How to flat foot dance


About Appalachian Flatfoot Dancing | Also known as Buck Dancing



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Information about one of the earliest forms of clogging known as "Appalachian flatfoot dancing", "buck dancing", or simply "flatfoot dancing". Includes profiles of famous buck dancers, a collection of flatfoot dancing videos and where to find flatfoot dancing resources on the Internet.

Instructional Flatfoot Dancing Videos

Flatfoot Dancing Basic Moves by Rebecca Stout
This video features flatfoot dancer Rebecca Stout demonstrating 10 basic flatfoot dancing moves: tap, dig, brush, scuff, slide, drag, zig, zag, roll, and bend knees.

More Flatfoot and Buck Dancing Tutorials
- Basic Flatfoot Dancing Course with 14 Lessons - Charmaine Slavin Flatfoot Dancing Lesson
- Ozark Style Jig and Flatfoot Dance Tutorial

Famous Buck and Flatfoot Dancers

STAGE NAME: D. Ray White (1927-1985)
FULL NAME: Donald Ray White
DATE OF BIRTH: April 17, 1927
PLACE OF BIRTH: Boone County, West Virginia USA
WIFE: BERTIE MAE WHITE
SON: Jesco White (aka "The Dancing Outlaw")
DATE OF DEATH: July 2, 1985 (age 57)
ARTICLES:
- Wikipedia "D-Ray White" Article
- The Legend of D. Ray White
VIDEOS:
- D. Ray White Flat Foot Dancing in the Talking Feet Film

Ira Bernstein
NAME: Ira Bernstein
DATE OF BIRTH: 1959
PLACE OF BIRTH: Malverne, New York, United States
ARTICLES AND WEB SITES:
- Ira Bernstein - Official Web Site
- Wikipedia "Ira Bernstein" Article
VIDEOS:
- Ira Bernstein Flatfoot Demonstration - Ira Bernstein Flatfoot Dancing with Chicken Train

Jay Bland
- Jay Bland Buck Dancing With Thomas Maupin
- Jay Bland Buck Dancing in Lynnville Tennessee
- Jay Bland Buck Dancing in Estillefork, Alabama
- Jay Bland Buck Dancing in Nashville, Tennessee
- Jay Bland the Roan Mountain Hilltoppers

NAME: Paul Shellnut
VIDEOS:
- Paul Shellnut Dancing in Estillfork Alabama
- Paul Shellnut Dancing With John Pope to Rocky Top
- Paul Shellnut Dancing at the Honeysuckle Jam
- Paul Shellnut Dancing With Thomas Maupin

NAME: Thomas Maupin
DATE OF BIRTH: November 16, 1940
CHILDHOOD HOME: Eagleville, Tennessee, United States
SIBLINGS: 10 Brothers and sisters
WIFE: Beulah Shores
DAUGHTERS: Deana Maupin and Danyeal Maupin
HONOR: Tennessee Governor's Folk Life Heritage Award
HONOR: Uncle Dave Macon Days Trailblazer Award
ARTICLES:
- Eagleville Times "Maupin Brothers" Article (PDF)
VIDEOS:
- Video Interview and Profile of Thomas Maupin
- Thomas Mauipin Buck Dancing
- Thomas Maupin Dancing With Paul Shellnut

Country Singers Buck Dancing
- Emmylou Harris Buck Dancing
- June Carter Cash Flatfoot Dancing in London

Flatfoot and Fancy Free Dot com

Folk Streams "Talking Feet" Documentary

Mountain Dancer: Flatfooting in Appalachia
Article about flatfoot dancer Robert Dotson, published on the "Our State: Celebrating North Carolina" Web site.


Other Step Dancing Styles

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Buck Dancing and Flat Footing

by AngelaJohnson

"Buck dancing" and "Flat footing" are solo dances.

Even if several people dance together, each one dances according to his own style.

Buck dancing and flat footing are traditional Appalachian dances. People dance in a small area of their own; no one worries about dancing the same steps as everyone else.

Buck dancing is a general name for any type of fast paced solo dance. Buck dancing is similar to tap and clog dancing, but with steps designed to create more sounds per beat.

