Dancing people

[(Im)poster]

I have a Sunday question. Why is it that we can walk into the club angry, unhappy or just feeling bad, and then emerge smiling, happy, feeling light with an improved attitude? How can just listening to music you enjoy, dancing and drinking water make you feel so much better when all your problems still remain? It amazes me every time. Don't anybody tell me it's just the endorphins, because all exercise does not have this effect. I have been wondering about this. Anyone have any answers, thoughts? Sorry if this has been discussed before and I missed it.

[JMJ]

I think that listening and dancing to music can serve as a departure from the realities of everyday life. I know when I'm playing or listening to classics, the music takes me back to events and good times from that musical time period, and I've had many of the hardcore dancers tell me the same thing. They'll tell me where or when they first heard a particular record, and what it means to them. It's an escape from reality, even if it's only for a few minutes or a few hours, but the feeling is something we all need from time to time. I think that's one of the big differences between OUR music and any other genre of dance music. House music evokes feelings, memories, and emotions that no other genre can generate.......JMJ smile.gif

[Ronnie Ron]

Originally posted by JMJ:
House music evokes feelings, memories, and emotions that no other genre can generate.......JMJ smile.gif Preach!!!

R-R

[mdpm99]

The healing power of Music smile.gif

d

[Sweetiwluv]

Let it take you away!

The sole purpose is to be touched where you haven't been touched before. To be swepted away like calgon.

You become unconscience of that which is bothering you and for that moment you actually forget all your worries.

Leave your worries behind! Just note they will be there in the morning - but you realize that it really isn't that bad! ;) ;)

[And]

I'm always trying to find a way to explain this phenomenon but nothing solid has come up yet. All I know is when I'm feeling it, it's as if the vibrations from the beats are finding the cells in my body they match and shaking it up. Every single part of me is happy and celebrating in their own way. I can't tell why my hands want out to reach out and move that way or why my legs are moving that way but they know.
-
I wish you lot had seen Doug & Kev on Friday. I can't stop talking about the night.
I wish I wasn't back to "reality." :(

[ August 17, 2003, 05:46 PM: Message edited by: 6 23 ]

[(Im)poster]

Originally posted by JMJ:
I think that listening and dancing to music can serve as a departure from the realities of everyday life. I know when I'm playing or listening to classics, the music takes me back to events and good times from that musical time period, and I've had many of the hardcore dancers tell me the same thing. They'll tell me where or when they first heard a particular record, and what it means to them. It's an escape from reality, even if it's only for a few minutes or a few hours, but the feeling is something we all need from time to time. I think that's one of the big differences between OUR music and any other genre of dance music. House music evokes feelings, memories, and emotions that no other genre can generate.......JMJ smile.gif This is all true for me as well, J, but I can get that escape from music I've never heard before if I like it and the programming is right. The transformation I'm thinking of usually isn't associated with music induced memories, it's coming from someplace else that I can't quite put my finger on.

[JMJ]

Originally posted by (Im)poster:
</font><blockquote>quote:</font><hr />Originally posted by JMJ:
I think that listening and dancing to music can serve as a departure from the realities of everyday life. I know when I'm playing or listening to classics, the music takes me back to events and good times from that musical time period, and I've had many of the hardcore dancers tell me the same thing. They'll tell me where or when they first heard a particular record, and what it means to them. It's an escape from reality, even if it's only for a few minutes or a few hours, but the feeling is something we all need from time to time. I think that's one of the big differences between OUR music and any other genre of dance music. House music evokes feelings, memories, and emotions that no other genre can generate.......JMJ smile.gif This is all true for me as well, J, but I can get that escape from music I've never heard before if I like it and the programming is right. The transformation I'm thinking of usually isn't associated with music induced memories, it's coming from someplace else that I can't quite put my finger on. </font>[/QUOTE]I think I know the place your talking about. I've put my finger in, ooops, I mean on it more than a few times. Not yours, but I can relate........JMJ biggrinangel.gif

[(Im)poster]

Originally posted by david mancuso:
The healing power of Music smile.gif

d Indeed. I've done searches on music therapy, the affects of music on the brain, music in religions and a lot of other topics. I found an article (before my internet days) once about a scientist somewhere in Europe who was studying the combined effect of music and movement on the brain, but I could not locate his books in any library at the time and now I can't recall his name or how I found out about him. Sigh.

