Lighten Up! MOVE to the MUSIC

By Rachel Pearl

Rachel Pearl Loves To MoveWe love music. No. We are obsessed with music. We listen to it all day. We have iPods, iPhones, iRadio, iTunes, Pandora, and the list goes on!

We can’t get enough. This summer Justin Timberlake does a 15 minute retrospective of his career, ending with a mini NSYNC tribute at the VMA’s and the crowd goes bananas. Miley is singing and (kinda) twerking and Twitter basically explodes. 30 years later and we’re still doing the Thriller dance on H Street (and JT is still borrowing his moves thankyouverymuch). By the way – did you register for our annual Thriller workshop yet?

Dance and music are inextricably linked. We can never tear them apart, unless of course you want to do a beautiful piece of contemporary dance in silence (we love those too!). When we hear a beat we are inspired to MOVE. Incidentally, I secretly judge those who stand perfectly still at music concerts. Perhaps they are the more serious fans.

I can hardly contain myself when I go out in public and hear music. I am that girl who’s doing the moonwalk in the middle of Steak and Ice on H Street just because Billie Jean is playing. Music that we really connect with never dies and begs us to dance to it in order to continue to breathe new life into its history.

Joy of Motion Dance Center is all too familiar with popular music. We have music playing from dawn until dusk – three different classes running simultaneously or a workstudy jeteing to Beyonce while wiping down the mirrors. It’s a ton of noise all the time. Then, we have the thunderous roar of tappers and flamenco dancers, body percussionists, live drummers, and the ever-present marley squeak from sneakers in hip hop class. WE LOVE MUSIC!

Some of the most innovative music in the studios comes out of our MOVE Program. We’re celebrating music and movement with classes like Motown MOVE and AfroBeat! You don’t have to dust off the records, Jamile McGee (of So You Think You Can Dance Season 1) will break it all down to your favorite Motown hits! Our faculty members have great taste. It’s their job to inspire you to move and it starts with incredible music selection. After just one AfroBeat class with Sylvana Christopher, I was hooked!

Sometimes I get stuck listening to a handful of albums and I don’t seek anything new, or bother to dig into the archives. I love going to the MOVE classes – they introduce me to a full hour of new (and new to me) music! Then, I get to quickly go home and download new jams, which sends me into a blissfully inspired week of movement and music!

I am stunned by the powerful effect a one hour dance class has on my entire week.
I get new moves.
I get to sweat (mmm delicious endorphins!).
I get new music to inspire me for the rest of the week.

Pinch me. It’s too good!
I live for this stuff.
See you in class.

Now through October 20th, try Motown MOVE with Jamile McGee and AfroBeat with Sylvana Christopher for free! Also check out Breaking Bootcamp with Dana House, Barre Body® with Tanya Nuchols and Piloxing® with Kelly Kunst. Sign up today to reserve your spot in these free MOVE Program classes.