What the heck is Modern Dance?!?

Question

i wanna take a dance class and the only recreational onese they offer r jazz, hip hop, or modern. i no wat hip hop is and kinda wat jazz is but have no clue about modern plz describe in detail. also plz describe jzz a little. give ur suggestion of which one u think i should take too! (im 13 w/ no dance experience)

a site link where i could c a video or pics would b good too

Answer 1

Weston is wrong. Modern is not modern at all. So when you hear modern, don't think hip hop or club dancing, because it isn't that at all. Modern is the rebellion of ballet. There are different styles of modern, such as Graham ,Horton, and Limon, which come from the originators of that style. Modern is about testing your limits and going against gravity. There is a lot of flexing of the feet, parallel positions(instead of turned out like ballet) and contractions. It's pretty free flowing and has a technique all of it's own.

This is a video of a modern dance-
http://halloffamedance.com/halloffame/watchvideo.aspx?id=1422

Jazz is NO where like swing. Jazz incorporates the ballet technique, but is also a different technique in it's own. Jazz is usually at a fast pace and includes leaps, turns && jumps.

This is a video of a jazz routine-
http://halloffamedance.com/halloffame/watchvideo.aspx?id=1415

Hopefully that could help you deciede what to take, I can't tell you which one you would like because it depends on your personal preferenance. I personally would do modern or jazz, but it may be a good idea to take a ballet class as well to get the hang of the technique, but if it's just for fun, you really don't need to worry about it.

Answer 2

Modern dance is almost like interpretive dance. It's not like ballet where there's a lot of turning and going up on releve (that means on your toes) and it's not like jazz where there's a lot of jumping around (so to speak). I would suggest you take jazz or hip-hop as modern can be extremely tough with no experience in dancing.

Answer 3

Yes, the music is the main distinguishing feature. Given the beat of the music, the moves that go with it are likely to have a sexier nature to them. This is why wise dance teachers will put a minimum age (like 10) on when children can start studying jazz dance.

Answer 4

Modern is like Contemporary. Its a little of everything: Ballet, Breakdance, Jazz, etc. Its pretty fun but jazz is my favorite. Jazz is very fun and upbeat. You can do turns and sawshays and everything. But if you want to be a very good dancer then I would take ballet.

Answer 5

When I was 13 Modern dance was a combination of free movement and just loosening up to the music. Usually our teacher put a soft free flowing 'record' on and we would have to make a "dance patters" to the music.

Answer 6

Modern is kinda like a collage of everything. It's part break, part balle, part hip-hop, part most anything else you can think of. It's what people do in general clubs, basicaly. Jazz is kind of a type of swing. Least ways, this is how it's been explained to me.

Modern or Jazz are probably the best two.

Answer 7

so many people are wrong on this
modern is like lyrical/contemporary
its kinda like open
and usually with modern ur dancing to tell a story
i sugest u take it
its fun :D

Answer 8

modern is like lyrical which is like VERY emotional ballet

Answer 9

The type of dance you see in music vidoes...go on youtube and type in ciara or beyonce

Answer 10

i dont know... probably crumping