FIELDNOTES DAY 1 2/24/10- BOLLYWOOD dance
-Run into Manj and some of her friends as I walk---relieved because I felt weird about walking in by myself not really knowing everyone for the first time
-She gave a brief intro to some
-Rehearsal is in Ashamu, a big dance studio with mirrors to help them all see the overall formation as they learn and rehearse
-Right from the beginning very clearly a tightknit social group in addition to just dance group…hugs for everyone, asking how the weekend was. It’s Nandu (sp?)’s [This is a nickname Manj call’s her at least] bday
-Some questions from people of what I was doing… “my aunt majored in ethno when she went here! …. Well we’re ethnic…I’m not, but we are”
-Some issues turning on the music at first- lots of loud bursts of noise that people aren’t really noticing
-The dance has clearly been rehearsed for a while already
-The music starts and they dance first in lines, then break into circles and various formation
-Rapid foot movement, seems to be in a dotted rhythm
-The music itself…some “HUH!”s, and a pretty constant beat.
-Sima shouts something I don’t really understand and people get into formation for the next dance
2) Another song is put on, with a beat that’s a little slower but still strong
The whole time I’m taking notes I just keep thinking how cool this all is and how I want the music they’re dancing to, and that I should really go to more Badmaash shows like Manj always wants me to. It also makes me wish that I could dance!! It’s all so Impressive to me. They all look good but they pick up on such small details to improve that I don’t even notice…I’m just impressed that they remember all the moves and where to go, and think about how long it must have taken to conceptualize and organize all the group movements and transitioning between formations.
It’s unclear to me who is in charge…Manj said that Sean is a co-head of the group, but it seems that maybe Sima choreographed this dance? Or has some leadership position because she keeps taking charge and showing some moves to the group?
They all pick up on the new moves so quickly! I would need every millisecond to be broken down for me, as proven by when I’ve had Manj try to teach me parts of their dances as short as 2 bars, but they all are able to intuit the slightest body movements and nuances.
Sean steps up in front with Sima but it still seems that she’s teaching the dance.
I’m SO impressed at how quickly they learn and retain all of this with such little repetition!! They all learn it and go over it once or twice very briefly and then can just put it into context and look good doing it. I’ve tried to learn dances before and know how hard it is (at least for me) so it’s remarkable to me to see people pick up on something so quickly that takes me sooo long to figure out how to do. Also since I’m listening to the same instructions and am clearly not understanding as well as they all are.
I’m liking the dance, as an aside…even just the bit I’m seeing that they’re learning now is a funny little story of the girls trying to play it off cool and then getting really into their girlish movements, and the guys on the side with their arms folded watching.
There’s a very light dynamic to the rehearsal process. Everyone is much better at focusing than my a cappella group is, that is certain. There are very minimal side conversations and commentary for a group of comparative size. There is laughing and some hugging and giggling but for the most part everyone is here to learn and be productive and get through the dance. I wonder if this is partially a consequence of the intense rehearsal process they just went through for Phillyfest (a big dance competition). Sima is so small (I think the shortest and tiniest one in the group from a quick glance around) and yet she’s able to hold their attention and command their respect. If she yells quiet (cute and jokingly) or is stern (generally in a very cute and joking manner) the group listens.
…Is this a 3rd dance? I lost track…I think it’s still part of the second one. Or at least the second song; I’m having a hard time differentiating between whether this is all one dance with different songs or if the pieces are separate. I also can’t really tell when the songs are changing, and if this is some sort of musical compilation or when the song just has different parts to it.
3) Is this another new dance? When did she tell them which dance to do…
I think this is a new one, because Manj isn’t dancing and I don’t recognize this music/the moves. When did they learn all these pieces? I wonder how long the pieces have been in the group for, if they learn new dances all the time or if they keep ones that they reteach and pass through, as we have alumni songs and songs we rotate/retire/but generally keep in the group for a few years at least. I wonder if after each performance they choreograph new dances or if they ever do the same ones again…like especially the comp piece, since it was so cool and they worked on it for so much time. And if these are all new, did they learn them all this semester so far? We haven’t been here THAT long. I wonder how long it takes to choreograph the pieces vs. learn them. Does Sima choreograph all the Bollywood pieces? Again, is this all just one piece? I don’t think so
A note on outfits- Most people are wearing workout clothes of some variety- the girls mostly spandex but some other varieties of gym pants, and the guys in mostly sweatpants and shorts. However, I see some people in normal shirts rather than just t shirts, and I THOUGHT I saw someone wearing jeans, which seemed odd. But now I can’t find them so maybe I was hallucinating or they left, because I just saw someone walk out.
They opened a window because they’re clearly hot from all the dancing, but it’s cold!!
They’re all in such good physical shape
I’m a little surprised at how well I’m sinking into the background. Whenever we have guests at keys rehearsals for whatever reason I generally try to impress them or my behavior is affected for some reason or another. Here though they’re just having fun amongst themselves and focusing on their dancing. I’m inconsequential, which I’m glad about.
Sima said something about Lady Gaga, or finishing Lady Gaga…I’m not sure what she’s talking about because this music is definitely not Lady Gaga. Maybe it’s part of the dance move? I don’t really know her dances, unlike many of my friends.
