Frankie Manning- performer, teacher, choreographer, author, and ambassador of swing, passed away peacefully this morning.

On second thought, rest in swingouts.

This morning, I woke up to a most distressing email from the Frankie95 team.  For those of you who don't know, Frankie Manning is one of the most influential dancers in the history of American dances.  He was part of a troupe called Whitey's Lindy Hoppers, which traveled the world, rocking hollywood and royalty alike, bringing Lindy the fame and documentation that would pave the way for the lindy revival that started in the 80's.  And when that revival happened, Frankie was still there, to teach hungry students.  And when that revival got huge, Frankie was still there, travelling, teaching, entertaining, and inspiring lindy hoppers all over the world.  Now, a few weeks before Frankie's 95th birthday, he's become very ill.  


If you've never seen this clip, watch it right now.  Frankie's wearing the mechanic's overalls, and his solo happens around 2:22.


Hellzapoppin


So, Frankie "Musclehead" Manning, get well soon. With over a thousand people heading to New York soon, you know you've got a lot of well wishes headed your way.

"Dear Friends of Frankie,

As you might have heard, Frankie entered the hospital a week and a half ago, due to problems with his medication. Then on Friday, he was taken into the intensive care unit after he developed pneumonia. It is a very serious situation.

Although he cannot talk or move his limbs, he recognizes people and responds to their messages of caring and love. Throughout all of this, his spirit remains strong and his family and close friends are with him.

Please take some time during your day to send Frankie healing energy, prayers and love, and tell everyone you know to do the same. You can also send him a personal note of encouragement here:

Frankie Manning, PO Box 737648 , Elmhurst NY 11373

Frankie needs our support!

Of course, we will keep you all updated as his condition changes.

The Frankie 95 Team"

No, no, no- put those back on.  I mean the post-event write up.  Sheesh.


Stompology, which happened in Rochester this past weekend, is (to my nearly-unlimited knowledge) the only solo-vernacular-jazz-dance weekend in existance.  As you would know, if you'd read my unpublish drafts, solo dancing is something I struggle with, but value very highly as one of my next avenues to pursue.  Needless to say, I had to be there.  


The weekend was nothing quite like what I'd expected- although it might have been even better than I'd hoped.  Rather than the super-showy jamfest I'd anticipated, the weekend was a balanced blend of hanging out, partying, and high-quality classes, with a bit of partner dancing thrown in for flavor.  Tin Pan Blues Band (see link below) provided some seriously fun jazz and blues.  The lead singer, Jesse Selengut, is an entertainer in the vein of Fats or Louis- his delivery is rough, sassy, untechnical, and ultimately delightful.  They delivered a quirky mix of lindy, blues, and je-ne-sais-quoi, and when the jam on the porch at the late night proved limiting, they set up and played the house party in the dance room.  


Highlights and links (I'll add links as they get put up):
Tin Pan Blues Band playing the house party (Tin Pan Blues Band's Blog)
Watching Sharon's detailing in her and Mikey's Solo Blues class
The hundred-and-one-man-dance at the end of Falty's class (Here's the Lindy Focus performance of the same choreography)
Getting a very flattering new nickname, courtesy of Mikey.  Is there an emoticon for blushing?
The jams.  Serious props to the musicians.  (Jams might be one of my favorite things in life).  They were even kind enough to let me butcher Blues My Naughty (I remembered the words to the second verse on the way home, if anyone's wondering).  
Chocolate cookies.
Sharon's ridiculously-fast yet ultimately doable name-dropping routine.
Fantasizing about going to to jazz camp, at the Lindy Compound.


So, with my muscles sore and my brain full, it's off to work again for me.  


Peace, love, and 5-6-7-8,
-m.

