Dear Performers,
I am writing to ask for your help in the International Busker Day Parade which is inspired by an event happened to me in January 2017. (Please see The-Incident.) I am inviting artists of all kinds. Below I have the backbone / choreography of dancers and hand drummers (the heartbeat and the motion of the parade); Followed by examples of the quieter buskers. Essentially, the dancers will be moving with musicians through the stationary non-musical-buskers who will be on the outskirts of the parade. And to honor the tradition, Buskers/ Performers will have the freedom to ‘pass the hat’ for donations; this wouldn't be a parade for buskers without it. This letter in its entirety is written for artists of all sorts, even if you don't dance or do anything that fully fits the definition of ‘art’. The meaning/ philosophy behind the parade is expressed in the following arrangement, and I hope you'll like it.
***On the dancers and musicians:***
Below is the basic choreography with explanation for dancers and musicians who are willing to improvise in their art. (e.g. Modern, Jazz, Lyrical, Belly, African etc.):
Bound flow→ Disjointed movements→ Free flow
We begin slowly with Bound flow, movement with resistance. As if the air is thick, that you must push through with great effort to move through. Like the pace of Taichi but without the fluidity, but the movement is accented with struggle and resistance.This is expressing living an inauthentic life, under too controlled a structure; you may associate this with 9-5 jobs, under companies that are income driven, rather than passion driven work; Where one is guided by work hour and hierarchy.
Disjointed movement is the transition. In the nature of transitions, the movements can be disjointed, and even awkward and dissonant. Imagine a robot coming to life, taking its first steps, attempting to...dance.
Free flow is lyrical and flowy; It is the freedom of expression. As if nothing is holding your body down, you're light, it’s as if you could glide through air and fly if you wanted to. It’s passion driven work, the heart being the seat of one’s inspiration; where no one is forced to work but rather they live out their passion. This section can be a little longer than the above two sections.
At the end, with the guidance of the dancers and musicians, hopefully into a park, the audience will be invited to participate and dance.
For the styles of the dance, I will leave that to the individual city’s dancers to determine; it is ideal to include dance forms that are most reflective of their city’s own culture. For instance, in Union City New Jersey where I reside, there is an 85% hispanic population; I will be working with dancers here to reflect those cultures. More choreography details will flesh out when space, performers and ideas are decided.
***On the quieter, less so ‘Performing’ Artists:***
I've recently met a kite flying busker, a 3D illustrator busker; And not too long ago, I've met photographer buskers, poetry buskers, and even panhandlers who are great conversationalists-- they brighten up moments in people’s day with a word or two, that shoots straight to the heart; moments meaningful enough to reverberate through one’s entire being that may last a lifetime. These are just a few unique styles of busking that suggests that maybe anything can be... buskable.
As you can probably guess, this is an analogy of a new lifestyle, where everyone’s job can be connected to their heart, therefore living an authentic life. Possibly finely aligned to each of our unique spiritual paths. This is my vision for that hopeful shift, to inspire willing hearts to follow. And here’s my effort. Thank you in advance for your passion and help. Again, please feel free to write to me with any suggestions.
Much Love,
Your fellow performer, Jia Doughman
I am writing to ask for your help in the International Busker Day Parade which is inspired by an event happened to me in January 2017. (Please see The-Incident.) I am inviting artists of all kinds. Below I have the backbone / choreography of dancers and hand drummers (the heartbeat and the motion of the parade); Followed by examples of the quieter buskers. Essentially, the dancers will be moving with musicians through the stationary non-musical-buskers who will be on the outskirts of the parade. And to honor the tradition, Buskers/ Performers will have the freedom to ‘pass the hat’ for donations; this wouldn't be a parade for buskers without it. This letter in its entirety is written for artists of all sorts, even if you don't dance or do anything that fully fits the definition of ‘art’. The meaning/ philosophy behind the parade is expressed in the following arrangement, and I hope you'll like it.
***On the dancers and musicians:***
Below is the basic choreography with explanation for dancers and musicians who are willing to improvise in their art. (e.g. Modern, Jazz, Lyrical, Belly, African etc.):
Bound flow→ Disjointed movements→ Free flow
We begin slowly with Bound flow, movement with resistance. As if the air is thick, that you must push through with great effort to move through. Like the pace of Taichi but without the fluidity, but the movement is accented with struggle and resistance.This is expressing living an inauthentic life, under too controlled a structure; you may associate this with 9-5 jobs, under companies that are income driven, rather than passion driven work; Where one is guided by work hour and hierarchy.
Disjointed movement is the transition. In the nature of transitions, the movements can be disjointed, and even awkward and dissonant. Imagine a robot coming to life, taking its first steps, attempting to...dance.
Free flow is lyrical and flowy; It is the freedom of expression. As if nothing is holding your body down, you're light, it’s as if you could glide through air and fly if you wanted to. It’s passion driven work, the heart being the seat of one’s inspiration; where no one is forced to work but rather they live out their passion. This section can be a little longer than the above two sections.
At the end, with the guidance of the dancers and musicians, hopefully into a park, the audience will be invited to participate and dance.
For the styles of the dance, I will leave that to the individual city’s dancers to determine; it is ideal to include dance forms that are most reflective of their city’s own culture. For instance, in Union City New Jersey where I reside, there is an 85% hispanic population; I will be working with dancers here to reflect those cultures. More choreography details will flesh out when space, performers and ideas are decided.
***On the quieter, less so ‘Performing’ Artists:***
I've recently met a kite flying busker, a 3D illustrator busker; And not too long ago, I've met photographer buskers, poetry buskers, and even panhandlers who are great conversationalists-- they brighten up moments in people’s day with a word or two, that shoots straight to the heart; moments meaningful enough to reverberate through one’s entire being that may last a lifetime. These are just a few unique styles of busking that suggests that maybe anything can be... buskable.
As you can probably guess, this is an analogy of a new lifestyle, where everyone’s job can be connected to their heart, therefore living an authentic life. Possibly finely aligned to each of our unique spiritual paths. This is my vision for that hopeful shift, to inspire willing hearts to follow. And here’s my effort. Thank you in advance for your passion and help. Again, please feel free to write to me with any suggestions.
Much Love,
Your fellow performer, Jia Doughman
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