My 100th post... :)
I'm getting better at watching dancers and identifying faults, weaknesses, and things to work on. To be a good teacher you have to be part-adjudicator, because you need to see things through an ADCRG's eyes. You have to train yourself to spot tiny little errors and small flashes of brilliance that poke through a full performance and could mean an extra 0.5 marks here, minus 0.25 marks there. It could be the difference between qualifying or not. I'm starting to be able to work out why dancers have these faults and where they come from. Why does she go off time there? Oh, because she leans back a touch which alters her trebling position. I feel like I could make constructive criticism.
I've also seen proof that the position of the adjudicator can have a huge effect on your mark. When people say "maybe judge A missed something that the others didn't", a lot of people think that must be just an excuse for an inconsistent set of marks. But if you watch a small competition you really learn how true it is - if you dance steps weakly on your right foot in front of the adjudicator on the right, then there's no escape - but even in your set, when you're alone on stage, it might not come across to the middle adjudicator and most likely won't to the left adjudicator.
There's no way I can express how much my enthusiasm for dancing spikes after just an hour or so at a feis. I've been down on myself and mostly negative this year since the Worlds, and it's because I haven't been to a feis since the Worlds! I must make sure I'm never too busy to go along again. The inspiration from the steps, the things you can learn just by watching - even if I stick with steps that were fashionable back when I was competing, watching more dancers is only going to helpful both for the TCRG exam, where I have to find faults to correct in a stranger's dancing, and in the long run. There are no more competitions anywhere near me for the rest of the year but come January, my car will become the Feis Mobile and I shall honk because I love Irish dancing.
Wednesday, 30 November 2011
Monday, 21 November 2011
This weekend I have...
- Written out the first five ceilis from Book One and not made too many horrendous mistakes. Just little gaffes here and there.
- Come up with some ideas for steps.
- Learnt the step for Jockey.
- Realised I don't need Jockey unless I fail the dancing exam and end up retaking in 2013.
- Thought I might just as well learn the three extra sets because nobody ever seems to do them at competitions so my hypothetical dancers would stand out, and also because I started this huge endeavour because I simply thought I *should* know the ceilis and the sets.
- Come home from dancing with my toes in one piece.
Score.
- Come up with some ideas for steps.
- Learnt the step for Jockey.
- Realised I don't need Jockey unless I fail the dancing exam and end up retaking in 2013.
- Thought I might just as well learn the three extra sets because nobody ever seems to do them at competitions so my hypothetical dancers would stand out, and also because I started this huge endeavour because I simply thought I *should* know the ceilis and the sets.
- Come home from dancing with my toes in one piece.
Score.
Wednesday, 16 November 2011
Actual revision schedule
Since designing my Revision Schedule way back in September I erm, didn't revise. BUT I am now, and I've paid 50 boys into my TCRG exam savings account as well.
Last night I wrote out the formations, movement names and bars for every dance in the book. Having not looked at the book for a few months I was worried about this, but amazingly my brain does hold onto these ceilis remarkably well. Here were my mistakes.
Book One -
- Started writing out the body of the High Cauled Cap when I should have been doing the Eight Hand Reel, but quickly corrected myself before I finished
- Called the movement Hands Round by the wrong name in the Sixteen Hand Reel
- In the Harvest Time Jig, called Right Hands Across and Left Hands Across "Right and Left Hands Across" etc.
No massive disasters, unlike in...
Book Two -
- Rince Fada - called the last movement Swing Out when it's Dance Around
- After what felt like hours of agonising I finally remembered that Hook and Chain was the movement I'd forgotten. Great, but I wrote it in the wrong place and flipped it with See Saw.
- The disaster that was Trip to the Cottage. I forgot the body. Yes, you read that correctly. Clean forgot it, and got the number of bars wrong for Cross Over and Lead Around AND both the figures. Dreadful.
Book Three -
- Was trying to write out the dances in book order and failed at this point
- Got the wrong number of bars for a few movements here and there
- Referred to R&L Hands Across etc as "wheels" in Waves of Tory, and missed off The Waves! I know!
- Mixed up the ending of Rakes and Gates - Rakes is Swing Out and Gates is Swing Around. Way to remember this - in Gates you swing around one couple and then dance again with them (albeit in their position). In Rakes you swing out to meet a new couple.
