ThatDarkHorse , @amazing_flora , @sgneist , & @slow_ro . (Sorry if you reviewed me well but I forgot to mention you here). @ThatDarkHorse wanted more of it, so I composed a movement on it. The first two songs of the movement seem more mystical than Egyptian. However, things in the third piece change. For a rhythm, I used the basic pttern of the zaar rhythm. Zaar is Egyptian Women's Dance in a healing ritual. "The practice of zaar is officially prohibited among Egyptian Muslims, but it continues to be practiced nonetheless, usually in secretive ceremonies."*** This basic zaar rhythm completely revolutionized the movement, changing it from mystical to sounding like it could've actually came from Egypt.
Since the completion of that movement, I have been working on another movement. The first song will be only in the Fallahi rhythm pattern, the second piece will solely be in the Saaidi rhythm pattern, and the third piece will have both Fallahi and Saaidi rhythmic patterns.
Any questions? Ask me on Twitter @starsintheskies .
***This quote is from the textbook I got the Egyptian rhythms from. It is "World Music: Traditions and Transformations" by Michael B. Bakan.
The first movement I composed is called "A Core of Self". If I remember correctly, it was composed in E and D major. It was simple, beautiful, and very pleasing to the ears. I composed that entire three-piece movement in January of 2009. The first part of the movement called Serenity is in a 3/4 time signature, switches to a 6/4 time signature, only to revert back to the original time signature. The second piece to the movement is called Desolation and the third piece is called Joviality.
The second movement I composed is "Prelude No. 2 in G natural minor, 'VWII'." The reason I composed this was to compliment a part of my novel which never was never written because writing about a fictional war is difficult business. I composed this three-song movement in April of 2009.
The third movement I composed is called "Prelude No. 3 in A and G minor, "Lunar Eclipse"". It's another three-piece movement which I composed in April-May of 2009.
The fourth movement I composed is called "Prelude No. 4 in B natural minor, "Horæ"". The first piece is called "Dike", the second piece is called "Eunomia", and the third piece is called "Eirene". Eirene, Eunomia, and Dike make up the Horæ, or the goddesses of the seasons in Greek Mythology — one of the things that has inspired many of my poems. I composed this movement in May of 2009.
One thing to keep in mind about the last three movements —— Prelude No. 2, Prelude No. 3, and Prelude No. 4 —— is that I composed them without sound, without a piano there to guide me. The reason why I did this, was that I was in a Music Theory class for the general college student. One did not need to be a Music Major or Minor, or even do an entrance audition to get into that class. The class was very boring so I composed music during class. Those movements aren't particularly the best-sounding songs written.
About a month ago, I composed a song that was inspired by Egyptian music. I had good reviews on it from the likes of @ThatDarkHorse , @amazing_flora , @sgneist , & @slow_ro . (Sorry if you reviewed me well but I forgot to mention you here). @ThatDarkHorse wanted more of it, so I composed a movement on it. The first two songs of the movement seem more mystical than Egyptian. However, things in the third piece change. For a rhythm, I used the basic pttern of the zaar rhythm. Zaar is Egyptian Women's Dance in a healing ritual. "The practice of zaar is officially prohibited among Egyptian Muslims, but it continues to be practiced nonetheless, usually in secretive ceremonies."*** This basic zaar rhythm completely revolutionized the movement, changing it from mystical to sounding like it could've actually came from Egypt.
Since the completion of that movement, I have been working on another movement. The first song will be only in the Fallahi rhythm pattern, the second piece will solely be in the Saaidi rhythm pattern, and the third piece will have both Fallahi and Saaidi rhythmic patterns.
Any questions? Ask me on Twitter @starsintheskies .
***This quote is from the textbook I got the Egyptian rhythms from. It is "World Music: Traditions and Transformations" by Michael B. Bakan.
Friday, May 28, 2010
Sunday, April 25, 2010
On the verge
I am not a naturally rebellious person. In my teenage years, I didn’t rebel. I skipped that whole stage. And now, at 20, I am on the verge of rebellion. It has come to my realization that rebellion is almost necessary as a teenager. It should not be suppressed. It is a chance early in life to spread one’s wings, the chance that I have given up again and again and again.
Right now, at 20, I absolutely and solely need to spread my wings and fly by myself for a while. There has been an offer in my life, which I won’t delve into, that will give me that chance. However, I have discussed said offer with my most trusted sibling and it seems that I can’t get by the owner’s of my nest with honesty, something that is highly valued, alone.
I would like to be fully honest about said offer but that, apparently, is not going to cut it. I am greatly disheartened by it. My heart really needs to do this, for me. If the owner’s of my nest won’t let me take the offer, I’ll rebel with the magnitude of every little rebellion I didn’t have in my teenage years. I really feel good about the offer, I want to do it.
Question (to be answered in an @ reply to @starsintheskies):
Do you think a 20 year old should be allowed to do whatever he/she wants that is legal?
Right now, at 20, I absolutely and solely need to spread my wings and fly by myself for a while. There has been an offer in my life, which I won’t delve into, that will give me that chance. However, I have discussed said offer with my most trusted sibling and it seems that I can’t get by the owner’s of my nest with honesty, something that is highly valued, alone.
I would like to be fully honest about said offer but that, apparently, is not going to cut it. I am greatly disheartened by it. My heart really needs to do this, for me. If the owner’s of my nest won’t let me take the offer, I’ll rebel with the magnitude of every little rebellion I didn’t have in my teenage years. I really feel good about the offer, I want to do it.
Question (to be answered in an @ reply to @starsintheskies):
Do you think a 20 year old should be allowed to do whatever he/she wants that is legal?
Saturday, April 17, 2010
My handout for my presentation on Dennis Banks' book.
This is my handout for my presentation on Dennis Banks' book. It is just quotes but I feel that they are the strongest and most interesting quotes I found in the book, which is sourced below the quotes:
“The old boarding schools that Indian kids were forcibly taken to were concentration camps for children where we were forbidden to speak our language and were beaten if we prayed to our Native creator.”
- Dennis Banks (24)
“ ‘You always aim to do this and to do that. Why don’t we just call ourselves “AIM”?’ Clyde, George, and I came up with a number of names that had the word ‘movement’ in them. We finally settled on “American Indian Movement.”
- (Banks 63)
“The dark agony of a silent man was suddenly transformed into an issue an entire nation must face.”
- The Nishnawbe News (Banks 114)
“Among us were people from many tribes: Navajo, Ojibwa, Sac and Fox, Potawatomi, Iroquois, Lumbee, Shinnecock, Pueblo, Kiowa, Comanche, Ponca, and several more, including tribes from the north-west. About 65 percent of the people present were local Lakotas…Even some non-Indians had come to help us—Chicano brothers, young white men and women from the ‘60s counterculture, and a white doctor with a few nurses. We welcomed them all.”
- (Banks 165)
“By March 30, we were down to two meals a day. A week later it was one meal a day. And then a week after that, we had to get by with one meal every other day with a bowl of thin soup in between. On the day the occupation ended, the only food left was a forty-pound bag of dry pinto beans.”
- (Banks 188)
“From 1972 to 1976, Pine Ridge reservation was a killing field….More than three hundred people are reported to have met a violent end in this place of fear and suppression…Over 90 percent of the killings and other violent crimes were never investigated.”
- (Banks 294)
“The tribal president had a crude poster on the wall of his office that stated, ‘one of Russell Means’ braids cut off—five dollars, two braids—ten dollars, Russell Means’ whole head pickled—one hundred dollars.”
- (Banks 285)
“Dick Wilson had finally been defeated. He lost his bid for a third term as tribal chairman by a three-to-one margin. The winner was a former BIA superintendent and longtime Wilson opponent, Al Trimble. Unfortunately, Wilson had two months left before he had to relinquish his office, during which time he wielded absolute power.”
- (Banks 288)
“Never give up. That’s how I run my life. And I stay close to nature. During the sugaring time, it is important to recognize that one can’t take all the sap away from the tree. We have to leave enough so that the tree can survive and thrive, otherwise one might make a mistake and take the tree’s life force away. So we must think the Indian way if we are going to survive.”