[(Im)poster]

Originally posted by Sweetiwluv:
Let it take you away!

The sole purpose is to be touched where you haven't been touched before. To be swepted away like calgon.

You become unconscience of that which is bothering you and for that moment you actually forget all your worries.

Leave your worries behind! Just note they will be there in the morning - but you realize that it really isn't that bad! ;) ;) Yes, Marie, so true. I will not be sick when I come to Deliverance on Saturday. ;)

[(Im)poster]

Originally posted by 6 23:
I'm always trying to find a way to explain this phenomenon but nothing solid has come up yet. All I know is when I'm feeling it, it's as if the vibrations from the beats are finding the cells in my body they match and shaking it up. Every single part of me is happy and celebrating in their own way. I can't tell why my hands want out to reach out and move that way or why my legs are moving that way but they know.
-
I wish you lot had seen Doug & Kev on Friday. I can't stop talking about the night.
I wish I wasn't back to "reality." :( 6 23, it was very hard for me to see you out recently and act like I did not know you. Since my anonymity has already been greatly compromised, I think I am just going to have to come out of the closet! :D

What you describe is exactly what I mean and what I am also trying to understand. Perhaps as you say, it is deeper than the mind. The body knows. I know it sounds strange, but it is almost like having a physical relationship with the music, like the music is communicating something to my being -- beyond the conscious mind -- and the dance is its response. Somewhere in that state is where the healing/transformation occurs.

[(Im)poster]

Originally posted by JMJ:
</font><blockquote>quote:</font><hr />Originally posted by (Im)poster:
</font><blockquote>quote:</font><hr />Originally posted by JMJ:
I think that listening and dancing to music can serve as a departure from the realities of everyday life. I know when I'm playing or listening to classics, the music takes me back to events and good times from that musical time period, and I've had many of the hardcore dancers tell me the same thing. They'll tell me where or when they first heard a particular record, and what it means to them. It's an escape from reality, even if it's only for a few minutes or a few hours, but the feeling is something we all need from time to time. I think that's one of the big differences between OUR music and any other genre of dance music. House music evokes feelings, memories, and emotions that no other genre can generate.......JMJ smile.gif This is all true for me as well, J, but I can get that escape from music I've never heard before if I like it and the programming is right. The transformation I'm thinking of usually isn't associated with music induced memories, it's coming from someplace else that I can't quite put my finger on. </font>[/QUOTE]I think I know the place your talking about. I've put my finger in, ooops, I mean on it more than a few times. Not yours, but I can relate........JMJ biggrinangel.gif </font>[/QUOTE]graemlins/spanka.gif Ha Ha. At times the feeling can be sexual too. But it's not the same as lyrics or beats that make you want to have sex with someone else. I think it has to do with the pleasure hearing music you enjoy and feeling it vibrate in the body. I've read comments on other boards from people who feel like they "got off" on the dancefloor. I haven't gotten there yet, but at
times I've felt like I was close.

[GrantB]

Originally posted by (Im)poster:
I have a Sunday question. Why is it that we can walk into the club angry, unhappy or just feeling bad, and then emerge smiling, happy, feeling light with an improved attitude? How can just listening to music you enjoy, dancing and drinking water make you feel so much better when all your problems still remain? It amazes me every time. Don't anybody tell me it's just the endorphins, because all exercise does not have this effect. I have been wondering about this. Anyone have any answers, thoughts? Sorry if this has been discussed before and I missed it. Music has the power to bypass your conscious mind (feeling angry, unhappy, just plain bad... ego), and speak directly to the body and soul. It is the oldest and deepest form of communication, and it has a power and reach beyond words in any one language. It's the universal language, the language of the body and soul. I can't understand the words to Problemes d Amour, but I can feel it's meaning, and when I dance with others to it, we share and reflect the feeling, which magnifies it.

