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Jazz dancing has a very unique history and has been influenced by many other dance styles and techniques. Like jazz music, its roots can be found in African and slave traditions. It then took inspiration from tap, Minstrel shows, vaudeville, swing and Broadway. The result is that the styles associated with jazz dancing constantly change.

When African slaves in the 1800s were travelling to America, they were allowed to dance in order to maintain their fitness. Such dances continued when they arrived at the plantations on which they worked in South America. During the early 1900s, this contributed to black Americans to lead the jazz movement. The movement quickly spread to the audience and public, and the result was that dances like the Charleston, Jitterbug, Boogie Woogie and Swing began to develop.

One of the greatest individual influencers of jazz dance as we know it today was Jack Cole. He was a choreographer and theatre director born in 1911, and is sometimes referred to as “the father of jazz dance”. He developed some of the ballet-based movements and theatrical expression which have become cornerstones in contemporary jazz dance.

A great name influenced by the work of Cole included Bob Fosse. He went on to have significant influence over the development of jazz dance in the second half of the twentieth century. His influence was born from Fosse’s inability to conform to the rigid positions of ballet as a young dancer. This led him to incorporate inward turned knees, hunched shoulders and burlesque-inspired sensuality into his choreography. His distinctive style is often characterised by his use of bowler hats, canes and chairs.  Read more...

Universal Studios or Universal Pictures or Universal City Studios is one of the largest American film studios. It was established in 1906 when Carl Laemmle started his first theater in Chicago. He started by playing short silent movies. He later switched to production and distribution. To start the production of his own films, he opened the Independent Moving Picture Company in New York in 1909. His first work, Hiawatha, was released in the same year.

Laemmle’s dream was to make his presence felt all over America. His next target was the west where he bought the Nestor Studio in Hollywood. He formed the Universal Film Manufacturing Company on June 8, 1912. This company which was New York based, incorporated the already existing Independent Moving Picture Company and five other companies into it. By that time he had already conquered the east and the west coast of America and now he decided to centralize his production companies. He asked Isadore Bernstein to buy plots in Los Angeles. The two hundred and thirty acre land bought became the Universal City, the entertainment center of the world. Although film production here began in 1914 and in 1915 it was officially inaugurated on March 15, 1915. The first production of this studio was Damon and Pythias. Many films were released after the studio opened including comedies, drama, action, and adventure.  Read more...

Gwalior is the perfect entry point into Madhya Pradesh. It will instantly give you a feel of the state’s history, landscape and people. The people of Gwalior are as tough and resilient as its terrain.

Gwalior is known as” the land of music, art and history”. It is the birth place of the legendery Miyan Tansen (Music Samrat). The city is proud of its ancient culture blended with modern outlook. GwaliorHotels.net.in brings you some of the low cost exclusive hotels in gwalior. An ancient city boasting of its rich cultural heritage of the great Rajput, the Kachchwas and the Tomar dynasties. Gwalior houses one of India’s oldest fort the Gwalior Fort which has within its vast premises, the carved Jain Sculptures, the Mansingh Palalce and several other attractions.

The majestic Gwalior Fort still stands tall. Each and every corner of the fort has seen the change of fate of many powerful dynasties. Great care has been taken to preserve the memories of the glorious past of this ancient city. History comes alive when one visits the palaces and the museums. Every crumbling wall of the temple and monument has a story to tell. Gwalior is just the perfect tourist destination for those who want to get a glimpse of the era that has seen the might of Rani Laxmibai, the Indian Joan of Arc.

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I cannot write about African American music like a Western scholar. In my culture we live the past and the future in the present. When I listen to some African American music I can feel the past, the present and the future all at the same time. Now, the best way for me to handle this subject is to work by questions and answers.

[Question] Yaya! Who do you think you are?

Yaya Diallo – I don’t think! I am Farafin, which means I am a dark skin man. The word Africa is the Arabic name for our continent. In Bambara we call the so-called “Africa” Farafina. Farafina means the land of dark skin people. I am from Farafina and I am proud of it. I don’t want to be somebody else. People in general say African American. I would say American Farafin, which means dark skin human being who lives in America.

[Question] What is your African background?

Yaya Diallo – I come from far away. I was born in 1946 in Fienso (French Sudan), now Mali. My parents were nomadic. When I was very young I used to travel a lot. I grew up in the bush far from any western civilization. The music that I heard was very traditional and played live. I did not have a radio or TV. I had the opportunity to listen to the music of the different ethnic groups from the Ivory Coast, Burkina and Ghana. In some villages I heard Muslim songs coming from the mosques. By night, I would enjoy the frog symphonic orchestras. From 1946 to 1960 I was living in complete nature. My musical training is a long story but you can learn more from my book The Healing Drum.  Read more...

You will discover multitudes of music genres in today’s musical world. Country music is just one of my favorites and so I thought I would provide a little bit of country history to the forefront. If you don’t know a great deal about country music suffice it to say that every country songs tell a story. It has been said most of these songs are about our lives, who we are and where we began. Country music made a couple of the most notable selling solo musical artists ever in the USA. Elvis Presley’s early career was certainly country hillbilly music and then he went on to become one of the defining figures in the birth of Rock n Roll. Garth Brooks is the second bestselling solo artist in United States history and has a popular show in Las Vegas. That’s quite a remarkable start. Going back in history, however, we find that Country music extends back to the early 1920′s in America and has its roots in classic folk music, Celtic music, Blues, Bluegrass and Gospel music. Early country music was termed “Hillbilly” music but the verbiage changed to Country Music in the early 1940′s. In its beginnings, Country music was pure American; the country music crowd was American, its artists were American and its tone was American.  Read more...