Flat foot dancing is mostly dancing with the feet close to the floor and without the shoe soles making much noise. The flat foot dancer seems relaxed while he dances, even though his feet are moving quicly. Flat footing is often called buck dancing, too.

Buck dancing and flat footing are also called jigging, hoedown, stepping and clogging, although clogging is not usually a solo dance. People often clog in groups where they dance to the same steps.

Traditional Appalachian dancing is still popular today and danced by people in all areas of the United States.

Where is Appalachia?

Appalachia (App-a-latch-i-a) is named for the Appalachee Indians.  The Appalachian Mountains begin in Belle Isle in Canada and continue to Cheaha Mountain in Alabama.  

Appalachia is not only a physical region, but also a cultural region, usuallyreferring only to the central and southern portions of the range.

The Southern Appalachians are in eastern Kentucky, southeastern Ohio, West Virginia, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, and Tennessee.

Image and Information from Wikipedia

The Appalachian Mountains

View from the slopes of Back Allegheny Mountain, looking east, in the Appalachian Mountains, North America.

Appalachian Mountains

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Appalachian_Mountains#mediaviewer/File:MonNatForest.jpg

What is Buck Dancing?

Buck dancing is freestyle solo dancing.  Many of the buck dancer's steps are similar to basic clogging steps, but buck dancers add in more stomps and shuffles in order to make more sounds per beat than in regular clogging.

Irish, Scottish and English immigrants shared their dance steps, which evolved into Appalachian dancing.  Later, Cherokee Indian ceremonial dances and black minstrel shows probably  influenced dancing styles, too.

In buck dancing, steps are danced on the balls of the feet, then the heel clicks on the floor, and back to the ball of the foot. A buck dancer doesn't often wear taps like cloggers do. There aren't many documented buck dancing steps so people learned the dance by watching and imitating.

Buck dancers usually dance alone and in a small area of space. A buck dancer might even bring his own portable dance board. If other dancers join in, each one dances individually to the rhythm of the music without trying to imitate the dance steps of others.

  Photo by Arbogast Inn on flickr creative commons.

Thomas Maupin champion buckdancer

What is Flatfoot Dancing?

Flatfoot is a freestyle solo dance where the dancer keeps both feet close to the floor. There aren't many standard steps; each person just dances to the rhythm of the song. Flatfoot dance steps are made by sliding the feet with a shuffling movement. The shoes do not make a loud noise, like in buck dancing and clogging.

The body stays erect but loose, and the arms move only slightly to help with balance. If more than one person wants to dance, they each dance individually, but still to the rhythm of the music.

Flatfoot dancers dance in a small area; some even bringing their own portable dance board. Years ago, houses had small rooms. In order for several people to dance at once, especially in winter when they couldn't go outdoors, dancers had to dance within their own space and without swinging their arms.

You can flatfoot dance on any hard floor, on a porch or deck, or if you have a piece of plywood or your own portable dance board, you can dance anywhere you like.

 

Photo by EadaoinFlynn on flickr creative commons.

Flatfoot Dancing

Kudzu String Band Buckdance

Most of his dance steps are low to the ground, like flat foot dancing

Documentary Films of Solo Dancing (Buck Dancing) on Amazon

Talking Feet: Solo Southern Dance - F...

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Let Your Feet Do the Talkin'

Only $36.5

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Buck Dancing at Summertown Bluegrass Festival

See How People Dance to Their Own Steps?

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A Poll - What Type of Dancing Do You Like?

Tap Dance DVDs

I couldn't find any flat foot or buck dance instructional videos
Tap Dance Made Easy - Level 1 - Basic

Special DVD features include: Two camera angles: from the back, as if in a class, and from the side, showing a close-up of the instructor's feet. Subtitle Feature: On-screen dis...

$14.95  $4.14

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Tap Dance Made Easy - Level 2: IntermediateOnly $38.61

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I Hate to Exercise, I Love to Tap - Tap Dance Instruction

f you hate to exercise but want a fun way to stay in shape, then join Bonnie Franklin and begin to tap! In this challenging video for all ages you will learn to tap at your own ...

$19.98  $13.99

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Bloch Women's Tap-Flex Tap Shoe

Bloch S0388 split sole tapflex shoe features a full leather upper, Kashmir lining, attached Bloch Shockwave taps and a hard leather stacked heel.