- Grandpa Bijah (Banks 344)
“Life is like a circle
You walk and walk only
To find yourself at the
Place you started from”
-Henry Crow Dog, Lakota (Banks 348)
“Age brings wisdom—sometimes.”
- Dennis Banks(Banks 354)
“I thank the American Indian Movement for being strong. AIM will always be strong because it is a spiritual movement. Every day we receive calls of distress, and every day we offer tobacco ceremonies for those in need. Right now this earth, our mother, is in distress. She needs our help. Can we—all of us—respond? I don’t know, but I am convinced that if we don’t respond, we will be in peril and our future will lay in question.”
-(Banks 362)
SOURCE:
Banks, Dennis, and Richard Erdoes. Ojibwa Warrior: Dennis Banks and the Rise of the American Indian Movement. Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press, 2004. N. pag. Print.
“The old boarding schools that Indian kids were forcibly taken to were concentration camps for children where we were forbidden to speak our language and were beaten if we prayed to our Native creator.”
- Dennis Banks (24)
“ ‘You always aim to do this and to do that. Why don’t we just call ourselves “AIM”?’ Clyde, George, and I came up with a number of names that had the word ‘movement’ in them. We finally settled on “American Indian Movement.”
- (Banks 63)
“The dark agony of a silent man was suddenly transformed into an issue an entire nation must face.”
- The Nishnawbe News (Banks 114)
“Among us were people from many tribes: Navajo, Ojibwa, Sac and Fox, Potawatomi, Iroquois, Lumbee, Shinnecock, Pueblo, Kiowa, Comanche, Ponca, and several more, including tribes from the north-west. About 65 percent of the people present were local Lakotas…Even some non-Indians had come to help us—Chicano brothers, young white men and women from the ‘60s counterculture, and a white doctor with a few nurses. We welcomed them all.”
- (Banks 165)
“By March 30, we were down to two meals a day. A week later it was one meal a day. And then a week after that, we had to get by with one meal every other day with a bowl of thin soup in between. On the day the occupation ended, the only food left was a forty-pound bag of dry pinto beans.”
- (Banks 188)
“From 1972 to 1976, Pine Ridge reservation was a killing field….More than three hundred people are reported to have met a violent end in this place of fear and suppression…Over 90 percent of the killings and other violent crimes were never investigated.”
- (Banks 294)
“The tribal president had a crude poster on the wall of his office that stated, ‘one of Russell Means’ braids cut off—five dollars, two braids—ten dollars, Russell Means’ whole head pickled—one hundred dollars.”
- (Banks 285)
“Dick Wilson had finally been defeated. He lost his bid for a third term as tribal chairman by a three-to-one margin. The winner was a former BIA superintendent and longtime Wilson opponent, Al Trimble. Unfortunately, Wilson had two months left before he had to relinquish his office, during which time he wielded absolute power.”
- (Banks 288)
“Never give up. That’s how I run my life. And I stay close to nature. During the sugaring time, it is important to recognize that one can’t take all the sap away from the tree. We have to leave enough so that the tree can survive and thrive, otherwise one might make a mistake and take the tree’s life force away. So we must think the Indian way if we are going to survive.”
- Grandpa Bijah (Banks 344)
“Life is like a circle
You walk and walk only
To find yourself at the
Place you started from”
-Henry Crow Dog, Lakota (Banks 348)
“Age brings wisdom—sometimes.”
- Dennis Banks(Banks 354)
“I thank the American Indian Movement for being strong. AIM will always be strong because it is a spiritual movement. Every day we receive calls of distress, and every day we offer tobacco ceremonies for those in need. Right now this earth, our mother, is in distress. She needs our help. Can we—all of us—respond? I don’t know, but I am convinced that if we don’t respond, we will be in peril and our future will lay in question.”
-(Banks 362)
SOURCE:
Banks, Dennis, and Richard Erdoes. Ojibwa Warrior: Dennis Banks and the Rise of the American Indian Movement. Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press, 2004. N. pag. Print.
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