After several days of cold, rain, hormones, taxes, and general unpleasantness (despite great company), today didn't have to be particularly great to be a big improvement.  And yet, today has been fantastic by any standards.  The quick and dirty version of my day:


--Woke up at noon- initially disturbed because I meant to wake up at 10.  Guess I needed it?  Practiced tap- did my 2 steps I know at 192bpm.  Big improvement.  
--Ate leftover Pad Thai.  Small but delicious.  Ran from the front of the apartment to the back, outside, back in, to the front, about 10 times with the dogs, since I didn't have time to walk them properly before leaving, and they had serious itches in their canine britches.
--Took a bus downtown.  Delighted in the sunshine and 65F weather.  Walked to Jerry's studio.
--Practiced tango with Jerry for 1.5hr.  Talked some shop.  Felt awesome, and challenged.
--Took  a walk until I was tired, then hopped the 32 back home.  Again, delighted in the weather.
--Ate my favorite leftovers meal: lime tortilla chips, slightly broken, topped with fresh spinach, then fake-meat and black beans, peach-mango salsa, grated cheddar, and ranch.  All heated except the ranch.  Served with a cold glass of mango nectar.  I could eat it every day, I think.


And now, here I am.  Just did a few puzzles in an abandonded Southwest Air magazine, writing a blog for no one's pleasure but my own, waiting for Carsie to come home so I can do my laundry (I'm not buying more detergent!), then going to either tango or lindy tonight.  My life is so great.  This is why I wouldn't trade all my "I can't, I'm too poor" moments- because on days like this, I'm filthy rich.


Rolling in happiness,
-m.

No, this is no metaphor for surviving change in my life.  No drama here, unless you count color and composition.  Cid and I went to the Philly Art Museum yesterday.  If you've never been, get on it!  It's reasonably priced (less than a movie), and huge.  We both walked away pretty inspired, so after a night of dinner boggle, and dance videos, we made art.  He wrote poetry, and I made this guy.

This video is long, but worth it:
Chicho Y Juana

There are two things I love about tango videos, and they're different from what the leaders love.  Leaders notice moves.  I'm reaching the point where I can appreciate whether a move was easy or hard, but that's not why I watch videos.  I watch the follows.  More than in any other dance, I watch the follows.  And more specifically than just the follows- I watch their feet.  Their footsteps.  I'll post another day about my favorite tango follow,  but this video is a lot more accessible, I think, and has a broader range of things to appreciate. 

On one level, Juana's balance is incredible (check out those spins around 2:50 and 4:40- those are on one foot, and include direction changes).  In addition, her speed and control are top notch- check out the series of ganchos and boleos starting at around 3:13- there's no sloppiness, no weebling or wobbling.  Not to mention the 8 minutes or so of the slow song.  There's no fudging in a song that slow.

And that's where her grace really becomes evident- even beyond the control not to fall over, every movement is intentional.  There's nothing accidental (aside from a few wardrobe mishaps), there's no flinging.  The grace of a great tango follow is not in her ganchos, or boleos, or sacadas.  The grace of a great tango follow is in a single step.  As far as I'm concerned, all of tango comes down to a single step (but that's a blog for another day).  Watch the way that she reaches for every step.  Want to see an incredible step?  Watch at 3:50.  Then watch it again.  And maybe a third time.  I did.  The steps are so, so very different from Blues or Lindy, but there's no denying their magic here.  Watch for when her legs are straight, and when they're bent.  She makes her legs look super long when she reaches for something, but her turn are tight and powerful when she collects nice and low.  (Makes me feel like a schmuck, but a happy one).

And if you're not ready to analyze movement quality or balance or connection yet, and want to see a lot of cool things?  Watch minute six.  The whole shebang.

Happy watching,
-m.
ps- "The Process" will contine later, but I just couldn't get tango out of my brain for the last few days.  Keep an ear out!
-m again.

I was filling out an online survey recently (no, I didn't win the $10 gift certificate), which asked me if I intended to pursue a higher degree of education, and why.  That's such an awkward question for someone in this line of work.  Dance education is constant.  Every class I teach, every workshop I take, every video I watch, and every choreography I learn furthers my dance education.  None of them, of course, lead to a suffix.  All of this, put in the same five minutes of thought as "what on earth do I blog about next?" convinced me to bare my soul a little, and write about my process so far.

I've come to believe that once follows get past the initial introduction to dancing, they very quickly fall into one of two categories: the dancers and the follows.  Obviously, every follow is both, to some degree.  However, since we tend to have an inclination one way or the other, an intermediate follow is likely to hear, over and over, one of two comments:

1. The follows: "You're doing fine on connection, you follow everything I lead, but I want to see more of YOU in your dancing.  You can start experimenting with styling, start adding to the dance.  Be more spunky, less mousy."  These are the follows who live for connection, and try to be "the perfect follow".  Everything that's led gets followed, but the idea of "just do what you feel" simply doesn't apply to musicality.