Not totally awful but one or two shockers in there. The next mission, and I do choose to accept it, is to write out every dance in FULL and that's obviously going to take me more than one night. I'll aim to do it over the next fortnight and thinking about it, will probably review a book at a time. Write out, mark, watch videos to refresh. Once I've completed each book I'll revisit some past papers and try and recapture my 90%-ish average mark!
Last night I wrote out the formations, movement names and bars for every dance in the book. Having not looked at the book for a few months I was worried about this, but amazingly my brain does hold onto these ceilis remarkably well. Here were my mistakes.
Book One -
- Started writing out the body of the High Cauled Cap when I should have been doing the Eight Hand Reel, but quickly corrected myself before I finished
- Called the movement Hands Round by the wrong name in the Sixteen Hand Reel
- In the Harvest Time Jig, called Right Hands Across and Left Hands Across "Right and Left Hands Across" etc.
No massive disasters, unlike in...
Book Two -
- Rince Fada - called the last movement Swing Out when it's Dance Around
- After what felt like hours of agonising I finally remembered that Hook and Chain was the movement I'd forgotten. Great, but I wrote it in the wrong place and flipped it with See Saw.
- The disaster that was Trip to the Cottage. I forgot the body. Yes, you read that correctly. Clean forgot it, and got the number of bars wrong for Cross Over and Lead Around AND both the figures. Dreadful.
Book Three -
- Was trying to write out the dances in book order and failed at this point
- Got the wrong number of bars for a few movements here and there
- Referred to R&L Hands Across etc as "wheels" in Waves of Tory, and missed off The Waves! I know!
- Mixed up the ending of Rakes and Gates - Rakes is Swing Out and Gates is Swing Around. Way to remember this - in Gates you swing around one couple and then dance again with them (albeit in their position). In Rakes you swing out to meet a new couple.
Not totally awful but one or two shockers in there. The next mission, and I do choose to accept it, is to write out every dance in FULL and that's obviously going to take me more than one night. I'll aim to do it over the next fortnight and thinking about it, will probably review a book at a time. Write out, mark, watch videos to refresh. Once I've completed each book I'll revisit some past papers and try and recapture my 90%-ish average mark!
Tuesday, 8 November 2011
Applying.
I'm going to take my forms in to class next week and ask my teacher to sign me off. Then I'm going to send them into the office and I'll officially be a candidate. For which exam? Depends what my teacher says. I'm going to ask if I can start attending her solo classes to prepare because I just can't do it on my own - and her steps are so beautiful, I desperately want to be able to do them. But I want to apply for May and I don't think I'll be ready by then. Perhaps I'll show her my own steps and get her appraisal of how ready I can get before then. Either way. Taking the plunge and applying for something before the month is out.
Wednesday, 21 September 2011
Revision schedule
I know, I know. I only ever do the booksmarts. But I'm really quite enthusiastic about doing the TMRF, in as few as 8 months if at all possible (ie if there is a May exam in Britain/Ireland and if it hasn't filled up yet). So I might just as well revise.
Tonight I'm going to concentrate on my workouts - more and more I'm learning that everything in the body is linked, and my physio has given me some core and glutes routines to do which will help support my knees and ankles, and in turn put less pressure on my arches. So I'm going to give that a real concerted effort tonight because the sooner I get into the swing of it then the sooner I'll see the benefits and hopefully we'll be starting to do some solo soon at class (meaning a second class per week, I hope).
On Thursday evening I plan to write out all the basic ceili information - so, name of dance, formation, music type and tune if appropriate, list the movement names including repeats, the duration of each movement and of the whole dance. Then I'm going to start at the beginning and write them out in full, and I shall do at least one per day until I'm through the entire book. Hopefully there won't be too many mistakes - if there are I'll try those ones again, and finally when I'm happy I'll start doing some practice exams as well.
If I feel like a need a break from ceili I pledge to put my iPod on a do a music quiz (not on the TMRF but it doesn't hurt to refresh) rather than playing games or whatever.