I disagree that exercise can not have the same effect of changing your mood from the inside out and uplifting your spirit. Bear with me to the end and I will explain. I just got back from running where I experienced the _exact_ phenomenon described in the first sentence of your post. I was feeling in the dumps and depressed and now I am smiling and I feel like I have risen above it all. It is commonly known as "runners high". Now I don't believe that this is only about endorphins. It's about bypassing the ego, turning it off and getting to the core of things, releasing our worries and hangups and other thoughts. Meditation, art, sex, ritual, and even the ingestion of certain biological compounds can also have this effect when (and only when) done properly. That said, I agree that music, especially when combined with dancing or singing, has something special beyond all those, but by it's very nature we can not put it into words.

One love.

[And]

Originally posted by (Im)poster:
</font><blockquote>quote:</font><hr />Originally posted by 6 23:
I'm always trying to find a way to explain this phenomenon but nothing solid has come up yet. All I know is when I'm feeling it, it's as if the vibrations from the beats are finding the cells in my body they match and shaking it up. Every single part of me is happy and celebrating in their own way. I can't tell why my hands want out to reach out and move that way or why my legs are moving that way but they know.
-
I wish you lot had seen Doug & Kev on Friday. I can't stop talking about the night.
I wish I wasn't back to "reality." :( 6 23, it was very hard for me to see you out recently and act like I did not know you. Since my anonymity has already been greatly compromised, I think I am just going to have to come out of the closet! :D

What you describe is exactly what I mean and what I am also trying to understand. Perhaps as you say, it is deeper than the mind. The body knows. I know it sounds strange, but it is almost like having a physical relationship with the music, like the music is communicating something to my being -- beyond the conscious mind -- and the dance is its response. Somewhere in that state is where the healing/transformation occurs. </font>[/QUOTE]Ooooooh I love mysteries that are about to be solved ... You really saw me out recently? Why didn't you come up and say something? Oh it doesn't matter why ... now I've got to know who you are ... Oooooooh! graemlins/grinyes.gif

[(Im)poster]

Originally posted by GrantB:
</font><blockquote>quote:</font><hr />Originally posted by (Im)poster:
I have a Sunday question. Why is it that we can walk into the club angry, unhappy or just feeling bad, and then emerge smiling, happy, feeling light with an improved attitude? How can just listening to music you enjoy, dancing and drinking water make you feel so much better when all your problems still remain? It amazes me every time. Don't anybody tell me it's just the endorphins, because all exercise does not have this effect. I have been wondering about this. Anyone have any answers, thoughts? Sorry if this has been discussed before and I missed it. Music has the power to bypass your conscious mind (feeling angry, unhappy, just plain bad... ego), and speak directly to the body and soul. It is the oldest and deepest form of communication, and it has a power and reach beyond words in any one language. It's the universal language, the language of the body and soul. I can't understand the words to Problemes d Amour, but I can feel it's meaning, and when I dance with others to it, we share and reflect the feeling, which magnifies it.

I disagree that exercise can not have the same effect of changing your mood from the inside out and uplifting your spirit. Bear with me to the end and I will explain. I just got back from running where I experienced the _exact_ phenomenon described in the first sentence of your post. I was feeling in the dumps and depressed and now I am smiling and I feel like I have risen above it all. It is commonly known as "runners high". Now I don't believe that this is only about endorphins. It's about bypassing the ego, turning it off and getting to the core of things, releasing our worries and hangups and other thoughts. Meditation, art, sex, ritual, and even the ingestion of certain biological compounds can also have this effect when (and only when) done properly. That said, I agree that music, especially when combined with dancing or singing, has something special beyond all those, but by it's very nature we can not put it into words.

One love. </font>[/QUOTE]Hey Grant. You did a pretty good job of putting it in words. smile.gif Thanks for the insight. I used to run and cycle before a knee injury made walking my exercise of choice. I have experienced runner's high and the mood-lifting benefits of aerobics and other exercise. I didn't mean to imply that these activities don't improve one's mood, I just meant that the feeling from dancing seems somehow superior in my case. At any rate, I appreciate your observations and agree that dancing and other physical activities are not the only way up. Good points on the the
ego-conquering aspect of these activities. That gives me something else for me to look into.

[(Im)poster]

Grant: Funny you mention the Alexander Robotnick record. That was the first "dance" record I ever bought. Even then my friends thought the sound was weird and they couldn't relate. Thank God I finally found "house" people who can relate to music as I do.

