Better Instructors: Always Learning

Do your instructors occasionally step into the student role? Those who do are often the best instructors around.

The stronger teachers realize that they never stop learning themselves. It's helpful if they occasionally study new dances (or other subjects) where they are beginners again, because that refreshes their perspective on starting closer to the bottom of the learning curve. It's especially good when they are taking classes in subjects not already part of their core strengths, or dances with a totally different style. (Think ballet instructor taking a hip-hop class, or a hip-hop instructor taking tango.)

I observed this a few weeks ago, when I decided to take a few back-to-back classes. As I settled into my first class I glanced across the room and saw the instructor for my third class that day, working as hard as the rest of us. She was both a student and an instructor in the same day, in two very different styles. The instructor for the first class had taken a challenging ballet class the week before. Both instructors were working to sharpen their skills and grow themselves.

I've taken classes from both of them and I understand why they are so good. They learn from the other great instructors and students, and they adopt the best practices they find in other classes. Neither instructor "needed" to take the additional classes; they’re already well known for excellence in their specialties. These two are not unique.

It makes sense to me. Just because they teach doesn't mean they know everything, or that they can't learn something from other great teachers. I see this all the time among better instructors.

Entering the student role also provides new perspectives because each instructor approaches dance differently, even when teaching the same type of class.

When you're seeking out better instructors, find out if they still venture into the student role occasionally. It provides you insights into their experiences, and you'll be amazed how many of the best instructors are also students and/or they have studied with lots of instructors along the way.

Let me know about your favorite instructors, and see if they are also out there taking some classes occasionally.


RELATED ARTICLES
How Many Instructors: Part 1
How Many Instructors: Part 2 (Same Sex?)

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This article was originally published in Nov 2008. It's had some minor revisions and it's still something I see regularly among the best instructors.

Better Dancer: Find Your Own Fun

What happens when your dancing becomes above average for your scene?

Of course, you can get some great dances with the stronger dancers in the room. Some dancers will seek you out regularly, knowing you're one of the stronger partners. There are many advantages and it beats having potential partners run for the hills when they see you're in their zip code.

However, some people lose the joy in dancing over time, because they are always looking for increased complexity, and that levels off as you mature. The landscape changes as your dancing becomes stronger. Like an addict searching for a new high, we often seek out partners and who dance "more" and the air becomes thinner as you advance.

Some more experienced dancers sit out half the night, talking with friends and socializing because they aren't excited about dancing with less mature partners. That's fine, as the clubs are a social scene, but it is hard to talk over the music at most clubs. (Many do it anyway.) Sometimes they only find a few people they actually want to dance with, even if the room is nearly full of other people dancing.

It doesn't have to be that way.

More complexity doesn't equal "better dancing", and in the social scene, it's often inappropriate with the music playing at the moment. After a lead spins his partner 6 times, spinning her 12 or 24 times isn't two to four times more fun for the follow. It actually gets boring at some point, and a world-class follow once told me she thinks, "OK... I can spin as much as you want, so how about we dance?"

When you hang out with world-class musicians, dancers or athletes, you find they often approach things differently. While they constantly push to develop extreme technical abilities, they also find a joy in performing "simple" skills, but doing them exceptionally well.

They refocus on refining the details, and they never stop improving their foundational movements. The best also learn how to enjoy practicing itself, looking for incremental gains and new challenges to keep them fresh.

Experienced artists know that what you leave out is often as important as what you leave in the art. Contrast creates emotion, and the wider the range, the better.

Once dancers have a wide range of complex dance skills, the best are content and confident enough to save them for the right moments. Most also make a more in-depth study of the music and refine their listening skills, knowing you can't dance to music you're not hearing. Cross-training other dances is also popular among more seasoned dancers. This provides a fresh perspective, new challenges and venues for growth.

Almost everybody can improve their connections with their partners and the music, but that only happens if your focus is there. (That can also happen as a near beginner, but most newer dancers are focused on the movements.) With maturity you find yourself refining little things others may not directly notice, along with enjoying the journey itself.

Sometimes it's as simple as smiling more, paying more attention to your partner's moods and reactions, and finding graceful ways to cover for your less experienced partners (AKA "making your partner look better"). For some it's expanding their dance horizon by adding another dance style, or taking classes from different instructors. You have to find your own path to fun and it's an individual journey.

Don't expect it to always be "more fun" unless you find it yourself. Many people improve to the above average point, then lose interest and go off to take up another activity, even when there is lots of room to grow.

As you improve, the number of partners who share your complexity skills goes down, but the fun and growth don't have to be reduced.

Let me know what you're doing to keep the joy in your dancing.

Sometimes I lie awake at night, and I ask, "Where have I gone wrong?" Then a voice says to me, "This is going to take more than one night."
- Charles Schultz (Peanuts)

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Originally published in Jan 2010. I've tweaked a few things before the republish.

"Musicality Defined" Project

I have a dream...

To have a working definition of the word "Musicality" that fits 95% of the dancing world and most importantly, gives dancers on the musicality trail a path to shorten that journey.

I'm hoping YOU join me on a mission to create the working definition.

I'm calling it the:

"Musicality Defined" Project

Wimps stay home.

Those with thin skins need not apply. All great projects need epic titles and a code name.. I couldn't think of an epic title, so I'll just pretend "Musicality Defined" works for now, and we can use "MDP" to mask some insanity.  Just tell your friends you were drafted for the "MDP" and they will understand why you aren't dancing and you're spending hours staring out the windows thinking about alternate definitions.

Some dancers/instructors say, "You can't define Musicality." I respectfully disagree.



The real issue is you can't define the limits of creativity, and there are many moving parts in musicality. Most definitions end up being almost useless, politically correct double-speak:

"Using our bodies as visual landscapes displaying a window into our musical soul."

Hmmm... Maybe that's what I think I'm doing when I dance, but I'm not sure everybody else is mature enough to handle my truth, so I'll just keep growing and practicing.

One big factor is the concept is complex. I have given up on the idea what we will will find one short sentence to define the term. Most words in the dictionary (or Wikipedia for my age challenged friends) have multiple definitions.

This project is running in parallel on Facebook so we can involve as many people as possible, but here's the page where I'm going to include the latest work in progress ("WIP"). I originally was going to use FB, but you can't do any formatting and I think that helps.

Click here for latest definitions and works in progress:
Musicality Defined
(http://www.unlikelysalsero.com/p/musicality.html)

Your input welcomed here or on Facebook: Facebook.com/UnlikelySalsero