Music education in societythen undue attention has to be given to this particular obstacle. Until
it has been surmounted with ease it will be a disturbance to the artistic
experience. Admittedly it is essential for such difficulties to be
overcome, but if too much attention is given to their removal the
completeness of the artistic experience will have been lost. In the
early stages of learning by participation it is better to move on, leaving
some roughnesses, rather than give too much attention to accurate
detail.
While we have learned a great deal about this matter of participation
in the field of song, we have found out still more in the field of folk
dance. The revival of folk dancing in England began half a century
ago. For many years we followed conventional methods of dance
teaching, giving an analysed technique in class to students who learned
as individuals. This method produced a uniformity and style of perform-
ance rather remote from the performance of a folk dance by tradi-
tional dancers. My own view after many years of experience is that the
best way to capture the quality and style of a folk dance is to follow
the traditional method of letting the novice experience the essence of
the rhythmical movement by joining in with a group already versed in
the style of dancing. After 40 years’ experiment with the teaching of
folk dance in England the tendency now is to follow this traditional
method. Let the novice have the opportunity to dance with more
experienced dancers. For him the effect is more pleasurable and the
response more immediate than the method of detailed instruction, step
by step. In the long run, the traditional method-if slow-secures a
more accurate and authentic representation of the particular folk form.
The success of the method has been most striking in the case of the
social dance.
Nearly everyone has had the experience of taking part in social danc-
ing, either in the ballroom or out in the open, and most of us have
been surprised to discover how easy it is to get caught up in the danc-
ing company without knowing very much detail of the nature and the
character of the movements which are being performed. But the aver-
age person, as a rule, does not care to be plunged immediately into
such an experience. He usually seeks a short breathing space in order
to take in through his eyes the kind of thing that is going on and the
sort of actions he will be expected to do. For a short time he wants to
be passive and to take in the general effect. This is a very natural atti-
tude, and if his observation and responsiveness is sufficiently acute he
can respond with remarkable accuracy to the requirements of the dance
form. In the case of young children this preliminary to participation is