8 Elements of Style： Levels

COURSE: texas-shuffle-with-damon-kelsy-stone

FOCUS: This lesson focuses on using level changes to emphasize musical elements dynamically, covering techniques for lowering the body or using limbs to create visual effects.

TIP & TRICKS:

• Lower your body in space to ground musical phrases, such as when a piano goes down the scale.
• If you can't get low, rise up slightly before going down, but avoid jumping.
• Use your free leg to perform level changes after completing a turn.
• As a leader, change the pitch of your body by bending at the waist instead of moving the entire lower body.
• Set your connection point before bringing your body down and away during a pass.

REMEMBER:

• Level changes are for dramatic effect in the music, not positions to hold while dancing.
• In blues dance, the default posture is shoulders forward, knees bent, and hips out of line.
• Focus on listening for musical cues like phrase changes to time your level changes effectively.
• Ensure that rises are controlled and not jumps to maintain smooth movements.