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People Just Join in and Start Dancing - to Their Own Style

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Updated: 10/02/2014, AngelaJohnson

 

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Six modern dances that will help strengthen your legs

Komsomolskaya Pravda

HEALTHHEALTH TIME

Anna KUKARTSEVA

December 29, 2020 14:11

video]

The most boring training is dancingPhoto: Shutterstock

Even in quarantine, you can do dancing - including on zoom. But the wrong load can affect the health of the feet. How not to miss primary deformations and dance with health benefits, we found out from an expert from Hollywood. Usually, when it comes to sports or dancing, we are used to talking about possible problems with joints and ligaments. But we rarely remember about the feet: just think, the legs “buzz” a little in the evening. Meanwhile, this may be the first warning from the body that something has gone wrong.

Why flat feet are dangerous

According to the League of Podiatry (an association of doctors who deal with foot problems), flat feet are one of the most common diseases of the musculoskeletal system. And in 97% of cases it is acquired. One of the main reasons is a sedentary lifestyle, because it directly affects the blood supply to the legs. The situation has been exacerbated by the pandemic, widespread self-isolation, and a ban on walking. Because of this, the muscles of the foot and ligaments weaken, cease to cope even with a small load. And hello flatfoot. Due to flat feet, the feet cease to fulfill their main role - the shock absorber. This means that the entire musculoskeletal system is under increased stress. Joints hurt and collapse, posture deteriorates, the lower back aches ... Disrupted biomechanics of the entire musculoskeletal system leads to spinal curvature. The chest is deformed, the volume of the lungs decreases. The “tightness” of muscles and nerve endings throughout the body is growing. As a result, oxygen starvation of the brain, migraines and a host of other troubles that, like an elevator, rise from the foundation (feet) to the upper floors of the body.

The most boring training is dancing!

Dancing is a great way to cheer up during quarantine and pump up your feet, as well as the ligaments and muscles of your whole body. Dance training is a modern trend that came to our area from the Hollywood hills. Demi Moore, Anne Hathaway, Jennifer Lopez, Eva Mendes - everyone dances!

Our expert choreographer, dancer, teacher and director, winner of the largest Global Music Award in Los Angeles, Maria Skakun told which dance styles are not only the most popular, but also the most incendiary and useful.

Maria Skakun Teaching Reel 2019-2020

-motor system, develops coordination and overall control over the body. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently calculated that hip-hop is the most beneficial dance in terms of activity and muscle work, as it gets you moving 57% of your workout time. This is an absolute record! For example, in passionate flamenco classes, dancers are active only 14% of the time.

The main advantages: classes are held not in ballet flats, not in heels and not barefoot, but in sneakers. This means that a person with weak muscles and ligaments will not aggravate their problems. Moreover, if there are indications, after consultation with a podiatrist, sports shoes can be supplemented with special orthoses made individually. They restore the physiologically natural distribution of the load on the foot, improve the biomechanics of movement, and increase the effectiveness of training.

23 Hip-Hop Dance Steps l Old School l Middle School & New School With Names

2. Zumba

Feature: Excellent workout for all muscle groups, perfect cardio. A real fitness holiday with Latin American music. The dance has movements from salsa, meringue, samba - a bright mix and crazy energy! Standing on the sidelines when the unbridled and exciting rhythms of the drums are turned on simply will not work.

Main advantages: The hips are pumped especially effectively. Results from "Zumba-fitness" appear in two weeks, subject to regular classes.

Zumba fitness very beautiful dance

3. Body ballet

Feature: Improves posture, stretching, coordination of movements. Strengthens the muscles of the legs and back. Ballet plié and batman tandu are complemented by cardio and, in some cases, a power complex using dumbbells. Choreography at the barre can be replaced by exercises with a chair or chest of drawers.

Main pluses: Trainings are aimed at in-depth study of the leg muscles, which keep a beautiful posture, help to move beautifully, artistically.

Maria Skakun. Choreographer/Director reel 2019-2020

Zumba is an excellent workout for all muscle groups, perfect cardio. Photo: Shutterstock

Like any other pair dance, salsa is not just a workout, but also a very pleasant conversation. On the same wavelength with a partner!