This is kind of fun! There’s already so much more to write about than I thought there was going to be. I was worried that I wouldn’t know where to begin not knowing anything about this music or the dances.
Oh someone else started to suggest something, and Sima seemed to shoot it down. They’re explaining things and it’s getting a little confusing. Sima keeps using her notepad to list off lists of people for order in lines and formation, but I wonder how it’s notated so that she can remember what she’s talking about. How can you reduce a dance in your mind onto a piece of paper? Through words describing actions? Through pictures?
They just ran through part of it singing rather than playing the music…Nandu has a really pretty voice! That’s also an added element of complexity that they can memorize the words to the songs along with the melody and instrumental parts while remembering the moves to the dance. And that she knows the language…
That brings me to my next thought. I find the ethnic makeup of Badmaash very interesting. I know Manj has a background in Indian classical dance even though she’s from New Jersey. However having met some of the other members/just listening to them speak, I hear some accents and know that at least one or two of them are from India. I wonder how many of them grew up with some form of South Asian dance as part of their lives. And what the personal meaning of being in Badmaash then is to them. I also wonder how those who didn’t grow up around this type of dance ended up in the group. Does everyone have some sort of trained dance background (I couldn’t imagine possibly being able to keep up if you didn’t)? And what are the various dance training backgrounds of everyone in the group?…These are questions I should remember for the interview portion! How does one resolve being in a South Asian fusion dance group and not identifying ethnically as South Asian? Does it affect anything? Right from the beginning there was the offhanded comment about the group being ethnic even though not everyone is, so clearly it is at least realized and acknowledged to some degree.
What is the story of the dance that’s going on? How does it relate to what the words of the songs are? Does it always correlate? Does it ever?
Note to self…make EXTRA sure battery is fully charged. I think it’s going to run out a few minutes short of the end of the rehearsal. But I have a charger so it’s ok
Now it’s time to crack down in rehearsal, come 11:15- past the halfway point they were like more work less fun!
It’s hard to stay focused this whole time even as an observer…I keep tuning out and thinking about other things. They’ve all been very good and focused this whole time.
I think their rehearsal process is a really great balance of productivity and fun. Of course the dancing itself is suppose to be fun, and maybe that helps contribute to the level of concentration.
They’ve learned a looot of the dance without music, just with the counts. Music hasn’t been played in a while. I find that very interesting how they’re able to apply it all.
Welcoming newcomers!! 3 or 4. Yayy new Badmaashies! I can’t even tell which ones they are, they fit in well already.
I also am concerned with how they’re all perceiving me. I want them to like me! I’m glad I’m having such positive reactions so I don’t have to lie.
This dance already looks so good and a coherent whole. They’ve accomplished A LOT in not that much time. This reminds me more of the focus there would be in choir in high school vs. a cappella here, and reminding me how nice that was. Also this is a lot of work…I now understand why manj is always so out of breath after rehearsal
Business time…who’s free on the 13th. Also not much time before SASA show…need to practice on Salomon! Sima just said “sorry this is not as great a practice as usual” why wasn’t it? It seemed very productive…is it because they were learning things and not just rehearsing details?
Staying for an extra 5 minutes to block things. By 5 they mean 20ish. Need to do extra work because the show is coming up soon. “now we’re going to garba into the U”…a different language completely haha. Ooh I think they’re doing secret birthday stuff for Nandu! I see people in the doorway. Is that what they’re doing? That’s very cute. They pretended to rehearse extra and then turned the lights off and brought a cake in and started singing to her. Very nicely done, I didn’t realize at first and I was sitting by the door and saw other people were here. What a great day to choose to come to rehearsal! I feel a little awkward being here now that it’s cute social things…
I really enjoyed reading your fieldnotes because they were your reactions to it as opposed to just detailing what was happening from a completely objective standpoint. You interjected opinions and compared with your experiences in your a cappella group, and I now wish I had done the same with my notes, because I know i was inclined to do the same but didn't. I was afraid that the fact that I personally know a lot of the people involved would get in the way, but I think the presence of your own voice in your notes adds positively to them as a whole.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Meghan that you did a good job describing your experience rather than just what happened. I'd just be conscious of deciding how much first person you want to be inserting and sticking with it; for example, if you start comparing Badmaash rehearsals with your a capella rehearsals too quickly, you might miss out on important details by trying too hard to draw parallels or points of extreme contrast.
ReplyDeleteThe questions you are raising in your head are awesome, very much on the right track. Pretty much everything I thought "She should find out more about..." you eventually brought up as a question. Definitely follow through on those once we get to the interview phase!
I tend to wonder most about the makeup of the group and the intentions of its members - how many of them come from a South Asian background, and what kind of background (India is, after all, so unbelievably diverse), and if so what is the motivation for wanting to participate in this sort of thing? Two very common options in these sorts of groups are the "I want to communicate something about 'my' culture to the world around me and/or demonstrate my affection for," on one hand, and "I grew up knowing very little about these sorts of things and only now am I regretting it and this is a great way to learn," on the other. In either case, sometimes the goals of "accurate" representation and fidelity to a (perhaps particular) image of the social group in question become concerns: and if those are not concerns, that's interesting too. So how is repertoire chosen? Are there different opinions hashed out, within the group, about what kinds of dances or pieces to do in these shows? Or is it pretty top-down?
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