USING LABAN’S EFFORTS TO DEFINE MOVEMENT IN FIVE MUSIC GENRES

The purpose of this study was to assist in understanding the impact music has on movement. This researcher evaluated music’s impact on movement by looking at the movement performed by nine female dancers in grades six through eight. This movement was performed to five different genres of music commonly found in five different types of dance classes and was measured in Laban’s eight efforts. There were two research instruments used in this study: A researcher survey yielding quantitative data and a participant survey producing qualitative data. The data suggested that there is a difference in how the body responds in movement to different music but only to a certain extent. Many songs shared common dominant Laban elements, but saw differences in how many times those common elements were used within each different song