Key Benefits: The movements of the dance are very intense - the glutes, hamstrings, quadriceps femoris and calves are actively engaged in different step sequences.

AMAZING SALSA Dance With Most Beautiful Sunset View!

5. Bachata

Feature: Develop body flexibility, exercise leg joints. Another pair dance with a high emotional component (in the presence of an experienced partner, all these supports increase faith in yourself and the world around you).

Main pluses: Elements of dance well strengthen the joints of the ankle, knees, pelvis. The gluteal muscles and thighs receive a large load.

KIKE Y NAHIR Love Bachata FRANCE (Se orita DJ Tronky)

6. Contemporary

Feature: Stretch training. The muscles of the legs are involved depending on the production (there are many different techniques and techniques in this style of dance). Dance-experiment, the relationship of the body with breathing, voice, energy. Often combines classical dance, modern jazz with oriental practices (qigong, yoga, Pilates).

Key Benefits: The practice of alternating tension and relaxation of a variety of muscles. Teaches self-control in all meanings of this phrase.

[Contemporary-Lyrical Jazz] Say Something - A Great Big World Choreography.JIN

Bachata - a pair dance with a high emotional componentPhoto: Shutterstock

Attention!

Contemporary, as a rule, they dance barefoot. An untrained person with weak muscles and ligaments in the feet can exacerbate their problems if they exercise too hard. An unexpected load on a foot that does not have the support of a sneaker is traumatic.

IMPORTANT!

Not all dances are equally useful

Many have seen, at least in the movies, what the well-worn legs of famous ballerinas look like. Professional ballet, alas, is not about foot health. “Ballet legs” is the result of many years of exertion, attempts to force oneself to perform movements that are not provided for by nature (work on pointe shoes). A common problem in ballet is osteoarthritis of the finger joints, which develops due to huge overloads and, accordingly, wear. This is a high price to pay for the opportunity to do what you love. But we are not talking about professional, but amateur dances. Can there be problems?

- With a gradual, non-excessive load during dance classes, there should be no problems with the feet, says Olga Chizhevskaya, executive director of the League for the Promotion of Podiatry. - They begin in the event that a person consciously goes to overcome. For example, she is engaged in sports dancing and preparing for competitions. Adolescents with the so-called “hypermobility syndrome” often face deformities of the foot (they have an excessively mobile ligamentous-articular apparatus). Excessively actively training, they may well “earn” the overpronation of the foot (blockage and subsequent flat feet). This, in turn, provokes microtrauma, subluxations and a whole cascade of problems with the entire musculoskeletal system. The situation is aggravated by the fact that, unlike adults, juniors, receiving serious loads, rarely use preventive measures from the arsenal of sports medicine (individual insoles, taping, etc.).

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DANCES AS A MEANS OF PREVENTION OF FOOT DEFORMATION

One of the urgent problems of the present time is the problem of violations of foot deformity in children.

Dance and choreography are presented as effective means of combating postural disorders and preventing the development of chronic diseases of the musculoskeletal system.

Flatfoot is a deformity of the foot characterized by flattening of its arches. There are two types of foot deformity: transverse and longitudinal. With transverse flat feet, there is a flattening of the transverse arch of the foot.

With longitudinal flat feet, there is a flattening of the longitudinal arch, and the foot is in contact with the floor with almost the entire area of ​​the sole. In rare cases, a combination of both forms of flat feet is possible. The consequences of flat feet often manifest themselves in a negative way for the rest of your life. The whole body suffers from an improperly formed foot.

In matters of prevention of flat feet, an integrated approach is important, which includes: foot hygiene, proper footwear, prevention of chronic, long-term diseases. But the most important thing is a well-organized motor mode. There are many ways to prevent the disease: therapeutic exercises, walking barefoot, the use of home-made or specialized mats with a relief surface, massages.
Experts refer to regular dance classes as the most effective methods. Dancing classes are an effective means of preventing violations of the physical development of schoolchildren. The health benefits of dancing are enormous. Dance classes have a number of advantages in comparison with other types of motor activity. Let's consider some of them.