You know, I'm still not sure whether I want to be a teacher, not with my very own school anyway. I'm very much a follower, not a leader. Perhaps I could join someone else's school, if they'd have me, and do exactly what they told me to do. But in any case I really, really, really want these qualifications. I would like to run a feis and help out at other people's. I would like dancing to be a bigger part of my life. Not with any lofty goals of producing 6 World Champs every year (I don't know how they do it, amazing). But just because I love it, and for no other reason.
Tonight I'm going to concentrate on my workouts - more and more I'm learning that everything in the body is linked, and my physio has given me some core and glutes routines to do which will help support my knees and ankles, and in turn put less pressure on my arches. So I'm going to give that a real concerted effort tonight because the sooner I get into the swing of it then the sooner I'll see the benefits and hopefully we'll be starting to do some solo soon at class (meaning a second class per week, I hope).
On Thursday evening I plan to write out all the basic ceili information - so, name of dance, formation, music type and tune if appropriate, list the movement names including repeats, the duration of each movement and of the whole dance. Then I'm going to start at the beginning and write them out in full, and I shall do at least one per day until I'm through the entire book. Hopefully there won't be too many mistakes - if there are I'll try those ones again, and finally when I'm happy I'll start doing some practice exams as well.
If I feel like a need a break from ceili I pledge to put my iPod on a do a music quiz (not on the TMRF but it doesn't hurt to refresh) rather than playing games or whatever.
You know, I'm still not sure whether I want to be a teacher, not with my very own school anyway. I'm very much a follower, not a leader. Perhaps I could join someone else's school, if they'd have me, and do exactly what they told me to do. But in any case I really, really, really want these qualifications. I would like to run a feis and help out at other people's. I would like dancing to be a bigger part of my life. Not with any lofty goals of producing 6 World Champs every year (I don't know how they do it, amazing). But just because I love it, and for no other reason.
Tuesday, 20 September 2011
Still here, still dancing
I think I actually forgot about this blog for a while. Somebody just emailed me and told me to look at it - I don't think I told them it's mine. Haha.
Where are we up to? I still go dancing once a week and I'm still having physio which is quite intensive at times. It's only now beginning to dawn on me that really I'm stuck with these exercises for the rest of my life - quite naively I thought that I will do them until I got better, and then I would be better, so I wouldn't need to do them. I don't think it works like that, does it? I need to do them forever, or at least for as long as I want to dance.
We had a little summer break for a couple of weeks as most schools do so I didn't dance at all, literally, for six weeks. I had physio during that time and I do think slight improvements have been made, but I haven't touched music, written, trad sets or own dancing for years. I still remember everything - we've recently taught the Fairy Reel and all the figures of the Cap and I could do them book-free - I just haven't done anything with it for a while.
I need to do solos. I still think I might do the TMRF first just to achieve something even though it's a waste. In fact I might even put in for May next year, why not? I know everything I need to know. And it would finally put paid to the stupid idea I have every now and then, of doing "one last competition". But I DO need to do solos. Especially now the trad sets have been increased. I will do the TCRG one day, I just wish I'd done it when I was 20. Real life is totally in my way.
Where are we up to? I still go dancing once a week and I'm still having physio which is quite intensive at times. It's only now beginning to dawn on me that really I'm stuck with these exercises for the rest of my life - quite naively I thought that I will do them until I got better, and then I would be better, so I wouldn't need to do them. I don't think it works like that, does it? I need to do them forever, or at least for as long as I want to dance.
We had a little summer break for a couple of weeks as most schools do so I didn't dance at all, literally, for six weeks. I had physio during that time and I do think slight improvements have been made, but I haven't touched music, written, trad sets or own dancing for years. I still remember everything - we've recently taught the Fairy Reel and all the figures of the Cap and I could do them book-free - I just haven't done anything with it for a while.
I need to do solos. I still think I might do the TMRF first just to achieve something even though it's a waste. In fact I might even put in for May next year, why not? I know everything I need to know. And it would finally put paid to the stupid idea I have every now and then, of doing "one last competition". But I DO need to do solos. Especially now the trad sets have been increased. I will do the TCRG one day, I just wish I'd done it when I was 20. Real life is totally in my way.