2. The dancers: "You really know how to move your body, and your stylings/solo movement/movement-quality are great, but you need to tune into your leader more.  You've got a lot of spunk, but you're limiting your what your partner can lead you through."  These are the follows who rock the daylights out of solo jazz comps, and who have the coolest embellishments, but musicality sometimes comes first, at the expense of the partnership.

Every follower has some aspects of each, and the idea is to pursue balance between them- a well-rounded follow, while still inclined to be one or the other, should be able to tap into both skill sets (an introvert needs to be able to communicate verbally, and an extrovert needs to be able to listen). 

For the first several years of my dancing, I was in hot pursuit of technique perfection, at the expense of everything else but rhythm.  Around 2005, though, I started to change my ideas about following a bit.  For starters, I got told by a lead I admired very much that I was boring.  Ouch.  For another thing, you can only hear the advice above so many times before you decide that while it's not your top priority, or your  strong suit, maybe it's still worth looking into. 

Of course, I'm still pursuing that status of "perfect follow", in a way, but my understanding has changed. For one thing, in order to be able to follow everything that's led on me, I have to know how to move my body in a lot of ways; solo jazz isn't an intuitive movement style to follow if you've only done swingouts.  Additionally, I once believed that at the right "heaviness" and the right ratio of savoy/hollywood, I'd hit the jackpot, and be perfect.  Turns out, the key to being a better follow is not finding the right answer, but recognizing that there is no right answer.  The perfect follow has to embrace the zen ideal of knowing nothing.  The right answer is not a way of dancing; it's versatility (that blew my mind in the summer of 2005). 

As if it wasn't enough that I had to know all forms of movement and attain zen enlightenment, during my first time at Herrang, I watched the difference between the AdvancedI follows and the AdvancedII follows, and noticed that both groups could follow everything, but the AdvancedI follows made it look good.  I realized that the well-rounded follow has to also be a dancer.  In the words of the wise Amy B, immerepher.  So now, I have to have musicality, good movement quality, awesome embellishments, know all forms of movement, and attain zen enlightenment...

Would you like fries with that?

And an answer to world hunger, for that matter?

------------------------
That's going to be all for this installment- you've read a lot for one day.  Go check out a webcomic, relax your brain, and come back tomorrow.  I recommend XKCD.com.

Peace, love, swingouts, and zen,
-m.

I grew up in a house full of music.  My dad was a choir director/music director/composer/arranger; my mom sings in his choirs; family gatherings and social parties always wound up around the piano, with Carly Simon or Billy Joel being channeled through 15 questionably sober choir members.  I know a lot about how the politics of churches work, the dangers of working in a school system, and the fun and drama of choir tours.  However, staying with Carsie and Jon the last few weeks has given me a lot of insight into how the other side of music works- the singer/songwriter/recording artist side. 

In case you're not familiar with Carsie's music, you simply must check her out.  No, really- she hasn't bribed me to put this up.  She's one of my favorite artists.  I can't possibly top this review, and I agree with all of it, so I'm going to share what David Wannop says: "She has the cleverness of a thousand magic nymphs, word play that skips and jumps through meaning and a sunny disposition that isn't too wistful, thus allowing her to still make the occasional serious comment. Always engaging, her folk and blues mixture conveys a sense of adventure, led by the smart girl one grade ahead of us in school."  Normally I'd try to be witty, but he says it better.  Go, now!  Listen to her stuff!  Then come back for the rest of the blog.

Carsie Blanton's Website
Carsie Blanton's Myspace

Glad you came back!  Now that you know how clever and charming she is, you'll be thrilled to realize that she's working on a new album.  But, aside from the grueling process of actually making a record, she's struggling with another process: naming the record.  So, here's where you (and I) come in.  Listen to her songs (again, because I know you already did), and envision yourself walking into a CD store.  You go to the section labeled "Awesome", and find Carsie's section.  You see a host of CD's before you:

Buoy
Brighter than a Buoy
Gutsy and Smart
The World is Just Grand
Love is the Antidote

Which one would you be most likely to buy? 

