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Folk Dance Federation of California, South, Inc.
DANCING WITH TWO LEFT FEET |
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In some of my previous articles I wrote about dancing on different surfaces. Besides the preference for various dances, music, and teachers, the surface we dance on usually gets the most attention and comments from our dancing community. Most people prefer an old-fashioned and cushioned wood floor which is hard (pardon the pun) to find in our era of plastics and synthetics. Others will not dance on hard cement, claiming that the hard surface destroys and pulverizes the cartilage in their knees. Same effects have been reported when dancing on linoleum or tile floors.
Dancing on grass, which we do occasionally during our summer picnics, does not seem to affect most of the dancing knees, although it might result in grass stained feet. And then there are those hardy souls, or should I say young souls, who are oblivious to the floor and the fragility of their knee cartilages. I am sure their time will come in a few few years.
However, I am pleased to report, that I accidentally discovered the cure to all of your dancing knee ailments during our recent trip to visit our daughter, a longtime resident of Florence, Italy.
As we boarded our bus home late one evening, two Romani musicians, one carrying a large accordion, the other a guitar, boarded us and sat in the seats next to the aisle. I excitedly started talking to them in my limited vocabulary asking them "Sar san?" (How are you?), and without waiting for the reply responding with: "Mi sem mišto" (I am fine). They were surprised that this old and strange American tourist not only knew even two Romani words, but knew some of the songs. Needless to say, the accordionist unbuttoned his accordion and they started playing a lively Čoček.
Hearing the live music I love, I could not restrain myself and started dancing. The bus moving through the narrow Florence street, swerved around the corners, pulling me from side to side. To study myself I grabbed the two steel post on each side of me. By holding onto these posts, like my partners in our circle dances, it allowed me to dance in the air and I felt as if I were dancing on a cloud. It did not matter what was under my feet, it was the music that lifted me in the air.
So, what is the cure to your dancing ailments?
Very simple – live music.
Instead of worrying what is under your feet, pay attention to what is in your heart and soul. You will be able to dance on any surface, and if you let yourself, even dance on the clouds.
Printed in Folk Dance Scene, "DANCING WITH TWO LEFT FEET (36), August 2008.