From Broadway to hip-hop to ballet, dance, in its many forms has become a major part of society in the world today. It has origins in every culture and historical period through the ages. And as time continues to fly by, dance has continued to ‘evolve’.
Most cultures and regions of the world have a particular style of dance associated with them. Coming from an Indian background, I have seen styles of dance that vary a lot from the dances here in America. But then again, I have been to various programs and seen Indian-styled dances that have incorporated Americanized movements and music into performances.
Here at A&M, I am a part of a collegiate raas-garba team. (Raas and garba are styles of dance that have origins in Gujarat, India.) We get dressed in traditional costumes and perform nationally on a collegiate level. Over the past years of competing, I have come to notice that the tracks used for performances have gotten major upgrades. The music contains big bass drops and is sometimes overlaid with hip-hop songs. Traditional music has become less common. Even the style of how different moves are performed has been transformed.
There are numerous of amounts of traditional types of dance, but as years go by, similar to clothes, and technology, dancers want the new and throw out the old. I am not saying this is a bad thing, but I enjoy seeing things of the past.
What are your opinions on dance? Do you see dance as a part of
culture?
Dance is extremely important to culture. Throughout my life I was very involved with dance through my ballet, tap, and jazz classes, Winterguard team, and everywhere throughout my life. Many of my friends were on the drill team where they performed many different styles of dancing that were unique from dancing at the club or cultural dancing that has been around for centuries. In today's world dancing is essential and helps people express themselves in ways words can not explain. Just like everyone has different personalities, everyone has a different style of dancing that helps mold and shape and transform emotions into something that can be viewed by other people. Dance is a beautiful thing that evolves with time but continues to retain its history.
ReplyDeleteI had never heard of this style of dance prior to reading this, but it sounds very interesting. I agree that dance is an integral part of culture. It's neat to see how the dance evolves as culture evolves.
ReplyDeleteI do think that dance is a part of culture. I know that as the times change, our culture changes, but it is nice to see traditional styles stay the same. I don't think that the traditional styles, such as your raas-garba style, should do its best to stay similar to the traditional forms of dancing. It makes it a lot more authentic and is nice to see.
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