Poll Time!

So, now that I've scratched your back, with exposure to one of the world's wittiest lyricists, and you've scratched my back, by chiming in and helping out Carsie, we can all sign off, itch free.

That was sort of gross, wasn't it?

-m.

It's true.  I'm now a sole-less wretch, lost and staggering.

My shoe had been in need of repairs for a while, and while at Boston Tea Party, it finally bit the dust (and me).  I'm no longer limping from the incident, but I'm afraid my shoe will never be the same.  And while I swear by Aris Allen shoes, what I'm swearing now (after swearing and hobbling around the hotel for a day) is that I don't have $40 plus shipping to spend on another pair of shoes.  So the hunt begins.

Source one: online shopping.

First stop: dancestore.com.  For the first time ever, I'm displeased to announce that my feet, at a size 8.5, are too small.  If I were a 9.5, my shoes would have been $30, and already ordered, making this a much shorter blog.  However, a size 8.5 is not on sale, and not in my budget.  On to the next site.

Second stop: ebay.  Turns out, my feet aren't the only thing lacking: I don't have the guts for online shopping.  I eyed a few pairs of candidates, but I couldn't go through with it, not without knowing for sure that they'd fit. 

Source two: the real world.

First stop: Target.  Come to find out, the current trend does not involve sneakers.  Those fancy flat slipons with no padding are all the rage.  And while rage is a bit strong to describe my feelings about them, annoyance does just right.  But ho! (No, not you, ma'am.)  What have we here, but several pairs of white canvas sneakers.  And, for the second time in my day/life, I bemoan my not-size-9.5 feet.  Although in this case, being a size 7 would have sufficed as well.

So I'm stil here, without a sole, waiting for some cobbler to come and save the day.  And by cobbler, I don't mean something filled with berries, although that would improve my day as well, come to think of it.  So cobbler or cobbler, or just a shoe that fits, I'm here, signing off.

-m.

Competitions have always had a special place in my heart... right next to winning a million dollars at the expense of a non-profit, or saving a baby's life at the cost of a puppy's.  All of which is to say, I've had terrifically mixed feelings about them. 

Part of my relationship with competitions stems from my perspective on them: unlike many of the dancers at my level, I've never been an AND. What's an AND, besides an overcapitalized conjunction?  Well, there's MichaelANDJaya, there's StevenANDVirginie, there's MaxANDAnnie.  Or maybe the problem is I'm part of too many AND's.  MikeANDReuel/Dave/Jeff/Cid/Michael/Sosh/Jon.  Now don't get me wrong- I still furrow my brows mightily when a dancer says to me, "I can't really improve... if only I had a partner!"  You can become an excellent social dancer and instructor without being an AND- look at Sylvia Sykes.  There remains, however, a specialization that requires an AND: choreography.  This includes aerials, strictly comps, showcases, and anything that isn't totally led and followed.  And while Jack and Jills are totally open to us AND-less folks (OR's, perhaps?), the majority of competition strongly favors partnerships.  So my perspective on competitons is a bit snowy, shall we say.

My other issue with competitions is their result.  Competitions are top-notch for inspiring the greatest number of dancers: the ULHS 2006 fast comp has 1.6million Youtube views- that's more than some of Bo Burnham's videos.  There's nothing like screaming along with 400 of your friends while 10 brilliant athletes swing out at 250bpm.  Competitions challenge us, make us push ourselves further, create friendly rivalries that drive our dance towards better. 

The danger, I think, is only when we take competitions out of perspective.  When we view the best competitors as the best dancers, decide that competition-winning and teaching are the same skill set.  There are few out there, I think, who would believe that the winners of the "best social dancer" categories are by nature the best to put into a competitive setting.  In some cases, they are.  But social feel good doesn't always translate into looking like a badass.  Both sets of skills should are, in my mind, equally valuable to the dance culture as a whole, and need to be recognized as different skill sets.  Teaching, then, is yet a third skill set.  In order to be a decent dance teacher, of course, you have to be knowledgable about the dance, but being a better dance in no way makes a better teacher, without the accompanying ability to communicate. 

So I'll be pondering just what the value and proper place of competitions are... right after I go watch some ULHS videos.  Be right back...