Engaging Movement
Folk Dance Music of Yi Nationality’s “Ah-Xi Dancing under the Moon” and “Dance to the Three-stringed Chinese Violin”
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Yiyu Zhang
The objects of study in this thesis are “Ah-Xi Dancing under the Moon” and “Dance to the Three-stringed Chinese Violin” which is the traditional dances of Ah-xi and Sani people of the Yi nationality. With the change of times, these two songs have evolved from the marriage dance music to the recreational dance music for the masses of all walks of life. Because the two share similar characteristics of music, dance, and cultural functions, the relationship between them is the focus of this paper. In the past, the research made by scholars was always targeted on either of the two, while the articles on comparative study of the relations between the two were rarely seen. In this paper, I will make a comparative study of the music, dance, and cultural backgrounds of these two songs. The study of relationship between the “Ah-Xi Dancing under the Moon” and “Dance to the Three-stringed Chinese Violin” is aimed is to make further exploration of the issues remained in of the music of Chinese ethnic minorities through the analysis of music forms. Besides, it should be pointed out that the interaction and integration of culture between ethnic groups, branches of ethnic groups are the order of nature in the course of human culture. It is also in compliance with this order of nature that the human culture makes continuous progress and development.
The Choreography of Learning and Artistry of Instructional Design When Teaching through Dance
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Brittany Harker Martin, Barbara Snook, Ralph Buck
In this paper, we explore the tensions and bliss inherent in curriculum delivery through the lens of dance integration. We interweave our shared experiences as dancers, dance educators, and choreographers who all teach through dance. Personal vignettes unveil the intentions and sense-making of creative artists tasked with the duty to “deliver” curriculum. They liken the tensions inherent in prescribed curriculum to those experienced between choreographer and dancer, and share encounters of pedagogical balance and counterbalance, risk and certainty, freestyle & choreography, weightlessness and gravity as it relates to learning design and the duality of meeting ends and unfolding endless possibilities (Aoki, 2005; Roth, 2014). To choreograph emergence is to present encounters where learning is truly alive (Greene 1967). The authors’ question and confront their own disquietude with utilitarian notions of dance as learning tool, and spark a call for the necessity of curricular events that offer the somatic, the subliminal, and the sublime as part of a lived curriculum (Aoki, 2005).
The Beauty from the Cultural Collision between China and the West: A Study of the Buddhist Songs by Master Zhizheng
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session JingYing Xu
Buddhist music is music created for or inspired by Buddhism and used for the explanation of Buddhism and the promotion of Dharma. In ancient China, Buddhist music was widely used in temples for daily Buddhist activities. The traditional Chinese pentatonic scale, which consists of five notes within one octave, is frequently used in many of these songs. Master Zhizheng created 20 pieces of Buddhist songs throughout his life. These songs, bearing the tonality of western music, all originated from his meditation. The lyrics reflected his insights and inspirations.Since his childhood, he has been influenced by Christian culture and Buddhist culture at the same time. In his 11 years of teaching Buddhism, he used music as one of the most important means to spread Buddhism. He often quoted from Beethoven: Music is a higher revelation than all wisdom and philosophy. He regarded music as an important way to practice the Guanyin Method, a method to reach enlightenment through perceiving the sounds of the world. It is a method of spiritual cultivation and practice according to the Buddhist Shurangama Sutra. Besides, Master Zhizheng also used his songs for daily Buddhist ceremonies and activities, such as rituals, funerals and free medical treatment and training.The Buddhist songs by Master Zhizheng differ from the traditional Chinese Buddhist songs in singing forms and application of functions. This is his exploratory attempt to reform Buddhism in response to the "Humanistic Buddhism" philosophy proposed by Master Taixu, a famous Buddhist master in the early 20th century.
