Overview
This book is a compilation of essays by distinguished writers, critics, and artists in the field of Dance and African American Studies who address several areas and disciplines of African dance both on the continent and in the diaspora. Sir Rex Nettleford, the distinguished Jamaican choreographer, professor and writer, stresses in the foreword to the book, the continuity between all dances that derive from Africa and the significance of this book. African dance, he argues, is a dominant, pervasive and empowering force in African communities.The four areas covered in the book are tradition, tradition and continuity, tradition transformed, and tradition contextualized. African, Brazilian, Caribbean and African American scholars each focus on some aspect of African dance which provide the patterns that connect. "African Dance" is text and, as such, it is a document that can be used for historical, philosophical and aesthetic information. Besides Sir Rex Nettleford, other contributors to this book include Pearl Primus, Mawere Opoku, Katrina Hazzard-Gordon, Myriam Evelyse Mariani, Cynthia S'thembile West and Omofolabo Soyinka Ajayi.
Synopsis
African dance is an ancient and venerable art tradition that has influenced dance styles all over the world. African dance has been an integral part of society for generations and it often commemorates and celebrates birth, rites of passage, harvest, and marriage ceremonies. Through its strong interplay with percussive instruments, African dance creates a polyrhythmic sensual and visual experience. There are many kinds of African dances and dances from other cultures that are representative of thousands of ethnic groups on the continent. Masked, stilt, ceremonial, recreational, and religious dance forms are found within the categories of traditional, neotraditional, and contemporary dance. In contemporary society, African dance is taught around the globe and has found an enthusiastic and receptive home in the United States and Europe. The pulse of African dance is a humanistic one and for centuries it has been the chronicler of history, traditions, and aesthetics.