University of Oregon
Dept. of Dance

DAN 490/590

Dance Accompaniment

Fall '04

Christian Cherry

Gerlinger Annex 169

Office Hours: M/W 2-3 or by appt.

phone: 6-5951

cerise@darkwing.uoregon.edu



Syllabus

Overview/Course Content

The DAN 4/590 course is a sister course taught concurrently with 4/591 Teaching Dance. It will act as the music portion of the 4/591 course. Its purpose is to devote concerted teaching and student study time to the element of music in the dance studio. Through time the relationship of music and dance has changed considerably. Our purpose is to study the inter-relationship of these art forms with attention to pedagogy. Particular attention will be given to the development of musical vocabulary, its judicious use by the dance teacher and to communication with the dance musician in the studio. Further attention will be given to forms and styles of music as they relate to dance.

The course will pinpoint issues in working with live musicians in the studio. Students will be asked to learn specific vocabulary and to use it in thecourse of their practice teaching. Meters, phrasing and subdivision are key concepts. The power of form and style will be considered. There will be reading and some writing on specific topics within pedagogy. Reading will be quizzed and discussed. All written assignments must be word-processed and written with clarity of thought.

Grading

Grading will be based on class participation and the development of musical skills for teaching (80%). This is development is evidenced in practice teaching, the use of terminology, in movement content of the phrases you develop and in your participation in discussions. The quality of your work on assignments will also be assessed (20%). A separate grade will be given to you for 4/591. 

Some Advice on Pedagogy

Musical skills are hard to develop in a short amount of time. You must try to make change in your personal style of presenting material to a class. For many of you, music comes easily, for others not so, Some will have to unlearn things first. Be patient with yourselves and trust that with concerted effort, you can use music to your great advantage. It will be a difficult but rewarding path of investigation. Now is the time to make mistakes. In many cases, a small change will make a big difference. Observe the interaction and successes or failures of your own teachers. See how they treat situations they face. Make a clear decision about your own style and its effectiveness. What things do you do well; what things do you do not so well? Above all, be honest with yourself and with the class as they are your best sources of information.