Dancercise Blog

In the course of looking around at kids music in general, trying to see what is considered “good” by those that review these kinds of things, and looking at award winners and such, it was surprising to see the relative lack of crossover.  Looking at sites that sell songs or curriculum for dance teachers, relatively few of them seem to be using the same approach to song writing or development as mainstream artists.   I’m not sure why that is.  Perhaps those tunes that are written specifically for dance classes are written from the perspective of a choreographer, and so there’s more focus on the length and the beat than - say - on the lyrics.  Anyone who reads this and knows us will know that we try to bridge that gap more obviously, there’s no reason in our view why the music a parent would buy for their kids and put in the car can’t be the same as the music you teach dance to, even at a younger age.  Obviously, by the time the kids are older - say over 6 - you’re already using for the most part commercial licensed music.  But the stuff for younger kids often strikes us as quite banal, lyrically or musically oversimplified, poorly produced or in some other way less than it could be.   There’s some great stuff out there too, of course.  But hey, I’m just rambling.

I came across this old post in the WSJ on the state of kids music, thanks to Amy at www.hipyoungparent.com. It touches on a subject near and dear to us as parents as well as music producers, because it reminded us of our objectives when we started writing our own music. The article by Jennifer Graham catalogs what any parent knows - that, while there is a lot of kids’ music around, a distressingly large proportion of it seems intended to be dumbed down to the point of breathtaking inanity. I guess the point is that - even though your audience may be 2 or 3 and benefit from some simplicity and repetitiveness - you don’t have to make it unbearable for parents too. And kids can pick up on more complexity than we sometimes give them credit for. I know many of the kids who’ve participated in Dancercise can tell you how many bones are in the human body because they’ve heard Funny Bone a few times. That’s not to diminish the accomplishments of the many artists who’ve been successful with the simplified approach, but more to point out that it doesn’t have to be that way….

In my Dancercise classes, I teach my 3 rules, which really, we can all apply to life in general.

1. Be a good listener.
2. Try your best.
3. Have Fun!

While going over our lesson for our song and dance for “Harri and the Tortoise” I asked the kids why the tortoise won the race, even though the rabbit was the fastest. It was because she remembered the 3 rules and she won!

Then my 5 year old student chimes in, “Yes! AND if you have fun….you win!”

BRILLIANT! Now that is a life lesson we should all practice!

Heart & Star!

Did anyone catch this? Click here to read a startling report from the UK that the basis of childhood obesity sets in before age 5 - BEFORE school! The symptoms are what you’d expect - poor nutritional choices and limited exercise - but this was quite stunning to see it documented as beginning that early. If you watch the video segment, you’ll hear the mom say that “I can only get trousers that fit him from the United States, they seem to cater better for obese children.” Is this a wake-up call or what? For those of you not familiar with some British lingo, “one stone” is 14 lbs, so the boy was over 110 lbs by age 7. And “crisps” in the UK are “chips” here, and “sweets” are “candy”. Anyway you get the point - quite shocking.
By the way I recommend subscribing to the BBC World News RSS Feed here if you want a good diverse mix of world news and current affairs.

We thought you might like to see a sneak preview of the cover art from the new CD, Dance It! Here it is, along with the back art that has the track listing. For any more, you’ll have to check back to see when and where you can buy the CD. Of course, if you come to the gig at the MOA, you will be able to buy the CD there for a very special promotional price.

Hi there everyone!

We have an exciting couple of weeks coming up around the holidays here.  I’m sure everyone is busy but hopefully enjoying some quality family time, whether you stay in town or head out.  We have a busy run-in to 2009 - first, Tessa’s new CD “Dance It!” is on the press as we speak and should be available by January - we’ll be selling it first on www.cdbaby.com (check back here for a buy link soon), but hope to have it on iTunes and various other digital distribution outlets shortly after.  Secondly, Tessa is performing a live show at the Mall Of America (yes, that Mall!) on Tuesday December 30th.  Two shows actually!  At 10am and 11am at Sears Court (right outside Sears on the 1st floor).  We hope you can join us.  We’ll be filming the shows for Tessa’s DVD so we’d love to see some familiar faces!

Have a happy and safe holiday season - see you at The Mall!

What a great experience!

My daughter and I checked out Tessa and Dancercise Kids in Minnetonka last week and had a great time. I’m a little apprehensive about getting my daughter into any type of traditional “dance class”. After all, she’s only 2 and a half. But, Tessa and Dancercise Kids is not your typical “dance” environment. Instead, it’s relaxed, fun, upbeat and inviting… even for newcomers like us. Tessa is warm, encouraging and a breath of fresh air. My daughter (who has trouble sitting still for even 5 minutes!) didn’t move. She just kept her eyes on Tessa as the class rehearsed a couple very darling songs with cute, simple movements for the kids. It was a great, come-as-you-are experience. I recommend it to anyone with children!

Kelly & Bella Plummer

What an fantastic night the girls had at  the Friday Night Parents Night Out session at Dancercise Kids. 

Our girls ages 6 and twins that are 3 1/2 had an absolute blast with Tessa.  The best part is that they were able to exercise and move around while my husband and I enjoyed an uninterrupted dinner.  We really thought it was a treat and so did they.  When we picked up the girls to go home, they were all smiles.  They had made a special Thanksgiving craft that we passed along to their grandparents, had pizza and popcorn.    The girls have since asked about going back which is the best review a parent could ask for.  It was a fun evening enjoyed by all and we’ll definately do it again! 

Katie Welch-Peterson

Tessa’s going to be performing live at a few shows this winter, starting with a couple at the Chanhassen Library on Saturday December 6th with MotherVenture and for Toys For Tots, then at the Mall of America’s Toddler Tuesday event on Tuesday December 30th.  Check out the live concerts page for details!  More to come soon.

Well, believe it or not, Fall is almost upon us.  Those of us working to build class schedule for the Fall are already hard at work, pushing the summer aside, and thinking about our classes for the Fall and Winter.  We hope you’re thinking about it, if only a little.  We’d love to see you at one of the child care centers that provide Dancercise Kids, or at our studio in Minnetonka, MN soon!