Fairness in Judging
/me stirs from his labors and lifts his quill.
"Perhaps this will address some root difficulties, and get more feet in the sands again." mumbles the judge as he frowns and writes. "If we lose one dancer or host, we fail."
If you could create a 'Dance council' that oversees and protects standards of Gorean dance, how would it function? What would be included in standards, and what would be left to creative latitude?
Read more in my page on 'JBOK' (Judges Body of Knowledge - a set of meta standards for hosting and judging Gorean Dance events).
I am fascinated by the whole system of dancing. Judging is a subtle art. One's taste is very personal, yet there are standards and courses people study to excel at their art. We may now some of the dancers, or have seen their performances before.
My concern it to be sure those who love to dance can dance. And those who love to support the dancers can do so, and that we honor their work with quality support. Competition is useful in helping us cultivate and define what constitutes the best. Yet the pressure can actually drive out the very dancers we seek to support. This happens all too often. But who can blame them? They put so much into their work, it is easy to feel each score and comment keenly.
I always seek to improve my judging. Part of this is attending the excellent dance courses (such as the series at Olni). Let me tell you, if you have not performed it is a shock at how much heart, soul, and time goes into an 8 minute dance. Researching the music, animations, timings took many hours (enjoyable ones!). Writing the dance? I would not be surprised if I spent more than 30 hours on the dance I performed for my gradation requirement. And my mentor carried much of the load. When I was done I was emotionally vested in every twist, stand, post, and phrase.
But it is not all about the dance. It is not all about the posts, animations, props (if any), and music. It is a culture of standards, communication, teaching, and support.
I think the root of some problems may stem from a conflict between from tastes and assumptions about dance format. If the type of dances encouraged at an event are not clear, should I judge high a dance that moves me but is not in the classical form? Having spent a few years studying the proper forms of Gorean dance my desire is to see them performed well, and support the continuation of the art. My trouble may come from an event that mixes the two. They can be hard to compare. And if we assume one should be used there may some shock at the results.
I am a classically trained musician. Yet my father had his own Jazz band. For me, music used to not be attractive unless it was classical. But then I decided "you can't judge it until you can play it." So I learned "Rock" music and Jazz may even have an entirely different scale. Do you like a 12 tone row of modern classical music? The blues scale? The Turkish scale that has intervals not found in our western octaves. So I learned to admit that some Rock music is appealing. Now my dark pod of they eye is filled with a mix from Carmina Burana to Bach to Blues to R&B, to Oud to Pop, Techno, even Country! The fact that each is so different is what makes them so appealing. I value the traditional in Bach, and the creativity in all things new.
ORDERS
I propose we set a standard that the event will state recommended forms.
I *WILL* be seeing you in the sands. And that's an order.
"Perhaps this will address some root difficulties, and get more feet in the sands again." mumbles the judge as he frowns and writes. "If we lose one dancer or host, we fail."
Short Version
- Specify 'Classical-story faction, Classical-dance faction' or 'Creative' format (anything goes) for each competitive event.
- If conflict arises meet and discuss with the people involved before airing views in a more public setting.
- Remember people may have pressure in other lives so may need extra understanding. For example, one of my friends and builders died in RL last year. Virtual issues are important, but we may not always have a full picture of the person's entire life. That's fine for their privacy, but an lead us to focus on details that may not otherwise come to the fore if we knew more.
- Keep dancing. Keep hosting.
If you could create a 'Dance council' that oversees and protects standards of Gorean dance, how would it function? What would be included in standards, and what would be left to creative latitude?
Read more in my page on 'JBOK' (Judges Body of Knowledge - a set of meta standards for hosting and judging Gorean Dance events).
A Judge Reflects
I am fascinated by the whole system of dancing. Judging is a subtle art. One's taste is very personal, yet there are standards and courses people study to excel at their art. We may now some of the dancers, or have seen their performances before.
My concern it to be sure those who love to dance can dance. And those who love to support the dancers can do so, and that we honor their work with quality support. Competition is useful in helping us cultivate and define what constitutes the best. Yet the pressure can actually drive out the very dancers we seek to support. This happens all too often. But who can blame them? They put so much into their work, it is easy to feel each score and comment keenly.
I always seek to improve my judging. Part of this is attending the excellent dance courses (such as the series at Olni). Let me tell you, if you have not performed it is a shock at how much heart, soul, and time goes into an 8 minute dance. Researching the music, animations, timings took many hours (enjoyable ones!). Writing the dance? I would not be surprised if I spent more than 30 hours on the dance I performed for my gradation requirement. And my mentor carried much of the load. When I was done I was emotionally vested in every twist, stand, post, and phrase.
But it is not all about the dance. It is not all about the posts, animations, props (if any), and music. It is a culture of standards, communication, teaching, and support.
Classical or Jazz?
My fear is that the standards of judging may not be clear and that (leans forward and whispers) I might make a mistake. Not so much in the raw score of are this dancer's animations in sync, are her words evocative, does she fit the theme of the event. I am worried about some commonly accepted guidelines that I may not be aware of, or existing ambiguities in the art of dance itself.I think the root of some problems may stem from a conflict between from tastes and assumptions about dance format. If the type of dances encouraged at an event are not clear, should I judge high a dance that moves me but is not in the classical form? Having spent a few years studying the proper forms of Gorean dance my desire is to see them performed well, and support the continuation of the art. My trouble may come from an event that mixes the two. They can be hard to compare. And if we assume one should be used there may some shock at the results.
I am a classically trained musician. Yet my father had his own Jazz band. For me, music used to not be attractive unless it was classical. But then I decided "you can't judge it until you can play it." So I learned "Rock" music and Jazz may even have an entirely different scale. Do you like a 12 tone row of modern classical music? The blues scale? The Turkish scale that has intervals not found in our western octaves. So I learned to admit that some Rock music is appealing. Now my dark pod of they eye is filled with a mix from Carmina Burana to Bach to Blues to R&B, to Oud to Pop, Techno, even Country! The fact that each is so different is what makes them so appealing. I value the traditional in Bach, and the creativity in all things new.
ORDERS
I propose we set a standard that the event will state recommended forms.
- Classical Dance (Chain, Tether, Tile, etc etc) I will grade down if the dance does not conform to one of the patterns.
- Story Faction
- Dance Faction
- Creative Dance - Anything goes - the more novel the better - IFF it is of quality and it is moving.
- Can we judge our own dancer?
I assume No. - Can we judge one we protect?
I had assumed it depends on the relationship between the dancer and judge. Now I think its should simply be 'No'. - Can we judge a dancer from our Home Stone?
I would assume 'maybe' if it is agreed to be brutally fair between the dancer, judge, and organizer. However, I now think the answer should simply be 'No'. But how do we arrange this? This is especially important if you have many dancers and several judges at your Home Stone. If you don't organize then folks will never be able to dance, which is the opposite of the result we want!
I *WILL* be seeing you in the sands. And that's an order.