Wednesday, 3 August 2011
Jean Day Two
This is the main menu for the Jean Butler Masterclass. As you can see it's mainly light shoe on the left and hard shoe on the right, so I'm mainly on the left side to begin with. I admit I didn't bother with the warm up although I did do my physio exercises instead, then did everything but jump work as I'm upstairs. The balancing toe work had my arches really sore which I'm hoping is a good thing. Leg work is working my quads as well, might do a few squats after I've signed off just to reinforce. In fact yes, I will.
Tuesday, 2 August 2011
A month with Jean
I bought this dvd when it first came out but it's been languishing on the shelf. I recently saw a link to it on YouTube and thought I might just as well give it a watch, and then I learned that some of the exercises are the same as my physio has me doing, so I thought I might just as well give it a go. For a month, not everyday, but alongside my other physio exercises to see how it helps. I've got two weeks before my next dance class so hopefully when I go back I will see a difference already.
I'm limited on space due to home improvements at the moment so I'm just focusing on the light shoe stuff that I can do on the spot. Yesterday, the first day of the month, I did the balance work plus my physio's arch and ankle exercises. Today I worked through more of Jean's - from memory; balance work, point work, point pull back etc, hop and kick out, and leg work. I forget some of the correct names, I'll try and do a screen grab tomorrow.
I definitely "felt it" in my arches both days, and in my legs today during the leg work. If you can't feel it it's not doing you any good, so I'm hopeful.
Other things I've done recently: review the first figure of the Four Hand Reel, and quiz myself a few times on music. I keep getting the Piper wrong even though, when I know I'm listening to the Piper, I really like the music! Often I'll write something else first and then realise it's the Piper so it's not all bad, but I would really like full marks in this section and who knows what nerves will do so I need to get it first time. It's short enough to put on my dance list so I will do. I've got 100% a couple of times, a few 98%s. Quite happy.
Saturday, 23 July 2011
1994
Spent a good portion of the day watching the 1994 Worlds DVD. It's definitely coming back to me. It's just hard when you're on your own - I love my ceili class and they're a really lovely bunch of people, so friendly and fun, but it's solo I struggle with and I don't have anybody to help me with that. So you fall out of the routine and then you lose the motivation to get back into it and then you start doubting yourself. But as always, when I start watching dancing again I remember why it will never leave me for good.
Friday, 22 July 2011
Book Three revision
I'm actually more astounded by the fact that I nearly got all these in the right order, than the fact that I got them nearly all right. I can't believe I've remembered everything. I'm clearly meant to do this exam. If I wasn't, and if I didn't genuinely love and care about dancing, I would never have remembered 30 fiddly ceilis. No pun intended. It's given me a right little lift, this has.
Firstly I got Gates and Rakes the wrong way round but then you're not tested on book order so who cares? And my one mistake was in Gates itself, calling Right and Left Wheels 'Right Hands Across' by mistake. But that was it. It's actually pointless me having posted three separate book updates, or posting at all - I thought I'd have so much to correct, so many mistakes. Wow. Wow wow wow.
BUT let's not get carried away; I do need to know how to actually perform/teach the movements as well as just the names of things. So to revise:
10) Fairy Reel - everything after the second rings, just to be sure
11) Duke Reel - quick refresh throughout
12) Lannigan's Ball - double check on all terminology and positioning
13) Gates of Derry - need to actually sort out the issue of repeats which I have completely ignored up until now but is being discussed on the TCRG Voy.
14) Bonfire Dance - just the Rose, just to be sure.
Happy Friday :)
Firstly I got Gates and Rakes the wrong way round but then you're not tested on book order so who cares? And my one mistake was in Gates itself, calling Right and Left Wheels 'Right Hands Across' by mistake. But that was it. It's actually pointless me having posted three separate book updates, or posting at all - I thought I'd have so much to correct, so many mistakes. Wow. Wow wow wow.
BUT let's not get carried away; I do need to know how to actually perform/teach the movements as well as just the names of things. So to revise:
10) Fairy Reel - everything after the second rings, just to be sure
11) Duke Reel - quick refresh throughout
12) Lannigan's Ball - double check on all terminology and positioning
13) Gates of Derry - need to actually sort out the issue of repeats which I have completely ignored up until now but is being discussed on the TCRG Voy.
14) Bonfire Dance - just the Rose, just to be sure.
Happy Friday :)
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