1. Dance is a synthesis of music and movement. Music, as a means of physiological influence, is used in many sports and activities, but a truly organic fusion of music and movement can only be achieved in dance.

2. The dance involves literally all muscle groups; from the muscles of the foot to the mimic muscles of the face.

3. Dance is a complex of all kinds of physical exercises. Dance is both slow walking, and fast running, and a swift jump; it is a quick explosive movement and a static posture; this is an energetic lightning-fast rotation of the whole body and a barely perceptible movement of the finger of the hand; dance is the ultimate tension and complete relaxation of one or another muscle group.

4. Dance is natural and inherent in a person, just like breathing itself. Dance is available to everyone, dance accompanies a person from his birth to old age.

5. Dance is always delight and joyful emotions.

As a rule, in dance, a fairly large load is placed on the legs, and especially on the feet. With the help of special exercises from dance training, you can correct such a disease as flat feet, and generally strengthen your feet. It must be remembered that this may require a rather long period. Therefore, in remedial classes, the principle of consistency is dominant, requiring regular classes, not allowing unjustified breaks. Since corrective effects can occur under the condition of an unchanged order of exercises, their repeated repetition. Only systematically planned, purposeful work will effectively solve the problems of correction and rehabilitation of children.

Prevention of flat feet
- walking barefoot on uneven surfaces - pebbles, sand, grass, earth or on a special massage mat at home,
- foot massage, for example, with a rubber ball with spikes.
- gymnastics for the feet, including such simple exercises as walking on toes and on the heels, on the inside and on the outside of the foot, lifting the heels off the floor (while the toes remain on the floor), "creeping" movements of the foot forward and backward with using your toes,
- try to pick up various objects from the floor with bare feet,
- "Swedish" wall - climbing on it, the child strengthens the muscles of the feet, improves their blood supply and coordination of movements. - pouring cool water on the feet, you not only stimulate blood circulation in the legs, but also harden the entire child's body.

Starting position (hereinafter I.P.) lying on the back.
1. Plantar and dorsiflexion of the feet, holding in each position for 4-6 seconds.
2. Bicycle leg circles with emphasis on foot movements.
3. Simultaneous clenching of the fingers and toes into fists, followed by spreading the fingers.

4. Circular movements of the feet in and out slowly with maximum amplitude.
5. Capturing a large object (ball, sandbag) with the feet, shifting it behind the head with subsequent return to I.P.
6. Alternate and simultaneous stretching of the heels for 4-6 seconds.
7. I.P. Lying on your back, legs bent at the knee (KS), hip (TBS) joints, the soles are on the floor. Breeding and bringing together the heels.
8. I.P. as in 5. Alternate and simultaneous lifting of the heels from the floor with retention for 4-6 seconds.
9. I.P. as in 5. Breeding the legs with the setting on the toes, mixing with the setting on the heels.

I.P. sitting on the floor. Hands on the back. Legs are straight.
1. Alternate straight leg raises with simultaneous dorsiflexion
2. stop and hold for 4-6 seconds.
3. Straight leg raise, foot dorsiflexion. Flexion of the leg in the CS simultaneously with plantar flexion of the foot. Extension in the CS, plantar flexion of the foot, acceptance of I.P.
4. I.P. sitting on the floor. Hands on the back. The legs are bent in the COP, TBS, the feet are on the floor. Breeding and bringing together the heels.
5. I.P. as in 3. Capturing small objects in front of you, shifting on both sides of yourself, and then returning to the place.
6. I.P. as in 3. Capturing a large object with the feet, straightening the legs in the CS, returning to I.P.
7. I.P. as in 3. Corrugation with the feet of the rug.
8. I.P. as in 3. Rolling a small ball with each foot.
9. I.P. as in 3 Skating with the feet of a stick.
10.I.P. as in 3. Breeding the legs with the placement on the heels, mixing with the placement on the toes.

I.P. standing

1. Rise on toes.
2. Heel raises
3. Half squats on toes.
4. Rise on the outer arches of the feet.
5. I.P. standing, socks together, heels apart. Half squats.
6. I.P. standing on a gymnastic stick. Squats.
7. Walking in place without taking your toes off the floor.
8. Turns of the torso to the sides without taking the feet off the floor
9.


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