Knowledge - The Urban Dance Dictionary E-Book

Sezai Coban

• Herausgeber: mach-mir-ein-ebook.de
• Kategorie: Lebensstil
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2018

Seitenzahl: 105

Beschreibung

Completely revised edition 2018 What’s a ‘Swipe, Downrock or Scribble Foot’? Who was Rubberband Man and what did he contribute to the ‘Uprocking’ form of Urban Dance? From the outside looking in, Urban Dance and culture can seem like a big mystery, but the only thing you need to know to unlock the mystery is KNOWLEDGE. KNOWLEDGE: The Urban Dance Dictionary is packed full of explanations, definitions, background information and tips to help bring the unattainable down to ground level and help you to understand what Urban Dance is really all about. KNOWLEDGE is a compilation designed for teachers and students of urban dance. Whether you’re just starting your Urban Dance journey, or already know a whole lot of moves but don’t really know where they all came from, KNOWLEDGE: The Urban Dance Dictionary is for you. Don’t just learn the steps, learn what lies behind them. Here’s the KNOWLEDGE!

Leseprobe

‘WHEREVER A DANCER STANDS READY, THAT SPOT IS HOLY GROUND.’

– MARTHA GRAHAM –

Click Here to watch the Introductory Video!

(Subtitles in all Languages.)

REMARK

All information in this book was diligently developed and compiled by the author. All the same, mistakes cannot be ruled out. For the notification of possible mistakes the author is thankful any time. Commercial use is only possible with the consent of the author. No reproduction without permission. All rights reserved! The author does not assume liability for errors contained in damages arising from the use of the book. © 2013 Sezai Coban

ISBN

978-3-944309-23-1

CONTENT

Sezai Coban

CONTENT-ASSISTENTS

Gianni Esposito & Mike Saretzki

COVER

Tanzer Caylak

PICTURES

Sezai Coban, Fabian Kimoto, Fikri Gören Art & Design: Sezai Coban / Fabian Kimoto Translation: Sezai Coban / Franz Kortmann / Nicholas Gordon

ARTWORK & LAYOUT

Freaky design & Art – by ti-dablju-styles Thomas Wiesenwww.ti-dablju-styles.defreakystreetwear.spreadshirt.de

COVER ILLUSTRATION

Marc Robitzky

EBOOK PRODUCTION

mach-mir-ein-ebook.de

Contents

The Intro

Top Rocking / Rocking

History of Uprocking

Footwork Fundamentals

Powermoves

Backgroundknowledge

Campbell Lock/Locking

Backgroundknowledge

Popping

Backgroundknowledge

Hip Hop (Freestyle)

Backgroundknowledge

House

Backgroundknowledge

Bonus: Tricking / XMA (–No Dance–)

Backgroundknowledge

Organization & Music

Excercises

Influences

Hip Hop Slang – Dictionary

Internet Shortcuts

Outro

Sources

Q’S & A’S

‘Heyyyyy! Let’s kick a round of six-step then move over to this, combine it with that and then that style I always do! Then after we’ll do this here and then everybody does this freeze. OK!’

‘Listen bro, I’ve seen so many other b-boys doing that exact same style!! How’s it gonna be if we kick the same thing? They gonna say we’re biters. Better if we do my style. It’s totally easy. Wait a second, I’ll show you!’

‘Yeah, ok. Let’s do that now and after we’ll have to think about what we do next! It might be some time before we have another show!’

This is how the conversation went at show training not long ago. Today it sounds more like this:

‘Now a round of six-step in bellyroll-up. Kick-out into extended pretzel then kick-out into chair! Top rock choreo – we’ll do a new one too!!’

‘Got it?! So let’s staaaaaart! In two days the show has to be perfect!’

It was the above-mentioned situation made me think about making a collection of complete basics/foundations that I had learned and to make a collection of background knowledge connected with it. I realized that I could use the knowledge I had learned. That I could teach it to people and that they could pass it on to others.

In 1995, the beauty, complexity and creativity of b-boying, popping and locking put me under its spell! Even now, my fascination with this art continues. In the beginning we only knew a handful of basics such as the six-step and the kick-outs. The names of the powermoves were better known and easier to get to know: windmill, head-spin, flares and turtle. That’s why most of us were more occupied with powermoves in the beginning. We knew what they had to look like and what they were called! Footwork, popping and locking were simply more complex and not so easy for us to understand at the time. There were also a lot of moves that we just didn’t do because we didn’t want to be branded as ‘imitators’. So for years we basically ended up teaching ourselves. We trained according to our own ideas and basics, which were inspired by a diverse range of dancers, artists, combative athletes and others. We tried to create and adapt a flow of our own.

Over the years we learned more and more basics. We learned from experienced dancers who we met at jams, battles and other events, or from videos which had been copied about 50 times before we got hold of them. Still a lot of basics/moves remained out of our reach! We made slower progress than many dancers today because we had to travel a lot in order to make contacts and to collect information. We also accepted having to sleep at train stations because the last train went too early and the first train went too late!

