Hi
Fluffy troupes used to dance to brass bands up until the 1950s but as these
do not play metronomically but have some rubato in their interpretations
they became unsuitable for troupes undergoing adudication. It's only
possible to judge a troupe's rhythmic stability and conformity if the
underlying rhythm is rock-solid. Troupes up until the early 90's would be
happy to dance to stuff like the Louis Clark/LPO "Hooked on Classics"
tracks but even these had the semblance of a drum-machine as backing to
ensure metronomic regularity. Luis Cobos and the LPO "Zarzuela" and other
LPs were of a similar, continuous nature but again with background
electronic rhythm. Once the requirement for total rhythmic constancy became
a significant feature of judging cards the spontaneity of N.W./Fluffy was
doomed; dances have to be judgeable and able to be contrasted with others
with similarly stable rhythmic characteristic. The high standard achieved
by modern Fluffy troupes is largely due to their rarely performing outside,
by dancing on flat surfaces and having high quality P.A. equipment
delivering their music. Our troupe, Silverdale Sapphires dance in
competition from March until early October. Here is a clip of our latest
competition performance at Pontin's, Ainsdale on 1st October.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQq4KMwZgaQ
no subject
Hi Fluffy troupes used to dance to brass bands up until the 1950s but as these do not play metronomically but have some rubato in their interpretations they became unsuitable for troupes undergoing adudication. It's only possible to judge a troupe's rhythmic stability and conformity if the underlying rhythm is rock-solid. Troupes up until the early 90's would be happy to dance to stuff like the Louis Clark/LPO "Hooked on Classics" tracks but even these had the semblance of a drum-machine as backing to ensure metronomic regularity. Luis Cobos and the LPO "Zarzuela" and other LPs were of a similar, continuous nature but again with background electronic rhythm. Once the requirement for total rhythmic constancy became a significant feature of judging cards the spontaneity of N.W./Fluffy was doomed; dances have to be judgeable and able to be contrasted with others with similarly stable rhythmic characteristic. The high standard achieved by modern Fluffy troupes is largely due to their rarely performing outside, by dancing on flat surfaces and having high quality P.A. equipment delivering their music. Our troupe, Silverdale Sapphires dance in competition from March until early October. Here is a clip of our latest competition performance at Pontin's, Ainsdale on 1st October. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQq4KMwZgaQ
Regards
Ian McKinnon