Time and dynamics

In the HSC you will be awarded 8 marks in total for this area of study.

NESA Marking criteria

1a: Generating movement in relation to dance composition for 2 or 3 dancers based on a stated concept/intent (8 marks)

The student will be assessed on how well he/she:

• composes movement for 2 or 3 dancers in a personal style based on the stated concept/intent within the context of dance as an artform.

The student demonstrates skills and understanding of:

• manipulation of the elements of dance (space, time and dynamics) for 2 or 3 dancers
• personal style
• abstraction.

The elements of time and music principles

Time is the second element of dance. The dancer moves with or against time. Dance movement takes up time, and a dance is performed in a prescribed amount of time.

Time

Tempo

Tempo refers to the pace of the music or accompaniment; in music it is measured in beats per minute. We may use common words to roughly describe the tempo of a piece of music, for example, fast, slow, moderate or medium. In dance a fast tempo can create excitement; a slow tempo can suggest a sense of reflection or withdrawal.

The tempo, and thus the movements can get faster or slower. A slow tempo may suit large controlled movements or balances, a fast tempo can suit fast sequences of movements such as running steps, jumps or fast footwork.

Duration

The passage of time in music and the length of time it takes to complete a movement. Some movements take several beats to complete (e.g. sustained balances) while others can be completed in a single beat (e.g. jumps). A beat is a unit for the measurement of time in music. It is the underlying pulse and gives music and the dance life and momentum. A strong beat can suggest a strong movement.

Momentum

When the music or movement increases or decreases in speed. This can create a feeling of building up intensity in a sequence of movement if the momentum is increasing or a weakening or slowing down of movement if the momentum is decreasing.

Regular and Irregular Rhythms

Rhythm in dance is an arrangement of accents and duration of movement. It is the pattern of short and long movements, and stressed and unstressed movements. Choreographers may work with regular rhythms which are repeated and predictable. The use of regular rhythm provides a unifying element in the phrasing of the dance. Choreographers may also choose to create irregular patterns of duration, accents and stillness. Irregular rhythms can provide interest, excitement or unrest in a dance. Syncopated rhythms in music, where weaker beats are accented are used effectively in jazz dance styles.

Regular rhythms may also be used to enhance an idea:

• uniformity
• orderliness
• symmetry
• clockwork
• recurrence

Irregular rhythms can be used in choreography to upset regular rhythmic movement to provide choreographic contrast. It may be used to enhance an idea:

• confusion
• disorder
• asymmetry
• disturbance
• turmoil.

Accent

Accents in dance are movements that are stressed or highlighted in some way to make them stand out. In dance we may:

• perform with more force
• perform with force and speed (punctuated)
• perform with a longer duration
• end in a sudden halt.

Metre

Beats are grouped into 2, 3, or 4 and each grouping is called a bar. An accent or emphasis on any beat can fall at regular intervals. The metre is a grouping of beats around this accent and provides a regular time structure. Most popular music is grouped in 4 time (quadruple time) for example as is demonstrated by being able to count a steady 1-2-3-4 to it. Usually the first beat in the bar carries the most accent or stress.

Natural Rhythms

Natural functions produced by the body such as a heartbeat, breathing, walking or jogging. Other natural rhythms can be produced by the natural world; waves breaking on the shore, cicadas and other insects rubbing their bodies in unison in summer, the sound of rain.

Stillness

Stillness can produce tension, anticipation and a contrast to other movement preceding the pause or stillness. It is a deliberate part of the phrase or sequence of movement and can serve as an emphasis for a particular concept or type of movement (such as at the end of a high intensity step or sustained balance).

It is important that as a choreographer you manipulate the timing of the movements:

• have one dancer work in free time with the other/s moving to a regular beat.
• accelerate and decelerate movements (speed them up and slow them down).
• incorporate stillness to highlight an idea or add tension to the work.
• work your dancers in unison – at the same time, doing the same thing and then explore canon, dancers working in different times.

Dynamics

Time and dynamics really go hand in hand. You can’t manipulate time without manipulating the dynamics of the movement and vice versa.

Syllabus definition

'One of the elements of dance; the level of energy or force applied to the execution of movement or movement sequence’

Another definition is;

'The term dynamics in dance has come to mean the energy, or effort, or force, or weight applied to movement over time. The element of dynamics is affected when you manipulate aspects of time.'

Wauchop, 2009

The dynamics of movement can provide meaning to an audience in the same way as the use of space, music and visual elements can. Conscious manipulation of dynamics will enhance meaning in your composition ‘Work’. As a choreographer, you will need to understand the relationship between time and dynamics through the control and manipulation of these to convey your overall concept/intent in relation to 2 or 3 dancers.

Movement qualities

Laban’s effort actions describe specific categories of movement quality. It is important that you are aware of the types of movement qualities that you use in your Major work. As a choreographer, you should be able to control and vary the dynamics and movement qualities used to communicate your theme and create a sense of variation and contrast in the work to provide interest.

• Percussive: Sharp, staccato, abrupt, start and stop
• Sustained: Flowing, smooth, continuous
• Swinging: Swaying, to and fro, circling, fall and recover, wheeling
• Suspended: Hanging, frozen in time, floating, hovering, teetering
• Collapse: Falling, contracting, sinking, give way to gravity
• Vibratory: Fluctuating, flickering, trembling, quivering

As stated previously, time and dynamics are a package deal. If you had a sustained movement, the duration of that movement would generally be long. Percussive movements can be used to accent a particular movement in a dance phrase.