Today it’s easier and most of this knowledge can be gained from the internet! The basics/foundations are not only a collection of movements, but also the means for passing on a part of a culture!

The Hip Hop culture! Hmmmm … But what is Hip Hop? Some lyrics from the Krs-One & Marley Marl track ‘Hip Hop Lives’ (I Come Back) come to mind. It goes like this:

Hip means to know

It’s a form of intelligence

To be hip is to be up-date and relevant

Hop is a form of movement

You can’t just observe a hop

You got to hop up and do it

Hip and Hop is more than music

Hip is the knowledge

Hop is the movement

Hip and Hop is intelligent movement!

We only attain wisdom when we decide to listen and to learn and, for this reason, every voice should have the right to be heard!

In the song ‘Peace, Unity, Love & Having Fun’ by Afrika Bambaata and James Brown they sing: ‘What we need … is KNOWLEDGE wisdom!’

The human ability to learn and apply movements or things like languages and mathematics is nothing less than an outstanding intellectual achievement. It’s independent of things like origin, educational, culture, social class or ethnicity. Every human has a desire for artistic expression, whether through language, music, painting, clothing, dancing or other means. The number of possible movement sequences and the possibilities for expression connected with them are infinite. This is attributable to the infinite possibilities for combining individual movements.

Let’s think of powermoves, of the infinite number of possible combinations with windmill/(continuous backspin), which can be attained by continuous combinations with other moves.

Windmill into Turtle …

Windmill into Headspin …

Windmill – Flare – Windmill …

Windmill – Track …

Windmill into ‘9t’ …

Etc., etc., etc. …

We don’t all have to look the same when we dance. We aren’t machines; we’re humans with individual characteristics. When we dance we should have fun and enjoy it. It’s important to dance to the music and to recognize and utilize accents in the music to help us ‘come out of our shells’.

We’ve seen a lot of dancers and a lot of very, very good dancers, who gave up dancing for various reasons such as social pressure or financial reasons. These dancers saw only limited or very few opportunities for them to support their existence.

In other countries such as France, the US and Denmark it isn’t necessarily easier, but just different. You can find a greater degree of acceptance and tolerance. For instance, in the US it’s possible to climb up the professional ladder from a dishwasher to a millionaire; in Germany it’s more a question of where you got your certificate. Not every dancer is cut out to be a dance teacher. You need much more than knowledge of the basics. A good dance teacher needs the right methods, techniques, approach and above all, a lot of patience and discipline. In recent years many things have changed and have been achieved! The scene has developed enormously. It has grown faster than anyone could have predicted and this has brought with it many new opportunities. Dancers have succeeded in getting away from their practice rooms. They’ve been able to make a job out of their hobby and to earn a decent living from it. Dancers have found jobs in diverse stage shows, in theatres, as street artists, in Cirque de Soleil as dancing teachers, through culture and social work, as advertising representatives for diverse brands, as organizers of new dancing events and also through videogames. The list goes on and on. The times have certainly changed!

Most people live in a world of artificially defined limits. B-boys saw some of these limits and saw in them an opportunity to break through and explore something new.

Just one example: More than ten rounds of ‘9t’ (rotation on one hand while in a handstand) with only one push; in the 90s, few would have thought this possible! Today there are some dancers who do 20 rounds with only one push!

This is only one of many outstanding examples in the scene and for me also one of the current confirmations of the fact that we live in a world where anything is possible. ANYTHING!

THE ORIGINAL TOP ROCKS

BOIYOING

OUTLAW STYLE

OUTLAW ROCK

OUTLAW LATIN ROCK

INDIAN CROSS

INDIAN PLAYING

RUMBA

RUMBA HOP

SPANISH HUSTLE

THE CHARLY ROCK

BASICS ROCKIN

STEP OUT (DOUBLE)

INDIAN

HEAL TOE SALSA

MAMBO STEP

SALSA GRAPEVINE

BREAK EASY STEP (SLIDECROSS)

DYNASTY STEP

SLAP ROUTINE

UPROCKING/JERKS

STEP OUT

SIDE TO SIDE

HALF JERK (USE HIPS)

FULL JERK (SPIN)

JUST BEGUN

DYNASTY BUSHWICK STYLE

BROOKLYN ROCK (PUNCHING / CUTTING / SHOOTING)

Those are the first Toprocks/Uprocks, now there are many more variations and there is no number to tell how many they are!

HISTORY OF UPROCK

Bushwick, Brooklyn, circa 1967-1968

Throughout the mid-60s and mid-70s Brooklyn was home to many street gangs. Rubberband Man and Apache were all too familiar with these violent times, they grew up in the Bushwick area. They often hung around with the Devil Rebels and other local Brooklyn Gangs. Although they socialized within a dangerous circle of friends, getting into trouble was not their ultimate goal. They loved to dance; mainly to Soul and Funk music, and wanted to channel their energy and skill towards something new-so they created a new dance form called ‘Rocking’.