strathspey@strathspey.org:11828

Michelle C. Nogales

Re: Dancing to pipes - or not!

April 27, 1998, 10:57 p.m. (Message 11828, in reply to message 11659)

On Sun, 26 Apr 98 13:00:06 GMT x.xxxxx@xxxxxxxx.xx.xx (Malcolm & Helen
Brown (York UK)) writes:

>1) I am always slightly amused by the statement (excuse?)of people who 
>do not
>dance that they "have no sense of rythm" - I have this vision of them 
>walking down the street taking steps of randomly differing duration.

	One may not be able to consciously reproduce an effect that is
normally taken care of by involuntary processes.  A person who has no
sense of rhythm might normally walk rhythmically, but if you ask him to
deliberately walk to a particular rhythm, whether internal or from an
external source, they won't be able to do it.  It seems to be a matter of
a) hearing or imagining a particular rhythm, and b) translating that
rhythm to consistent, matching physical action.  Just because you have no
problem sneezing when your nose is full of dust doesn't mean you can
decide to sneeze whenever you like.  (Go ahead, try!)  In most cases,
it's either completely unconscious and automatic or else it doesn't
happen at all.  I think those who say they can't sense rhythm mostly
really can't, on a conscious level.
	Cheers,
	Michelle C. Nogales
	Dunsmuir Scottish Dancers
	San Francisco Bay Area














dancing to pipes