Morning Class at Tanssille ry in Helsinki on 8th, 10th, and 15th of October, 2019 from 10:00 to 11:30
<FREE FLOW: physicality toward musicality> is a contemporary dance technique, focused on biomechanics for the actualization of the total freedom of the individual body and its integrity. The following are the contents of the morning classes.
(1)Warming-up with quadrupedal movement and its variations for enhancing contralateral movements of the torso, essential for the execution of complex motor tasks
(2)Jumping moves driven by the diaphragmatic breathing techniques
(3)Landing mechanics for converting impact force into the kinetic energy for the subsequent
(4)Rolling for promoting spontaneous actions: reflex & relaxation
(5)Improvising to enjoy one’s freedom of movement
(1)The technical emphasis is on the forefoot movements that play as the base of support; the right foot is primarily anchored on the spot to facilitate the pivotal moves shown on the video. The kinetic energy, which drives the rotational and dragging moves of the left leg, is produced by and transmitted from the interaction between the right foot and the contact surface. The upper body mostly remains relaxed; however, abdominal muscles continuously regulate respiratory movements which initiate all types of movements, including the pivotal moves mentioned above.
(2)The excerpt from the ABSENCE OF SOUND: the Cold War history and its legacy, reinterpreted to pose a fundamental question: how are the ruling principles of the system intensified during the Cold War era still valid and restricting freedom of movement?
THE RESPIRATORY UNDULATION AND ITS RHYTHMICALITY
The oscillatory cycle of respiration elicits two contrasting mechanical movements: expansion and compression; these actions are paired to form the constituent pattern that constantly repeats in a complementary manner that facilitates and regulates all types of kinetic movements. Thus, this elastic quality universally appears in a sequence of movements at various intensities and speeds; in doing so, what can be recognized as rhythmic flows physiologically arises in the body.
Rhythm can be defined as a phrase of physical movements, materially expressed with the combination of the strong and the weak elements. Furthermore, the biomechanical rhythmicality can be deliberately magnified and utilized for addressing expressive needs by interacting with musical instruments which are devised to convert touches into sounds.
(1)The Forward-Leaning Posture to Maximize the Use of Elastic Energy
Strain energy is released when the deformed elastic elements of the body recover their resting lengths and original shapes. The stretch-shortening cycle of the Achilles’ tendon is succinctly exhibiting the mechanics of this catapult action, which spontaneously occurs to be utilized as initiatory impulses for various locomotor movements. Walking, skipping, running, and jumping are bipedal movements critically driven by elastic energy.
The relaxation of the diaphragm catalyzes expiration, and the body gradually becomes relaxed, from the pelvic floor muscles, and bent forward to the ground in the concentric phase of exhalation. The forward-leaning posture is achieved through this chain reaction at various degrees of torso angle, upon diverse stances. Furthermore, the storage of strain energy increases, as the muscle-tendon units of the posterior chain are stretched.
In the forward-leaning posture, the body is highly responsive to respiratory stimuli. The following are the two determinants that enhance the connectivity of the upper and lower body parts: (a)compressed abdominal muscles that cause deep expiration setting up a new respiratory and postural balance to be maintained by subsequent inspiration (b)the forefoot bearing the significant amount of body weight upon itself, sufficient to play as the primary base of support.
