The class starts with yoga poses to arrive and ground. Awareness is placed on the breath to bring the dancer’s attention to their instrument, setting the tone for a mindful practice as an individual and for the collective. The class continues with technical exercises in the weissmann style, these phrases explore all spatial levels, and a variety of qualities while warming the body from the inside out. The weissmann technique offers the dancer technical challenges, from its inherent roots in modern dance, and encourages an organic, defined flow in which the body can move uninhibitedly through space. Emphasis is placed on the intention of movement and how we direct our energy in time and space, to gravity and our relationship to the floor, and precision in musicality and dynamics.Live music is an essential element, creating a tapestry of melodic, electronic, and percussive sound that supports and inspires the dance.

Improvisation will weave throughout the class to explore some of the weissmann principles. The class is primarily learned material which builds into a final dynamic combination. Here is the opportunity to bridge connections between set material and personal interpretation that expands the dancer’s artistry. This final phase provides a field of exploration where dancers can work more detailed as individuals, as well as celebrate the collective aspect of this art form, through our shared energy as a dance community.

Heidi and Emre have been working together for several years, and are very excited to offer this workshop BECOMING MUSIC to honour the partnership of music and dance.

About Heidi Weiss