[(Im)poster]

Originally posted by 6 23:
[QUOTE] Ooooooh I love mysteries that are about to be solved ... You really saw me out recently? Why didn't you come up and say something? Oh it doesn't matter why ... now I've got to know who you are ... Oooooooh! graemlins/grinyes.gif Yes, I saw you when a certain big-name DJ (can't say which) played at the Sanctuary. I was so happy to see you in person that I almost ran up to you to introduce myself, but then I thought better of it. Maybe next time....

[And]

Originally posted by (Im)poster:
</font><blockquote>quote:</font><hr />Originally posted by 6 23:

Ooooooh I love mysteries that are about to be solved ... You really saw me out recently? Why didn't you come up and say something? Oh it doesn't matter why ... now I've got to know who you are ... Oooooooh! graemlins/grinyes.gif Yes, I saw you when a certain big-name DJ (can't say which) played at the Sanctuary. I was so happy to see you in person that I almost ran up to you to introduce myself, but then I thought better of it. Maybe next time.... </font>Next time please do. Now you've got me going through faces in my head to see if I know you. graemlins/grinyes.gif Definitely come up and say hello.

[Hello Kitty]

Ahhhh! "MUST BE THE MUSIC!"

:D

[eileen]

"The purpose of music, considered in relation to God, is to arouse longing for God, and passionate love for Him, and to produce states in which God reveals Himself and His favor, which are beyond description and known only by experience. These states are called ecstasy."

al-Ghazali, 10th Century Mystic


this idea is part of the centuries-old Sufi muslim order. you may have heard of "whirling dervishes" ? this is them. a very very cool religion.


i have sometimes thought that i would even go further and say maybe music itself IS the physical manifestation of god*.

kind of like if you are a person who thinks that a ghost is the physical manifestation of a dead person, or the way catholics believe that bread and wine become jesus at mass*. maybe music is the way god is physically present.

and so then, dancing is one way you commune with god.

i have thought sometimes that i could start a new religion called 'musicology' and open a church/club. instead of regular preaching and whatnot, there would just be music and dancing.**


*sorry if any catholics or christians find this offensive...

**i live in the bay area, obviously...

[And]

Originally posted by eileen:
"The purpose of music, considered in relation to God, is to arouse longing for God, and passionate love for Him, and to produce states in which God reveals Himself and His favor, which are beyond description and known only by experience. These states are called ecstasy."

al-Ghazali, 10th Century Mystic


this idea is part of the centuries-old Sufi muslim order. you may have heard of "whirling dervishes" ? this is them. a very very cool religion.


i have sometimes thought that i would even go further and say maybe music itself IS the physical manifestation of god*.

kind of like if you are a person who thinks that a ghost is the physical manifestation of a dead person, or the way catholics believe that bread and wine become jesus at mass*. maybe music is the way god is physically present.

and so then, dancing is one way you commune with god.

i have thought sometimes that i could start a new religion called 'musicology' and open a church/club. instead of regular preaching and whatnot, there would just be music and dancing.**


*sorry if any catholics or christians find this offensive...

**i live in the bay area, obviously... I read you. graemlins/grinyes.gif

[(Im)poster]

Originally posted by eileen:
"The purpose of music, considered in relation to God, is to arouse longing for God, and passionate love for Him, and to produce states in which God reveals Himself and His favor, which are beyond description and known only by experience. These states are called ecstasy."

al-Ghazali, 10th Century Mystic


this idea is part of the centuries-old Sufi muslim order. you may have heard of "whirling dervishes" ? this is them. a very very cool religion.


i have sometimes thought that i would even go further and say maybe music itself IS the physical manifestation of god*.

kind of like if you are a person who thinks that a ghost is the physical manifestation of a dead person, or the way catholics believe that bread and wine become jesus at mass*. maybe music is the way god is physically present.

and so then, dancing is one way you commune with god.

i have thought sometimes that i could start a new religion called 'musicology' and open a church/club. instead of regular preaching and whatnot, there would just be music and dancing.**


*sorry if any catholics or christians find this offensive...

**i live in the bay area, obviously... Thank you for this, Eileen. It reminds me of a book about ecstatic religions that I need to get.
I've had some of the same thoughts as you, but I'm from the BA. :D