Thoughts on "axial movement"

Thoughts on "axial movement"
Submitted by Lucy Venable - April 23, 1999
 
I'm very familiar with axial and locomotor as terms so I thought you [Charlotte Wile] were trying to symbolized these ideas as often used in dance education. They are mentioned in many texts about teaching dance as you know. I found this was specifically addressed and defined in the three books below:
 
Locomotor/nonlocomotor (bend, twist, stretch, swing, push, fall, melt, sway, turn, spin, dodge, kick, poke, lift, carvfe, [sic.] curl, lunge, slash, dab, punch, flick, float, glide, press, wring, shake, rise, sink, burst, wiggle, etc.) in Anne Green Gilbert's Creative Dance For All Ages.
 
Movements are divided into two categories - those that are done in one place and those that transport the body from one place to another. Axial and locomotor movements. Axial movements involve trunk, leg, arms, head in actions such as bending, stretching, swinging, swaying, pushing, pulling, turning, twisting. Betty Rowen in Dance and Grow.
 
Locomotor Movements propel the body through space and Body Movements project the body in space and emanate from a fixed base around the axis of the body from a sitting, standing kneeling or lying position including bending, stretching, swinging, swaying, pushing, pulling, turning, twisting. Children Dance in the Classroom by Geraldine Dimonstein.
 
These definitions don't include stepping and jumping which you seem to consider axial movements in your description of exs. d) and e) [see March 11, 1999 submitted by Charlotte Wile] because they stay in place. That isn't what is already understood as "axial movement" in the field, therefore I think another name needs to be found for what you want.
 
There is also the idea of staying in 'place" in nonlocomotor movement. Did you consider some use of that symbol? If you jump in the air you are not staying on the same spot but you do jump in place.
 
By putting the spot hold on a single line I read it as one movement, but though you don't say axial movements (plural) I think that's what you mean. Is it? If so, I would favor using the action stroke or stepping or jumping to show the movements/actions and beside them an addition bow adding the spot hold. Then an example might look like: