The third 3 Elements session took place on 14th December 2015.

There was no recording during this session. 

It followed the format of a discussion after each element.

I will say a little of how I felt each element went, and will ask the other group members to add how they felt during / about the session.

I was really eager to be immersed in the first element - to sink into the floor. I moved gently, rolling and rocking, finding various body parts connecting with my breathing... to my diaphragm. 

In the second element, i was pleasantly surprised by how well it went. We were testing a new way of doing this element - we went in round robins, which increased in duration. It was wonderful to witness people's new and developing movements. 

In the 3rd element, we listened to recorded music. I was aware how this affected the flow of connections; especially when Love Man by Otis Redding came on. There was a lovely moment of laughter and going with the flow. During this element I felt there was a wealth of experimentation in how people connected, utilising different heights and how we gave and supported weight.   

The second session of 3 Elements of Difference took place on 17th August 2015.

The group did some writing about the 3 Elements:

Element one

"Breathing, noises, awareness of room... focus back on my body."

"Taking time, shake it off. Hold pose, feel a strain
Release, release, release
the strain - a different kind.
It's okay, you're tired.
Gently rolling shoulders
Release - find tension - release - find tension
let it be - tension - let it be"

Element three 

“The presence of [recorded] music was interesting – it took me a long time to stop moving with the obvious beat, and make/find my own beat around and within it. Once I had, I felt much more comfortable. Attempting contact of initially just fingers, then arms, then the back, felt much more fun and less pressured than I have previously found it. I still move quite slowly though :)

"Projections - reflections.
Playing
Get swept into - rhythm in space"

"Sway.
Separate feet - moving in time
Uncertainty
Right hand still holds
Brevity
Change"

"It's the same as talking to someone for the 1st/20th/1000th time
- You're possibly testing new ground
- You're testing familiar
- You're trusting to be experimental 
Diving in at the deep end"




We also did some drawings:-

The first 3 Elements session took place on 18th May 2015 at a Decoda Ground Work session - http://www.decoda-uk.org/ground-work/. In this session the group members did some writing about the first 2 Elements. We were joined by live musicans.

Element one

“noticing, finding.  Its interesting to touch, to feel, to find.  I am aware.  I know that there are places I haven’t been to in a while.

New sensations well borrowed from another time.

Wanting to feel something.  Now feel something.

Pushing, stretching shake reach extremes feel good.  Needing the extremes losing control.  There has been too much control

Noticing my flexible shoulders again.  Playing, looking

I don’t want to sit too close to the mirror.  If you don’t look into my eyes then it’s not real so it’s OK.

My heels are connected to my sits bones.

Move

Move

Shake

 I am more anxious about my mind’s journey.  My thoughts desires stream of consciousness is out of control.  I follow my mind and challenge it.

Limits, extremes at push

Grasp

Elbows too

Pat, hit feeling the sound of slaps.

 Suddenly the bass sound of the bass clarinet perfectly sums up my feelings.

Thank you body.”

“In the first element I felt looking in the mirror wasn’t always difficult (I kind of find looking in a mirror difficult in general, and know that dancers use the mirror as a tool) I wanted to look at and explore the soles of my feet and how different they are to each other.

Sometimes it was difficult to be aware of just one body part…  I noticed how much I use my knees.  I became acutely aware of the differences in each side of my back.  I found myself wanting to do moves that need more practice.  Though I did go with the flow…  In my case hips and toes

Sometimes I got tired.  So tried to go back to my feet. 

I wanted to explore the different movements of my stomach, chest and hips as rolling motions.  I found that if I was lower to gravity, with one knee bent, it was easier to keep my right heel on the floor.”

“Different positioning, finding different sensations – difference and changes in where the weight was pouring.  A sense of finding lightness from this pouring in other areas of the body. 

An enabling of release

Heavy and light

Support from the floor

Could only notice elements of difference if I really slowed down, tuned in and listened to a specific body part.

Really had to engage with the internal in order to find this”

“I found it very difficult to experience parts of my body that hadn’t experienced some kind of pain or discomfort in the past.  Joints where I had previously experienced pain were familiar - even if I hadn’t thought about them for many years –but things like toes I was aware of as present logically, I found it hard to have any awareness of.  Stretching various parts could bring discomfort became the means by which I was able to register and concentrate on them.  I forgot about my lungs, and then regretted their omission.

When we started moving, I was very conscious critically of shifting the weight of my body on the floor, which was a wonderful and novel feeling, but I tended to forget the more time I spent moving.  I only started looking in the mirror at the end, which was interesting.  My overall tendency throughout was to move from one pose or position to another.  Focusing more on the movement between (the dance) would be something I would like to try to do more of in future.”

Element two

"Solo surrounded by group

So limited in what we can do

Music seemed to help this time – did not feel anxious – starting (being the first focal dancer) might help

In group, forgot – felt more like solo outside wondered how to copy – take a quality rather than doing the same movement.

Different qualities for everyone

What is the movement and feeling the movement

Seeing/doing/watching the movement?  Freely"

"In the second element, I was interested to explore group cohesion. 

My tiredness levels were quite high when I was the last focal dancer.

I could tell that this was different for the other people dancing, and there was enjoyment.

It was interesting to experience how music was affected by movement, as well as the other way around

The music offered really nice pauses and stilted movements.  
Some people didn’t really go with the focal dancer.  [or is this about interpretation?? ] others did and there was a clear sense of circle and focal dancer.  I was interested to find that I was thinking that to follow was a kind of copying

There wasn’t too much movement around the space (we pretty much kept in a circle), which may have created different scenarios for the group to move as a whole."  

"Move with energy that changes and arises

Negotiated through group as opposed to when roles have already been decided.

A settling into something when I don’t know what is going to happen next --> allowing the energy to take the body as opposed to attempting body to find the energy."

“element two: an exercise in playing with individual dancers movements, and at the same time in sympathy with the other dancers.  Attempting to it interpret the dancers sense of direction and flow.  For me a wonderful exercise in empathy.  Just wonderful to experience such inventive dancing.  It was hard to keep up with such inventiveness."

There have been 3 sessions of the dance activity: 

3 Elements of Difference : rates and thresholds of intensity...

The sessions have taken place at Groundwork, which is a monthly space where people bring dance ideas to try out. It is a wonderful experimental platform hosted by Decoda at Coventry University.

In each of the 3 Element sessions there has been different group members and the activities through the 3 Elements have been developed, whilst maintaining experimentation and fluidity.

The next '3 Elements of Difference' session will be on Monday 21st March 2016 between 6-9pm (more info to follow)