<References>
Exercise Physiology: Theory and Application to Fitness and Performance. S.K. Powers and E.T. Howley. 10th edition. McGraw Hill publishers
Anatomy & Physiology, Edited and Revised by Lindsay M. Biga, Sierra Dawson, Amy Harwell, Robin Hopkins, Joel Kaufmann, Mike LeMaster, Philip Matern, Katie Morrison-Graham, Devon Quick, Jon Runyeon Art edited and created by Leeah Whittier
( http://library.open.oregonstate.edu/aandp/ )
Tendon elastic strain energy in the human ankle plantar-flexors and its role with increased running speed, Adrian Lai, Anthony G. Schache, Yi-Chung Lin and Marcus G. Pandy, 2014. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd | The Journal of Experimental Biology (2014) 217, 3159-3168 doi:10.1242/jeb.100826
MAXIMIZING THE USE OF ELASTIC ENERGY IN A STRETCH SHORTEN CYCLE, MOVEMENT WILSON, G.J.i ELLIO’FJ!, B.C. Department of Human Movement and Recreation Studies University of Western Australia .+ Australia, 1990
Elastic energy storage in tendons: mechanical differences related to function and age, Robert E. Shadwick, Department of Biology, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta T2N 1N4 Canada, J.APPL.PHYSIOL. 68(3): 1033-1040, 1990
Biomechanics: A catapult action for rapid limb protraction, Article in Nature · February 2003, DOI: 10.1038/421035a · Source: PubMed, Allen M. Willson, Glen A.Lichtwark, Johanna Watson
Take-off and landing forces in jumping frogs, Sandra Nauwelaerts1,* and Peter Aerts1,2 1Department of Biology, University of Antwerp (UIA), Universiteitsplein 1, B-2610 Wilrijk, Antwerpen, Belgium and 2Department of Movement and Sports Sciences, University of Ghent, Watersportlaan 2, B-9000 Gent, Belgium, The Journal of Experimental Biology 209, 66-77 Published by The Company of Biologists 2006, doi:10.1242/jeb.01969
The Quadrupedal Nature of Human Bipedal Locomotion, E. Paul Zehr1,2,3, Sandra R. Hundza1,4, and Erin V. Vasudevan5,6 1Rehabilitation Neuroscience Laboratory, University of Victoria, Victoria; 2International Collaboration on Repair Discoveries, Vancouver; 3Centre for Biomedical Research, University of Victoria; 4CanAssist, University of Victoria, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada; 5Motion Analysis Lab, Kennedy Krieger Institute; and 6Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD ZEHR, E.P., S.R. HUNDZA, and E.V. VASUDEVAN
NYTKE festival is the contemporary dance festival, which took place on July 15-20, 2019 in Tampere, Finland. The workshops of the FREE FLOW: physicality toward musicality were delivered in two formats: (1)Professionally trained group (2)Open Level. Plus, the showcase for a duet piece with Nelly Hakkarainen was held on the last day of the festival at Tanssiteatteri MD. The following are the pictures taken by Raf Mielczarek and Matti Kilponen (chilpura on Instagram).
Patterned Movement is the term referring to the sets of the elementary moves: breathing, crawling, standing, walking, running, and jumping. Those are foundational and critical for the execution of complex motor tasks; however, the significance of the basic tends to be neglected as techniques are mastered to be used and performed at professional levels. Technically speaking, respiratory regulation, postural control, and contralateral movements are the notions that specify the essential principles of the biomechanics of human movements, which regulate and sustain the body in a concerted manner.
The workshop that took place at ARTWEEN STUDIO in Seoul, S.Korea on July 7, 2019, was to remind experienced performing artists <bboys, contemporary dancers, mime artists> of the fundamentals of movements, universal to the human body, regardless of style and discipline.
The AESTHETICS OF VOLITIONAL MOVEMENTS: the duet version of <FREE FLOW: physicality toward musicality> performed with Nelly Hakkarainen at Gwangju Fringe Festival in July 2019, created at the BAU Institute in S.Korea from June to July 2019
Brief Description: The dance piece that depicts two individuals with contrasting movement qualities, moving freely in a harmonious and respectful manner that builds a creative community for both of them
The passage leading to the BAU Institute where is a new research base for ecologically sustainable practices, located in Younggwang, Jeollanamdo, S.Korea
(1)Respiration: Inspiration (expansion for energy production) & Expiration (compression/ relaxation for the expulsion of the by-products of carbon oxidation)
(2)How respiration regulates and initiates all types of the physical movements of the body
(3)Respiration: the origin of the rhythmicality of human movement
(4)The uniqueness of the individual body: the physical characteristics and the peculiarities within itself, in which to generate personal requirements physiologically and psychologically
(5)The restoration of the inherent respiratory flow of the individual body for promoting freedom of movement
(6)Dance as the most explicit form of artistic expression toward the total freedom of the individual body
photographed by 
photographed by Matti Kilponen
(1)Respiration: Inspiration (expansion for energy production) & Expiration (compression/ relaxation for the expulsion of the by-products of carbon oxidation)
